Srinagar, Aug 3:A comic on the life and gallant act of Army officer Col. Jojan Thomas, who died while fighting militants along the Line of Control in 2008, was released on Thursday in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir.

The comic was released by Beena Thomas, wife of the late Col. Thomas, in the presence of their son Philiomen in the Machil area of Kupwara.

The aim of publishing this comic is to present the life of Col. Jojan Thomas for future soldiers as a guiding light and motivation while discharging their duties, Beena Thomas said.

“The comic is also aimed at making stories of our heroes accessible to schoolchildren to motivate them towards following in the footsteps of these heroes as future citizens of this country,” they added.

In August 2008, Col. Thomas was commanding the 45 Rashtriya Rifles battalion in the Machil sector and acting on a specific input from a militant movement he led from the front.

“He neutralised two terrorists at close quarters. In the process, he sustained severe gunshot wounds. In spite of this, he refused to be evacuated and, in a daring act, rolled down a cliff to surprise a third terrorist who had taken a concealed position and was engaging our soldiers effectively. In a fierce hand-to-hand fight, he eliminated the third terrorist. However, he later succumbed to his injuries,’ they said.

Col. Thomas, was awarded the highest peacetime gallantry award, ‘Ashok Chakra’ posthumously.

The comic was released at ‘Naaz-e-Hind’ at ‘ Zamindar Gali’ in Machil sector in Kupwara.

‘Naaz – e – Hind’ is a complex made at Z Gali Machil to commemorate the supreme sacrifice of Col Jojan Thomas and Naik Neeraj, who laid down their lives fighting the terrorists near Z Gali and were honoured with the posthumous award of the Ashoka Chakra by a grateful nation.