I have a guest writer on my blog today - a very dear friend I went to school with, and a proud army officer today. Here's Colonel Padam Prabodh Prakash Singh with his take on how much we take our brave soldiers for granted.
Today (26 Jul 2009), when all the TV channels are going berserk over covering 10 years of Kargil Victory, I am nursing some mixed feelings. There's a lump in the throat as I remember some of my colleagues who made the supreme sacrifice…., there's anger…considerable anger…over the apathy of bureaucracy and political leadership ….and there's also a tinge of frustration and shame in seeing a few of the distant relatives of my martyred colleagues attempting to put a price tag on the supreme sacrifice of the departed souls and sullying their names.
I ask myself, "Am I going Hyper ? ". Maybe the whole issue is affecting me more intensely because , I was in Dras just two months ago carrying out aerial reconnaissance in a helicopter , overflying the icy heights (in excess of 17,000 ft) of Tololing , Batra Top and Tiger Hill, followed by paying homage to the 527 martyrs at Dras War Memorial. However, the urge to open up the laptop and start articulating my thoughts on the subject was triggered by a sordid and pathetic exchange of words between Abhishek Manu Singhavi and Ravinder Pratap Rudy – both trying to outdo each other and score a few brownie points in the TV programme – " Big Fight ", being aired on NDTV . I wonder ,as to why I am writing all this to you. Perhaps, the answer lies in the question posed by you in your blog on Lata's immortal song , `Ae mere watan ke logon'. While I am not attempting to answer your query , I find it prudent to share some random thoughts with you.
"Yeh Dil Maange More" --- the promotional tag line of a soft drink --- immortalized by late Capt Vikram Batra , who was awarded the Param Vir Chakra for his exceptional gallantry, portrayed on celluloid by Abhishek Bachchan --- is one of the first thoughts which comes to my mind . "Yeh Dil Maange More" --- What more do I want today ? Today , when the whole Nation is paying tributes to the heroes of Kargil War, what's it that my heart is aching for ? I should be an extremely contented man , but there's something which is convulsing deep inside, within me. While the Kargil War has been promoted , captured on celluloid and covered quite extensively – perhaps necessitated by the compulsions of the political party in power at that time, sitting on a wafer thin majority , -- it is the general ignorance and public apathy to the other wars which bothers me. I am referring to the proxy war which commenced 10 years prior to Kargil War in 1989 and continues to be waged till date . In the last 20 years , innumerable lives have been lost in these operations . The sacrifices made by the gallant soldiers in Kashmir Valley and in the North-East have scripted a saga of silent battle with a multitude of unsung heroes, -- whose contribution to the National cause has been no less than our Kargil bravehearts.
Eversince I joined the Army 26 years ago , some extremely vivid images have got deeply etched in my mind. Occasional brushes with that dark , dusky beauty called Death and losing a colleague, a comrade and a brother officer are the images which keep on coming back to me. One moment , my deputy – a bubbling young officer , the only child of his parents , full of zest for life, about to get married in a month's time -- was giving out graphic details of his fiance's beauty , discussing his impending marriage plans … and half an hour later his bullet ridden body was there in my arms. For someone who has practiced lifting a buddy innumerable times during his training days, very seldom has 65 Kg of body weight felt like 6.5 tons . Accompanying the body of the gallant soldier draped in the tricolor and facing his mother was another daunting proposition and a tough ask., but hats off to the indomitable spirit of the lady. In that tense environment, while there was something snapping within me every now and then , here was this gallant lady who decided to shed a tear only after paying homage to what was perhaps her only source of future hope and happiness. Maybe , that's what gave courage to the entire gathering , who joined in paying their last respects to the departed soul. Although, the incident dates back 15 years but every single moment of the incident continues to remain firmly etched in my memory. I can't help saluting the brave mother ,even today.
Reverting to my current concern. The immense contribution made by our soldiers, including their supreme sacrifices, while fighting the militants and guarding the Nation on a 24x7x365 basis is largely going unnoticed. During peacetime, the busy citizens of this great Nation have perhaps started nursing this opinion that the taxpayer's money is being utilized for guarding the Nation and Military is just a tool for this job . Any voices being raised on this account are drubbed as an attempt to be extracting some material gains for the services being rendered by the Armed Forces. For God's sake, stop treating us like mercenaries. I am most definitely not seeking any kind of compensation for the sacrifices being made by the valiant soldiers --- for I do not want to demean their contribution to the National cause and sully their names. All that one is looking for is a small little acknowledgement of the tireless efforts being put in by the Great Indian Soldier. Please spare us those 10 lac cheques, those petrol pump and gas agency connections and those DDA flats. Army as an organization is quite well geared up for looking after the material needs of it's members. We do not require doles on this account. All that one is craving for is a small little nod of acknowledgement by my friends in the civvy streets, a thumbs up, a mild recognition of the efforts put in by their comrades in uniform. Let's stop putting price to the life of a soldier. There's a huge difference between a soldier and a mercenary …. and being in this business for more than 25 years , I would like to firmly believe that we are soldiers… professional soldiers… NOT killing machines or mercenaries.
Maybe, I have gone overboard in giving vent to my feelings, but at this moment I can't help reminiscing a famous quote.
"God and soldier, we like adore,
Just at the brink of ruin and not before,
The danger past – both are requited ,
God forgotten and the soldier slighted."
