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Happy Vijay Diwas..
Happy Vijay Diwas..
- Thread starter Kunal Biswas
- Start date
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Old Memories..
- Joined
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- Messages
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Our Heroes..
Captain Saurabh Kalia
29 June 1976 – 21 June 1999
In the first fortnight of May 1999, he went out for patrol duty three times in the Kaksar area of Kargil. He observed and reported large-scale intrusion of Pakistani Army and foreign mercenaries in Indian side of LoC (Kargil). He assumed guard of "Bajrang Post" at the height 13,000-14,000 feet to check infiltration along with 5 soldiers in the Kaksar area.
On May 15, 1999, after a continuous cross fire with Pakistan armed forces from across the LoC, he and his troops ran out of ammunition. It is also believed that their signal instrument was out of order, or not working in those conditions. They were finally encircled by a platoon of Pakistan rangers and captured alive before any Indian reinforcement could reach for their help. No trace of this entire patrol was left and Skardu Radio of Pakistan reported that Lt. Saurabh Kalia and five of his men were captured alive.
They were in their captivity for over twenty-two (May 15, 1999 – June 7, 1999) days and subjected to unprecedented brutal torture as evident from their bodies handed over by Pakistan Army on June 9, 1999.
Capt.Vikram Batra
Param Vir Chakra(Posthumous)
September 9, 1974 – July 7, 1999
Captain Vikram Batra, 13 JAK Rifles, and his Delta Company was given the task of recapturing Point 5140. Nicknamed Lion King ('Sher Shah' in Hindi) , he decided to lead the rear, as an element of surprise would help stupefy the enemy. He and his men ascended the sheer rock-cliff, but as the group neared the top, the enemy pinned them on the face of the bare cliff with machine gun fire. Captain Batra, along with five of his men, climbed up regardless and after reaching the top, hurled two grenades at the machine gun post. He single-handedly killed three enemy soldiers in close combat. He was seriously injured during this, but insisted on regrouping his men to continue with the mission. Inspired by the courage displayed by Captain Batra, the soldiers of 13 JAK Rifles charged the enemy position and captured Point 5140 at 3:30 a.m. on 20 June 1999. His company is credited with killing at least eight Pakistani soldiers and recovering a heavy machine gun.
The capture of Point 5140 set in motion a string of successes, such as Point 5100, Point 4700, Junction Peak and Three Pimples. Along with fellows Captain Anuj Nayyar and Rfl Sanjay kumar(PVC), Batra led his men to victory with the recapture of Point 4750 and Point 4875. He was killed when he tried to rescue an injured officer during an enemy counterattack against Point 4875 in the early morning hours of 7 July 1999. His last words were, "Jai Mata Di." (which means in English 'Hail the Divine Mother'). For his sustained display of the most conspicuous personal bravery and leadership of the highest order in the face of the enemy, Captain Vikram Batra was awarded the Param Vir Chakra.
Yogendra Singh Yadav
Param Vir Chakra
Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav of the 18 Grenadiers was part of the Commando 'Ghatak' (Deadly or Lethal) Platoon tasked to capture three strategic bunkers on Tiger Hill in the early morning hours of 4 July 1999. The bunkers were situated at the top of a vertical, snow-covered, 16,500 foot high cliff face. Grenadier Yadav, volunteering to lead the assault, was climbing the cliff face and fixing the ropes for further assault on the feature. Halfway up, an enemy bunker opened up machine gun and rocket fire, killing the platoon commander and two others. In spite of having been hit by three bullets in his groin and shoulder, Yadav climbed the remaining 60 feet and reached the top. Though severely injured, he crawled to the first bunker and lobbed a grenade, killing four Pakistani soldiers and neutralizing enemy fire. This gave the rest of the platoon the opportunity to climb up the cliff face.
Yadav then charged the second bunker along with two of his fellow soldiers and engaged in hand-to-hand combat, killing four Pakistani soldiers. The platoon subsequently succeeded in capturing Tiger Hill. For his sustained display of bravery, Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest medal for gallantry.
Lieutenant Kannad Bhattacharya
Sena Medal (Posthumous)
A patrol consisting of eight other ranks led by Lieutenant Kanad Bhattacharya was tasked to establish a foothold on North Eastern ridge near Tiger Hill. The route was inaccessible and was covered with snow. While Sepoy Major Singh was climbing up, he detected movement of intruders coming down with heavy weapons towards them. He informed the patrol leader who ordered the patrol to deploy. The intruders started firing at the patrol with heavy automatic and sniper fire. Lieutenant Kanad Bhattacharya and Sepoy Major Singh divided the patrol into two groups and started engaging the intruders from different positions thereby displaying outstanding professional competence. Heavy exchange of fire continued between Lieutenant Kanad's patrol and the intruders.
