Heroes: Letter to a Kargill Martyr`s Family.... Capt. Vijyant Thapar

His last letter to his family

Capt. Vijayant Thapar - The Kargill braveheart who immortalised sacrifice and his love to the family in a way which only angels do. His last letter became a symbol of his supreme sacrifice. The soldier who knew that he was not coming back.....

Reaching out to his family was the most toughest phase of my life..10 years after the war had ended, I wrote his father this email which proved to be the most toughest 3 hours of my life as i could not stop crying after writing few words and my vision blurred every few seconds....but I knew I had to do, I had to make them known that what I felt.. 

So here is the mail which i have kept treasured for so many years , so invaluable...

The Mail

It said-

What i wrote :- 

Hello uncle, i do not know from where to start?? But whatever i do i am sure of one thing that i am and would always be proud of every defence person serving and protecting even a small stone in INDIA. Kargill was no mean feat in any way and i would always be grateful to everyone who did what they did in kargill.  When kargill happened i was just in class 10th, 10 years later i am 24 but every moment just lingers in my heart and mind.All i was hoping these years was to find some means by which i thank the families of the marytrs who laid down their lives for their country and today i would be saluting a father of a brave soldier capt. vijayant. i might not remember his feat vividly but his words from his last letter are more than etched in my mind. what he did was just exemplary courage .......just awesome. i might not have the same courage as him but i do know one thing that it is because of people like him that i can still sleep in peace everyday and every moment without fear. i read your interview in navbharat times in which you said that people are erasing this supreme sacrifice from the memory. can`t say about them but me and my friends would be always be indebted to him forever and ever. i am just short of words and emotions to tell you how i feel... whatever the country or the politicians feel or say, just remember that there are still people in this country who are more than grateful and we do not need a special occassion of a decade of kargill to remember. i do it everyday... my words might not fill the gap in your life but it would give me solace in the fact that i was able to thank a marytry`s family and succeeded in reaching out to one of them. i am really proud to be born in a country where there are soldiers like capt. vijayant. My salute to capt. vijayant. 

His father`s reply-

Dear Shwetabh,

   Ten years after we lost our son in the Kargil war your mail was most thoughtful. Thanks. It is this support that has sustained us through these years. Young men like Vijyant did  what the nation expected of them –their duty.  Actually, the war in Kargil brought the best in the Indian nation –those like Capt Vijyant, who fought bravely and fell honorably to redeem India `s sanctity& the countrymen who showered their love & their support for the brave hearts. We of course feel proud though we also live with the pain of a young son lost as any other parent would-every day of our life  .

 Kargil is already a distant memory. We don’t want the legacy of the young men like Capt Vijyant to fade and be lost to a coming generation of Indian, who have a right to know what their previous generation did and be inspired. With this in mind we created this web site. We therefore request u to kindly pass this site on to all ur friends & relatives. So far as u are concerned we have no doubt that as and when India needs, you, you will rise to greater heights. However for & from those heroes and martyrs a few lines;-

             WE ARE DEAD SHORT DAYS AGO WE LIVED

   SAW SUN RISE FELT SUNSET GLOW

              LOVED AND WERE LOVED AND NOW WE LIE

   ON  THE SLOPES WHERE YELLOW ROSES GROW.

              TAKE UP OUR FIGHT WITH THE FOE ,

TO U WITH FALLING HANDS WE THROW

  THE TORCH BE YOURS TO HOLD IT HIGH………………….

Thanks, Your’s

Col & MRS V N Thapar

Vir Chakra Citation

On 28 June 1999 Captain Vijyant Thapar was commanding the Leading platoon of Alfa Company, which was tasked to assault area Knoll in Drass Sector from the north during Operation Vijay While advancing, the platoon was hit by accurate enemy artillery barrage and it suffered heavy casualties. Captain Thapar organized evacuation of the casualties and quickly rallied his shell-shocked platoon for the attack. Personally leading the attack from the Northern face against enemy's Medium Machine Gun fire, which was holding up the Company's assault, he fearlessly charged at the enemy position firing from the hip and throwing grenades. During this act, he was grievously injured in the hand and stomach but continued to advance ordering his men to follow him. Roused by the actions of their young Platoon Commander barely out of the Academy, the platoon charged up the hill against the dominating enemy position. This audacious action unnerved and forced the enemy to abandon a tactically superior position. The officer, however, succumbed to his injuries.

