Being A Jawan (Life of soldiers: Indian Army)

Being a Jawan….

Life of Soldiers: Indian Army

Being A JAwAn…..

Life of Soldiers: Indian Army

By Darani Vasudevan

Preface The Army is not an easy task, it involves several risks and the risks are adverse enough to take oneâ€&#x;s life. But still , army takes the privilege of maintaining the integrity and sovereignty of the nation. Soldiers are the backbone of the army. They are mere human beings possessing outstanding courage to exhibit their real patriotism by joining the army and serving the nation. They perform the jobs of serving motherland and protecting innocent civilians from the dangers caused by the nature and enemies. They are well trained and disciplined and are the real heroes of the Nation. This book is an account of their daily routine and risks during their service period. Hope you will celebrate them after reading this book‌..

Jai Hind!!!

-V. Darani M.Sc., M.Phil., SET.

Dedicated To‌..

Mothers who permit their children to serve the mother land Fathers who planted Patriotism in their children Women who allow their men to serve in the Army Children who decides to serve the army even after witnessing the difficulties and fate faced by their Fathers‌..

“What

is a Life time adventure for you is a daily routine for us�

- Ladakh Leh Highway Sign Board

In the course of evolution, man evolved successfully from apes by slight change in the chromosome. A slight change that resulted in a vast difference‌‌‌. Man started to live in groups, then formed a family of his own; families grouped to form society and several societies grouped

and formed

country. To distinguish one country form another and to determine the political and economical status of the country man introduced the system of BORDER. During historical times, the Kings and Emperors were keen in extending their boundary or border by defeating the King or Emperor of the opponent kingdom in a war. The practice of war was mainly carried out for extending territories for resources and several socio economic purposes.

War is the use of armed forces and weapons to kill and defeat the opponent. During the reign of Kings, swords were the main weapon and after industrialization rifles and heavy nuclear bombs took away several innocent lives as a result of war. The best examples being the Hiroshima and Nagasaki Tragedy of Second World War. However the loss of life during the Second World war lead to the formation of United Nations Organization, in which countries of the world joined hands and signed agreements and treaties for the benefit and welfare of the people.

When dispute between two countries for a resource or any illegal attack crosses its limits, UN will interfere and solve the disputes between the two. One country can file case against another for any suspected or proved activities in the International Court of Justice.

All these steps have controlled and altogether diminished the purpose of war……..BUT…………..

Still wars are occurring here and there in minimal area but most of the wars of present decades circle around one common enemy….TERRORISM…..

Some people are threatening the world and form the sole responsibility for killing people in mass. Humanity can never be imagined from them. They are referred to as Terrorists.

The source and emergence of these terrorist organizations are still unquestionable. They are dangerous human beings and often set human bombs to blast and cause mass killing.

They threaten the nations of the world. Though several joined agreements and treaties are signed among countries of the World, still terrorism has not been completely eradicated.

Animals and birds never had or have any sort of border disputes and are free to migrate anytime anywhere. But for us the government has allotted rules, regulations and restrictions to avoid illegal practices and crimes.

Sometimes we must agree that without these restrictions we might be far away from the word called peace. To safeguard the life of innocent people these restrictions are must and thus accepted and followed.

Who are these terrorists?

How did they form an association?

Why are they threatening the world?

Why are the killing people in mass?

Have they killed their humanity while setting up human bomb?

Do they ever know kindness?

Even they have the option to lead a normal and happy life indeed with little stress like that of common people, but why aren‟t they choosing such alternative?

These are yet to be answered…………

To eliminate or protect border and people from the enemies so called terrorists, every country has its own armed force on land , air and water…….Army, Air force and Navy…..

Soldiers form the backbone of these forces. Without them such forces are unimaginable. They are our fellow human beings and choosing this forces as a profession out of patriotism. Yes without patriotism and courage one can not even sustain a single day in this job.

Is it easy to live the life of a soldier?

Let‟s have a brief look into the circumstances and troubles that await a soldier during their service period.

