The leading hotbed of insurrectionism
in the region is the Naga-Kuki-Manipuri
triangle of Manipur and Nagaland. The
Manipuri diasporas (on more than one occasion
Manipuris left Manipur during periods
of socio-political turmoil) who settled
in different parts of Asom’s Barak
Valley region, Shylhet Division (of the
then Asom), Tripura and some parts of
undivided Bengal, triggered several flare-ups
of insurrectionary activity. This they
did mostly to do without paying the zamindars
taxes. Unused to paying taxes to intermediaries,
they considered it a form of spinelessness
to yield to the browbeating of a mortal
who was not their King. And it is well-known
to all that most political turmoils during
the British period had their origin in
the colonial craving for more tax revenue.
Taxes in the British Raj had two sharks
to feed: the colonial coffers and the
native zaminders reserves. Both were known
to have insatiable lust for filthy lucre.
Zaminders lived lives in feudal luxury
with palaces and holiday homes in cities
like Calcutta and Benaras, maintained
mistresses and danseuses to entertain
themselves. There were feudal competitions
in vulgar and obnoxious display of luxury,
opulence, and extravagance in eastern
Bengal and some parts of Asom were trying
to catch up with their counterparts in
the rest of the country. But the problem
here was that the proximity of ethnic
north-easterners or their settlements
inside their estates often threatened
to create law and order problems for them.
Northeasterners weren’t as good-mannered
and submissive as the plainsmen of mainland
India. Slightest displeasure could provoke
them to be on the warpath. Besides, they
weren’t good farmers; they had no
urge for producing more than the bare
necessities. Above all, they were mortally
unwilling to part with a fairly big share
of their produce for the comfort of one
whose role in their lives was beyond their
comprehension. Asom, Tripura and Manipur
had Kings. Tax wasn’t an unknown
thing to the peoples in these States.
But the kind of tax to be paid to fatten
colonial coffers after ensuring the zaminders
luxury was something they never imagined
one had to pay.
In most cases, the Kings of these States
had to make compromises with their subjects
unwilling to accept increased rates of
taxes designed for revenue-raising. Even
the mildest increase in the rates of taxes
had precipitated many a peasant unrest
in these States. The Kings of Tripura
had, in fact, depended little on the tax
paid by the hill tribes. They had devised
ways to increase tax revenue by encouraging
Bengali peasants to settle down in the
State. Bengali peasants fleeing the repressive
tax systems of British-backed zamindars
of East Bengal found safe haven in Tripura.
The Tripuri kings allotted them land for
which they had to pay tax at reasonable
rates. This practice of the Kings resulted
in a kind of demographic change in Tripura
which took the form of an explosion after
independence. But that is a different
story.
The hilly parts of Nagaland, Mizoram,
Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh had either
small Kings or tribal chieftains whose
hunger for tax revenue never worried their
people too much. No wonder, such a pampered
lot is sure to rise in revolt when they
are faced with a repressive, exploitative
tax system designed by colonial rulers
and put into effect by callous, native
zaminders. The region has seen insurrectionary
uprisings that resulted from the north-easterners
exposure to the economy-driven modern
world.
Cap the Capital!
Robert Lanky
Whenever
my friends or dear ones catch me roaming
in the hinterland of Manipur and Nagaland
as part of my itinerary, their usual reaction
is: “Oh my God, what the hell are
you doing there? Have you gone nuts?”
You can’t blame them; for in Manipur
encounters can take place even in broad
daylight in the heart of Imphal. Besides
the killing of a SDO by a NSCN militant
and the murder of journalist Rishikanta
are incidents which are still vivid in
the minds of the people. Similarly, in
Nagaland extortion, abduction, inter-factional
killings, clashes, etc are part of daily
life.
Even capital punishments are not unusual,
which is such an irony of sorts. While
the Indian government has taken years
to execute Afzal Guru –– one
of the terrorists involved in the Parliament
attack, these self-styled ‘war lords’
of the State execute capital punishments
within days of judgments given by their
own judiciary. Two Nagas accused in the
March 25, 2009 Doraga Pathar (Dimapur)
rape case were killed at Wokha in July
and the very same month, two Muslims were
also killed at Nagarajan in Dimapur, probably
for indulging in drug peddling activities.