The patrol kept constantly returning the fire with full poise and determination. In the ensuing fire fight a number of patrol members including Lieutenant Kanad received multiple gun shot wounds which was reported later by other personnel of the patrol. Lieutenant Kanad Bhattacharya along with two other ranks laid down his life in the highest tradition of the service. The patrol could not come back and was declared missing in action on 21 May 99. The body of SS-37818M Late Lieutenant Kanad Bhattacharya was recovered from the area of action where it was found buried in the snow, on 15 Jul 99 after the capture of Tiger Hill.
Captain Jerry Prem Raj
Vir Chakra posthumously.
He answered the call of duty and rejoined the unit in Operation Vijay under operation Rakshak after voluntarily cutting short his honeymoon. On the night of 06/07 Jul 1999, he was the Forward Observation Post Officer with 2 Naga during its assault on Twin Bumps in area Point 4875 (Gun Hill) in Dras Sector. During the assault, while directing the artillery fire onto the enemy positions with devastating effect, he was wounded by enemy sniper fire.
Undeterred, he continued his mission amidst heavy enemy fire, when he was yet again hit by a volley of enemy machine gun fire. Gravely injured, he refused to be evacuated and continued to direct accurate artillery fire onto the enemy till he succumbed to his injuries. His spontaneous action resulted in inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy and in the capture of the objective by assaulting infantry. The exceptional display of raw courage and steely resolve in the face of insurmountable odds earned Captain Jerry the award of a 'Vir Chakra' posthumously.
Major Mariappan Saravanan
Vir Chakra posthumously.
10 August 1972 – 29 May 1999
The First Bihar Regiment was in Assam when the Kargil War broke out. They were ordered to move to Kargil, Jammu, and Kashmir. From the heat of Assam to the cold of Kargil wasn't an easy change. There wasn't enough protective weather gear.
On the night of May 28, 1999, Major Sarvanan was assigned the task of capturing a well-fortified Pakistani position at 14,229 feet (4,337 m) in the Batalik sector. He and his men launched an attack at 04:00. Despite intensive firing from the enemy with artillery and automatic weapons, they charged into a volley of bullets. Saravanan fired a rocket launcher into the enemy position that killed two enemy soldiers. During the combat, he was hit by shrapnel and injured but continued fighting. His commanding officer ordered him to retreat because too many Indian soldiers had been injured. 'Genghis Khan fall back,' came the order. 'Not today sir, we are very close to the objective,' replied Sarvanan who was code named Genghis Khan. He killed two more invaders but this time he was hit by a bullet in the head at 06:30, his body nestled in the snow. A friend in Bangalore called his mother and told her Saravanan had died in Kargil. "We switched on the television and saw it in a news bulletin." Two days later, the official telegram arrived. "He was the first officer to fall".
The Vir Chakra was awarded to Saravanan posthumously and presented to his mother by President K. R. Narayanan. Its citation reads: "For our tomorrow..... he gave his today......".
Lt. Balwan Singh
Maha Vir Chakra
Lt. Balwan Singh, an alumnus of Sainik School Kunjpura, was commissioned from the OTA on 06 March 1999 into 18 Grenediers. The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) was awarded to him for his acts of bravery in Kargil war.
Lieutenant Balwan Singh and his Ghataks were tasked to assault Tiger Hill Top on 03 July 1999 as part of multi-****ged attack from the North East direction.
The route to the objective was untrodden, interspersed with pointed rocks and thick snow at a height of 16,500 feet. The officer executed his task with courage and determination.
The team led and exhorted by him moved over twelve hours under intense artillery shelling to reach the designated spur. This move took the enemy totally by surprise as his team used cliff assault mountaineering equipment to reach the Tiger Hill Top stealthily.
On seeing the Ghataks, the enemy reacted in panic with intense automatic fire causing serious injury to the officer and his team.
He refused to be evacuated and unmindful of his injury and grave condition, moved swiftly to encircle the intruders. His adversaries had no choice but to flee from the fury of accurate fire of the Ghataks.
The officer's unparalleled courage under enemy fire and determination led to capturing Tiger Hill, the most important objective of our troops in Operation Vijay.