India is conducting several examination and interviews for choosing persons for serving its Army. Despite knowing how difficult the task would be, many Indians are still applying for these posts willingly. Once selected they happily look forward for their service to the mother land and to prove their patriotism to the world.

When we analyze our life… I mean the life a common man, we have a daily routine of sleep, eat, work etc. We have time for work and also for spending time with the loved ones. We have extra time for celebrations and festivals too.

“We have a tomorrow for correcting the mistakes of today” But in the life of a soldier, today‟s mistake can result in a massive destruction and loss.

We get Goosebumps on hearing our National Anthem, though we accept or not, patriotism is an integrated part of our life. A sort of respect arise in our mind on seeing our soldiers in their uniform.

A soldier earns for serving the army but that can never be compared or counted as equal to other jobs offered in the country. It is actually a service performed wholeheartedly with dedication.

Most of us would never imagine such destination in our life.

Even though a person joins an army out of compulsion, after attending the rigorous training sessions he would definitely recognise the patriotism within him and he usually gets addicted to his profession of being a soldier.

It is not that, persons who have disqualified a grade in school or college is joining army for earning. To be frank, they are more qualified to get top ranking jobs in the world.

In our job we can get another chance for rectifying the mistakes

of our plan. But in the war field or in front of

enemies, a soldier got only one chance to make an effective plan. His intelligence can save many lives from disaster.

DO OR DIE ……...the soldiers face this situation many times in their service.

How can someone say that army people lack intelligence?

Their alertness and intelligence are improved after training and several years of experience but still they continue their service to the army rejecting all sophisticated jobs that can adorn them with a rich life.

IN SHORT WORKING IN ARMY IS ALL ABOUT LOVE< PASSION AND PRIDE…...

“Serving in the army is not a job. It cannot be a job. Army officers are well qualified to get any top ranking job in the world. But working in the army is about love. It is a passion. You do it for the pride and honour of your country” -Major. S.K. Yadav Army is an unit. It has several divisions……...Officers monitoring

computer,

files,

data,

satellites

and

communications. But above all it‟s the soldiers who is directly facing the difficulties and enemies.

As mentioned before, being a soldier is not like that of any other job in the country. Just imagine a situation when you have to protect country‟s border from 16,000 feet above sea level at a temperature of –50ºC at Siachen glacier.

Can it

ever be compared to the ordinary job? DEFINITELY NOT… Moreover we do job for ourselves and not for the country.

But their job is for the country, for the people. They are definitely not ordinary. They are indeed selfless working 24x7 for others. They possess some extra courage which induce them to adopt this work that we normally afraid to do and it is that courage that makes these ordinary persons extraordinary.

When there is a chaos or dispute we simply pray for peace, but it is the army that is busy fighting to end the violations and growing tensions.

“I regret I have only one life to give my country” -Prem Ramchandani

These sorts of selfless deeds make these persons respectable and worth celebrating. The tension doesn‟t start with duty, it starts from the training period itself. Trainings are strict enough to convert an ordinary man to a well disciplined person.

“Our training is done under strict discipline with absolutely zero tolerance for mistakes. The schedule is tough and leaves little time to rest. Not to forget the strict punishments we get” -Major Yadav

As a health tip, doctors advice us to sleep atleast for 6 hours a day. Being a soldier, the first thing a person loses is his sleep.

Training is not just a training, it is the actual beginning of one‟s Army life. Training includes rigorous exercises and practices which are routine. These include speed marches and runs with full battle loads on back.

These routines are followed for long hours everyday. Every soldier who joins the Indian army undergoes a basic training at respective regimental centres. There he spends about 6 months. The estimated duration for basic military training is 21 weeks during which he must be careful not to fail any test and must also sustain injuries. Thereafter he is given few weeks leave after which he is required to report for trade related training which can lasts from few months to years for technical trade.

A „Trade‟ might be considered as equivalent to US Army‟s Military Occupational Speciality. The soldiers get their payments from the training period itself.