The killings were carried out by the NSCN
(IM) as they had warned the individuals
prior to their being killed. Though many
organizations in Nagaland and elsewhere
were totally against the capital punishments
being meted out by the NSCN, the Nagaland
government, surprisingly, remained as
only a mute spectator.
When I tell my friend that Manipur and
Nagaland are one of the nicest places
on earth sans terrible roads, they mock
me with an awful comment: “It’s
just because you put a ‘press’
sticker on your vehicle and you don’t
have to pay any sort of taxes. Or else
you would have already got a kick on your
bottom by now!” So does that make
Manipur and Nagaland more scary than say,
Bihar or Uttar Pradesh, where we have
to go sometimes? Or for that matter, Delhi
or Mumbai, where thugs, mafias and bhais
are predominant?
To an ordinary citizen, these militants
and the ‘mafias’ elsewhere in
India are the two sides of the same coin.
What is common to both is that they relish
targeting unarmed people and they are
commandeered by expatriates (big bosses
living in extravagance abroad). The difference
is only in terminology –– rebels
here, underworld there; ‘revolutionary
tax’ here, ‘goonda tax or hafta’
there. The only other major difference
is that the rebels of these two States
mete out justice by their own court, even
for civil cases, and award capital punishment
themselves.
Nagaland and Manipur are as safe or as
dangerous as anyplace elsewhere. What
the rebels of Manipur and the National
Socialists Council of Nagas must know
is that they have no legitimacy to try
citizens by their own courts and award
them with capital punishments. This is
just cold-blooded murder. It is only the
elected government and the judiciary who
can mete out justice as per the law of
land. The law enforcement authorities
should be allowed to carry out their duties
and we, as citizens, should support the
government machinery with courage and
conviction to bring the culprits to the
book. We should not decide on our own
as to who are culprits and who are not!
Let’s not make these States like
the SWAT and FATA regions in Pakistan,
where Talibanization had taken place.
Let’s create a conducive atmosphere
for people to live in faith and be rest
assured that their kith and kin are safe.
Let’s resolve that we, as citizens,
work on a common platform to support the
government and system and not remain as
mute spectators to the crime(s) committed
by any unwanted elements of the society.
By this, we can contribute something to
the society and can cap ‘the capital
thoughts’.
Litchi
- The Passion Fruit!
Moon
Moon Sarmah
Litchi
is juicy, sweet and delicious, often known
as the ‘queen of fruits’. This
pleasantly-flavoured passion fruit, which
melts in the mouth like a sugar candy,
attracts every one and are in high demand
internationally. This seasonal fruits
are cold and are an instant delight for
everyone in the oppressive heat of May-June.
Litchi, also Sapindaceae, is believed
to be native to southern China and adjacent
regions. Litchi had been the favourite
fruits of the Cantonese since ancient
times. Its introduction into the western
world came when it reached Jamaica in
1775. To a lesser extent, the tree has
been cultivated around the Mediterranean,
in South Africa, in numerous parts of
India and in Hawaii. The fruit produced
in clusters, are oval to round, strawberry
red in colour, and about 25 mm in diameter.
The brittle outer-covering encloses white,
translucent, watery flesh and posses a
large seed. The fruit is beautiful and
wrapped in a sanitary and delicate way
by nature’s hand. The flavour of
the fresh pulp in musky, when dried, it
is acidic and very sweet. Not only sweet,
juicy and tasty, litchi is quite a nutritious
fruit too. The juicy sugar content is
highly energy-giving, which varies from
10 to 20 per cent, depending on the variety.
Litchi is a rich source of vitamin ‘C’
containing fair amount of proteins, phosphorus,
calcium, iron and small amount of vitamins
A to B and also malic acid. Its principal
chemical constituents are carbohydrates,
organic acids, vitamins, pigments and
a bit of fat.
