Reply from Soldiers of India to the Intolerant people. Learn Tolerance from them who don’t celebrate Diwali so that we do it Peacefully. Digesting the fact that everyone wants to be like Shahrukh Khan and Dhoni and not like them, they will still continue to follow their duties to protect India so that we celebrate festivals with our families.This is their love for India.
Without bothering too much about her personal safety Mitali Madhumita, then on a United Nations’ mission in Kabul, thrust herself headlong to save precious lives buried under the debris when the Indian embassy in Kabul suffered a terror attack on February 26, 2011.
Had she wanted she could have easily looked the other way and allowed local security agencies take charge of the rescue operations. Her brave act helped save scores of lives of those grievously injured in the attack.
For her valiant act, Mitali was conferred with the Sena Medal, the very first awarded to a woman army officer who went beyond the call of duty and helped save lives.
Mitali’s act of bravery has once and for all put a lid on the debate whether women should be given permanent commission in the Indian Army.
The Supreme Court sought the Centre’s response on a plea of Lt Col Mitali Madhumita, the only woman army officer to win a gallantry award, seeking restoration of Armed Forces Tribunal order asking the government to consider her case for a permanent commission.
A bench comprising Justices J S Khehar and R Banumathi issued notices to the government and the army on the officer’s plea seeking lifting of the stay ordered by the apex court on the tribunal’s February 5 order asking the authorities to consider her permanent commission.
A Permanent Commission means a career in the Army till retirement.
The bench has sought government’s response by September 11 and posted her plea for hearing on September 14 when it will also hear the appeal against the tribunal’s order.
The tribunal had entertained the officer’s plea against the government’s move to reject her application due to her earlier unwillingness regarding grant of permanent commission.
The tribunal had also directed the Centre that she shall be paid her pay and allowances till her case for permanent commission was decided.
Senior advocate Dushyant Dave and Advocate Aishwarya Bhati submitted that the officer was not paid her pay and allowances for the past 17 months.
In her application, the officer said she had earlier expressed her unwillingness for permanent commission when she was posted in Afghanistan and was also facing matrimonial difficulty.
However, she changed her decision within the prescribed time and sought permanent commission, the application said.
The apex court on August 3 had stayed the tribunal’s order and posted the matter for further hearing along with other identical cases.
Hello, Warriors!
Previously, we wrote about the various gallantry awards and medals for the peacetime and wartime form the Param Vir Chakra to the Shaurya Chakra, from Gallantry Medals to Service Medals. Among these, other awards and medals, most of which are decommissioned today, included:
SERVICE AND CAMPAIGN MEDALS
LONG SERVICE AWARDS
INDEPENDENCE MEDALS
The order, in which these medals are to be worn by the recipients, is
The Indian navy is planning to become a 200 warship force with 600 helicopters and helicopters by 2027. The hike in navy’s commissioning of warships and weapons seems to be a sign of strength. As China has expanded its presence in Indian Ocean region (IOR) in order to secure its energy supplies. South China Sea has been a major issue of China and now India need to bother about and get ready of IOR. Recent commissioning of naval ships, submarines and defense systems has shown how the Indian government is focusing over Indian navy which matters a lot to secure Indian waters.
India with more thrust emphasizing on its armed forces is now seems to be focusing on navy. Every week, news of commissioning of new ship, submarine is surfaced. Recently, INS Vishwakarma was announced commissioned by chief of naval staff Admiral R. K. Dhowan. The ship is a premier training establishment of Indian navy was previously shipwright school. It was also named as INS Shiwaji previously and is crucially placed in Indian navy signifying indigenization under ‘Make in India’.
Last week, INS Mareech a torpedo defense system is also introduced in India to deter torpedo attacks. The defense system was developed by the naval defense laboratories. The system is expert in detecting and tracking the torpedo attacks and taking steps to prevent naval ships from torpedo attacks. The system can divert the attacks and leading to lose its energy. It opens new part of naval power to India.
Make in India has affected India a lot, especially defense sector which has observed a hike in production and made a strong hold on development. Acquisition and procurements are still going on but indigenization is the first priority of India these days. Similar project of INS Kochi has been a strong card for India. INS Kochi, the Pride of India is also a cause of threat to the enemies of India. The stealth destroyer is flourished with elite features and being the largest Indian made warship, it has a special place in Indian navy. INS Kolkata of same class was commissioned last year. Not only this Indian government is looking toward project &% to manufacture 6 advanced submarines with high underwater endurance having land attack cruise missiles and air independent propulsion. The production time estimated to be about 10 years.