Lieutenant Keishing Clifford Nangrum
Maha Vir Chakra (Posthumous)
C' Company, 12 Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry was tasked to capture Point 4812 in square 1990, a strongly held enemy position of extreme tactical importance in Batalik Sector. SS-37111P Capt Keishing Clifford Nangrum was tasked to assault the feature from the South Eastern direction; an almost impossible climb. The column encountered strong enemy opposition near the top. The enemy was well entrenched in interconnected bunkers chiselled out of rocks; immune to even artillery fire. The defences were formidable. The enemy brought down heavy automatic and artillery fire on this column. The firefight continued for approximately two hours. Capt Clifford led his section, closed in and threw grenades in the enemy's front line bunkers and boldly charged, killing six enemy soldiers. He tried to snatch the Universal Machine Gun firing at own troops from the enemy but received a volley of bullets. This audacious action of Capt Clifford completely stunned the enemy. Heavily outnumbered and badly wounded Capt Clifford refused to be evacuated and continued firing till he succumbed to his injuries. This act of Capt Clifford gave valuable reaction time to out columns to capture Point 4812.Capt Clifford had displayed unparalleled bravery, dogged determination and raw courage. He made the supreme sacrifice in the highest traditions on the Indian Army.
Major Padmapani Acharya
Maha Vir Chakra, posthumously
On 28 June 1999, in the battalion attack on the Tololing feature by the 2nd Rajputana Rifles, Major Padmapani Acharya as a Company Commander, was assigned the formidable task of capturing an enemy position which was heavily fortified and strongly held with mine fields and sweeping machine gun and artillery fire. Success of the battalion and brigade operation hinged on the early capture of this position. However the company attack almost faltered at the very beginning, when the enemy's artillery fire came down squarely on the leading platoon, inflicting large numbers of casualties. With utter disregard to his personal safety, Major Padmapani Acharya took the reserve platoon and led it through raining artillery shells.
Even as his men were falling to enemy fire, he continued to encourage his men and charged at the enemy with the reserve platoon up the steep rock face. Unmindful of the hail of bullets from the enemy's bunker, Major Padmapani Acharya crawled up to the bunker and lobbed grenades. Severely injured and unable to move, he ordered his men to leave him and charge at the enemy while he continued to fire. The bunker was finally over-run and the objective was captured.
After completion of the mission, Major Acharya succumbed to his injuries. A few days before the capture of Tololing Top, Major Acharya wrote a letter to his father in which he added a quote from the Bhagvad Gita which stated, "Die, and you will win heaven; conquer, and you enjoy sovereignty of the earth; therefore, stand up, Arjuna, determined to fight." For conspicuous gallantry and supreme sacrifice, Major Padmapani Acharya was honoured with the Maha Vir Chakra, posthumously. Jai Hind!! Jai Jawan!!
Major Sonam Wangchuk
Maha Vir Chakra
On 30 May 1999, Major Sonam Wangchuk of Indus Wing, Ladakh Scouts was leading a column for occupation of the Ridge Line on the Line of Control (LoC) in a glaciated area at 18,000 feet to preempt enemy occupation and any subsequent infiltration. While moving towards the LoC, the enemy ambushed the column by firing from a vantage position. In the process one NCO of the Ladakh Scouts was killed. Major Sonam Wangchuk held his column together and led a raid on the enemy position from a flank, supported by artillery fire, killing two enemy personnel.
The officer also recovered one HMG (Heavy Machine Gun), one UMG (Universal Machine Gun), ammunition, controlled stores as well as three dead bodies of the enemy personnel. Thereafter, he took stock of all forces in the Chorbatla axis in the Batalik sector and cleared the axis up to the LoC of all enemy intrusions at a great risk to his life. For conspicuous gallantry, Major Sonam Wangchuk was honoured with the Maha Vir Chakra. Jai Hind!! Jai Jawan!!
Rifleman Sanjay Kumar
Maha Vir Chakra
Rifleman Sanjay Kumar, 13 JAK Rifles, was the leading Scout of a team tasked to capturing Area Flat Top on 04 July 1999 being held by Pakistani-backed militants. Having scaled the cliff, the team was pinned down by auto machine gun fire from an enemy bunker, 150 meters away. Rifleman Kumar, realizing the magnitude of the problem and the detrimental effect this bunker would have in the capture of Area Flat Top, displayed extraordinary courage. Without concern for personal safety, he crawled alone up the ledge, along a flank, and charged towards the enemy bunker, through a hail of automatic fire. Almost instantly he took two bullets in his chest and forearm.