The composition of fruit is 60 per cent
juicy, 8 per cent fiber, 19 per cent seed
and 13 per cent skin, depending upon the
variety. The fruit is eaten fresh and
canned in syrup. Jelly can also be prepared
out of the fruit. A highly-flavoured squash
prepared from it is quite popular during
the summer months. For canning the fruit,
it is peeped and its white pulp is frozen
in syrup. Apart from squash, various kinds
of beverages, such as sherbet, nectar,
etc can be prepared from the preserved
litchi juice. Recently, the scientists
of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute
has evaluated a new formula for preparing
tasty and health-giving squash which is
claimed to be both delicious and nourishing
with efficient cooling effect.
The tree is propagated by seed and by
air-layering. The trees come into production
at three to five years of age. This handsome
tree develops a compact crown of foliage,
which remains bright green the year round.
Thus, it helps to maintain our eco-system
in balance to a considerable extent. All
the parts of this ornamental tree like
leaves, flowers, bark, seeds and roots
etc. are used for various purposes. Leaves
are used for making poultices for applying
on wounds; seeds are used as anodyne for
skin and the flowers, bark and roots are
used to make decoctions for throat gargle.
In India, litchi is extensively grown
in Dehradun Valley, Sahranpur and Muzaffarpurnagar
in UP, Darbhanga and Muzzafarpur in north
Bihar and Hoogly in West Bengal. The fruit
is also grown in Tripura, Asom, Orissa
and Jharkhand. Nearly 4.2 lakh tones of
litchi is produced annually in about 7,000
hectares in India. The most popular variety
‘Sahi’ grown in Muzaffarpur
in Bihar generally hits the market from
May. The Bihar variety will be followed
by the one from Uttarakhand and Himachal
Pradesh. But for the last 2-3 years, there
has been a dip in litchi production due
to adverse weather conditions. Unstable
climate, inappropriate management of litchi
gardens and untimely fall of half-grown
fruits are the primary reasons for the
low production. Scanty rainfall and scorching
heat affected production of the export-quality
litchi. The violated weather caused flower-dropping,
leading to huge crop loss; the production
has gone down by nearly 50 per cent.
It is pertinent to mention here that Tezpur’s
(Asom) litchi has already earned popularity
among the fruit lovers of not only our
country but of many countries in America,
Switzerland, etc. Tezpur litchi is an
attractive item of the fruit market of
MP, Rajasthan, UP, etc. The popular varieties
of Litchi tree grown in Tezpur are Babinyee,
Elachi, Lungara, Kalmai, etc. The best
of them are Bambiya and Elachi, which
are exported at Rs 5 per piece to foreign
countries. Apart from this, its agro-climatic
conditions make Asom a favourable area
for the cultivation of the litchi tree.
But commercialization is yet to start
in the State. Since litchi trees require
very little pruning and very little care,
the organized cultivation of litchi tree
would be a boon for our State. One can
earn almost Rs 10,000 from one tree in
the prime season. But cultivators should
not depend on the vagaries of middlemen.
Most of the produce gets lost at the primary
production level due to improper handling.
Lichi production in Asom can be improved
by:
i) Creation of an integrated assured competitive
domestic market and
ii) Improvement in communication, transport,
storage and distribution
An efficient marketing system can reduce
post-harvest losses. Use of pre-cooling
units, refrigerators and containers will
go a long way in enhancing the shelf life
of fruits and vegetables. With changing
food habits of the urban elite, middle
class and particularly the youth, the
domestic market is fast growing, creating
a huge demand in the processing sector.
No doubt, technology has a major role
to play in bringing these horticultural
products to limelight. Various governmental
organizations such as APEDA (Agriculture
and Food products Export development Authority),
National Horticultural Board, etc are
offering improved technologies for improvement
of horticultural trade. Non-government
organizations should accelerate the development
process at the grassroots level in the
village areas. Formulation of core groups,
involving bureaucrats, technocrats and
eminent scientists, is the need of the
hour.
Hepatitis
Revealed!
Chandana
Choudhury Barua
Hepatitis is a general term that means
inflammation of the liver. There are only
a few people in the world who have never
suffered from hepatitis in their lifetime.
We commonly refer to hepatitis as jaundice;
it's not a disease, it is rather a syndrome.
