In Pics: Nation prayed for Siachen hero Lance Naik Hanamanthappa

Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Koppad, who survived after being buried under an avalanche in Siachen, died in army hospital at 11.45am on Thursday.

Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Koppad, who survived after being buried under an avalanche in Siachen, died in army hospital at 11.45am on Thursday.

Students stand and pray near a sand sculpture created by Sudarsan Pattnaik of Hanamanthappa Koppad. (AFP)

The odds were stacked against him but the nation was pinning its hope on his fighting spirit to see him through.

(PTI)

As Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Koppad battled for his life at the Army Hospital Research & Referral (R&R), students and citizens in some parts of the nation were seen organising puja ceremonies and taking part in a candlelight vigil praying for his recovery.

Devotees prayed for the long life of Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Koppad when he was on a ventilator at the Army’s Hospital in New Delhi. (PTI)

Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) visited Siachen braveheart Lance Naik Hanumanthappa at the Army Research & Referral Hospital in New Delhi. (AFP)

Youth Congress workers performing hawan for speedy recovery of Siachen miracle soldier Lance Naik Hanumanthappa Koppad, in Bhopal on Wednesday. (PTI)

Siachen veterans said the window of survival at those heights - Koppad was trapped in an avalanche at 20,500 feet - was barely two to three days.

Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Koppad's mother and wife at their home in Betadoor village in Hubli on Tuesday. (PTI)

Situated on the northern edge of the Himalayas in Kashmir with altitudes reaching as high as 22,000 feet, the glacier is an icy desert and has become more prone to avalanches after recent snowfall in the upper reaches of the Valley.

Indian army soldiers climb an ice wall at the Siachen Base camp. (AP)

Operations by the specialized teams of the Army and the Air Force searching for the bodies of the soldiers hit by an avalanche, in Siachen. (PTI)