In the training

session, the cadets operate on little to no sleep. But these rigorous trainings are worthy because of the benefits they are getting.

BENEFITS??

You might wonder at this point. What a person is going to get as a benefit in such a terrific training?

Every single person coming out of the training is well disciplined

with manners and style. They learn the right

way to walk, talk and dress. We used to admire army mainly for their disciplined behaviour.

The struggle doesn‟t end with the training it is it‟s actual beginning

Another notable benefit obtained from the training period is friendship.

“The bonds you forge during those training days last a life time” -Major Yadav They enjoy and play among themselves to forget pain and stress. Moreover this bond pushes them forward for facing great tasks in future. They learn to stay away from family right from the training session. To overcome this „Family missing‟ the soldiers care each other like family.

Let‟s have a look into their postings…..

Army units are posted from one place to another after every two years. A unit consists of around 800 soldiers. Army men not blessed with the privilege of staying with their family and serving from their states. A normal soldier has a career of about 20 years during which he stays far away from his family, with holidays in between. He can meet his family once in every 5 months.

A soldier stays with his unit for about 20 years during which he develops a strong bond with his fellow members. They enjoy with each other like family to keep their stress level down and to assume the unimaginable situation to ordinary.

They stick together 24x7. They train and work together, eat together and face the war together.

During their service period, they are encouraged with many gallantry awards which are offered for their acts of valour in operations.

Many of them die in the war field or due to natural hazards or any terror attack. They risk their life every second and there is no guarantee for future in their career. But how soldiers are so determined to offer their service despite all these is admiring.

WE CALL IT SACRIFICE AND THEY SAY IT AS FRIENDSHIP Yes, the bond they developed among them is the main reason for their sacrifice apart from patriotism. They sacrifice their precious life to save their fellow mates. No human will take a gun shot voluntarily unless it is to save his family members.

It is difficult to die. But our soldiers accept their death bravely because of the bond created among themselves during their stay together. This bond motivate them to die for their brothers on the battle field. In short soldiers die for each other. They die so that their friends can take their mortal

remains to their family and narrate their brave

sacrifice for the country. Their dedications and sacrifices are honourable.

Whenever a soldier return to his family during vacation, he used to narrate his brave deeds to his children and impart patriotism in them. These children are so innocent because

even after witnessing their fathersâ&#x20AC;&#x; fate in the profession they decide to wear the same uniform like their fathers and offer their service to the country.

We have often heard a statement â&#x20AC;&#x153;There is no one intelligent in army. The soldiers simply obey and do the instructions given to them.â&#x20AC;? Never underestimate an ordinary soldier.

No one will take death for orders. But a soldier do. A soldier is an extremely trained, loyal person whose intelligence and timely decision saves many lives and his sacrifice also saves many lives. Soldiers are so loyal to their officers like captain, Army major etc., that they would jump without any questions if they were instructed to do so. This is never an exaggeration. This is because of the trust they have on their officers. The officers never take soldiers for granted just because they hold the higher position, they do their level best to save the life of each and every soldier. Sometimes an officer sacrifices his life to save many soldiers.

It is the patriotism and humanity that unite these people despite their positional variation in their profession. A soldier will not move an inch from where he is standing and will take a gun shot if he is ordered to.

The Indian Army is thus the Prime Guardian of our national integrity and sovereignty. The Armed forces are respected and honoured for their discipline, bravery and patriotic values. They are fighting adversities and locked horns with enemies for ensuring a safe and secured India for all of us.

“We live by chance, we love my choice, we kill by profession” -Officers Training Academy, Chennai Their profession is risk filled but are they enjoying a risk free working environment?

DEFINITELY

NOT….

Let‟s

have

a

look

into

the

environmental conditions our soldiers are subjected to, “We work under extreme cold conditions with no proper roads and tracks for transport and little to no public support. There isn’t enough drinking water and sometimes operations require us to stay on duty for weeks without any rest in between.”

-Major Yadav

From the words of the Major we can clearly say that our soldiers are not only fighting the enemies but also natural forces and adverse living conditions due to improper supply of basic requirements.

