“Ya to Tiranga lehrakar aunga ya to Tirange main lipta chala aunga, par aunga jaroor” (Either I will be back after hoisting the flag or I will be back wrapped in it, but I will come back for sure). It takes this level of exemplary courage and unmatched confidence at a Warfield to battle out with enemy single-handedly. And what do you think, in the midst of such emotions, could be the answer to challenging enemy officer who says “Why have you come here Shershah?? You will not go back”?? This is what an Indian Army officer had to say to this moron- “We will see who remains at the top of the hill within an hour”. Param Veer Captain Vikram Batra, codenamed ‘Shershah’, was the one to give this confident reply. Captain Batra accomplished what he said and within an hour Batra and his men ran over craven-hearted Pakis to capture Point 5140 in the early morning of 20th June 1999. What follows here is a tribute to a gem we lost in Kargil War.
Born on September 9th, 1974 in Palmpur, Himachal Pradesh to Mr. G.L. Batra and Mrs. Jai Kamal Batra, Vikram proved to be a very intelligent and jolly personality in school. During his graduation days he decided to Join Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun. He was very fascinated by the life of a soldier. He is believed to be of the view “A soldier lives by chance, loves by choice and kills by profession”. After his graduation he was inducted in Jessore Company of Manekshaw battalion of IMA. As a brilliant Gentleman Cadet (GC) in IMA he was commissioned in 13 Jammu Kashmir Rifles (JAK Rif). IMA days earned him a nickname ‘Shershah’ for all his courage and enthusiasm that he had.
The first task given to his company was of capturing Point 5140, strategically important for the Kargil Sector. Captain Batra decided to lead his team from the rear of the peak to take the enemy by surprise. As the team neared the hilltop they faced a stiff machine gun fire from the enemy. Undeterred by the enemy fire Batra and his men reached the top and blew up the mortar position by grenades. He himself killed three enemy soldiers in a close combat. He was injured during the battle but continued fighting until the last enemy soldier was finished. Motivated by the courage of their officer the troops fell upon the enemy and captured point 5140 at 3:30 a.m. on June 20, 1999.
“Yeh Dil Mange More” was the new war cry invented by Captain Batra in this War. After his interview with NDTV from his bunker in the Kargil sector this slogan became the symbol of unstinting valor and courage of the Indian Army. In the interview just after capturing point 5140 Captain Batra is seen relaxed and calm but still hungry for more success and victory over the enemy. Such are the men of the Indian Army for whom fear is the word unknown. In reply to a Pakistani’s taunt that we will leave Kashmir if Indians give them Madhuri Dixit, Captain Batra shot the taunter and said “From Madhuri, With Love!!”. His was a perfect reply to the morons and he made them pay for their deeds.
The victory on Point 5140 was precious and paved way for other valuable victories as on Three Pimples, Point 5100 and Point 4700. After his successful attack on Pt. 5140 Batra led his men to victory at point 4750 and Point 4875. While rescuing a fellow officer during the attack on Point 4875 he was critically injured and later succumbed to his injuries. He was awarded Param Veer Chakra (posthumously) for his exemplary valor and bravery in the face of enemy.
We still remember the legend in our hearts and may god give such a strength to every child of this nation.
