Diglipur Oct 7: The night air in Diglipur was heavy with silence as the convoy carrying the tricolour-draped coffin of Agniveer Rakesh Das rolled into Ramakrishna Gram. Streetlights flickered on rows of grieving faces — neighbours, childhood friends, elders who had watched him grow up. At just 23, Rakesh had returned home, not in uniform but in eternal rest, carried by his brothers-in-arms who had come to give him a soldier’s farewell.
A wave of grief swept across Ramakrishna Gram late Monday night as the mortal remains of Agniveer Rakesh Das (23) arrived in his native village. Wrapped in the Indian tricolour, the young soldier’s coffin was received with solemn salutes and tearful eyes. Rakesh, the son of Harolal Das, a daily wage labourer, had joined the Indian Army in 2023 under the Agnipath Scheme, fulfilling a dream that carried him from the quiet lanes of Diglipur to some of the country’s most unforgiving terrains. He had served in Ladakh before being posted to a remote border outpost in Rajasthan with the 219 Medium Regiment (Artillery).
His life of service was cut short when he fell gravely ill with pneumonia in the harsh, isolated desert region where advanced medical care was hard to access. He succumbed on October 5, 2025. On Tuesday, as his body was flown from the mainland to Port Blair and then taken to Diglipur by an Army convoy, the entire town turned out to honour him. The procession — marked by military precision and quiet reverence — was joined by personnel of the Army, Navy, and Coast Guard, alongside hundreds of local residents who lined the streets to pay their respects.
The deceased’s father, mother, and married sister stood by his funeral pyre, surrounded by neighbours who shared their sorrow. In a moment that left many with moist eyes, the Army handed over his neatly folded uniform to his father, a symbolic gesture of a grateful nation saluting his service.
Relatives recalled that Rakesh had last come home during Raksha Bandhan earlier this year, promising his family he would return soon. His absence now echoed painfully among those memories. The cremation, conducted with full military honours, was both a personal loss for a humble island family and a poignant reminder of the silent sacrifices made by soldiers in remote postings.nAs the flames of the funeral pyre rose against the night sky, the villagers stood in silence — united in pride, grief, and gratitude for a son of the soil who gave his all in the service of his country.