At Jammu & Kashmir border, the soldier has to dedicate his entire 24x7 for duty. Their prime duty is guarding the nation from enemies. But they act as rescuers during natural calamities or disasters. They face the adverse natural conditions to rescue and save the lives of innocent civilians.

Being a soldier one has to face many new challenges everyday. As mentioned before, the challenges are not only from enemies but also from nature. They stay far away from their own family fighting to survive everyday. The sprit of these persons, undying Patriotism and love for the country encourage them to proceed further breaking the hurdles on their path. A soldier offer his prime duty sincerely and he even sacrifices his life serving the Nation.

The soldiers simply obey the commands of their officers and neither demand nor utter the word no. This cooperation is the main reason for completing a mission successfully. The dedication and loyalty of our soldiers are vital for the proper functioning of the army.

A soldier has to balance his civil and military life at the same time. They are posted in harsh terrains, the Himalayas, deserts and sometimes in water. Stress definitely develops as a part of their regular routine. They remain isolated from their families from few months to years. In some areas, they are pushed to live in an adverse environment that they even struggle for getting basic needs like food and water.

Some areas lack medical facilities too. Each location or posting areas offer different risks and experiences to our soldiers.

In

Jammu

&

Kashmir,

allegations

violations

are

common.

Kashmir

activities

throughout

the

year.

of

Human

Rights

faces

many

frantic

Jammu

&

Kashmir

experiences varying climatic conditions like monsoon and winter.

These

push

soldiers

to

thrive

in

an

adverse

environment which is unimaginable by a normal civilian.

These environmental conditions stand as a hurdle for the soldiers

guarding

this

area.

The

growing

problems

of

insurgency and terrorism keep the soldiers on their toes 24x7..

The best example for rescuing activity by our armed forces can be sited in Jammu & Kashmir. In 2014, heavy monsoon rain and floods disrupted life in Jammu & Kashmir killing nearly 400 people and rendered 1000 homeless. The army reacted very quickly and rescued more than 200,000 people.

Kashmir is often prone to terrorist activities, gun shots and firing occur often taking away the life of many soldiers and innocent civilians.

In the past, the people of Kashmir hate Indian army and they curse at them often raise slogans shouting the army to go back and some people even throw stones at our soldiers.

The crimes our army committed in Kashmir in the past is the main reason behind such aggressive behaviour of the people. The people didn‟t respond positively for the help offered by the Indian government. But after the Pulwama Tragedy of February14, 2019, people of Kashmir started to show cooperation with the Indian army for eliminating terrorism. The youth of Kashmir started to serve food to soldiers and started to express their willingness for joining the Indian Army to eliminate terrorism.

Our Army has launched “Sadbhavna,” an operation for bringing Kashmir people close to the Army and to prove Army as the agent of peace and hope and not a messenger of death. It is referred as winning hearts and minds. The army has launched numerous civil projects like construction of roads, schools, workshops and

providing basic facilities for

getting closer to the people.

At present, Army has became a part of daily life in Kashmir. New generations of Kashmir are growing up living next door to military camps and the army too learnt to deal with the valley peacefully.

Human rights allegations are also common at the borders of Northâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; East India. Another biggest issue for soldiers posted to guard North East border is the language. The soldiers do not belong to those states are unfamiliar with the local dialect. The army is responsible for aiding civil authorities to maintain law and order which adds an extra burden.

The topography of North East India is vast with thick jungles experiencing heavy rainfall throughout the year. The major benefit of such topography is that it provides easy gaps and easy pass to Myanmar.

The major risk to our soldiers in these jungles is the battle with poisonous insects, leaches and reptiles on a regular basis.

The soldiers guard Indoâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; Pakistan border in Rajasthan.

Extreme hot weather of Rajasthan provides a challenging living environment for the soldiers. Temperature shoots upto 50ÂşC in some regions and majority of the land is covered by desert. The dust storms, sand storms and blistering heat make the desert area unfit for habitation. The army patrol this

long

border

beating the extreme heat. People of

Rajasthan respect the soldiers and behave nice to them. They cheer the army when it passes them and offer food and water to the soldiers.

