Indian Army Warriors who Define Courage

“I'll either come back after raising the Indian flag in victory Or return wrapped in it. But I will be back for sure.” - Captain Vikram Batra, PVC

It’s the 14th anniversary of the Kargil war victory. Its pride and pain for the soldiers, as the nation celebrates the anniversary of the victory against Pakistan. 

I was just 7 years old when the Kargil war took place. I was hardly aware about what it was all about.  Few years later I did come to know about the war fought between the two nations. All I remember is watching movie LoC & my father explaining me about the event as well.
 
Kashmir has always been a disputed region. There have been tensions between Pakistan and India over this for years. The war was fought due to the infiltration of Pakistani soldiers and Kashmiri militants into positions on the Indian side of the LoC which serves as the de facto border between the two countries.

Sometime back I had a privilege to read “The Last Letter written by Captain. Vijyant Thapar (Robin)” to his parents. He was an officer of the Indian Army and belonged to the famous 2 Rajputana Rifles, infantry regiment.

"By the time you get this letter I'll be observing you from the sky enjoying the hospitality of apsaras," read the final letter Vijyant wrote to his family minutes before going in for the final assault, adding that he had no regrets and would join the Army again if reborn as a human. When he was writing that letter he knew that this will be the last one from him. At that very moment too, a feeling of patriotism, love for Mother India was running very high with him and his clan.  

How many of us have ever imagined, how difficult it would have been to receive the mutilated body of her son Capt. Saurabh Kalia- The first martyr of Kargil by her mother. Just give a thought to it. Let’s think for a while.  How difficult it is for a wife to salute the body of her husband, who is wrapped in tri colour before her. As done by the Widow of Major. Vivek Gupta.

Recently my friend told me about him being a part of Mission Kargil 2013.  To commemorate Vijay Diwas on July 26, forty bikers embarked on an 11-day bike expedition to Kargil along with Indian Army.

Mission Kargil 2013: Trail the Path of Heroes will begin from Rezanf La War Memorial, Sector 23, Gurgaon on Friday and end in New Delhi on July 30, 2013.

The expedition would cover a distance of 3,000 km. During the journey, the team would spread Indian Army's goodwill message. The event has been organised by Indian Army Fans, the largest online fan base of Indian army with over 1.4 million followers. Some of the members of the group are women as well. The self-financed mission comprises of people between the age-group of 22-40 years. All the bikes are Royal Enfield and Captain Navin Gulia will lead the group.
                                                                                                                              
I truly believe that, every man and woman in uniforms is the true hero of the nation. They put their life at stake day-in and day-out to safe guard the sovereignty of our country and are even prepared to sacrifice their lives so that their fellow countrymen can lead a happy and peaceful life.

Father’s Message to his son (Capt.Vijyant Thapar)

Son,

The brave way you left this world, at the age of 22 is a measure of how you lived your short life and what you valued. In meeting the stark challenges of capturing Knoll against all odds, during the battle of Three Pimples with heroic coolness and single minded devotion to duty, you have achieved immortal honour. In death you have epitomised the spirit of national pride - an honour which makes every sacrifice worthwhile. Your actions will forever inspire generations of Indians to come. You have left us with pride for being the parents of a worthy son and a lifetime of pain for having lost a child we loved.
                                                                         -Col. V.N. Thapar

"All countrymen must SALUTE OUR Real Heroes of KARGIL DAY." 

In fact all army, air force & navy men of our country deserve to be seen as real heroes. They devote their life for our security & wellbeing. They sacrifice themselves to safeguard our motherland. No matter what I say I will never be able to glorify these heroes with the glory they truly deserve. I may keep on praising them endlessly but still it will be short in terms of praise they truly deserve. But above all I haven’t shared my views to be just read, appreciated & be forgotten. It’s just an effort from my end which I hope may kindle fire in hearts of all readers to do something for their country just the way they desire to do things for their family.  
  
Jai Hind! 
Jai Bharat!

