Governor Bandaru Dattatraya interacts with Kargil war heroes
Shimla: Governor Bandaru Dattatraya interacted with the Kargil war heroes of the Naga regiment at Raj Bhavan today on the occasion of Kargil Vijay Divas.
Speaking on the occasion, he congratulated the Indian army on this special day. He said that Kargil victory was fantabulous in which the brave soldiers of the Indian army showed their valor and great commitment towards safeguarding the frontiers of the nation. He said that the people of the country would always be indebted towards the army for its sacrifices and commitment for the national security.
The Governor said that today, the history has changed and the Indian army has emerged strongest in the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a result of which even Chinese army which was trying to infiltrate in to Indian border was forced to move back.
Bandaru Dattatraya said that Himachal Pradesh is known as Dev Bhoomi and Veer Bhoomi and every household has a soldier. In the Kargil war, the soldiers of the state showed their courage and valor and 52 soldiers gave their supreme sacrifice to safeguard the frontiers of the nation. He said that 15 soldiers from Kangra district alone and 11 from Mandi district were martyred. Seven soldiers each from Hamirpur and Bilaspur districts, four from Shimla district, two from Una and one each from Chamba and Kullu districts were martyred. The heroes of Himachal were awarded with two Paramveer Chakras, five Vir Chakras, nine Sena Medals, one Yudh Seva Medal, two Uttam Yudh Sena Medals and two soldiers with Mention-in-Dispatches. Captain Vikram Batra from Palampur was posthumously awarded the Paramveer Chakra. The second Paramvir Chakra was received by Subedar Sanjay Kumar, a resident of Bilaspur.
He said that Indian history of bravery is a witness since every 10th medal of the Indian Army is named after Himachali soldier. The brave soldiers of this state have received the highest gallantry awards on the basis of population rates.
The Governor said that presently, the entire world was fighting the unknown enemy called Covid-19 and it was high time that all the people take this as a war and fight this epidemic together forgetting all the differences. He appealed the affluent section of the society to help the needy and poor in this time of distress. He expressed his firm belief that together we would be able to fight this battle.
The Kargil war heroes of the Naga regiment shared their experiences of the war and apprised the Governor about the adverse conditions they had to face while capturing the point 4875 peak situated at around 17000 feet height. They informed that 15 soldiers of the regiment sacrificed their lives during this aggression. The Naga regiment received 13 individual awards including Veer Chakra for its bravery in this war.
He honoured the Kargil war heroes on this occasion including Subedar Major Visale Lenu, Subedar Madan Mohan Pandey, Subedar Kenneth Anal, Naib Subedar Hemant Bisht, Naib Subedar Basant Chhetri and Havildar Pushkar Singh.
The Naga regiment also presented a unit memento to the Governor on this occasion and expressed gratitude towards him for interacting and honouring them on the Kargil Day.