Dras is a small town with a population of 1021 and is situated in the Kargil district of Jammu and Kashmir. There prevails a sub arctic climate in the Gateway to Ladakh and is thus referred to as the second uninhabited place in the world. Throughout the year, the temperature remains in single digit. The Indian army is maintaining a constant presence

in

this

region

after

Pakistanâ&#x20AC;&#x;s

failed

Kargil

incursion in 1999. The living adaptations taken by our soldiers to sustain cold weather are discussed later in this book.

India shares its big national border with China in Arunachal Pradesh (Indo Chinese Border). The armed forces maintain a significant presence in

this region because of Sinoâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; Indian

border disputes. Majority of Arunachal Pradesh is sparsely populated

and

lack

proper

connectivity.

The

varying

weather conditions and geography of this region makes it hard to survive in this region. The Indian Army continues to maintain mountain regiments as well as Indian Air Force also plays a crucial role in this region. Heavy rainfall is the greatest trouble faced by our soldiers guarding this region but still they overcome these hurdles for offering their service to mother land.

India shares its border again with China in Sikkim (Indo Chinese Border). Sikkim has extreme weather conditions, like

heavy rain, heavy snow and extreme cold which persists throughout

the

year.

The

army

patrol

strategically

important areas like the Nathu La Pass with pockets of region witnessing rapid transitions in a single day. The soldiers must be ready to face bright sunshine in the morning followed by heavy rain or snow showers in the evening.

Indian air forces play a crucial role in supplying and transporting

arms,

ammunitions

and

other

essential

zone

temperature

resources in the region.

Uttarkhand

also

experiences

sub

in

winters that is similar to that of Jammu & Kashmir. India shares its border with China in Uttarkhand. The Indoâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; Chinese border in Uttarkhand remains as a hot topic in terms of violations and intrusions by the Chinese forces, because of which the Indian Army maintains a close observation

of

this

region

despite

critical

weather

conditions. The soldiers also aid in rescue operations during natural disasters like earthquake, landslides.

Guarding the nation at Line of Control (LOC) is made difficult by the hostile terrain and harsh weather conditions. Yet our soldiers offer their service sincerely with dedication for ensuring peace within the country. Enemies few metres away at sub zero temperature might be the toughest situation faced by soldier in his service.

They battle the enemies at such an unfavourable climate just to ensure a peaceful life for us with our loved ones. At LOC, the day starts with melting snow on a kerosene stove to get water as the area is totally covered with 5-20 feet thick snow.

Because of this thick snow cover many ports in the area remain completely isolated from the rest of the country for few months of the year.

Heavy snowfall occurs often and hence army ensures sufficient stock of food and other basic requirements usually before the onset of winters. Heavy

rainfall and enemies

across the fences are the major problems faced by our soldiers apart from which avalanches struggle soldiers here and there.

According to the reports of Ministry of Defence, these avalanches and extreme weather conditions

have claimed

more lives than enemiesâ&#x20AC;&#x; guns in last 10 years. MOD and Met departments have set up advance warning systems for detecting and warning the occurrence of avalanches and snow storms. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Army has deployed special avalanche rescue teams in the avalanche prone areas in border areas. Along with their colleagues these teams also help civilians during any kind of natural calamityâ&#x20AC;?

-Major Abhiskek

Despite

these

warning

systems

and

alertness,

natural

calamities and adverse weather conditions still remain a major challenge to the soldiers.

The other large problematic territory between India and China is the eastern most region that lies south of Mc Mahon line. This is now a state of Arunachal Pradesh but was formerly referred as the North East Frontier Agency. Indoâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; china war of 1962 ended with an agreement to solve the dispute. The agreement includes confidence building measures and a mutually agreed Line of Actual Control (LAC).

