Kargil Vijay Diwas – 1999 War
Kargil Vijay Diwas – 1999 War
Commemoration Day: 26 July
Operation: Operation Vijay
Martyrs: 533
Awards: 4 PVC, 9 MVC, 27 VrC
Kargil Vijay Diwas – 1999 War
Kargil Vijay Diwas is celebrated on 26th July every year to commemorate the success of Operation Vijay, under which on this day, in 1999 India successfully took command of all the high outposts in the Kargil region which were being held by the Pakistani intruders.
In the winter months of 1998 and early 1999, militants in the guise of Mujahideen were covertly trained by the Pakistani armed forces and sent to the Indian side of the LOC. They captured some of the unguarded posts in the region and aimed to seize control over Kargil sector, which would enable them to cut off the supply route between Srinagar and Ladakh and take control of the Siachin region. The intrusion was detected in the month of May and patrols were sent to check and control them. By the time India realized Pakistan’s hand behind the infiltrations, they had captured many posts in the Drass, Kaksar and Mushkoh regions. Operation Vijay was then launched by the government to clear the area from infiltrators.
The air force too launched a mission called Safed Sagar to help in the mobilization of the army. The army set out to recapture the areas along the national highway 1D, which was the main supply route between Ladakh and Kashmir. The Indian army attacked the intruders who held well-fortified positions in the Tololing region. The 2nd Rajputana Rifles along with the 18 Grenadiers laid out a three-week assault that culminated in the recapture of the Tololing region, claiming 23 Indian lives in the process. The Indian army had captured a strategically important position and it took them a further six days to clear out the enemy troops from the nearby areas and take control of the Drass sector. The Indian troops moved forward by capturing the strategic peaks and advanced towards Tiger Hills. Tiger Hills was the highest peak in the Kargil region. Treacherous terrain and well-entrenched enemy in the region posed difficulties to the army. Many battles were fought between June and July to capture strategic locations that would facilitate the capture of Tiger hills. On July 4, 1999 the 18 Grenadiers captured the coveted hills after a fierce battle that lasted about 11 hours at the peak of Tiger Hills. This was a very important turn of events for the Indian troops and victory was in sight for them.
The then Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif sought help from the United States of America, without much avail. He then agreed to withdraw Pakistani troops from the Indian side of the LOC, owing to International pressure. India carried its final assault in the last week of July and cleared the Drass subsector from infiltrators entirely by July 26. The battle had been won and operation Vijay was deemed successful.
The Kargil war victory was made possible by the heroic efforts of our troops, with various gallantry awards winners, among them, four Param Vir Chakra, nine Maha vir Chakra and several Vir Chakra winners, setting new benchmarks for bravery and service to the nation. The war had large number of causalities from both sides and India lost 527 of its brave soldiers in this campaign. We salute and remember the sacrifices of these valiant souls of India on this day.