Most of the students residing in hostels
are prone to suffer. We, as parents, think
that our job is limited to administering
our children with a hepatitis B shot.
But no, Hepatitis A is also equally dangerous,
and although vaccines are available now,
the number of people taking Hapatitis
A vaccine is probably insignificant. I
was aware about the Hepatitis B infection.
But when my daughter was diagnosed with
Hepatitis A this summer, I have learnt
my lesson and thought of sharing some
vital facts with the readers which may
be known to many of us, but which are
mostly ignored.
Inflammation of the liver can result from
infection, from exposure to alcohol, certain
medications, chemicals, or poisons, or
from a disorder of the immune system.
Viral Hepatitis is inflammation of the
liver caused by a virus. Several different
viruses, named the Hepatitis A, B, C,
D, and E viruses, cause Viral Hepatitis.
All of these viruses cause acute or short-term
Viral Hepatitis. The hepatitis B, C, and
D viruses can also cause chronic hepatitis,
in which the infection is prolonged, sometimes
lifelong. Chronic hepatitis can lead to
cirrhosis, liver failure, and liver cancer.
Researchers are looking for other viruses
that may cause hepatitis, but none have
been identified with certainty. Other
viruses that also affect the liver include
Cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr virus -
also called infectious mononucleosis,
Herpesvirus, Parvovirus and adenovirus.
Hepatitis A
Hepatitis A virus (HAV) is one of several
viruses that can cause hepatitis and is
one of the three most common hepatitis
viruses in the United States. The other
two are Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C. Unlike
Hepatitis B and Hepatitis C, Hepatitis
A does not cause any chronic (ongoing,
long-term) illness. Although the liver
does become inflamed and swollen, it heals
completely in most people without any
long-term damage. Once you have had Hepatitis
A, you develop lifelong immunity and cannot
get the disease again.
Because of the way it spreads, the Hepatitis
A virus tends to occur in epidemics and
outbreaks. The number of Hepatitis A cases
in the United States varies among different
communities and has not been affected
significantly by the introduction of the
Hepatitis A vaccine since the early 1990s.
Inflammation is the painful, red swelling
that result from any injury or infection
to the tissues. Inflammation can cause
organs to not work properly. The liver
removes harmful chemicals from our blood,
fights infections, helps digest food,
stores nutrients, vitamins and energy.
One cannot live without a liver. Some
people are at higher risk, including people
who travel to developing countries, people
who live with someone who has hepatitis
A, people who use illegal drugs, and gays.
One may get Hepatitis A through contact
with an infected person’s stool.
So we should always wash our hands before
cooking or eating. Hepatitis A does not
spread from sneezing or coughing, sitting
next to a person who has hepatitis A or
by hugging an infected person.
The good news is that Hepatitis A usually
gets better in a few weeks without treatment.
Lots of rest is needed and one should
avoid drinking alcohol, which bothers
the liver. Bed rest and medicine will
help one get better. The Hepatitis A vaccine
is given through two shots. The second
shot is given 6 to 12 months after the
first shot. Both shots are needed to be
fully protected from the virus.
Hepatitis B
Hepatitis B spreads through contact with
infected blood, through sex with an infected
person, and from mother to child during
childbirth, whether the delivery is vaginal
or via cesarean method. People most likely
to get Hepatitis B are those people who
live with or have sexual contact with
an infected person, homosexuals, people
who have multiple sex partners, injection
drug users and immigrants. The Hepatitis
B vaccine offers the best protection to
the virus. All infants and unvaccinated
children, adolescents, and at-risk adults
should be vaccinated. For people who have
not been vaccinated, reducing exposure
to the virus can help prevent Hepatitis
B. Reducing exposure means using latex
condoms, which may lower the risk of transmission;
not sharing drug needles; and not sharing
personal items such as toothbrushes, razors,
and nail clippers with an infected person.
Hepatitis C
The Hepatitis C virus spreads primarily
through contact with infected blood. It
can also spread through sexual contact
and childbirth. People most likely to
be exposed to the Hepatitis C virus are
injection drug users, people who have
sex with an infected person, people who
have multiple sex partners, health care
workers, infants born to infected women
and hemodialysis patients.
