Guwahati: On the first anniversary of the Pahalgam tragedy, the family of Indian Air Force Corporal Tage Hailyang in Arunachal Pradesh’s Lower Subansiri district says it has moved beyond mourning and is focused on seeing terrorism eliminated from the country.Hailyang’s elder brother Tage Laliang said the family wants the govt to set a deadline to end Pakistan-backed terrorism, similar to timelines announced against naxalism. Another elder brother, Tage Mali, an Army soldier posted in Siachen, has told the family he is determined to eliminate terrorists.Residents in Arunachal Pradesh’s Lower Subansiri district marked the first anniversary of the Pahalgam carnage by inaugurating a memorial park and installing a bronze statue of Hailyang in Ziro Valley on land belonging to the Tage family.Ziro-Hapoli MLA Hage Appa inaugurated the memorial park and statue along with Hailyang’s father Tage Tade, in the presence of defence personnel, administrative and police officials, and community leaders. Appa said the state govt had provided Rs 50 lakh to the family. “Although no compensation can truly replace a person’s life, it has been given as a form of relief. The second promise was that one job would be provided to the family — this is currently in process,” he added.“Hailyang was an adorable, social and kind-hearted brother who was liked by all. The loss is irreparable but we have consoled our hearts. On the anniversary of the Pahalgam attack on April 22, we only hope that terrorism gets eliminated from India. Our message to brother Tage Mali who is serving in Siachen is to write down the names of terrorists in his bullets,” Laliang said. “The Modi govt tried a lot to nab the terrorists involved in the attack and we came to know that one of the attackers had been killed. But we want all the terrorists who fled to Pakistan or hiding to be punished,” Laliang said. “I used to tell my brother to eliminate terrorists in memory of brother Hailyang whenever he encountered them. We do not cry but feel proud of the heroics of Hailyang,” he said.Laliang said the family initially heard Hailyang had suffered a head injury, possibly from a fall, before learning it was a bullet wound as reports of the Pahalgam massacre spread. “My heartbeat increased and there was total unrest among family members,” he said.Hailyang’s wife, Charo Kamhua, was at the spot but did not respond to calls from the family, Laliang said. Hailyang’s parents — his father in his 70s and mother in her 60s — were informed only the next day.The family said it took days to understand what happened at the scene. Laliang said they later learned from Kamhua that the couple were about to escape but stopped after seeing a family whose father had been shot dead. “The mother was unable to flee the scene with their two children. Perhaps Hailyang was trying to help in rescuing one of their children and a bullet from the terrorist’s gun hit Hailyang,” Laliang said.“He was our most peace-loving brother and never expressed anguish over anybody. The loneliness created by his demise is felt the most by mother who breaks down when his memories make her heart heavy at times. But other members of our family have earned the courage to face the reality,” he added.Hailyang, the seventh among 11 siblings, had been a major financial support for his brothers, the family said. He was visiting Jammu and Kashmir with his wife when the attack took place. He had served in Srinagar for five years and had recently been transferred to Dibrugarh, and was on a short break before joining in Assam.While studying at Don Bosco College in Itanagar, he saw an IAF advertisement and applied despite hesitation within the family, relatives said, adding that some family members were not aware he had applied.
