Srinagar: The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) lost eight of its brave men in the 'fidayeen' attack on its convoy near Srinagar on Saturday.
Over 20 jawans were also injured in the attack in which two terrorists were killed.
While two of the ultras managed to escape, it is the exemplary courage of some of the men on board the CRPF bus that is being talked about.
As per a report in NDTV, when the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) terrorists ambushed the bus and started spraying bullets on it and its occupants, some of the brave men on the bus put themselves in between the bullets and their colleagues.
48-year-old Vir Singh suffered seven bullet-hits but still he gathered courage and took position at a window with his AK-47.
He died a few minutes later but by then, he had done his bit by firing 39 rounds.
Likewise, Kailash Yadav (38, Unnao) and Satish Chand (39, Meerut) tried to stop the LeT terrorists with all they had when their bus was ambushed in Pampore town, some 16 kilometres from Srinagar.
The duo also lost their lives but, as per reports, ensured the terrorists could not gain access to the bus.
The terrorists were then engaged and taken out by men in a bullet-proof vehicle that was moving behind the bus.
Senior CRPF officers acknowledged the bravery of their men and said 'they saved many lives'.
The CRPF suffered most of the casualties in the initial stage of the attack when its men were caught unaware.
As per reports, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar has blamed the CRPF for deviating from the Standard Operating Procedure as the convoy moved without enough security checks.
Now, CRPF has decided to move in smaller convoys as compared to big ones like on Saturday.