Bleeding profusely from the bullet wounds, he continued the charge towards the bunker. Unhesitant, he then picked up the enemy machine gun and crept towards the second enemy bunker. Three enemy soldiers, taken completely by surprise were killed by him on the spot. Inspired by his dare devil act the rest of the platoon, emotionally charged, assaulted the feature and captured Area Flat Top. For his sustained display of the most conspicuous personal bravery and gallantry of the highest order in the face of the enemy, Rifleman Sanjay Kumar was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest medal for gallantry.
Capt.Vijayant Thapar (Robin)
Vir Chakra
Dec 26,1976– June 29, 1999
Captain Vijyant Thapar (Dec 26,1976– June 29, 1999) was an officer of the Indian Army of the regiment 2 Rajputana Rifles, posthumously awarded the India's third highest military honour, Vir Chakra for his audacious bravery during the Kargil War. He fell leading an attack of 2 Rajputana Rifles at Tololing (Black Rocks -KNOLL) during the Kargil War on 29 June 1999. He was 22 years old. He was a fourth generation officer in his family.
Vijyant moved to Dras with his unit under Col. M.B. Ravindernath, commanding officer, and his company commander Major P. Acharya. The battalion was then given the task of capturing Tololing. Earlier attempts to capture Tololing by other units had failed with heavy losses. After the initial assault by Major Mohit Saxena was held up, on the night of 12 June 1999, Capt Vijayant Thapar led his platoon to capture a Pakistani post called Barbad Bunker. A photo in the newspapers shows him sitting with soldiers and captured arms that the fleeing enemy left behind. His letter after the battle describes the scene with dead Pakistani soldiers lying all around and his disappointment at not being able to catch two enemy soldiers alive.
After the historic victory at Tololing (termed as the turning point of the War), Vijyant was tasked to capture Three Pimples, Knoll in Black Rocks Complex, an ugly mountain sandwiched between Tololing and Tiger Hill. It was a full moon night and the enemy had good visibility. Moreover, this was an impregnable position to capture. The troops of 6 Northern Light Infantry (Pakistan) had all the advantages. Well entrenched in strongly prepared positions, well stocked and with only one narrow 'knife edge' ridge to cover, with precipitous slopes on both sides, and ravines thousands of feet deep, devoid of cover and almost vertical climbs at an altitude of 15000 ft and temperatures of -15*, it was indeed an impossible mission.
However, men of the unit were fired by the success at Tololing and were raging to go. The attack started with a fierce artillery barrage of a hundred guns, with Vijyant's platoon leading. The enemy responded with an equally intense and accurate bombardment on the attacking troops. In this artillery attack, Robin lost some of his men and some more were injured causing the attack to be disrupted. However with his indomitable spirit and tremendous urge to capture Knoll, he got together the remnants of his men and moved through a ravine and rejoined his company. In the melee earlier, Vijyant's platoon had gotten separated from his company. While the exchange of fierce fire was going on, Vijayant reached his company, which had already secured a small foothold on Knoll.
By this time, his company commander Major P. Acharya had been killed. At this news, Vijayant's anger was explosive. He surged ahead along the narrow ridge with his colleague Naik Tilak Singh Image Reference. Both of them started engaging the enemy merely 15 m away. There were two enemy machine guns firing towards them. After about an hour and a half of fierce exchange of bullets and abuses, Vijyant decided that he had to finish the enemy. In a brief lull in firing he rushed ahead to do so but a burst of fire struck him on his head. He fell in the arms of his comrade Naik Tilak Singh. It was after that the men of his company charged and fully captured Knoll. That night had cost the Indian Army 3 officers killed, 3 severely injured, 10 Ors killed, and 42 wounded. All objectives were captured.
For this act of outstanding bravery and his ultimate sacrifice, Capt. Vijyant Thapar was awarded the Vir Chakra a gallantry award by the President of India, K. R. Naraynan, which was received by his 82 year old grandmother.
