J&K, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh's umatched sacrifice: 40% Kargil martyrs from 4 states

Time of India

26-07-2025

1
2
Chandigarh: As the country commemorates the 26th anniversary of the Kargil War, nearly 40% of the soldiers among those who turned the tide of the conflict in the remote mountainous region hailed from Haryana,
Punjab
, Himachal Pradesh, and Jammu and Kashmir---though at the cost of their lives.
Of the 527 casualties suffered during the war, 213 were from these four states. Despite constituting only about 6% of the country's population, the pain and loss of the war was most profoundly felt by the people of this region.
Even two of the four Param Vir Chakras (PVC), country's highest gallantry award given for the highest and bravest act of valour in the presence of the enemy, awardees, Captain Vikram Batra and Rifleman Sanjay Kumar were from Himachal Pradesh.
Apart from this, several other gallantry awards were conferred on the soldiers from the region for their heroic acts during the Kargil war.
As far as state wise figures are concerned, Jammu and Kashmir had suffered the highest number of 69, closely followed by Haryana 58, Punjab 45 and tiny Himachal Pradesh had suffered 41 casualties in Kargil war. The states of Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir constitute 2.09%, 2.9%, 0.56% and 1.04% respectively of the total population of the country.
by Taboola
by Taboola
Sponsored Links
Sponsored Links
Promoted Links
Promoted Links
You May Like
The World's Most Stunning Blue Flag Beaches Ranked: Top 25 List!
12facts.com
Click Here
Undo
These figures of state wise casualties of soldiers in the Kargil war were placed before the Lok Sabha on July 27, 2000. As per the official data, the highest number of 147 casualties of soldiers were from Uttar Pradesh, 69 from Jammu and Kashmir, 54 from Rajasthan and 17 were from Bihar. Even 21 soldiers, who were native of Nepal, had also lost their lives in this war.
Casualties from the region in Kargil war
State
Total Casualties
Population (%)
Haryana
58
2.09
Punjab
45
2.29
Himachal Pradesh
41
0.56
Jammu & Kashmir
69
1.04
Total
213
5.98
Data Source: Parliament digital library
Prominent Kargil heroes from the region
Vikram Batra, Param Vir Chakra (posthumously): Known as hero of the Kargil war, Capt Batra of 13 JAK Rifles had captured two strategically important peaks---Peak-5140 and Peak-4875 and was awarded country's highest gallantry award---PVC (posthumously).
He is also famous for his slogan "Yeh Dil Mange More" and for the name "Shershah" given by his unit. He was from Palampur in Himachal Pradesh.
Subedar Sanjay Kumar, Param Vir Chakra: Posted with 13-JAK Rifles, he volunteered to be the leading scout of the attacking column tasked to capture the Flat Top of Point 4875 in the Mushkoh Valley on July 4 1999. During the attack when enemy automatic fire from one of the sangars posed stiff opposition and stalled the column, Sanjay Kumar (then a Rifleman) realizing the gravity of the situation and with utter disregard to his personal safety, charged the enemy In the ensuing hand-to-hand combat, he killed three of the intruders and was himself seriously injured.
Taken totally by surprise, the enemy left behind one Universal Machine Gun and started running. He picked up the gun and killed the fleeing enemy. He is from Himachal Pradesh.
Colonel Balwan Singh, Maha Vir Chakra (MVC): Posted as Lieutenant with 18-Grenadiers during kargil war, Balwan Singh and his team were tasked to assault Tiger Hill Top on the night of July 3, 4, 1999. The team led and exhorted by him moved for over twelve hours under Intense Artillery Shelling by the enemy to reach the designated location.
This outflanking manoeuvre took the enemy totally by surprise as his team used Cliff Assault mountaineering equipment to reach the Tiger Hill Top, by stealth.
He was awarded the country's second highest—MVC for his unparalleled courage. He is from Haryana. His son has recently joined the army.
Captain Amol Kalia, Vir Chakra (Posthumously): On June 8, 1999, Captain Amol Kalia along with his men were tasked to capture an enemy post at Point 5203 in the Batlik-Yaldor Sector at a height of 17,000 feet.
Leading from the front, Captain Kalia selected the least likely approach, which was tough and difficult. He assaulted the enemy position with a handful of men and managed to capture the height against heavy volume of enemy artillery and small arms fire. Soon the enemy launched a counterattack. In a hand-to-hand fight, which followed, his light machine gun crew was killed. Captain Kalia took over the light machine gun himself and killed three enemy personnel and injured three others.
In the action he was hit by a burst of bullets and breathed his last on June 9, 1999. A native of Una in Himachal Pradesh, Kalia was awarded Vir Chakra—the third highest gallantry award of the country.