Living In The Moment

If this life is one act
Why do we lay all these traps?
We put them right in our path
When we just wanna be free

I will not waste my days
Making up all kinds of ways
To worry about all the things
That will not happen to me

So I just let go of what I know I don't know
And I know I'll only do this by
Living in the moment
Living our life
Easy and breezy
With peace in my mind
With peace in my heart
Peace in my soul
Wherever I'm going, I'm already home
Living in the moment

We wake up every day, with new wishes & hopes for tomorrow. Instead of living in our present, we human have a tendency to worry about our future. This only ends up taking away, what we have today. Do we even know what future have in store for us? No one have an idea about what will happen tomorrow. Lets for a moment not talk about the time to come, but we are even clueless about what will happen the very next moment. Life is a mystery; why not leave it just the way it is? And wait for it to unfold its secrets.

 It’s not just about future, but some of us are still stuck in our past. Our past may have been glorious or may have been filled with failures. Some of us are still living in those moments of life. It’s time to let it go & welcome what is waiting for us. 

The only reason we are so future centric is because of the society we live in. We are always thought to think about the coming days & plan them. In the race of life, to have more & more, we tend forget many memorable moments of our life. In this Hippocratic world nothing comes with a guarantee. How can tomorrow have an assurance, that it will be wonderful & exactly the way we want it to be?  Life is a process. No matter how we plan it, it will go with its own flow. There will be ups & downs. Live your life day by day. Nothing is forever in this crazy world.

Today is your only day. Yesterday has passed and tomorrow is never assured. We are not going to be here forever. You never know when you’re going to leave this Earth. Take time to enjoy this day with no regrets. Live in the moment & make it so beautiful, that it is worth remembering.

How do you know what your life will be like tomorrow? Your life is like the morning fog—it’s here a little while, then it’s gone. The light is always shinning outside our windows, trying to peep in to lighten our world. But we ignore it. We can never enjoy that light, unless we open that window, & let the light enter into our life. 

“You are the light of the world—like a city on a hilltop that cannot be hidden. No one lights a lamp and then puts it under a basket. Instead, a lamp is placed on a stand, where it gives light to everyone in the house.” (Matthew 5:14, 15 NLT)

Living in the moment is a choice. You can choose to experience it later, in which case you will develop a mindset of being happy later which will carry on into your retirement life. This leads to neediness for the rest of your life. Or you can live in this moment now, and not worry about being needy.

If we look around, things are pretty amazing. So stop for a second, enjoy the beauty, feel the magic, drink it in because it won't last forever. All the happiness, romance will fade. Things will happen, no matter how much ever we try to stop it. People will change, sad moments will make its way into our life. Relations will fall apart, love will die. But, maybe not today.

-P.S.: The song used above is by Jason Marz.

Uttarakhand floods: Dhari Devi’s wrath Superstition or co-incidence?

Localities claim that shifting of Goddess Dhari devi’s idol from its original place is the reason for the ravage in Uttarakhand. Thousands of people have lost their lives in the floods & landslides in Uttarakhand.  The legend says that only the upper half of an idol of goddess Kali is called “Dhari Devi’ while her torso is worshipped as a ‘Shree Yantra’ at Kalimath Temple near Guptkashi. As per local lore, Dhari Devi changes in appearance during the day from a girl, to a woman, and then to an old lady. She is considered to be the protector of the Char Dhams.

On June 16 when the idol was shifted, there was a cloudburst over the holy town of Kedarnath ravaged the Hill State, killing hundreds and displacing thousand besides completely wiping out a number of villages. A similar attempt in 1882 by a local king had resulted in a landslide that had flattened Kedarnath. It may be a coincidence, but century’s old faith cannot be ruled out. The people strongly believe that they had to face goddess ire. Dhari Devi’s wrath may or may not be behind the trail of destruction in Uttarakhand, but people have reinforced their beliefs in the divine. No matter how much ever the science & technology has developed, people still believe in such superstitious things. 

Environmentalists describe the tragedy as a man-made disaster while geologists feel the extent of destruction could have been far lesser if stricter regulations had been put in place. Landslide problems are every year faced by people in Uttarakhand. What is indisputable is the story of exploitation of the hills and the resultant ill effects. How ironic it is to state that, deity’s anger can be the reason behind the disaster.