JAIPUR: Kargil Vijay Diwas was observed at all military stations of Sapta Shakti Command on July 26 to commemorate the victory of Indian Army over Pakistan during Operation Vijay in the Kargil War of 1999. The operation was launched on May 6, 1999 with Indian Army inflicting heavy casualties on Pakistani army and forcing them to withdraw.
In a solemn ceremony at Jaipur, Lieutenant General AS Bhinder, GOC-in-C, Sapta Shakti Command laid wreath at Prerna Sthal to pay tributes to the soldiers who laid down their lives in the service of the nation. The Army commander greeted all ranks of the command on the occasion and exhorted them to remain eternally vigilant as custodians of security and territorial integrity of our nation.
Over 500 Indian soldiers lost their lives and many were injured in the war which saw its beginning when a patrol party led by Captain Saurabh Kalia was captured by enemy forces and tortured for days. The mutilated bodies of the soldiers were found days later which included Mula Ram of Nagaur who was one of the first martyrs from Rajasthan. Many others from Rajasthan were also killed in action in the war which lasted for more than two months.
Chief minister Ashok Gehlot also took to social media to remember the soldiers who laid down their lives during the war and wrote on Twitter, “On Kargil Vijay Diwas, humble tributes to our bravehearts, who made the supreme sacrifice defending every inch of India’s territory. We salute the valour of our armed forces, how they fought with exemplary courage on the heights of Kargil. Their sacrifices can never be forgotten.”
Apart from Gehlot, other leaders including Tonk MLA Sachin Pilot, state soldier welfare minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas, PCC chief Govind Singh Dotasra, former CM Vasundhara Raje and governor Kalraj Mishra also remembered the fallen soldiers.