Captain Vijyant Thapar, thus, displayed remarkable cool, raw courage and exemplary valor and made the supreme sacrifice while facing the enemy.

Capt. Vijyant Thapar...the hero whose sacrifice, legecy lives on even till today after he has gone..

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag: An astounding epic....

“मैं यह पिक्चर देखने ज़रूर जाऊँगा"... I said to my friend.

चल पहले Fast and furious तो देख ले ... he said pushing me in the hall.

That was my first brush with Bhaag Milkha Bhaag....months back seeing the poster. All i knew that it was on the Flying Sikh and his life. With Farhan and Shankar , Ehsaan, Loy at the midst of things, I knew things would be huge. Sold at just 1 /-  by the Great Milkha Singh , the movie had all the makings of a blockbuster. When the heart wants something, it doesn`t take time. Even a fever of 102 couldn`t stop me from booking a ticket on a Friday for Sunday evening show.

Come what may, whether I get well or not,  will definitely go to see the movie - was the one line declaration to my family. One trusted friend Santosh for company as always, we set out to see BMB – the movie of the year. Maybe even bigger than RDB, 2 days of facebook and twitter traffic had told me that what i was going to watch was an epic of enormous proportions...something which RDB had done in its time.

When i reached CSM, Noida the wait seemed unbearable. Crowds which could dwarf Kumbh too...way easily.  कुछ तो बात है इसमें .. The story began unfolding on the big screen. The story of the Sikh- the Flying Sikh, Milkha Singh. Starting with the Rome Olympics, the story moved in flashback capturing his childhood, circumstances along the way. Farhan brought the Milkha really alive on the screen. Be it the childhood, the partition, the aftermath, his love, running. Put a finger at any one aspect of his life  and it surely come alive. The army days brought laughter,  the partition brought tears, the love brought innocence. One thing which kept the audience glued was his love and determination for running. He knew that running will bring him accolades and the INDIA jacket and surely it did.

The relationship with his sister Isri is something which every brother would cherish and the hunt for his childhood home in the forgotten lands of Pak, his childhood friend would make every person go down memory lane. From the first moment itself i saw people deeply drawn in the storyline. There were laughs, tears, cheering, clapping in the hall on every scene. Over the years i don’t think that i have witnessed any other movie with such a level of  involvement of the audience. The audience cheered Farhan on screen in every race, egged him on, clapped on his victories. The Indo Pak race felt like a Indo pak cricket final, people cheering their lungs out. It was a phenomena , a feeling which i cant describe in the exact sentiments and emotions.

People of all ages, children had come to see an epic and they surely were not disappointed. Whenever it felt that the story might slump a bit low, the songs put it back on track. Everyone loved Zinda and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag. A movie which didn’t need any actresses, the hero was enough to pull it all through by his performance alone. There have been numerous instances which show the level with which people connected with this awesome movie-

1.  A friend of my, Srishti, told that in Jammu the hall resembled a stadium with the people cheering the Indo Pak race more than they do in Indo Pak cricket matches.

2.  Crowd enjoyed every moment of the movie in Gurgaon. 

3.  Farhan akhtar saw the movie in a hall with people going absolutely crazy.

4.  A father asked his child “ घर चलें मिल्खा ?? and the child said, “भाग मिल्खा भाग ”..

5.  Few of my friends have watched this movie all weekend, starting from Friday and going till Sunday, everyday.

Need I Say Anything More??

So mesmerised and touched I was by this movie that i congratulated Rakesh Om Prakash Mehra , Farhan Akhtar and Shankar Mahadevan on twitter and when Shankar Mahadevan himself replied thanking me, it was the happiest moment for me.. What more does a person want?

What was there in the movie that touched me? Was it the period of partition? The pain of the lost childhood? The emotions? The storyline or being awed at the unfolding of the story about the Flying Sikh- the Legend... Whatever it was, its an effort which would touch many lives and maybe bring the focus back on athletics just like Chak De India did it for Hockey.. Untill then BMB is creating waves around the world, leaving competition behind, giving un unforgettable storylines and such outstanding performances.

