Nearly 4,000 Army soldiers killed in last 12 yrs: Antony

Nearly 4,000 soldiers have been killed in the country after the Kargil operations in 1999, Lok Sabha was informed Monday.

New Delhi: Nearly 4,000 soldiers have been killed in the country after the Kargil operations in 1999 while more than 390 Army troops have committed suicide in the last three years, Lok Sabha was informed Monday.

In another written reply in Lok Sabha, Defence Minister A K Antony said more than 25,000 Junior Commissioned Officers and jawans have proceeded on pre-mature retirement in the last three years. "530 soldiers were martyred during Kargil War under operation Vijay. 3,987 soldiers have been killed afterwards during the years 2000-2012," he said. The Indian Army is deployed in counter-insurgency and counter terrorist operations in Jammu and Kashmir and northeastern states for over two decades. In addition, they are also guarding the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan in Jammu and Kashmir. On suicides in the force, Antony said, "A total of 394 Army personnel committed suicide between 2009 up to November 20, this year." Recently, the suicide by a jawan in an armoured unit in Samba in J-K had led to a face-off between officers and soldiers after which a detailed court of inquiry was ordered. Antony said in last three years, 25,063 Army personnel have opted for pre-mature retirement. "However, reasons for seeking premature retirement cannot be attributed to stressful working environment," the Minister said. As per the figures provided by the Ministry, 7,499 personnel took premature retirement in 2009, 7,249 in 2010 and 10,315 in 2011. PTI