Squadron Leader Ajay Ahuja, Vir Chakra: Squadron Leader Ajay Ahuja was the first casualty of Kargil war. Ahuja's MiG-27 was brought down by a Pakistani missile on May 27, 1999, when he had gone scouting for missing Flight Lieutenant Nachiketa's aircraft.
Arrested by Pakistani authorities, Ahuja was allegedly tortured to death. He was also awarded Vir Chakra (posthumously) for his heroic act.
Lance Naik Ghulam Mohammad Khan, Vir Chakra: He was a soldier of 12-JAK-LI (Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry) and resident of Baramulla in J&K.
On June 7, 1999, he displayed exceptional bravery during the assault on Point 5203. He spotted 20 enemy soldiers, neutralised three with a rocket launcher, and held his ground despite heavy retaliation that claimed eight comrades.
He was martyred after sustaining multiple gunshot wounds and was posthumously awarded the Vir Chakra.
Major Ajay Jasrotia, SM (P): He was from 13-JAK RIF and native of Jammu. On 15 June 1999 Major Jasrotia's unit's location at Drass faced heavy artillery fire from the enemy side. He took quick control of the situation and moved on despite heavy artillery shelling and tended to the wounded soldiers and arranged for their evacuation to safety.
During this process a shell landed close to him but with utter disregard for his own injuries, he continued the evacuation and moved 6 injured men to safety before laying down his life.
He was awarded the Sena Medal posthumously.
Brigadier Kushal Thakur: He was commanding officer of 18-grenadiers that captured Tiger Hill and Tololing, decisive peaks during the war. He was decorated with the Yudh Sewa medal (YSM) for his role in the Kargil war.
Timeline of Kargil War
May 6, 1999 | Army Petrol spotted 9-10 infiltrators in the east of Batalik
May 7, 1999 | Pakistan Artillery fired on Indian Petrol
May 8, 1999 | First clash between troops and infiltrators
May 9, 1999 | Heavy Shelling from Pakistan damaged Ammunition depot at Kargil
May 10-14, 1999 | Infiltrators spotted in Drass, Kaksar and Mushkoh valley
May 15, 1999 | Captain Saurabh Kalia of 4-Jat regiment and his petrol party was caught alive by Pakistan Army
May 26, 1999 | Entry of Air Force in Combat action
June 13, 1999 | Tololing, a major ridgeline, in the Drass sub-sector was captured after several weeks of bitter fighting.
Captain Neikezhakuo Kenguriise sacrificed his life when he led a platoon to re-capture Tololing. He was later awarded Mahavir Chakra, the second highest gallantry award.
June 21, 1999 | Point 5203 was recaptured under the leadership of captain Amod Kalia who later attained martyrdom.
July 5, 1999 | Tiger Hill recaptured-- the 4660 metre strategic mountain position from which Pakistani soldiers dominated the Srinagar-Leh highway in Drass sector.
Grenadier Yogender Yadav who was awarded Param Vir Chakra (PVC) for his bravery displayed in capturing Tiger Hills. Captain Vikram Batra PVC (Posthumous) also played a key role in capturing the strategic post.
July 6, 1999 | Khalubar was recaptured-- The capture of Khalubar proved to be the turning point in Operation Vijay and led to the complete rout of the enemy. Lt Manoj Pandey PVC (Posthumous) displayed exceptional courage in capturing the post.
July 7, 1999 | Point 4875 was recaptured by captain Vikram Batra who led his men to victory on this post. Now the post is named as Vikram Batra post.
July 14, 1999 | Both sides ceased their military operations.
Jul 26, 1999 | Indian armed forces achieved victory in the Kargil War after three months' strife. Thereafter July 26 is celebrated as Vijay Divas every year.
Kargil War Fact file
Number of Intruders
Initial reports spoke of only 100 intruders, but later reports confirmed the number was at 3,000.
Cost
Daily cost of war for India was at around Rs 15 crore.
Causalities:
As per the official data of ministry of defence 527 Indian soldiers dead and 1,363 wounded during the conflict.
Deployment
The total Indian troop strength in the region had reached 730,000. The build-up included the deployment of around 60 frontline aircraft.
Terrain
The battle terrain of 'Operation Vijay' is dominated by high altitude peaks and ridgelines most of which are over 16000 ft.
This region is part of the 'cold desert' region of Ladakh.
Air operations
The Air Force carried out nearly 550 sorties of all types over 50-odd days of operations during the conflict. One Mig-21, one Mig-27 and one MI-17 helicopter were lost. The planes used for ground attack were MiG-2ls, MiG- 23s, MiG-27s, Jaguars and the Mirage- 2000.
Record Bombing
The Indian Artillery fired over 250,000 shells, bombs and rockets during the Kargil conflict. Approximately 5,000 Artillery shells, mortar bombs and rockets were fired daily from 300 guns, mortars and MBRLs. Such high rates of fire over long periods had not been witnessed anywhere in the world since the Second World War.