There is no vaccine for Hepatitis C. The
only way to prevent the disease is to
reduce the risk of exposure to the virus.
Reducing exposure means avoiding habits
like sharing drug needles or personal
items such as toothbrushes, razors, and
nail clippers with an infected person.
Chronic Hepatitis C is treated with peginterferon
together with the antiviral drug ribavirin.
If acute Hepatitis C does not resolve
on its own within 2 to 3 months, drug
treatment is recommended.
Hepatitis D
Hepatitis D spreads through contact with
infected blood. This disease occurs simultaneously
with Hepatitis B or in people who are
already infected with Hepatitis B. Anyone
infected with Hepatitis B is also at risk
for Hepatitis D. Injection drug users
are at highest risk. Others at risk include
people who live with or have sex with
a person infected with hepatitis D, people
who received a transfusion of blood or
blood products before 1987. Other preventive
measures include avoiding exposure to
infected blood, contaminated needles,
and an infected person's personal items
such as toothbrushes, razors, and nail
clippers. Chronic Hepatitis D is usually
treated with pegylated interferon, although
other potential treatments are under study.
Hepatitis E
Hepatitis E usually spreads through food
or water contaminated by the feces of
an infected person. This disease is uncommon
in the United States. People most likely
to be exposed to the Hepatitis E virus
are international travelers, particularly
those traveling to developing countries,
people living in areas where hepatitis
E outbreaks are common, and people who
live with or have sex with an infected
person.
The only way to prevent the disease is
to reduce the risk of exposure to the
virus. Reducing the risk of exposure means
avoiding tap-water when traveling internationally
and practicing good hygiene and sanitation.
Hepatitis E usually resolves on its own
over several weeks to months.
Some cases of viral hepatitis cannot be
attributed to the Hepatitis A, B, C, D
or E viruses, or even the less common
viruses that can infect the liver, such
as Cytomegalovirus, Epstein-Barr virus,
Herpes virus, Parvovirus, and Adenovirus.
These cases are called non-A-E Hepatitis.
Scientists continue to study the causes
of non-A-E Hepatitis. A final word to
my ailing daughter is to take enough rest
and take boiled food, at least for the
next few months!
SAD stories
of LIFE
Wg
Cdr G Baruah (Retd)
Life
has been good. I wonder how long it will
last! It is going on. May be, I am one
of the chosen ones; maybe I came with
such good luck that I could face everything
as it came and remained happy!
There was a time when I used to be in
the dog house. Whatever I wanted to do,
whatever I planned, I was faced with jeers
and humiliations. Take the case of my
birth in a lower middle class family.
I had no choice. I was born and that was
the end of it. It is a different ball
game with my children though. Some forms
were to be filled up by my son while applying
for a State government Job. In the questionnaire,
he was asked to specify his caste and
sub-caste along with the financial position
of the parents. My son wrote ‘Indian’
and ‘Assamese’ for caste and
sub-caste respectively. And with regards
to the financial status of his parents,
he wrote that he did not know anything
about his parents’ bank balance.
He was asked about his answers at the
time of his oral interview. My son replied
that he knew about his caste but as far
as the financial status of the parents
were concerned, he told that it would
be better to ask the parents directly!
Son was not selected for the job, small
mercy!
The caste system plays a very important
role in the society even today. You just
cannot forget the fact that your father
eked out his livelihood as a farmer or
a cobbler or a barber. My cook and the
helper are Brahmins. These guys are doing
a good job for me by looking after my
daily needs to my satisfaction. Take the
case of my friend Rajagopalan Kannan from
Trichy of Tamilnadu. The fiery Brahmin,
after getting his first class post-graduate
degree in mathematics from Madras University,
threw away his sacred thread since it
was a curse to be a Brahmin in Tamilnadu
in those days! He was not selected even
as a bus conductor in his State! Thank
god, he was selected as a subject teacher
in a missionary school in Nagaland! So,
there is nothing as far as caste is concerned.
Some curses his luck because of his low
caste; some suffers because destiny made
him to be from a high caste! Again I say,
you have no choice there. Can you be born
in a particular community at your will?