तू जाग, अब तू जाग मिल्खा...तू है आग, तू है आग मिल्खा ....  

दिल की कलम से... दिल्ली की वो लड़कियाँ

आज फिर देखा.. दिल्ली की लड़कियों को.. खिलखिला रही थी कुछ, कुछ खीज रही थी, देर जो हो रही थी. मगर किसी को नहीं दिखा उन असहाय, न देख पाने वाले अंकल की तकलीफ जो एक हाथ में अपनी छड़ी इधर उधर चला कर मेट्रो गेट से बाहर निकलना चाहते थे. एक गेट काम नहीं कर रहा था. बेचारे उनको तो पता भी नहीं था की कार्ड लगा था की नहीं, गेट खुला की नहीं.. परेशानी में कस्टमर केयर के शीशे की तरफ चल दिए. जब देखा की मेरे आगे 3 मूर्तियाँ खड़ी हैं जिनसे कुछ नहीं होगा तो मुझे ही आगे बढ़ कर कहना पड़ा , " साइड हो जाइये अगर मदद नहीं कर सकती आप " . फिर बगल वाले गेट की तरफ जब मैं लाइन तोड़ कर बढ़ा और उन अंकल का हाथ पकड़ा तो मेरे साथ वाली एक आंटी बोलीं ," आप दोनों निकल जाइये, मैं बाद में Exit कर लूंगी. " 

आगे बढ़ कर अंकल बोले, "बेटा , मुझे सीढ़ियों से ले चलो, बस स्टॉप तक जाना है".. वो अपनी छड़ी से रास्ता टटोलते उतर रहे थे और मैं अहिस्ता अहिस्ता उनको बताता जा रहा था. बस स्टॉप पर उनको खड़ा करके मैं चला आया आगे. 

रास्ते में सोच रहा था - क्या लड़कियों को सिर्फ अपने हुस्न पर नाज़ होता है, दिल नाम की चीज़ नहीं होती उनके पास किसी की मदद के लिए ? मुझे तो नहीं लगता. इन 3 से लाख गुना अच्छी तो वो आंटी थी जिन्होंने हमें निकलने दिया और न जाने कितने अनजाने लोग जो हम लोगों को निकलते देख रहे होंगे. वाह री दिल्ली... अजीब रंग हैं तेरे.. कभी ऐसे लड़कों से मिलवाती है जो सिर्फ 3 नेत्रहीन लड़कों को मेट्रो पर बिठाने के लिए सुरक्षा घेरा बना कर चलते हैं.. कभी आम उन लोगों से जो 2 नेत्रहीन लड़कियों को ट्रेन से उतरने में मदद करता है, उन्हें हाथ पकड़ कर रास्ता दिखाते हैं चाहे खुद कितना भी लेट हो रहे हो.

आज यह सब देख कर पता नहीं दिल्ली की लड़कियों से नफरत हो गयी है या उनके व्यवहार से.. मगर यह सब सिर्फ अपने रंग पर इतराती हैं.. इनसे मदद की उम्मीद न के ही बराबर.. अभी शायद दिल से सुन्दर लड़की देखनी बाकी है. मुझे यह भी पता है की यह पढ़ने के बाद मेरी कुछ दोस्त `महिला मुक्ति मोर्चा ` की तरह मेरे खिलाफ खड़ी हो जाएँगी मगर मुझे परवाह नहीं...यह ही सच्चाई है जो आज देखी.. इंसानियत आज फिर शर्मसार हो गयी.. 

(July 2013 )

दिल की कलम से... वो ट्रेन वाले अंकल

आज, आज फिर दिखे वो मुझे.... पूरे एक साल बाद. एक पीली रंग की शर्ट पहने हुए, आँखों पर वही चश्मा और हाथ में अपनी छड़ी लिए हुए. वो मुझे नहीं जानते मगर मैं उन्हें अंकल कहता हूँ. राजीव चौक से राजेंद्र प्लेस की मेट्रो लेते हैं. आज किस्मत को पता नहीं क्या मंज़ूर था की सुबह मैं थोड़ा लेट हुआ और मेरी ट्रेन निकल गयी. 

