Munish Sood
MANDI: As India observes Kargil Vijay Diwas on Saturday (July 26, 2025), the nation pauses to honour the unmatched valour, sacrifice and patriotism of its soldiers who rewrote the meaning of courage during the Kargil War of 1999. Twenty-six years may have passed, but the echoes of battle — from Tololing to Tiger Hill — still resound in the hearts of every Indian.
Brigadier Khushal Thakur (retd), the then commanding officer of the 18 Grenadiers, a battalion that captured some of the toughest peaks during the war, remembers the conflict not just as a military operation, but as a spiritual test of character and nationhood.
“Those mountains weren’t just terrain but temples of sacrifice,” says Brigadier Thakur, his voice still carrying the weight of the lives lost and victories won. “We didn’t fight for land. We fought so that no enemy flag ever flies over Indian soil.”
War that tested steel and soul
In the summer of 1999, Pakistani intruders occupied Indian territory in the Kargil sector of Jammu & Kashmir. What followed was a 60-day high-altitude war, fought under some of the harshest conditions. Temperatures dipped to minus 11°C. The enemy held the advantage of height. Yet, Indian soldiers climbed and conquered.
It was the capture of Tololing that shifted the momentum. Soldiers of 18 Grenadiers, led by officers like Major Rajesh Adhikari and Lt Col. Vishwanathan, braved machine gun fire, steep slopes and freezing winds, advancing not by metres but inches.
“We crawled up those slopes for days. There was no cover. No darkness to hide in. Just courage. Many of my boys were barely in their twenties. But they had the heart of lions,” recalls Brig Thakur.
Then came Tiger Hill, the symbol of enemy defiance. Standing at over 16,500 feet, it was heavily fortified and fiercely defended. Yet, Indian soldiers scaled it with bayonets in hand and fire in their eyes.
Heroes like Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav, shot multiple times, feigned death and crawled back with critical intelligence. Lt Balwan Singh and Capt Vikram Batra led from the front, with Batra’s war cry “Yeh Dil Maange More” becoming a national anthem of courage.
Operation Sindoor: New Frontiers, Same Spirit
In 2025, the battlefield has evolved. So have the threats. But the soul of the Indian soldier remains unchanged.
Operation Sindoor, a recent high-altitude precision campaign against terrorist infiltration in the northern sector, showcases the modern face of Indian defence — powered by technology, driven by intelligence, and executed with surgical precision. Drones, satellites, night-vision gear — all play a role. But at the core of every success stands the soldier.
“If we had today’s tools back then, perhaps fewer lives would have been lost,” Brigadier Thakur reflects. “But technology can only enhance strategy. It can’t replace courage.” He sees today’s army as smarter, faster, better-equipped — but carrying the same DNA of selfless service. “The names change. The weapons change. But the bloodline is the same. The same josh, the same tiranga in the chest pocket, the same vow — to never let the country down.”
Not just victory but a legacy
More than 500 soldiers laid down their lives during the Kargil War. Thousands more were wounded. Some returned as decorated heroes. Others returned in tricolour-draped coffins. “Some of our boys never got to read the last letter from home,” says Brig Thakur. “Some were newly married. Some never got to see their child. But they all had one thing in common — they didn’t hesitate.”