Then, take the case of vocations. You
could have selected your vocation. You
could have been a carpenter, a tailor,
a barber, an electrician, a civil servant
or a businessman. You could be a politician
or a policeman. But you land up in an
unknown territory to eke out a career
and living. The strange thing is that
you have the resilience to adapt to the
requirements of the new regime. But, you
have really no control over the life that
awaits you in your future avatar after
finishing your education. Try as you might,
with the exception of doctor and politician
parents who somehow manage to bring their
progenies into the same professions, you
seldom come across children adapting their
parents’ professions.
Life is like that. While life plays its
own game; you are left with no room for
modifications, no alternatives whatsoever!
The caste, the religion, the social status
and the ‘I could not care’ attitude
of people around you sometimes get to
your nerves! Alas, you cannot do anything
there also. There is a design for everything.
You are destined to face it.
A very famous scholar who teaches in a
very famous University, whom I have known
from the time we used to roam naked in
the streets, came to me the other day
and said that his son had failed miserably
in a very important examination, and the
controller of the examinations, being
a buddy of mine, should be approached.
Hold on. He is not only to be approached,
but he is to be told that the boy has
to be declared ‘passed’! What
would you do in my position?
Under normal circumstances, I would have
told the professor to climb a pole and
get lost. But the circumstances were not
normal and hence I reacted. I reacted
to such an extent that I rang up the old
boy and invited him for a glass of beer
in my office. Please don’t take it
other ways; I don’t serve beer to
everybody whom I invite to my small office.
But a friend is a friend, and when a friend
is invited to the office at two in the
afternoon, what would you offer him on
a Guwahati summer of June?
The friend came, we started our normal
blah blah, and after sipping the beer,
I immediately got to the brass tacks.
I told him in no uncertain terms that
education was going down the drain; it
was bound to because authorities had put
some nincompoops like my friend at the
helm of affairs. The message was delivered
with all the intent and the friend received
it well. The friend asked for the roll
number of the boy. I supplied him with
the information. The friend sat on my
computer, connected to the internet and
invited me to his side. I dragged a tool
and sat glued to the computer screen.
There it was! The boy's name, the name
of the professor and the result sheet!
The friend sighed. It was a sigh of sadness.
I asked the friend. He sighed again and
said that the boy scored 51 percent marks
in Physics, of which 28 was from the practical.
The boy also got 53 marks in Chemistry
in which the practical marks were 29.
This implied that the boy passed in both
these subjects with grace marks. So if
the boy did badly in his mathematics paper
or in the computer sciences, there was
nothing extra-ordinary about that. The
boy did not have aptitude for the science
subjects and he had no business to be
in the science stream!
That was that. The professor friend of
mine had to accept the ignominy of his
son failing in a subject for which the
text books were written by him. Life is
like that. I may sound philosophical,
but, life is like that! I close the chapter
and try to relax. Here, the all-knowing
wife enters the scene and declares that
it is all bloody hog wash! I am surprised
and amused. I am surprised, because wife
had never opened her mouth for such things.
She generally confines her duties to passing
the snack tray to the guests; offers a
smile, says ‘hello’ and retires.
That’s all. I was amused, because
my wife commented on a sensitive subject!
The reaction of my wife induced reactions
in me too, quite natural!
The reactions led from one thing to another
and it was revealed that the professor
and the controller of examinations were
old professional rivals! The professor
has been having the upper hand in almost
all their bickerings, and when the controller
got an opportunity, he took it with glee
–– that’s about all!
-“But the professor is a man who
wont say boo to a goose,” I told
her. “I know him since we were half
a foot tall!”
- “You also know the controller friend
of yours since your football days, is
not it?” Wife reacted. “Did
you guys not joke about him being a goalie
and whiling away his time between the
posts when you guys in the middle toiled
in the midfield?”
- “Yes. It was so,” I said.
“But what is the simile?”
Wife said that the goalie had a lot of
goals! He had about a dozen flats in the
city of Guwahati alone. He is said to
have acquired some properties in Noida
and Bangalore. Wife asked me to fathom
the source of such a huge income of the
controller. Wife also added that the father
of the controller retired as a headmaster
of a primary school! Ladies are like that!