India lost 500 young brave soldiers with a median age 19 to 35 years. The grim-faced army officers receiving the coffins, draped in the tricolour, the carriage to the army parade ground.Â
Some of the brave Indian Soldiers and heroes who died protecting the Indian nation in the Kargil War:
OFFICERS (INDIAN ARMY)
LT. COL. VISHWANATHAN
LT. COL. VIJAYARAGAHVAN
LT. COL. SACHIN KUMAR
MAJOR AJAY SINGH JASROTIA
MAJOR KAMLESH PATHAK
MAJOR PADHMAPHANI ACHARYA
MAJOR MARRIAPAN SARVANAN
MAJOR RAJESH SINGH ADHIKARI
MAJOR HARMIDER PAL SINGH
MAJOR MANOJ TALWAR
MAJOR VIVEK GUPTA
MAJOR SONAM WANGCHUK
MAJOR AJAY KUMAR
CAPTAIN AMOL KALIA
CAPTAIN KIESHING CLIFFORD NONGRUM
CAPTAIN SUMEET ROY
CAPTAIN AMIT VERMA
CAPTAIN PANNIKOT VISVANATH VIKRAM
CAPTAIN ANUJ NAYYAR
CAPTAIN VIKRAM BATRA
DY. COMMANDENT JOY LAL(BSF)
CAPTAIN JINTU GOGOI
LT. VIJAYANT THAPER
LT. N. KENGURUSE
LT. HANIF-U-DIN
LT. SUARAV KALIA
LT. AMIT BHARDWAJ
LT. BALWAN SINGH
LT. MANOJ KUMAR PANDEY
OFFICERS (INDIAN AIR FORCE)
SQUADREN LEADER AJAY AHUJA
SQUADREN LEADER RAJIV PUNDIR
FLT. LT. S MUHILAN
FLT. LT. NACHIKETA RAO
SEARGENT PVNR PRASAD
SERGEANT RAJ KISHORE SAHU
JUNIOR COMMISSIONED OFFICERS (INDIAN ARMY)
Naik Chaman Singh
Naik R Kamraj
Naik Kudeep Singh
Naik Birendra Singh Lamba
Naik Jasvir Singh
Naik Surendra Pal
Naik Rajkumar Punia
Naik S N Malik
Naik Surjeet Singh
Naik Jugal Kishore
Naik Suchha Singh
Naik Sumer Singh Rathod
Naik Surendra Singh
Naik Kishen Lal
Naik Rampal Singh
Naik Ganesh Yadav
Havaldar Major Yashvir Singh
Lance Naik Ahmed Ali
Lance Naik Gulam Mohammed Khan
Lance Naik M R Sahu
Lance Naik Satpal Singh
Lance Naik Shatrugan singh
Lance Naik Shyam Singh
Lance Naik Vijay Singh
Naik Degender Kumar
Havaldar Baldev Raj
Havaldar Jai Prakash Singh
Havaldar Mahavir Singh
Havaldar Mani Ram
Havaldar Rajbir Singh
Havaldar Satbir Singh
Havaldar Abdul Karim
Havaldar Daler Singh Bahu
Subedar Bhanwar Singh Rathod
Rifleman Linkon Pradhan
Rifleman Bachhan Singh
Rifleman Satbir Singh
Rifleman Jagmal Singh
Rifleman Rattan Chand
Rifleman Mohamad Farid
Rifleman Mohamad Aslam
Rifleman Yogendra Singh
Rifleman Sanjay Kumar
SEPOYS (INDIAN ARMY)
Grenadier Manohar Singh
Gunner Uddabh Das
Sepoy Amardeep Singh
Sepoy Vijay Pal Singh
Sepoy Virendra Kumar
Sepoy Yashwant Singh
Sepoy Santokh Singh
Sepoy Dinesh Bhai
Sepoy Harendragiri Goswami
Sepoy Amrish Pal Bangi
Constable Suraj Bhan (BSF)
Sepoy Lakhbir Singh
Sepoy Bajindra Singh
Sepoy Deep Chand
Sepoy Dondibha Desai
Sepoy Keolanand Dwivedi
Sepoy Harjindra Singh
Sepoy Jaswant Singh
Sepoy Jaswinder Singh
Sepoy Lal Singh
Sepoy Rakesh Kumar(RAJ)
Sepoy Rakesh Kumar (Dogra)
Sepoy Raswinder Singh
Sepoy Bir Singh
Sepoy Ashok Kumar
Tomar
Sepoy R. Selvakumar
So after 18 years of Kargil, we take a moment to remember the brave soldiers and Heroes who fought the Kargil War and died for the nation.
The Hindu Nationalist 