तभी वो नज़र आये. एक लड़का उनका हाथ पकड़ कर ला रहा था. होंगे शायद 45 के आसपास , बस देख नहीं सकते. ट्रेन आई और वो मेरे बगल वाले कोच में चढ़ गए. किस्मत से मुझे भी सीट मिल गयी पर पता नहीं क्यूँ मैं थोड़ी थोड़ी देर बाद उनको देख रहा था..शायद इसलिए की वो ठीक से उतर जायें अपने स्टेशन पर..मगर कुछ ठीक नहीं था..उनका स्टेशन तो कब का निकल चुका था, वो उतरे नहीं थे. अगले स्टेशन पर प्लेटफार्म पर मैंने कुछ पल उनका इंतज़ार किया.

बाहर निकल कर उन्होंने अपनी छड़ी खोली.शायद किसी और को नहीं उतरना था. जब उन्होंने छड़ी के सहारे रास्ता ढूँढने की कोशिश की तो मेरे पाँव खुद ब खुद ही उनकी तरफ चल दिए. पास जाकर जब पूछा कि "अंकल आपको कहाँ जाना है " तो बोले , " बेटा मैं एक स्टेशन आगे आ गया हूँ, मुझे राजेंद्र प्लेस जाना है ." मैंने सिर्फ इतना ही कहा "चलिए मैं आपकी मदद करता हूँ". लिफ्ट के आने तक बोले कि " ट्रेन में अनाउंसमेंट इतने धीरे हुआ कि मुझे सुनाई नहीं दिया". अरे कोई बात नहीं , बस इतना ही कहा मैंने. लिफ्ट से निकल कर सामने वाली लिफ्ट पकड़नी थी. जानता था कि वो मेरे जितना तेज़ नहीं चल सकते तो उनके कदम से कदम मिलाये.

लिफ्ट के पास कुछ लोग खड़े थे, हमें देख कर साइड हो गए. लिफ्ट आने तक मैंने एक से कहा ," यार इन्हें ट्रेन में बैठा देना, राजेंद्र प्लेस उतरना है इन्हें". उसने बस इतना कहा , "अरे बिलकुल यार". जब मैंने पीछे पलट कर देखा तो दरवाज़े धीरे धीरे बंद हो रहे थे और उनके चेहरे पर एक मुस्कराहट थी. ऑफिस 25 मिनट देर से पंहुचा मगर जो एक ख़ुशी मिली वो बयान नहीं होती. 

इस हरदम भागते शहर में मेरे अन्दर का इंसान शायद अभी मरा नहीं है या फिर दिल में वो बच्चा अभी तक है जो मदद करना चाहता है..क्या है वो तो नहीं पता मगर जो भी है वो एक सुकून देने वाला एहसास है .

(June 2013)

Indiblogger : When Zombies attended a meet..

“I am very nervous, क्या पहन के आऊं ?" ...

Me : ???

सिमर भाई , यह कमेंट्स पढ़ कर तो ऐसा लगता है जैसे या तो यह लोग 10 -12 के बोर्ड्स देने आये हैं या फिर शादी के लिए लड़की देखने जा रहे हैं .

Simardeep: Ha ha ha

Me: अरे सीरियस हूँ यार.. तुझे हँसी आ रही है ... Ha ha ha

Simardeep: चल कल मिलते हैं

With my 2 buddies – Dhirendra and Talreja not coming this time, Simardeep and me decided to meet at one place for the Indi meet. Dhirendra was busy in his own wedding and Talreja on a bride hunt...गये काम से दोनों . This was the night before the meet and I was silently watching all these`nervous wrecks` from the past week. Mostly were first timers, but way too nervous. On the D Day the location was – Hyatt. One advantage of indiblogger is that everytime I get to experience the new places and Hyatt this time was the icing on the cake. In the Metro I called up Simar but his cell was consistently on waiting. Glancing on the watch and deciding to move, I “tried” to hail an auto but they rejected me more number of times then even a Delhi girl...Na..na.na.. Finally one agreed to go.`Finally, alas`. On reaching the place and seeing no known face nearby, I was confused “ कहीं गलत जगह तो नहीं आ गये ?”. Decided to ask the parking manager, “ Entry यहीं से है ?” Ambipur meet sir.. A nod. Just go straight. So from the bright sunlight I enter into the dim corridor. I’ll go on adjust mode, scanning the area. On the right I see Mr. Khanduja and family.. My team from the previous meet. Seeing me a smile flashes on his face and a recognition..Shwetabh. Nice start. Then we started where we had first seen each other remembering the Connected music meet. I move forward and see Murtaza, joking around with tea and coffee cups we are joined by Aashish, Aditya Jha and others.  After 2 – 3 minutes, Simar too shows up.