Shortly before he went into the attack, he wrote a last letter to his parents. This letter epitomises the soldierly virtues of the Indian Army and shows the values of an inspired Indian. This has motivated a whole generation of Indian soldiers and youth alike. He was just 22 years old. Noida, his hometown, gave him a memorable farewell with about hundred thousand people attending his last rites. The Army dedicated to him the helipad at Dras, which is known as Vijyant Helipad
Captain Saurabh Kalia
29 June 1976 – 21 June 1999
In the first fortnight of May 1999, he went out for patrol duty three times in the Kaksar area of Kargil. He observed and reported large-scale intrusion of Pakistani Army and foreign mercenaries in Indian side of LoC (Kargil). He assumed guard of "Bajrang Post" at the height 13,000-14,000 feet to check infiltration along with 5 soldiers in the Kaksar area.
On May 15, 1999, after a continuous cross fire with Pakistan armed forces from across the LoC, he and his troops ran out of ammunition. It is also believed that their signal instrument was out of order, or not working in those conditions. They were finally encircled by a platoon of Pakistan rangers and captured alive before any Indian reinforcement could reach for their help. No trace of this entire patrol was left and Skardu Radio of Pakistan reported that Lt. Saurabh Kalia and five of his men were captured alive.
They were in their captivity for over twenty-two (May 15, 1999 – June 7, 1999) days and subjected to unprecedented brutal torture as evident from their bodies handed over by Pakistan Army on June 9, 1999.
Capt.Vikram Batra
Param Vir Chakra(Posthumous)
September 9, 1974 – July 7, 1999
Captain Vikram Batra, 13 JAK Rifles, and his Delta Company was given the task of recapturing Point 5140. Nicknamed Lion King ('Sher Shah' in Hindi) , he decided to lead the rear, as an element of surprise would help stupefy the enemy. He and his men ascended the sheer rock-cliff, but as the group neared the top, the enemy pinned them on the face of the bare cliff with machine gun fire. Captain Batra, along with five of his men, climbed up regardless and after reaching the top, hurled two grenades at the machine gun post. He single-handedly killed three enemy soldiers in close combat. He was seriously injured during this, but insisted on regrouping his men to continue with the mission. Inspired by the courage displayed by Captain Batra, the soldiers of 13 JAK Rifles charged the enemy position and captured Point 5140 at 3:30 a.m. on 20 June 1999. His company is credited with killing at least eight Pakistani soldiers and recovering a heavy machine gun.
The capture of Point 5140 set in motion a string of successes, such as Point 5100, Point 4700, Junction Peak and Three Pimples. Along with fellows Captain Anuj Nayyar and Rfl Sanjay kumar(PVC), Batra led his men to victory with the recapture of Point 4750 and Point 4875. He was killed when he tried to rescue an injured officer during an enemy counterattack against Point 4875 in the early morning hours of 7 July 1999. His last words were, "Jai Mata Di." (which means in English 'Hail the Divine Mother'). For his sustained display of the most conspicuous personal bravery and leadership of the highest order in the face of the enemy, Captain Vikram Batra was awarded the Param Vir Chakra.
Yogendra Singh Yadav
Param Vir Chakra
Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav of the 18 Grenadiers was part of the Commando 'Ghatak' (Deadly or Lethal) Platoon tasked to capture three strategic bunkers on Tiger Hill in the early morning hours of 4 July 1999. The bunkers were situated at the top of a vertical, snow-covered, 16,500 foot high cliff face. Grenadier Yadav, volunteering to lead the assault, was climbing the cliff face and fixing the ropes for further assault on the feature. Halfway up, an enemy bunker opened up machine gun and rocket fire, killing the platoon commander and two others. In spite of having been hit by three bullets in his groin and shoulder, Yadav climbed the remaining 60 feet and reached the top. Though severely injured, he crawled to the first bunker and lobbed a grenade, killing four Pakistani soldiers and neutralizing enemy fire. This gave the rest of the platoon the opportunity to climb up the cliff face.
Yadav then charged the second bunker along with two of his fellow soldiers and engaged in hand-to-hand combat, killing four Pakistani soldiers. The platoon subsequently succeeded in capturing Tiger Hill. For his sustained display of bravery, Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest medal for gallantry.
Lieutenant Kannad Bhattacharya
Sena Medal (Posthumous)
A patrol consisting of eight other ranks led by Lieutenant Kanad Bhattacharya was tasked to establish a foothold on North Eastern ridge near Tiger Hill. The route was inaccessible and was covered with snow. While Sepoy Major Singh was climbing up, he detected movement of intruders coming down with heavy weapons towards them. He informed the patrol leader who ordered the patrol to deploy. The intruders started firing at the patrol with heavy automatic and sniper fire. Lieutenant Kanad Bhattacharya and Sepoy Major Singh divided the patrol into two groups and started engaging the intruders from different positions thereby displaying outstanding professional competence. Heavy exchange of fire continued between Lieutenant Kanad's patrol and the intruders.
