Families mourn officers martyred in Anantnag encounter

Both the states of Haryana and Punjab have been mourning Colonel Manpreet Singh of New Chandigarh and Major Ashish Dhonchak of Panipat since Wednesday. Both Singh and Dhaunchal were martyred in an encounter with terrorists in Anantnag, Jammu and Kashmir on 13 September.
The two martyred officers are survived by their respective spouses and children. Colonel Singh, originally a resident of Punjab’s Mohali district, had recently shifted to New Chandigarh. Singh has two children, aged seven and two-and-a-half. As of Thursday, his 68-year-old mother, Manjeet Kaur, was unaware that he had lost his life in the line of duty. The Colonel was a second-generation army man; his father, Lakhbir Singh, was also in the armed forces. Colonel Manpreet’s wife Jagmeet Grewal is a teacher in a government school located in Panchkula, Haryana. Colonel Singh was to come home next month on leave on his daughter’s birthday. He returned to duty after spending leave on 5 January.
Meanwhile, martyred Major Dhonchak of Panipat was to return to his newly built home in TDI City on his 36th birthday on 23 October. Now his mortal remains will be brought to the same house. The Major is survived by his wife Jyoti and a two-year-old daughter. His family currently lives in a rented house in Sector 7, Panipat. Family members say Major’s dream was to live in his own house and construction has been ongoing in TDI City. His maternal uncle Mahavir, told reporters that he had spoken to Dhonchak over the phone only three days ago.
The Major, a Panipat resident, studied in Kendriya Vidyalaya. At the age of 25, he was recruited as a Lieutenant to the Indian Army in 2012 and was promoted to the rank of Major in 2018. Two and a half years ago he was posted from Meerut to Rajouri. Major Ashish was married to Jyoti, a resident of Jind, on 15 November 2015. Four months ago, in May, he had returned home on leave to attend a family wedding. He stayed here for 10 days and after that, he returned to duty.
His family earlier lived in his native village Binjhaul. However, he shifted to the city two years ago. Major Dhonchak was one of four siblings and leaves behind three sisters. His three sisters Anju, Suman and Mamta are married. His mother Kamala Grihani and father Lalchand have retired from NFL. His uncle’s son Vikas was also recruited as a lieutenant in the Indian Army. Who has now become a major. His posting is in Jhansi but nowadays he is on training in Pune.