By the time we finished up that little refreshment  its time for registration. The crowd is too much this time and the 3 laptops seem insufficient. Me and Simar head to the table in the front.. We both are used to the limelight now. Before Anoop can begin, I cast a glance around and see new faces.. Very few familiar ones. My excitement dampens a bit. The proceedings begin with a round of applause for the biggest gathering Indi has seen. Anoop starts with a Jig- an old way of shaking the body. He then asks who all bunked work to be here?? Without blinking an eyelid my hand goes up and he says,  “You always bunk”. Yeah I do. I get one day to be myself here. Handing over the reins to Nihaal – he wants us to do the head banging – the same old trick i did with “Prateeksha” to get my 30 seconds of fame and recognition. I was tempted for a few seconds and then decided against it. Maybe today was not my day – so wrong the 2^nd time.

HEAD BANGING IN PROGRESS

We get a crash course in headbanging –  Stand up, left forward, right back, weight transfer on the back leg, shoulders straight, head down then up,  going on from levels novice to experts  in head banging with each step. The addition- turn head round like a cycle. Then left on our own  it was a pure 1 min madness, heads going round, hairs going haywire. When it all stopped, 2 prizes went out. A girl at the back and one guy at our table getting  Sony headset. I did tweeting in a way which I had not done ever. Going on and on. 30 secs of fame came with a change. 5 meets and no intro ever..people started. The 1^st lady spoke on liver transplant and Aditya murmured behind me “Liar, everytime she speaks”. 1-2 more intros and it went to the social cause category. Quite impressive ones. I personally liked a few.. people teaching underprivileged children, spending time with them. Although we clapped a few times to stop the intro but some causes were so good that the applause came from the bottom of the heart. Hats off to  you guys and ladies. 

Just when I thought I could sleep, one girl gave her intro that she wrote about love and relationships. My eyes opened up just like Aamir khan in the opera sequence in Dil Chahta Hai. I saw Arvind Passey sir staring at me with a smile and a gesture with meant  “ देख तेरे जैसी ही लिखती है ”. I smiled. Still not out of my shock I heard a sweet voice giving her intro in Hindi. I think she was a doctor. Awesome poetry she recited. हम तो फैन ही हो गये रे ..लाइन्स के, लेडी के नहीं।. पता नहीं क्या क्या सोचना शुरू कर दिया पढ़ते ही , सेंडल पड़वानी हैं क्या ? ( On the serious count, want to really read that poetry and see how girls take up the matters of the heart )

First timers too got a chance. Then came the chance to pick up the number and win. Out went the nos. 7,9,2,6,5,4.. And the prizes- cookie, headset, powerbank, 500 bucks,ketchup,an old checkin badge, a cocktail on the house. With 9 nos. gone and the final one to come Anoop asked us  to shout - as loud as you can. The loudest table gets to pick the last number 10. We all screamed. Yep, the whole 200+ people on top of our voices – for full 42 seconds. The winners – no one. There were only nine numbers and this one was just for fun. A girl with a polka dot dress  and a funky bag too won a headset. That was the interval and we were told to head to lunch.

THE LINES WERE ABOUT THIS

Coming out a conference room and saw lines which i see normally on only 2 occasions –

    1.  On Tuesdays outside Hanuman Mandir

    2.  Checking at NDLS metro station.

  

Today was neither Tuesday nor was I at the metro station . It was a line for food – or should i say 3. A few of us got talking with Arvind Sir in the hope that the line would clear away. Even after 10 minutes there was no hope. So without wasting any time we got in the line. Done and dusted in 20 minutes I returned to the hall to see it resemble a marriage hall. (Wont disclose why..he he he :) ). After 10 minutes normality was restored. In the first half we were told to tweet about the thing when a particular smell comes to our mind. In between the tweets, I got a notification that I or rather my tweets were being watched by someone (No US spy, it was Priyanka keeping a close watch on my tweets). It was time for the sponsors Ambipur.  

