Gahmar: A saga of valour, heroism
LUCKNOW: About 40 km from Ghazipur in eastern UP lies population-wise Asia's largest village, Gahmar, popular as 'Village of Soldiers'. Every household of Gahmar boasts of having at least one person serving in the Indian Army or retired from the force.
The local sources claim Gahmar has the distinction of having over 15,000 men who have served in Indian Army so far.
Gahmar, the village in the Jamania assembly segment of Ghazipur parliamentary constituency, has a reason to be in public discourse, especially, during the current turbulent times. Founded by Raja Dhamdev Rao in 1530, this village, with a population of 1.5 lakh, has around 10,000 people posted in different corners of the country as part of Indian Army.
'It was around 10 pm on May 8 during Operation Sindoor that I received a call from my son Neeraj, right now deployed at Uri border in J&K, telling me that the shelling at the border had intensified. He said that he would not be able to call for the next three to four days. The phone remained silent for the next three days and on May 11, when the shelling stopped, Neeraj called again making the entire family at ease,' shares Dinesh Singh, 56, with a glint of pride in eyes. Saying he feels proud that his son is in the Army, Dinesh Singh claims that over 200 children from 90 households in the village are posted in J&K in present times.
As if the mothers in Gahmar have taken an oath to raise their sons as soldiers. The village has over 5,000 retired servicemen and around 10,000 currently in the armed forces in the rank ranging from soldiers to brigadiers. The village has over 50 ex-servicemen who have had the opportunity to guard the borders and rebuff the enemy during Indo-Pak conflicts from 1965 till Kargil in 1999.
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