New Delhi: Tsetan Namgyal, who served as a porter with the Indian Army during the 1962 India-China war, passed away at 86 on Saturday, 22 February. Namgyal had also been in six months’ captivity in China.
Traditional supply lines did not reach the high-altitude, challenging terrain where the 1962 war unfolded, necessitating porters to carry supplies, including ammunition, food, and medical equipment, to forward positions. The intense conflict saw China taking many individuals, both soldiers and civilians, prisoner.
Chushul Councillor Konchok Stanzin posted about Namgyal’s death on X on Saturday. In the post, he said, “Today, we mourn the loss of an unsung hero, Mr Tsetan Namgyal—at the age of 86—who served as a porter during the 1962 war at Sirjab 1&2. My heartfelt condolences to his family. Saluting his bravery and resilience, especially during his 6+ months in captivity in China.”
Earlier in 2016, the councillor urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to honour Namgyal. However, despite his service, Namgyal did not get any official recognition from the government of India.
Namgyal served alongside Param Vir Chakra awardee Lieutenant Col Dhan Singh Thapa, then-Major, who commanded the 1st Battalion of 8th Gorkha Rifles at Srijap 1 post on the northern bank of Pangong Lake. Reportedly, as India lost the forward posts during the war, Tsetan Namgyal, along with several Indian soldiers, was jailed in China for six months and 26 days.
Namgyal later received recognition from the Ladakh-based 14 Corps, after which he continued to receive ration and medical assistance. Stanzin, however, has called the benefits “meagre” in the background of Namgyal’s contribution to the nation.
More recently, in 2022, the current Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi, then the Northern Army commander, honoured Tsetan Namgyal for his services during the 1962 operation in Ladakh.
Namgyal was a resident of Yourgo village at the border in the Chushul constituency of the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council (LAHDC), Leh.
(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)
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