The patrol kept constantly returning the fire with full poise and determination. In the ensuing fire fight a number of patrol members including Lieutenant Kanad received multiple gun shot wounds which was reported later by other personnel of the patrol. Lieutenant Kanad Bhattacharya along with two other ranks laid down his life in the highest tradition of the service. The patrol could not come back and was declared missing in action on 21 May 99. The body of SS-37818M Late Lieutenant Kanad Bhattacharya was recovered from the area of action where it was found buried in the snow, on 15 Jul 99 after the capture of Tiger Hill.
Captain Jerry Prem Raj
Vir Chakra posthumously.
He answered the call of duty and rejoined the unit in Operation Vijay under operation Rakshak after voluntarily cutting short his honeymoon. On the night of 06/07 Jul 1999, he was the Forward Observation Post Officer with 2 Naga during its assault on Twin Bumps in area Point 4875 (Gun Hill) in Dras Sector. During the assault, while directing the artillery fire onto the enemy positions with devastating effect, he was wounded by enemy sniper fire.
Undeterred, he continued his mission amidst heavy enemy fire, when he was yet again hit by a volley of enemy machine gun fire. Gravely injured, he refused to be evacuated and continued to direct accurate artillery fire onto the enemy till he succumbed to his injuries. His spontaneous action resulted in inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy and in the capture of the objective by assaulting infantry. The exceptional display of raw courage and steely resolve in the face of insurmountable odds earned Captain Jerry the award of a 'Vir Chakra' posthumously.
Major Mariappan Saravanan
Vir Chakra posthumously.
10 August 1972 – 29 May 1999
The First Bihar Regiment was in Assam when the Kargil War broke out. They were ordered to move to Kargil, Jammu, and Kashmir. From the heat of Assam to the cold of Kargil wasn't an easy change. There wasn't enough protective weather gear.
On the night of May 28, 1999, Major Sarvanan was assigned the task of capturing a well-fortified Pakistani position at 14,229 feet (4,337 m) in the Batalik sector. He and his men launched an attack at 04:00. Despite intensive firing from the enemy with artillery and automatic weapons, they charged into a volley of bullets. Saravanan fired a rocket launcher into the enemy position that killed two enemy soldiers. During the combat, he was hit by shrapnel and injured but continued fighting. His commanding officer ordered him to retreat because too many Indian soldiers had been injured. 'Genghis Khan fall back,' came the order. 'Not today sir, we are very close to the objective,' replied Sarvanan who was code named Genghis Khan. He killed two more invaders but this time he was hit by a bullet in the head at 06:30, his body nestled in the snow. A friend in Bangalore called his mother and told her Saravanan had died in Kargil. "We switched on the television and saw it in a news bulletin." Two days later, the official telegram arrived. "He was the first officer to fall".
The Vir Chakra was awarded to Saravanan posthumously and presented to his mother by President K. R. Narayanan. Its citation reads: "For our tomorrow..... he gave his today......".
Lt. Balwan Singh
Maha Vir Chakra
Lt. Balwan Singh, an alumnus of Sainik School Kunjpura, was commissioned from the OTA on 06 March 1999 into 18 Grenediers. The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) was awarded to him for his acts of bravery in Kargil war.
Lieutenant Balwan Singh and his Ghataks were tasked to assault Tiger Hill Top on 03 July 1999 as part of multi-****ged attack from the North East direction.
The route to the objective was untrodden, interspersed with pointed rocks and thick snow at a height of 16,500 feet. The officer executed his task with courage and determination.
The team led and exhorted by him moved over twelve hours under intense artillery shelling to reach the designated spur. This move took the enemy totally by surprise as his team used cliff assault mountaineering equipment to reach the Tiger Hill Top stealthily.
On seeing the Ghataks, the enemy reacted in panic with intense automatic fire causing serious injury to the officer and his team.
He refused to be evacuated and unmindful of his injury and grave condition, moved swiftly to encircle the intruders. His adversaries had no choice but to flee from the fury of accurate fire of the Ghataks.
The officer's unparalleled courage under enemy fire and determination led to capturing Tiger Hill, the most important objective of our troops in Operation Vijay.