When it comes to Indian’s partnership with other nations in field of defense, India gives its best. The most recent example is Barak-8 (LR-SAM). As per sources, long-range surface to air missiles which are a jointly developed by India and Israel is capable of shielding any air threats like drones, missiles or aircraft in range of 80 Kms. Barak NG (next generation) is all set for its test from naval warship. Well AGNI IV’s successful test has led India to make an efficient ICBM (intercontinental ballistic missiles) in next project. And similar missile projects need to be gear up for better defense performance
If we look at current scenario, still there is lack of minesweepers, helicopters, and submarines in Indian navy which need to be fulfilled to get a fully prepared navy ready to attack and counterattack. China’s 51 conventional and 5 nuclear submarines and Pakistan’s recent deal with china to get 8 submarines means some big enemies on the head. With this, India has to overcome the deficiency in both count and types of weapons and warheads.
Hello, Warriors!
Indian Armed Forces are no less of brave heroes. Recently, we witnessed the martyrdom of Col Santosh Mahadik safeguarding the nation from terrorists and insurgents. The officer was earlier awarded Sena Medal for exhibiting gallantry and leadership in counter-terrorist operations.
In the previous article, we wrote about the various decorations in the Indian Armed Forces.
Here, we talk about the various medals awarded by the Government of India to its brave and courageous soldiers and civilians.
MEDALS
These were just the major awards and medals of the Indian Armed Forces. There are various other medals and honors apart from these. If you want to check those out too, you can follow the Miscellaneous Medals of the Indian Armed Forces here.
On the eleventh day of the Manigarh operation, security forces killed the first militant of the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) deep inside the jungle.
The operation was launched on November 13, after security forces received a tip-off about the presence of militants in the area. The Army and the police launched a cordon-and-search operation to hunt down the militants. The Army later in rushed in special forces and choppers.
“One militant has been killed so far. We suspect three more are in the area. We have had four contacts (exchange of firing) so far, one of which killed Colonel Mahadik and five others. A Lieutenant Colonel was injured”, Ajaz Ahmad, senior superintendent of police, Kupwara, told dna.
Security forces also killed three terrorists of the Hizb-ul-Mujahideen at Aishmuqam in Anantnag district
Colonel NN Joshi, defence spokesman at Srinagar, said that acting on a tip-off, the Rashtriya Rifles and the police launched a swift operation to flush them out.
“As the Army and the police approached the suspects’ house, the terrorists fired indiscriminately. Exercising strict restraint to avoid any collateral damage to civilians, the Army engaged the three terrorists in a brief gun battle and eliminated them,” he said.
The slain militants were identified as Sartaj Ahmad Lone, Adil Ahmad Sheikh and Tanveer Ahamd Bhat.
“Adil Sheikh was involved in the killing of a policeman, Arif Nazir Khan, in June 16 this year. Tanveer was involved in the killing of a civilian, Javid Ahamd Sofi. Three AK-47 rifles, six magazines, one Under Barrel Grenade Launcher (UBGL), three UBGL grenades and one pistol with magazine were recovered,” a police spokesman said
In a separate incident, a soldier was killed when his patrol came under heavy firing near the Line of Control in Naoshera sector.
“Our troops retaliated. In the ensuing fight, one soldier was injured and attained martyrdom while being taken to the military hospital. Search operations were still on,” said Lt Colonel Manish Mehta, defence spokesman at Jammu.
Read: 6 Inspiring Facts About Colonel Santosh Mahadik Who Martyred In Jammu
source: DNA
Hello, Warriors!
In the Indian Armed Forces, decorations are awarded for extraordinary bravery and courage, as well as distinguished service during times of war and peace to the most daring and the bravest personnel of the Armed Forces.
Service and campaign medals have also been awarded throughout the history of India as an independent state.
The various decorations in the Indian Armed Forces are:
Among these, the wartime gallantry awards are given only to the officers and other enlisted personnel of all military branches of India whereas the Peacetime gallantry awards are open to civilians too.
Likewise, various medals are awarded in the Indian Armed Forces for an exceptional act of bravery during peacetime and wartime. You can check out the next article for Medals awarded in the Armed Forces here.
Lecturette is a task from the Group Testing/GTO series. In this a candidate is asked to deliver a short talk on any one of the topic given to him/her out of the four topics. The GTO has as much number of cards as there are candidates in a group. Each card has four topics written on it. Each candidate is expected to pick up one card and give a short talk of about 3 minutes on any one of the given topics.
Hello, Warriors.
A mere 60 kilometers separates the tiny village of Asal Uttar from the Harmandir Sahib, Sikhism’s holiest shrine in Amritsar. The village itself is as unremarkable as the flat plains abutting state highway 21 that connects it to Amritsar, but just a couple of kilometers short of it lies a memorial to arguably India’s greatest military hero, Havildar Abdul Hamid.
