A soldier died in the line of duty in Siachen due to a medical condition linked to high altitude, officials aware of the matter said on Sunday.

Gawate Akshay Laxman is the first Agniveer, recruited under the Agnipath model, battle casualty as his death occurred while on duty, the officials said.

“Quartered in snow silent to remain, when the bugle calls they shall rise and march again. All ranks of Fire and Fury Corps salute the supreme sacrifice of #Agniveer (Operator) Gawate Akshay Laxman, in the line of duty, in the unforgiving heights of #Siachen and offer deepest condolences to the family,” the Leh-based HQs 14 Corps wrote on X.

“General Manoj Pande and All Ranks of the Indian Army salute the supreme sacrifice of Agniveer (Operator) Gawate Akshay Laxman, in the line of duty, in the unforgiving heights of Siachen. Indian Army stands firm with the bereaved family in this hour of grief,” the Indian Army wrote on X.

The Agnipath model marked a stark departure from the military’s decades-old recruitment system that ended after the government announced the new scheme last year. It seeks to recruit soldiers for four years, with a provision to retain 25% of them in regular service for 15 more years after fresh screening.

Nearly a thousand soldiers have died guarding Siachen since the Indian Army took control of the glacier in April 1984, almost twice the number of lives lost in the 1999 Kargil war. Around a fifth of the casualties were linked to enemy fire before the November 2003 ceasefire between India and Pakistan kicked in, as previously reported by HT.

The remaining deaths on the world’s highest and coldest battlefield were because of nature’s fury, accidents and medical reasons.

The army launched Operation Meghdoot in April 1984 to evict Pakistani soldiers who had occupied heights in Siachen, a 76-km river of slow-moving ice. Almost 80% posts on the glacier are located above 16,000 feet, with Bana towering above the rest at 21,753 feet.

Laxman’s death comes days after Agniveer Amritpal Singh died by suicide in the Poonch sector. He shot himself while on sentry duty.