There were three major phases to the Kargil War. First, Pakistan infiltrated forces into the Indian-controlled section of Kashmir and occupied strategic locations enabling it to bring NH1 within range of its artillery fire. The next stage consisted of India discovering the infiltration and mobilizing forces to respond to it. The final stage involved major battles by Indian and Pakistani forces resulting in India recapturing most of the territories held by Pakistani forces and the subsequent withdrawal of Pakistani forces back across the Line of Control after international pressure
Occupation by Pakistan
Date(1999) | Event |
---|---|
03-May | Pakistani intrusion in Kargil reported by local shepherds |
05-May | Indian Army patrol sent up; Five Indian soldiers captured and tortured to death. |
09-May | Heavy shelling by Pakistan Army damages ammunition dump in Kargil |
10-May | Infiltrations first noticed in Dras, Kaksar, and Mushkoh sectors |
Mid-May | Indian Army moves in more troops from Kashmir Valley to Kargil Sector |
26-May | IAF launches air strikes against infiltrators |
27-May | IAF loses two fighters – MiG-21 and MiG-27;. Flt Lt Nachiketa taken POW |
28-May | IAF MI-17 shot down by Pakistan; four air crew dead |
01-Jun | Pakistan steps up attacks; bombs NH 1A |
05-Jun | Indian Army releases documents recovered from three Pakistani soldiers indicating Pakistan’s involvement |
06-Jun | Indian Army launches major offensive in Kargil |
09-Jun | Indian Army re-captures two key positions in the Batalic sector |
11-Jun | India releases intercepts of conversation between Pakistani Army Chief Gen Pervez Musharraf, while on a visit to China and Chief of General Staff Lt Gen Aziz Khan in Rawalpindi, as proof of Pakistani Army’s involvement |
13-Jun | Indian Army secures Tololing in Dras |
15-Jun | U.S. President Bill Clinton, in a telephonic conversation, asks Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to pull out from Kargil |
29-Jun | Indian Army captures two vital posts: Point 5060 and Point 5100 near Tiger Hill |
02-Jul | Indian Army launches three-pronged attack in Kargil |
04-Jul | Indian Army recaptures Tiger Hill after an 11-hour battle |
05-Jul | Indian Army takes control of Dras. Sharif announces Pakistani army’s withdrawal from Kargil following his meeting with Clinton |
07-Jul | India recaptures Jubar Heights in Batalik |
11-Jul | Pakistan begins pullout; India captures key peaks in Batalik |
14-Jul | Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee declares Operation Vijay a success. Government sets condition for talks with Pakistan |
26-Jul | Kargil conflict officially comes to an end. Indian Army announces complete eviction of Pakistani intruders. |
Param Vir Chakra | Maha Vir Chakra | Vir Chakra |
---|---|---|
Capt. Vikram Batra, 13 JAK Rifles (Posthumous) | Maj. Vivek Gupta, 2 Raj Rif(Posthumous) | Col Umesh Singh Bawa, |
Lt. Manoj Kumar Pandey, 1/11 GR(Posthumous) | Maj. Padmapani Acharya, 2 Raj Rif(Posthumous) | Col Lalit Rai, |
Grenedier Yogender Singh Yadav, 18 Grenadiers | Capt. N Kenguruse, 2 Raj Rif(Posthumous) | Col M.B. Ravindranath |
Rifleman Sanjay Kumar, 13 JAK Rifles | Naik Digendra Kumar, 2 Rajputana Rifles | Lt Col Yogesh Kumar Joshi, |
Maj. Rajesh Singh Adhikari, 18 Grenadiers(Posthumous) | Maj S. Vijay Bhaskar, | |
Lt. Balwan Singh, 18 Grenadiers | Maj Deepak Rampal, | |
Capt. Anuj Nayyar, 17 Jat(Posthumous) | Maj Vikas Vohra, | |
Lt. Keshing Clifford Nongrum, 12 JAK LI(Posthumous) | Maj Amrinder Singh Kasana, | |
Major Sonam Wangchuk, Ladakh Scouts | Maj Rajesh Sah, | |
Maj Mohit Saxena, | ||
Maj M. Saravanan (posthumous), | ||
Capt Shyamal Sinha. | ||
Capt Amol Kalia (posthumous), | ||
Capt Sachin Annarao Nimbalkar, | ||
Capt Sanjeev Singh. | ||
Capt Haneef Uddin (posthumous). | ||
Capt Sumeet Roy (posthumous), | ||
Capt Maridhvodan Veetil Sooraj, | ||
Capt Jintu Gogoi (posthumous), | ||
Capt R.Jery Prem Raj (posthumous), | ||
Lt Vijyant Thapar (posthumous), | ||
Sub Chhering Stobdan. | ||
Sub Bahadur Singh (posthumous), | ||
Sub Lobzang Chhotak (posthumous), | ||
Sub Randhir Singh (posthumous), | ||
Sub Bhawar Lal (posthumous), |
Source
- https://en.wikipedia.org
- http://www.thehindu.com
- http://www.indianarmy.nic.in
Disclaimer
Sai Dhruti Sooram New Horizon Gurukul 2C
2022 at 3:03 pmJai Hind to All Brave Soldier and Kargil Martyrs…
Prakshith M
2022 at 4:30 pmI salute to all the brave soldiers.Your sacrifice makes us speechless ,I admire them for being selfless.Despite knowing life is priceless ,they are always ceaseless.Staying in crucial borderside just to make us safe inside.