Lieutenant Keishing Clifford Nangrum
Maha Vir Chakra (Posthumous)
C' Company, 12 Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry was tasked to capture Point 4812 in square 1990, a strongly held enemy position of extreme tactical importance in Batalik Sector. SS-37111P Capt Keishing Clifford Nangrum was tasked to assault the feature from the South Eastern direction; an almost impossible climb. The column encountered strong enemy opposition near the top. The enemy was well entrenched in interconnected bunkers chiselled out of rocks; immune to even artillery fire. The defences were formidable. The enemy brought down heavy automatic and artillery fire on this column. The firefight continued for approximately two hours. Capt Clifford led his section, closed in and threw grenades in the enemy's front line bunkers and boldly charged, killing six enemy soldiers. He tried to snatch the Universal Machine Gun firing at own troops from the enemy but received a volley of bullets. This audacious action of Capt Clifford completely stunned the enemy. Heavily outnumbered and badly wounded Capt Clifford refused to be evacuated and continued firing till he succumbed to his injuries. This act of Capt Clifford gave valuable reaction time to out columns to capture Point 4812.Capt Clifford had displayed unparalleled bravery, dogged determination and raw courage. He made the supreme sacrifice in the highest traditions on the Indian Army.
Major Padmapani Acharya
Maha Vir Chakra, posthumously
On 28 June 1999, in the battalion attack on the Tololing feature by the 2nd Rajputana Rifles, Major Padmapani Acharya as a Company Commander, was assigned the formidable task of capturing an enemy position which was heavily fortified and strongly held with mine fields and sweeping machine gun and artillery fire. Success of the battalion and brigade operation hinged on the early capture of this position. However the company attack almost faltered at the very beginning, when the enemy's artillery fire came down squarely on the leading platoon, inflicting large numbers of casualties. With utter disregard to his personal safety, Major Padmapani Acharya took the reserve platoon and led it through raining artillery shells.
Even as his men were falling to enemy fire, he continued to encourage his men and charged at the enemy with the reserve platoon up the steep rock face. Unmindful of the hail of bullets from the enemy's bunker, Major Padmapani Acharya crawled up to the bunker and lobbed grenades. Severely injured and unable to move, he ordered his men to leave him and charge at the enemy while he continued to fire. The bunker was finally over-run and the objective was captured.
After completion of the mission, Major Acharya succumbed to his injuries. A few days before the capture of Tololing Top, Major Acharya wrote a letter to his father in which he added a quote from the Bhagvad Gita which stated, "Die, and you will win heaven; conquer, and you enjoy sovereignty of the earth; therefore, stand up, Arjuna, determined to fight." For conspicuous gallantry and supreme sacrifice, Major Padmapani Acharya was honoured with the Maha Vir Chakra, posthumously. Jai Hind!! Jai Jawan!!
Major Sonam Wangchuk
Maha Vir Chakra
On 30 May 1999, Major Sonam Wangchuk of Indus Wing, Ladakh Scouts was leading a column for occupation of the Ridge Line on the Line of Control (LoC) in a glaciated area at 18,000 feet to preempt enemy occupation and any subsequent infiltration. While moving towards the LoC, the enemy ambushed the column by firing from a vantage position. In the process one NCO of the Ladakh Scouts was killed. Major Sonam Wangchuk held his column together and led a raid on the enemy position from a flank, supported by artillery fire, killing two enemy personnel.
The officer also recovered one HMG (Heavy Machine Gun), one UMG (Universal Machine Gun), ammunition, controlled stores as well as three dead bodies of the enemy personnel. Thereafter, he took stock of all forces in the Chorbatla axis in the Batalik sector and cleared the axis up to the LoC of all enemy intrusions at a great risk to his life. For conspicuous gallantry, Major Sonam Wangchuk was honoured with the Maha Vir Chakra. Jai Hind!! Jai Jawan!!
Rifleman Sanjay Kumar
Maha Vir Chakra
Rifleman Sanjay Kumar, 13 JAK Rifles, was the leading Scout of a team tasked to capturing Area Flat Top on 04 July 1999 being held by Pakistani-backed militants. Having scaled the cliff, the team was pinned down by auto machine gun fire from an enemy bunker, 150 meters away. Rifleman Kumar, realizing the magnitude of the problem and the detrimental effect this bunker would have in the capture of Area Flat Top, displayed extraordinary courage. Without concern for personal safety, he crawled alone up the ledge, along a flank, and charged towards the enemy bunker, through a hail of automatic fire. Almost instantly he took two bullets in his chest and forearm.
