An army officer from Pakistan's minority Hindu community has made history by becoming the first man from his community to be elevated to the rank of lieutenant colonel.

Lt. Col. Dr Kelash Kumar, who belongs to the Tharparkar area in Sindh, joined the Pakistan Army as a captain after graduating with an MBBS from the Liaquat University of Medical Health and Sciences (LUMHS), Jamshoro.

Lt. Col. Kumar was promoted to the rank of major in 2019.

He has also been awarded the Tamgha-e-Difa, Tamgha-e-Baqa and Tamgha-e-Azam for his services and valour.

He also served in the army operation Al-Meezan in the Waziristan region and was also a part of Operation Raah-e-Nijat in Swat against the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan.

Many took to social media to congratulate the newly-promoted officer on making history, including user Kapil Dev who was among the first to share the news.