Hamid was 20 years old when he was recruited at Varanasi into the Army. After undergoing his training at the Grenadiers Regimental Centre at Nasirabad, he was posted to 4 Grenadiers in 1955. Initially, he served in a rifle company and was then posted to a recoilless platoon. He fought in the ’62 war in Thang La, then in the North-East Frontier Province, as part of the 7 Mountain Brigade, 4 Mountain Division, and came back disappointed with the war. After ceasefire was declared his unit moved to Ambala where Abdul Hamid was appointed Company Quarter Master Havildar (CQMH) of an administration company.
When Pakistan attacked in the Rann of Kutch area in April 1965, 4 Grenadiers was ordered to move forward and to collect their 106 RCL guns from the nearest ordnance depot. Hamid was one of the non-commissioned instructors. Due to absence of anti-tank detachment commanders, he was told to take over an antitank detachment. A very good marksman and an expert anti-tank gunner with a new anti-tank gun at his disposal, he made a big difference to the outcome of the war.
His bravery was truly described in the citation awarded to him which read:
The citation for the Param Vir Chakra awarded to him read:
COMPANY QUARTER MASTER HAVILDAR ABDUL HAMID
4 GRENADIERS (NO 2639985)
At 0800 hours on 10 September 1965 Pakistan forces launched an attack with a regiment of Patton tanks on a vital area ahead of village Cheema on the Bhikkiwind road in the Khem Karam Sector. Intense artillery shelling preceded the attack. The enemy tanks penetrated the forward position by 0900 hours. Realising the grave situation, Company Quarter Master Havildar Abdul Hamid who was commander of an RCL gun detachment moved out to a flanking position with his gun mounted on a jeep, under intense enemy shelling and tank fire. Taking an advantageous position, he knocked out the leading enemy tank and then swiftly changing his position, he sent another tank up in flames. By this time the enemy tanks in the area spotted him and brought his jeep under concentrated machine-gun and high explosive fire. Undeterred, Company Quarter Master Havildar Abdul Hamid kept on firing on yet another enemy tank with his recoilless gun. While doing so, he was mortally wounded by an enemy high explosive shell.
Havildar Abdul Hamid’s brave action inspired his comrades to put up a gallant fight and to beat back the heavy tank assault by the enemy. His complete disregard for his personal safety during the operation and his sustained acts of bravery in the face of constant enemy fire were a shining example not only to his unit but also to the whole division and were in the highest traditions of the Indian Army.
The two major wars of 1965 and 1971 saw Muslim officers and men across ranks and services acquit themselves creditably in keeping with the traditions of the Indian armed forces giving the lie to the false narrative advanced prior to Partition: That their careers were best advanced by moving to Pakistan, a fact which was proven wrong by the brave hearted CQMH Abdul Hamid.
Hello, Warriors!
The nation has awarded 21 PVCs since Independence. Lt. Col. Thapa was among the six who were decorated alive while the rest were awarded posthumously. Chief of the Army Staff J. J. Singh has condoled the death of Lt. Col. Thapa. He was survived by his wife, two daughters and a son who is an Army officer.
Interestingly, (then) Major Thapa was believed to be killed in the operation against the Chinese in 1962 and his original PVC citation mentioned this fact. It was later found that he has been taken prisoner by Chinese soldiers. After his release, he resumed his military career.
Born in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, Lt. Col. Thapa was commissioned in the 8 Gorkha Rifles. The Sirijap valley, north of Pangong lake in Ladakh, was considered vital for the defence of Chushul airfield. The 1/8 Gorka Rifles had outposts there to thwart any enemy encroachment into the area. One of the outposts, named Sirijap-1, was commanded by (then) Major Thapa when the Chinese attack came on October 21, 1962.
Major Thapa and his men repulsed the first attack, inflicting heavy casualties on the enemy. But the Chinese mounted another attack in greater number after shelling the area with artillery and mortar fire. After being beaten back, the Chinese launched a third attack, which was more powerful and intense, and the Indian strength was depleted. When the post was finally over-run by the Chinese, Major Thapa jumped out of his trench and killed several intruders in hand-to-hand fighting till he was eventually overpowered.
His citation read:
Citation:
Major Dhan Singh Thapa was in command of a forward post in Ladakh. On 20 October 1962 the post was attacked by the Chinese in overwhelming strength after being subjected to intensive artillery and mortar bombardment. Under his gallant command the greatly outnumbered post repulsed the attack, inflicting heavy casualties on the aggressors. The enemy attacked again in greater numbers after heavy shelling by artillery and mortar fire. Under the leadership of Major Thapa, his men repulsed this attack also with heavy losses to the enemy.
The Chinese attacked for the third time, now with tanks to support their infantry. The post had already suffered large casualties in the earlier attacks. Though considerably thinned, it held out to the last. When it was finally over-run by overwhelming numbers of Chinese, Major Thapa got out of his trench and lulled several enemy soldiers in hand-to-hand fighting before he was eventually overpowered by Chinese soldiers.
Major Thapa’s cool courage, conspicuous fighting qualities and leadership were in the highest traditions of our Army.