They do their homework unlike us men before
opening their mouth. Yes, you may not
get a wife of your choice; you are only
destined to get a wife. That is the irony
of life! But I am happy with my wife except
the small irritants like commenting irresponsibly
about a fellow with whom I played football
once upon a time!
I think my wife smelt something because
the controller fiend of mine was suspended
from his job the same day. His property
in Guwahati, Noida and Bangalore were
ransacked by the enforcement agencies
and a lot of incriminating documents,
cash, jewellery and other evidences were
collected. She splashed open the daily
newspaper which carried photographs of
my friend covering his handsome face with
a handkerchief
I term these as sad stories of life. The
young man, the son of the professor, is
in the dog house because he happened to
be the son of a celebrity father who was
a professional rival of the controller
of examinations. The controller is also
in the doghouse because of his endless
greed. The professor friend of mine is
in the doghouse, because, he was destined
to be there! As such, it is of no use
deliberating on what caste you are and
what religion you follow. Be ready to
face the unexpected because you are destined
to face it!
Don’t think that I have not faced
upheavals in life! Everybody faces these
things. Some come back unscathed, while
some get totally broke! I must go and
console the professor to take it lightly.
But you know, life is full of such sad
stories!
Fauji
Diary
Rima
Bhattacharya
THEY WHO EMBRACED DEATH (PART II)
“The safety, honour and welfare of
your country comes first, always and every
time.
The honour, welfare and comfort of the
men you command come next.
Your own ease, comfort and safety come
last, always and every time.”
These words, by Sir Philip Chetwode, used
during the inaugural parade of the Indian
Military Academy (IMA) is the motto of
cadets passing out of IMA. These are the
words that have inspired officers like
Capt Vikram Batra, PVC.
Capt Vikram Batra was one of the twin
sons born to GL Batra and Jai Kamal Batra
on September 9, 1974 at Mandi, Himachal
Pradesh. He was diligent and active from
the very beginning of his student life
and was very popular among his friends
and teachers.
After his graduation in 1995, he was selected
for the Merchant Navy in a Hong Kong-based
company. However, moved by patriotic zeal,
he dropped the idea of joining the Merchant
Navy and joined the Indian Military Academy
at Dehradun in June 1996. After passing
out in December 1997, he joined the Army
as a Lieutenant of 13 J&K Rifles.
In June 1991, his unit proceeded to the
Kargil Sector on the eruption of a war-like
situation. Captain Vikram Batra was tasked
to recapture the first peak of utmost
importance –– Point 5140. His
reputation had preceded him.
Therefore, on reaching ‘Point 5140’,
the enemy commander challenged him by
saying: “Why have you come to your
death Shershah (the nickname used by his
men)?” Captain Batra, being the last
person to back away from a fight, replied,
“We shall see within an hour as to
who remains on the top.” In a short
while Captain Batra and his company of
troops decimated the enemy, killing eight
enemy soldiers and capturing a heavy anti-aircraft
machine gun.
Soon after capturing Point 5140, he called
his Commanding Officer and said jubilantly,
‘Yeh Dil Maange More’. After
taking a well-deserved break of 4-5 days,
he proceeded towards the mountain peak
Point 4875, where he was challenged again
by the enemy who said, “Shershah
nobody shall be there to lift your dead
body,” to which he retorted “Don’t
worry for me, pray for your safety.”
He captured Point 4875 and hoisted the
national flag. He and Capt Anuj Nayar
killed a number of enemy troops and recaptured
the peak on July 5, 1999. While probing
the enemy defences, he came face to face
with five Pakistani soldiers and fought
them killed them single-handedly. Unfortunately,
he was hit by a bullet in the chest and
with the words ‘Jai Mata Di’
on his lips, he fell down. He was further
hit in the waist by an artillery splinter.
He succumbed to his injuries and thereby
made the supreme sacrifice for our motherland.
He was posthumously awarded the Param
Vir Chakra (PVC).
(The columnist can be reached at you2rima@yahoo.in)
