A pal of gloom descended at Khandayat Sahi in Odisha’s Puri district as the people of the village came to know that a son of the soil was among the five Army personnel killed after their vehicle caught fire following a terrorist attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district.

The deceased Odia jawan has been identified as Debashis Biswal of Khandayat Sahi of Alaguma panchayat near Sakhigopal in Puri district of Odisha.

Five Army personnel were killed and another was seriously injured on Thursday after their vehicle caught fire following a terrorist attack in Poonch district.

Biswal got married in 2021 and is survived by his wife Sushree Sangeeta and a seven-month-old daughter.

As the news of Biswal's death spread, a large number of people reached Biswal’s house. Hundreds of people were waiting at the village to receive the body which is scheduled to be flown here on Friday.

"We are pained as well as proud that a son of our soil has been a martyr. He was a great person and takes part in all the events in the village during holidays. He had visited the village barely four months ago," said Biswal's cousin Lalit Kishore Nayak.

Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik and Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Friday expressed grief over the demise of an Odia jawan among the five security personnel killed in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir.

Taking to Twitter, Patnaik said: "It is too painful to learn about the martyrdom of brave Odia jawan Debashis Biswal at Poonch sector of J&K. His sacrifice for the nation will be remembered for all time to come. I convey my condolence to the family members of the great martyrs." While expressing condolence, Pradhan said that sacrifice of Biswal will not go in vain.

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