Rezang La
12 – 12 – 12!!! A Special Date!!!
This generation is special in many ways for we could
experience special dates of 21st Century from 01-01-01 to 12-12-12
and celebrate it in our own special way. Today where people need a reason to celebrate,
such special dates give reasons more than one.
On this special date of 12-12-12, a program was telecasted
honouring “Indian of the Year” from various walks of life – sports, culture,
humanity. In this program, The Life Time Achievement award was conferred to
“The War Heroes of Indo-Sino War, 1962.”
This award was received by Sepoy Ramchander Yadav, who was
Major Shaitan Singh’s batman and radio operator and a live testimonial of the
war.
When he was offered the mike to express himself, he was
emotional. His speech was nostalgic.
“I congratulate every winner in this auditorium. I can remember every moment of that fateful
day. The Charlie ‘C’ Company of the 13
Kumaon Regiment was led by Major Shaitan Singh. Major Shaitan Singh had trained
Charlie ‘C’ company and had a personal rapport with every soldier on the
ground. He was a visionary and had intuitions of the attack and hence, he made a
strategy with the limited resources he had at the Rezang La.
Rezang La, had an elevation of 5,500 meters (18,000 feet), at
Chushul village, Ladakh. This was a part of the Line of Actual Control dividing
the Indian-administered Ladakh and the Chinese Controlled, Spanggur Lake basin.
Posting at this place was no less than a punishment for anyone
of us as it was chilly and the Indian Army did not provide enough resources to keep
the soldiers warm. The Regiment included 120 soldiers. With bare minimum
equipment and resources at disposal, the ‘C’ Company was inspired and
motivated by the Major every day. He engaged the entire team with motivational
talks.
The Indian think tank had not expected the Chinese to cross
over the Himalayas for an attack. So, technically, the war preparations were
also minimum at the Rezang La.
On 18th November 1962, the Chinese attacked from
where it was least expected. The Chinese invaded in huge numbers but the
foresightedness of the Major and his preparations came in handy. A fierce battle
broke out with the Chinese attacking through medium machine guns and Indian defense
included only a few light machine guns and very few ammunitions. The Indians
could hold their fort for 5 hours with courage and patriotism before a ceasefire
was declared. When the ammunitions got over, every soldier dropped the gun and
fought with bare hands too.
The brave 120 Indian soldiers defended against 1300 Chinese
soldiers. Major Shaitan Singh’s last words were “Last Man, Last Bullet”. The
story of Rezang La is still shared with newer Recruits and it is all
Goosebumps.”
Listening to this testimony, the entire audience was
awestruck and in tears. Mr. Yadav continued, “Only 6 Indian soldiers, including
me, were alive from that battle, to share the experiences of the gravest battle
fought tooth and nail. We were held as War Prisoners, from where we managed to
escape. The other 114 war heroes of the battle belonged to a village, Rewari,
in Rajasthan, and a War Memorial is built as an honor to their supreme
sacrifice. Another War Memorial is built at Chushul too.”
Sepoy Yadav went on to say with a numb eye, “The map of
India would have changed had we not held the fort on that day. We would have
lost Ladakh to the Chinese but it is unfortunate to say that the children of
the martyrs did not get the due credit even today and many of those children
are struggling to lead a normal life back in our village.”
Major Shaitan Singh
was awarded the Posthumous Param Vir Chakra.
As per records, the
temperature was -24degree on the date of the war. After the troops were withdrawn,
it was impossible to retrieve the soldiers as a thick ice layer covered the
entire area. The martyrs were buried in the Ice for next 2-3 months until the
rescue operation began.”
Sepoy Yadav led a
joint International Red Cross And Indian Army expedition during February 1963
to the exact spot where Major Shaitan Singh lie between two boulders, buried by
him under the snow, a patch of frozen blood and a white mitten kept as a marker. Many
soldiers had frozen weapon in hand, all ammunition clips empty, some inside
their trenches, and many outside, cut down by multiple bullets and bayonets in
hand-to-hand combat with the attackers.
Author’s Note – This is a true-life incident and a part of Indian History. The Sino-India War, 1962 is the biggest military lesson learned.
I had listened to Sepoy Yadav’s live testimonial on 13th
December 2012 (50th Anniversary) and cannot forget the emotions,
his speech exhibited. Though he did not account for everything as stated above, I
collected the data from the internet and presented it in the form of a story.
If there are any shortcomings in this story-telling it is
purely my shortcomings to convey the emotions.
My message to everyone, “We must always remain indebted to
Armed Forces unconditionally.”
Salute to all Jawans of the Indian Armed Forces!!!
Jai Hind!!!
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