The Pir Panjal pass, which cuts into Indian-held territory by severing the Poonch-Uri route, can provide access to much of Pakistan-occupied Kashmir; it is also the route most infiltrators use to cross into India.
Military planners believe it would take more than two fully equipped divisions to capture it. But in 1965, the task was carried out by one brigade on the strength of the gallantry of a young major who led his company on a daring attack up the pass on a rainy August evening.
Major Ranjit Singh Dayal later rose to become a lieutenant general, but will always be remembered for that action of his 1 Parachute regiment, one of the few victories of the 1965 war.
Gen Dayal, who died in Panchkula last month after a long fight with cancer, was a living legend to generations of soldiers who grew up hearing tales of the charge that stunned the Pakistan Army into submission. For many, like Lt Gen P C Katoch (retd) of the same regiment, Gen Dayal's passing is the "close of an era".
"The first attack was not successful. But he took charge and they went in. It was a brave attack, carried out in pouring rain and involving a vertical climb through a nalla. When the company reached there, the Pakistanis were taken by surprise. In fact, they were cooking breakfast," says Lt Gen Katoch, who retired two years ago as director general (information systems).