Bleeding profusely from the bullet wounds, he continued the charge towards the bunker. Unhesitant, he then picked up the enemy machine gun and crept towards the second enemy bunker. Three enemy soldiers, taken completely by surprise were killed by him on the spot. Inspired by his dare devil act the rest of the platoon, emotionally charged, assaulted the feature and captured Area Flat Top. For his sustained display of the most conspicuous personal bravery and gallantry of the highest order in the face of the enemy, Rifleman Sanjay Kumar was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest medal for gallantry.
Capt.Vijayant Thapar (Robin)
Vir Chakra
Dec 26,1976– June 29, 1999
Captain Vijyant Thapar (Dec 26,1976– June 29, 1999) was an officer of the Indian Army of the regiment 2 Rajputana Rifles, posthumously awarded the India's third highest military honour, Vir Chakra for his audacious bravery during the Kargil War. He fell leading an attack of 2 Rajputana Rifles at Tololing (Black Rocks -KNOLL) during the Kargil War on 29 June 1999. He was 22 years old. He was a fourth generation officer in his family.
Vijyant moved to Dras with his unit under Col. M.B. Ravindernath, commanding officer, and his company commander Major P. Acharya. The battalion was then given the task of capturing Tololing. Earlier attempts to capture Tololing by other units had failed with heavy losses. After the initial assault by Major Mohit Saxena was held up, on the night of 12 June 1999, Capt Vijayant Thapar led his platoon to capture a Pakistani post called Barbad Bunker. A photo in the newspapers shows him sitting with soldiers and captured arms that the fleeing enemy left behind. His letter after the battle describes the scene with dead Pakistani soldiers lying all around and his disappointment at not being able to catch two enemy soldiers alive.
After the historic victory at Tololing (termed as the turning point of the War), Vijyant was tasked to capture Three Pimples, Knoll in Black Rocks Complex, an ugly mountain sandwiched between Tololing and Tiger Hill. It was a full moon night and the enemy had good visibility. Moreover, this was an impregnable position to capture. The troops of 6 Northern Light Infantry (Pakistan) had all the advantages. Well entrenched in strongly prepared positions, well stocked and with only one narrow 'knife edge' ridge to cover, with precipitous slopes on both sides, and ravines thousands of feet deep, devoid of cover and almost vertical climbs at an altitude of 15000 ft and temperatures of -15*, it was indeed an impossible mission.
However, men of the unit were fired by the success at Tololing and were raging to go. The attack started with a fierce artillery barrage of a hundred guns, with Vijyant's platoon leading. The enemy responded with an equally intense and accurate bombardment on the attacking troops. In this artillery attack, Robin lost some of his men and some more were injured causing the attack to be disrupted. However with his indomitable spirit and tremendous urge to capture Knoll, he got together the remnants of his men and moved through a ravine and rejoined his company. In the melee earlier, Vijyant's platoon had gotten separated from his company. While the exchange of fierce fire was going on, Vijayant reached his company, which had already secured a small foothold on Knoll.
By this time, his company commander Major P. Acharya had been killed. At this news, Vijayant's anger was explosive. He surged ahead along the narrow ridge with his colleague Naik Tilak Singh Image Reference. Both of them started engaging the enemy merely 15 m away. There were two enemy machine guns firing towards them. After about an hour and a half of fierce exchange of bullets and abuses, Vijyant decided that he had to finish the enemy. In a brief lull in firing he rushed ahead to do so but a burst of fire struck him on his head. He fell in the arms of his comrade Naik Tilak Singh. It was after that the men of his company charged and fully captured Knoll. That night had cost the Indian Army 3 officers killed, 3 severely injured, 10 Ors killed, and 42 wounded. All objectives were captured.
For this act of outstanding bravery and his ultimate sacrifice, Capt. Vijyant Thapar was awarded the Vir Chakra a gallantry award by the President of India, K. R. Naraynan, which was received by his 82 year old grandmother.
Shortly before he went into the attack, he wrote a last letter to his parents. This letter epitomises the soldierly virtues of the Indian Army and shows the values of an inspired Indian. This has motivated a whole generation of Indian soldiers and youth alike. He was just 22 years old. Noida, his hometown, gave him a memorable farewell with about hundred thousand people attending his last rites. The Army dedicated to him the helipad at Dras, which is known as Vijyant Helipad
- Joined
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- Joined
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- Messages
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- 41,041
I am facing net problems will resume posting in few days, Happy Vijay Diwas to all..
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