Lt Colonel Gaurav Solanki Lt Colonel Gaurav Solanki

The body of Lieutenant Colonel Gaurav Solanki, who died in an accident in the Democratic Republic of Congo on September 8, arrived in Delhi on Sunday night and will be handed over to his family on Monday.

Solanki, who had been stationed as a military staff officer with the United Nations Peacekeeping mission in Congo since September last year, had drowned in Lake Kivu while attempting to rescue a fellow Indian Army officer who had fallen into the lake while kayaking.

While the other officer returned safely to the bank, Solanki didn’t, and an intensive search operation, involving helicopters and speed boats, was launched to rescue him. Four days later, his body was recovered from the lake near Goma, which borders Rwanda in East Africa, Army sources said.

Col Aman Anand, spokesperson for the Army, said, “He had gone kayaking in the lake. The waves turned hostile and he saw another officer’s kayak capsize. While the other officer made it to the bank, he couldn’t.”

In his 15 years with the Indian Army, the 37-year-old had served for around 10 years in Kashmir. He also had postings in Manipur and Agra.

The Army spokesperson said, “He was awarded the Wound Medal and Sena Medal (Gallantry) for successful operations against Pakistan-supported terrorists… He was an exceptional officer who performed well in the field as well as in academics.”

Solanki, who was to return to India later this month, is survived by his wife and two children.

At the family home in New Delhi, Solanki’s elder brother said, “He would never speak about his achievements and would quietly keep his medals and trophies in his study at our house. When we asked him what the medals were for, he would smile and change the topic. For him, the country was everything and he was always committed to the Army.”

Solanki graduated from the National Defence Academy in December 2002 and was commissioned into the Jat regiment around 2004 and later volunteered for the elite special forces.

A former batchmate of Lt Col Solanki said, “He was an absolute josh box. He had both his knees replaced around 2015, but he was back on track within six months. He would go out of his way to help others. We used to call him ‘Sollu’, short for Solanki. He was a thorough gentleman and ticked all the boxes of how an Army officer should be.”

The family last saw him in 2018, when he was posted in Agra. The last rites will be conducted on Monday at the Army Cremation Ground in Delhi Cantonment.

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