THE 4 SCENTS WHICH DISTRIBUTED THE TEAMS

Shraddha came forward to take charge. She started on all things about the product..the scents, the varieties and all technical gyan. Simply bored us. She started asking on the various types of odours ladies have problems with and it all started – cloths, pets, etc . etc.  I took a dig by  tweeting “ Kitty party lagti hai, all woman issues” . Shraddha came with a new innovation and I tweeted.. Give us a sample and we shall try the innovation. Just then Simar spoke “ बड़ी जल्दी सुन ली तेरी ब़ात , देख samples बँट रहे हैं .” I looked around and here they were. On our table there were a few scents -  New Zealand spring, lavender and vanilla. People asking for other scents just like double scoops in an ice cream parlour. 

THATS TOTAL CRAZY

Now it was time for fun. On the basis of our bottles we were divided into four groups. Approximate group of 50 each were made and then we were equally divided into two groups (27 each ) and asked to present a skit of 3 minutes. People asked me to be the project manager but I refused. The idea was to present a zombie movie. We had no clue how we would do it because we had no dialogues to speak. The idea came up that we all could become zombies and the spray would turn them back into normal people. I knew all this would take only 30 seconds to do it and we needed to go to 3 minutes. We assembled backstage and opened our minds to some ideas. Murtaza and me decided to take charge. We both felt like Ganguly , Dravid, Tendulkar deciding what to do in the death overs. It was chaos. Slowly slowly a general idea came up that the 3 of us would pretend to take a drug and slowly due to the excess of it we would transform into zombies and infect the other normal people.  Then other  people would turn into zombies and a saviour “ Ambi Man” would come with the bottles and turn us into normal people and then a song would mean that the act is finished. 

THATS WHAT WE WERE "ZOMBIES"..CREDIT - DOOM 3

We even did a dry run of the same and I knew that I had to use the the full knowledge of Doom 3 , Half life  and a zombie  novel which I had read to being just like a zombie. Years of gaming practice would now be put on a test. I added things and notified others that the act was all about being totally crazy and being as slow as you can to prolong to those 3 mins. Do not think about Winning ,think about entertaining  people.

DRUGGING 

Our time came and I was ready and along with the other two people started acting like taking a drug and slowly slowly I lost unconsciousness. As I sat still, shivered like i was really cold. Took off my sunglasses just like a robot, stood still, eyes darting around for victims making the body stiff and gave a loud grunt towards the audience with bulging eyes and a scream i had seen in survival horror games. 

THE "ZOMBIE " MOMENT

Pouncing on the victim (Jatin), i clambered onto him to make him a zombie too.  Getting up slowly and venturing to the next lot I tried to do the realistic account. Getting on our last lot, we all fell down as our Ambi Man had come to save others. A bit of spray hit my eyes, Murtaza fell on top of me and i shouted from underneath, “अबे , उठ  वरना मैं सच का zombie बन जाउँगा ”.. ha ha. As the narration was going on, we knew when to act normal. We all returned back to the normal world and danced to the song All is well .

ZOMBIE ATTACK AND OUR AMBI MAN "RAJNIKANT ISHTYLE"

Literally letting our hair down on this song. We had done our job. Mission over. For those 3 mins, i had totally turn myself into a zombie. I lost count of what the other teams did after us.

ALL IS WELL

No clue. On the way i surely had a chat with Priyanka and Prateek to get into normal mode. We did not win prizes, but we won hearts. It was a total dumb charades where only actions spoke. Although it was a team effort in execution , i would like to thank the following people specially-

•  Murtaza, Jatin, others for listening to my ideas, contributing their own and going together as a team.

• Id Software and activison – the creators of Doom 3

• Valve- the creators of Half life series

• Mainak dhar – My friend and author of `Zombiestan` who gave me the inspiration to become the lead zombie and try innovation.

