They died protecting our lives...

2009-02-22T04:06:00.003+05:30

Spare some time for these brave men….

Lt. Saurabh Kalia of 4 JAT Regiment of the Indian Army laid down his life at the young age of 22 for the nation while guarding the frontiers at Kargil. His parents, indeed the Indian Army and nation itself, lost a dedicated, honest and brave son. He was the first officer to detect and inform about Pakistani intrusion. Pakistan captured him and his patrol party of 5 brave men alive on May 15, 1999 from the Indian side of LOC.They were kept in captivity for three weeks and subjected to unprecedented brutal torture; evident from their bodies handed over by Pakistan Army on June 9, 1999. After 22 days of torture, the brave soldiers were ultimately shot dead. However, the Indian soldiers did not break while undergoing all this unimaginable barbarism,which speaks volumes of their patriotism, grit, determination, tenacity and valour - something all of India should be proud of.

Captain Haneef Uddin 11 Rajputana Rifles, Attacked by intruders and bombarded by artillery, he and his unit, equipped only with small arms,fought to the end. Cutting across the snowy peaks to push for the enemy-held heights, Haneef soldiered on despite artillery bombardment. Outgunned and outnumbered, he and his unit fought to the end. Nation’s third highest wartime gallentry award VIR CHAKRA was awarded to Lt. Hanif-u-din, posthumously on 15th August 1999.

LT. COL. N. VijayaRaghavan :The brave man of the 15 Kumaon Regiment made the supreme sacrifice of his life on June 25 while leading counter-insurgency operations near Machchal near the LoC. Five militants were killed in the encounter, before one of the militants killed him. Lt.Col.Vijayraghavan had taken part in Operation Bluestar and counter-insurgency operations in Nagaland.

Major Padmaphani Acharya :Hailing from Hastinapur on the city’s outskirts, was killed in the Kargil operations. He was hit by enemy shelling. Padmaphani’s father Jagannatham, a retired Indian Air Force officer, took the news about his son’s death with pride. He said his second son, Captain Padma Sambhav Acharya, is also fighting in Kargil. “I am prepared to sacrifice my other son also for the sake of our motherland,” the proud father said. Nation’s second highest wartime gallentry award MAHA VIR CHAKRA was awarded to Major Padmaphani Acharya, posthumously on 15th August 1999.

Capt Amol Kalia : The recapture of a key position in the Batalik sector, by Capt Amol Kalia and 13 of his men, all of whom died, was one of the bravest acts seen in the Kargil sector in the ongoing operations against Pakistani soldiers and Mujahideen.

Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey:He was commissioned in the 1/11 Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army. He forced back the intruders on June 11, 1999 at Batalik Sector in the Kargil war. He led his men to capture the Jubar top which was considered as important due to its strategic location. Quickly sizing up the situation, the young officer led his platoon along a narrow, treacherous ridge that led to the enemy position.Displaying great courage, he surged ahead of his troops and charged at the enemy with a full throated battle cry through a hail of bullets.Although wounded in the shoulder and leg, he pressed on his solitary charge with grim determination, until he closed in on the first bunker. Unmindful of his grievous wounds, he rushed from bunker to bunker urging his men on. Critically bleeding, he collapsed at the final bunker and finally succumbed to his injuries. But by this time he had already captured the bunker with his men.His last words were, “Na Chodnu” (Don’t Spare Them). Manoj Kumar Pandey was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India’s highest medal for gallantry, posthumously. His father, Mr. Gopichand Pandey, received the award from the President of India on the 52nd anniversary of Indian independence.

MAKHAN SINGH GOLD IN RELAY, 1962

2009-02-22T03:59:00.004+05:30

Who told Makhan Singh to run?

Why didn't he finish college, find a job, raise his kids, watch television?

Which world was he living in that he believed a gold and a silver at an Asian Games (1962) would make him a hero forever?

Understand why this is being said. Look there at that dishevelled cripple with the artificial leg, at that stationery shop on the Chandigarh-Hoshiarpur highway, that's Makhan. Yes, once he ran like the wind. Once. Now he drinks up a storm.

Most nights he downs his bottle of rum, hoping the alcohol will mute his pain. Instead it stirs his melancholy. He weeps, he shouts: "Keep this Arjuna Award away from my eyes." This morning, he hops around the room placing small utensils on the floor to catch the rain that is seeping through his roof. He is not poor, this man; he is belittled.

This year he went to the Rail Bhavan in Delhi to get a complimentary railway pass that Arjuna awardees are entitled to. He couldn't get past the reception. The staff sniggered. Asian gold medallists don't walk around on crutches, they said. "They thought I was a beggar," says Makhan. It took two hours before the man who beat Milkha Singh by two yards in the 400 m in 1964 in Calcutta was recognised.

Milkha beat him to gold at the 1962 Asian Games, but they won gold collectively in the relay. Then life went bad. He drove a truck, lost his leg, chased politicians for a gas agency outlet without success. When he pleaded with a Punjab MP for assistance two years ago, the man asked for Rs 5 lakh.

Now Makhan asks himself: who told you to run?

Heroes From The Core

They died protecting our lives...

MAKHAN SINGH GOLD IN RELAY, 1962