In Jammu and Kashmir, 17 army personnel, including an officer, were killed and 15 seriously injured on Monday when a group of about 450 men were swept away by a snow avalanche. The incident took place when they were setting up a winter warfare camp at Khilanmarg, 70 kilometers from Srinagar. An army spokesman, Colonel J S Brar said, seventy personnel have been rescued so far. The dead included an officer, Lt Prateek, and 16 other ranks from the Army's prestigious High Altitude Warfare School. Some of those seriously injured are in a critical condition in a hospital in Gulmarg. The group comprising nearly 450 personnel had set out at Eight this morning from Gulmarg and reached Khilanmarg eight kilometers uphill at a height of over 10,000 feet to set up a winter warfare training camp when they were hit by an avalanche. Gulmarg and its surrounding areas have been receiving unprecedented snowfall for the past two days with reports of six-feet of snow in certain areas.