We posed for our blog. The winner getting a Lumia and the different concept bloggers getting Tabs, PS3, Sony Smartwatches, Powerbanks. When we broke up after the group pics, I saw many people coming up to me and congratulating me- some known (Murtaza, Jatin, Priti, Prateek), some unknown. Heading out towards the exit, Arvind Sir and his wife  came up from behind and he spoke, “तू तो कमाल का zombie था , बॉलीवुड के डायरेक्टर को तुझे देखना चाहिए था ”. I only smiled.

For my friends- I May be a zombie, a humourous guy, a crazy crack, Galib (Murtaza still thinks so), Loveguru but deep down inside i know that i would always be a simple guy who would keep writing on LOVE.

Waiting for the next meet and seeing what more can i become now. :)

Heroes: Flights of Heroism

These are stats which only few know-

IAF choppers- 50

Army Choppers - 13

Private choppers - 22

Aircrafts- 7

Special Para Commandos - 150

Area of combing - 40,000 Sq. km

These are just the highlights in the big ops undertaken by the forces.

In his command centre inside Dehradun's Jolly Grant airfield, Air Commodore Rajesh Issar, a lanky officer in olive green flying overalls and matching Ray-Bans, firmly speaks out words of encouragement to one of his pilots. "I will back you guys," he says over a satellite phone. On the afternoon of June 25, Issar, a helicopter pilot with over 8,000 flying hours and task force commander, reached deep within to motivate his pilots. Just an hour earlier, one of his Russian-built Mi-17s slammed into a hillside killing its entire five-member flight crew, six ITBP personnel and nine NDRF personnel. The crash was the worst setback to a gigantic armed forces rescue effort.

Issar had to staunch the pall of gloom that spread over the National Technical Research Organisation drone base, now the nerve centre of a massive air rescue. "The chief has given a statement and he means it," he says. "We will not stop flying." Just the day before, Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne delivered the catchline for a well-oiled efficient rescue machine, over 7,000 armed forces personnel who worked tirelessly and efficiently to reach out to thousands of stranded, washed-out tourist-pilgrims stranded on the higher reaches of the valleys, slowly running out of food and hope. "Our helicopter rotors will not stop churning till such time we get each one of you out. Do not lose hope and hang in there."

As politicians squabbled and cleaved relief efforts along political lines, for the stranded pilgrims the most heartening sight was that of whirling blades and men in olive green fatigues.

AN IAF AND ARMY PERSON CO ORDINATING RESCUE OPS

The armed forces had performed spectacularly during the Bhuj earthquake in 2002 and when the devastating tsunami struck southern India in 2004. But the Uttarakhand deluge presented a complexity that boggled them. The floods had severed the ribbon-like roads that wrapped around mountains. Entire districts had been marooned. Over 30,000 people stranded. The rescue could take weeks. The forces speedily adapted combat techniques designed to operate in hostile territory for disaster relief.

Lt-General Navtej Singh Bawa, the general officer commanding the Uttar Bharat area, moved his headquarters from Bareilly to Dehradun, equidistant from all the flooded valleys, on June 18. His patrols of between 10 and 20 soldiers swiftly turned into rescue and relief nodes. His directives to the troops were threefold: Search for marooned people, bring them to a safe place and provide them food and medical care. "If my men have reached, there is no question of anyone dying," Lt-General Bawa said.

It was however only on June 21 that the magnitude of the tragedy became apparent. The IAF increased its helicopter strength from five helicopters to 45 machines, pulling them from bases as far away as Sulur near Bangalore and Bagdogra in West Bengal. The Army brought in 13 helicopters including Dhruvs, Cheetahs and Chetaks. Twenty-two private choppers, many flown by retired Air Force and Army pilots, were also brought in.

The forces decided to use one of India's largest helicopter rescue efforts to build air bridges. The concept appeared simple on paper, but where would the machines land? The state government had ignored a three-month-old request from the Army to build a helipad at the Hemkund shrine. The Army wanted the helipad to evacuate pilgrims in an emergency. Now, there was no time to lose. Nearly 150 commandos from the Army's parachute regiment slithered down in areas where knots of survivors had been spotted. The commandos used knives and explosives to hack out three rough helipads for light rescue helicopters like the Dhruv and Cheetah to land. The pilots flew in the worst flying conditions imaginable-over mountains, in poor weather and through treacherous valleys. "One valley could be perfectly clear, the other one could have a cloudburst," a pilot explains.