The Nubra consistency in Ladakh shares its border with both China and Pakistan. The charming valley that is partially opened to tourism is one of the most strategic spots of Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x;s Northern borders.

“If you would ever regret about your life; do watch Indian Army at Siachen glacier”

You can find the following words etched on a stone memorial at the Indian Army camp in Siachen: “ Q UATERED IN SNOW, SILENT TO REMAIN WHEN THE BULGE CALLS, THEY SHALL RISE AND MARCH AGAIN ” Siachen is regarded as the World‟s highest and coldest active war zone. For over 17 years, the Indian Army has held its position strong keeping away Pakistan Army from claiming the glacier. Kerosene saves life here not the sun; cold kills our soldier

not

the

enemies….but

our

brave

souls

sustain

obstacles and never backs down.

Our soldiers, 6 at a time have to live in igloos made of fibreglass panels not bigger than a size of king size bed. Kerosene stove is the only way to keep themselves warm. Smoke fills the igloos and hot water bottles don‟t stand hot for long.

Sleeping is rare or never at nights and a routine mechanism is set up to exchange rifles with defrosted ones. Temperature usually stays below –50ºC, hence touching anything made of metals with bare hands can cause severe frost bites within seconds. Guns and other artillery are operated only after wearing anti– frost bite gloves.

Even sweat under gloves freeze to ice, sometimes leading to finger amputations, soldiers in base camps often suffer problems of hearing, eyesight and memory loss due to prolonged use of oxygen mask. The most common health issues faced by our soldiers in winter are speech problems, nausea, sleep deprivation and depression. Besides these difficulties, the Indian army holds two third of the glacier and controls two of the three important passes including the highest motor able pass in the world called Khardungla Pass.

The rare luxurious even occurring in Siachen is fresh flood.

Fruits freeze and become as hard as cricket balls nad vegetables canâ&#x20AC;&#x;t be dented even with hammers. Getting food at an altitude of 21,000 feet itself is a great task.

Indian made cheetah helicopters often push well part their boundaries to drop canned food. The soldiers take bath only once in a month owing to the fear of death from freezing.

They take bath only in a specially designed commodes by DRDO. Washing is also a rare event since ice has to be melt for long duration even for drinking. Therefore 14 pairs of thermal socks are allotted per soldier for a 90 day posting.

The Indian army has also built the Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x;s highest helipad in Siachen at a place called Sonam, which is approximately 21000 feet above sealevel. This helipad is used to bring supplies all around year.

Rifles are thawed repeatedly over kerosene stoves and machine guns are dipped in boiling water to prevent them from jamming. The soldiers are threatened by camouflaging snow sheets, unexpected avalanches and blizzards. Many fall prey to these natural threats.

The soldiers face snow cover of 35 feet and blizzards all over the

year. In this area, the soldiers not only protect the

territory from enemies but also manually maintain the area with light machinery which otherwise will be swallowed by accumulating snow if not cleared.

Snow storms are prevalent well up to more than half a month. The place has only 10% of the oxygen when compared to than of plains. The extreme coldness could even threat professional climbers but our soldiers are on their feet, patrolling the area all over the year.

Indian army holds the heights and Pakistan army holds the low areas of Siachen. There exists a situation such that neither Indian Army can reach down nor the Pakistan Army can reach up because nobody can win this war. â&#x20AC;&#x153;At the highest battle field in the world, the enemy is not so much an entity holding rifles and guns; it is nature, the isolation , your mind and your body.â&#x20AC;?

The land is so barren and the passes are so high, that only the fiercest of enemies and the best of friends want to visit us

Siachen can be referred as ice desert and snow glacier. The temperature ranges from –25ºC at day to –50ºC at night. It is lyrically described as the highest battle field but no war arose between India and Pakistan in this region for more than a dozen years. The greatest threats faced by the soldiers are atmosphere, snow and mountains.

“From cooking food on a heater and melting snow for drinking water to lighting up the pre fabricated snow shelters, kerosene is the magic substance. It is the lifeline and you have to make it last till the next supply. You don’t know when it will come next because of the weather.”