Proud of my country and soldiers.
Jai hind
Prakshith M,1 I ,New Horizon Gurukul
SAMARTH B
2022 at 7:40 pmI Salute from my heart all the brave Indian soldiers of our country who sacrificed their lives during the war.
Bharat Ki Jai!
Jai Hind
SAMARTH B
CLASS 3B
THE BRIGADE SCHOOL -MALLESWARM
Aishani Singh
2022 at 10:00 pmI pay my tribute to the brave Indian soldiers who sacrificed their lives for India during the Kargil War. Jai Bharat! We won against them in Kargil, but we lost our dear ones in those hills. Let us honour all of our courageous warriors who have safeguarded us at all hours of the day and night.
Aishani Singh, 2D
New Horizon Gurukul
vivek singh
2022 at 3:46 pmThese martyrs are the real son of Mother India.
Niyanth Lakshman, Grade-5D, New Horizon Gurukul
2022 at 2:07 pmCaptain Vikram Batra – braveheart that led India to victory
Captain Vikram Batra was born on 9th September 1974 in Bandla Gaon in Palampur district. He is the son of Shri Giridhari Lal Batra and Smt Kamal Kanta.Capt. Vikram Batra received his primary education in D.A.V Public School and secondary in Kendriya Vidyalaya, Palampur. After passing his secondary PU in 1992, he got admitted in DAV College and while in college he joined NCC and was awarded the best NCC cadet (air wing) in the north zone. He also got through the Combined Defense Services Exam and joined IMA, Dehradun in 1994. During Kargil War, as part of operation Vijay, Lt. Batra and Lt. Sanjeev Jamwal were assigned responsibility. Lt. Batra was also nomiated for “Param Vir Chakra” .Spurred by Lt. Batra’s courage of killing many Pakistani soldiers which also caused him many injuries. While saving our injured soldier, he was also hit on the chest and breathed his last. So the infuriated team attacked and won the battle. Salute to his bravery and courage.
Vivaan Bhole
2022 at 7:54 pmI big salute to the martyrs of 1999. Since their courage have led India freedom and have allowed people to live in peace. They were ready to make sacrifices for our country. While they lost a lot of lives but they were still not losing hope. While there was harsh weather in the mountain they still wanted to fight. And many people got awards for their courageous act.
Jai Hind
Vivaan Class 4C New Horizon Gurukul
Neeraj Agarwal
2023 at 12:24 amI came to know about Captain Anuj Nayyar of 17 Jat regiment and his bravery after I watched the Indian Idol show this past weekend. Late Capt. Nayyar’s mom was there as a invited guest. Anuj’s story got me teared up and that tempted me to write here at Honourpoint. Although, I left India (my birth and education country) in 1982, I always feel I am always there mentally. We lost 533 brave soldiers in Operation Vijay in Kargil and Anuj one of them. My salute to Anuj and his lovely mom and everyone for their unselfish bravery.
Simona
2023 at 4:45 pmThis is a heartfelt gratitude to our brave soldiers who fought relentlessly and martyred their lives for us to be able to sleep peacefully.
While we sleep, there are so many out there who are losing lives trying to protect us from miscreants. No amount of words can do justice to what they do for us.
I am proud of each one of our soldiers, many unheard, many untold of, who lost their lives without knowing how big a sacrifice they are doing for humanity.
My heartfelt tribute to each one of them, and their families.
JAI HIND !!!
Shivin Khatri
2023 at 7:34 pmThe Martyrs list uploaded here contains 503 names, but as per the GOI, we lost 527 Brave Soldiers.
Is there a way that I can get the remaining names.
I’m planning for a tribute to all the Heroes of Kargil on this Vijay Divas.
Thanks in Advance !