The effort spanned over 40,000 sq km and included over 50 helicopters and seven aircraft across the flood-ravaged mountainous state. "This capability has not been built overnight," an Army officer explains. "It took us over 350 years to get here," he says harking back to the Army's origins. On the ground, this capability played out with clockwork efficiency. Time was short and the orders were terse. A typical one-line order from a senior officer would read like this: 'Report to me from Sonprayag at 09.00 hours tomorrow.' The implication: An entire Army unit headed by the officer would have to be in place handling relief operations in the marooned valley.

SURVIVED AND GOING HOME

At the Nehru Institute of Mountaineering on the riverbank of the Uttarkashi, the principal Colonel Ajay Kothiyal, a mountaineer and gallantry award-winner, swiftly deployed his staffers and local youth, over 60 people, to rescue thousands of stranded pilgrims and tourists. "Our greatest asset was the young people of the district who we used in the relief teams as they knew the terrain well," he says.

When it looked like the air effort would be overwhelmed by the sheer weight of people, the Army began opening roads to rescue survivors. Troops built 'Burma bridges', narrow rope bridges that allow people to cross over gorges in a single file. In Jungle Chatti and Govindghat, where such bridges couldn't be erected, Army Cheetahs flew nearly a 100 one-minute hops across a gorge, ferrying stranded pilgrims. Between Jungle Chatti and Gaurikund, troops of the Sikh regiment formed a 3.5 km human chain where they hefted marooned pilgrims on their backs through hazardous terrain. A kilometre away from Gaurikund, an Army helicopter spotted nine bodies on a riverine island. The pilgrims were alive, but only barely. They had passed out from sheer hunger. They were administered saline drips and flown to one of five 'forward mounting bases' at the furthest points of washed-away roads from where medium-sized Mi-17 helicopters carrying 30 people could operate from. This unique air bridge leapfrogged survivors into the relief hub in Dehradun.

PUTTING THEIR LIVES ON THE LINE

The most daring rescue was at Jungle Chatti, an area on the route towards Kedarnath. Army helicopters located what they thought were around 80 tourists stranded on a steep hillside. A group of 18 Army commandos were lowered to provide them with aid. This was when they discovered how wrong the estimates were. "Sir," an officer radioed Lt-General Bawa back in Dehradun, "there are between 800 and 1,200 people stranded here." Jungle Chatti was swarming with survivors who had scrambled up the hillside to escape the flood. They had not eaten in five days and now looked towards the helicopters for succour. The armed forces launched a complex operation the following day. Most people were flown out using helicopters, the able-bodied survivors were moved out on foot.

The relief effort was not without external pressures. Central command officers were deluged by requests from "high ranking Centre and state officials" asking for certain persons to be evacuated first. One officer reads out an SMS template he kept to deal with such requests: "Kindly don't embarrass us. We are going as per the priority list: sick persons, old people, ladies, children, followed by other people."

The Army was the last line of defence but used as the first option when disaster struck. 

The air bridge cut through the miasma of corruption on the ground. One family rescued by the Air Force recounted how policemen on the ground demanded bribes to allow them near civilian choppers. The police melted away when an IAF chopper arrived. Businessman Sudhir Kumar Gupta, 40, lost his three-member family in the flood at Kedarnath. "I survived only because of the Army," he says of his helicopter rescue. After 10 days of non-stop rescue sorties, over 22,000 tourists and locals were saved by the armed forces. Sugandh Chand Jain, a 55-year-old homeopath from Gotegaon, Madhya Pradesh, trekked to Badrinath with his nine-member family and insists he saw divinity. "They are angels," he says of his rescuers in uniform. The armed forces take such accolades in their stride. "This operation fulfils our constitutional mandate of aiding civil authority," says Lt-General Bawa. "I am happy we could do it with the speed and safety of our men and the people we were rescuing," he smiles. 

Service with a smile.