To survive these extreme weather conditions, soldiers are subjected to rigorous training before their posting to Siachen.

The training is given at Siachen Battle school, located near the base camp and are trained to get adopted to the situations prevalent in Siachen. Medical checkups are done frequently

and

soldiers

with

high

blood

pressure

and

suspected cardiac ailments are regarded as unfit for posting in Siachen.

“There are no beds, we sleep on makeshift beds which lie on top of supplies that we store in the shelter. There is no other place to keep them.”

- Lt.Col. Manav Sharma It takes three hours to heat a bucket of water for washing.

The comforts we have in our daily life turns out to be their imagination and things we easily get are not available there.

Despite these hard situations, the soldiers try to be as normal as possible by maintaining their daily routine mainly to sustain desolation. This practice also aids them to maintain their mental stability and physical health.

They bath in pre fabricated snow huts and use crevasses as their toilets. The soldiers tie themselves to each other with rope to avoid drifting apart and missing in sudden weather changes while wandering out. This method helps them to survive snow storms and most importantly to avoid getting trapped into a hidden crevasse. Each post has a doctor and nursing assistant. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Vegetables and meat have to be thawed before they can be cooked. They are like stones. I used to dream of green vegetables.â&#x20AC;?

-Major Kaithat There exists one thing that divert soldiers fro, inner fear, loneliness and depression, it is their dogs. Almost every post has a dog.

Remote posts are provided with a satellite phone from which soldiers are allowed to make one call a week to home. The calls are put through by an operator. The connections are often affected by the bad weather. The soldiers make sacrifices here too but this time sacrifice for their friends. A soldier might give up his time on phone for his friend who deserves more time with his family.

Life turns dreadful again for soldiers guarding Ladakh and they face almost similar situation like those in Siachen.

Ladakh is also termed as cold desert and is a seemingly endless barren stretch of land covered by blue sky above. In this region a soldier experiences a bone wrenching cold.

Another serving border is the Aksai Chin which is in the westernmost region. It is a wasteland in high altitude and is virtually uninhabited. Xinjiang â&#x20AC;&#x201C;Tibet highway crosses this region. The area is claimed by India as a part of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, but the area is actually controlled and administered by China as a part of the Chinese autonomous region of Xinjiang.

In short our soldiers are not only fighting enemies to offer a peaceful and happy life for the civilians of the Nation but also the natural calamities and weather conditions. At high altitudes frost bites, chilblains, memory loss and pulmonary edema are common. Avalanches and crevasses take away the life of soldiers more than the gun fires and enemies We as normal civilians develop stress for simple problems faced in our 8 hours job, but being a soldier is really unimaginable.

How did they gain such courage to choose this extreme profession which we normally hesitate or afraid of?

Despite these troubles, Indian army never experienced a shortage of volunteers to serve the army.

A HEART FELT SALUTE TO THESE BRAVE SOULS..

Are they properly recognised for their service?

No….they are not recognised properly.

Some of the soldiers are pushed to such a economic crisis after their retirement that they are forced to work as watchman

for

institutions

and

companies.

They

are

disciplined and well trained . They can be appointed in schools to teach discipline and patriotism for framing a crime less future society…….JAI HIND…...

“Our flag does not fly because the wind moves it, it flies with the last breath of each soldier who died protecting it.”

“I don’t stop when I am tired, I stop when I am done”

“If a man says he is not afraid of dying, he is either lying or he is a Gorkha” -Field Marshal San Manekshaw “We fight to win and win with a knock out, because there are no runners up in war.”

-General J.J. Singh “The enemies are only 50 yards from us, we are heavily outnumbered. We are under devastating fire. I shall not withdraw an inch but will fight to our last man and our last round.”

-Major Somnath Sharma

“If death strikes me before I prove my blood, I swear I will kill death.”

-Capt. Manoj Kumar Pandey

“Either I will come back after hoisting the tricolor or I will come back wrapped in it, but I will be back for sure.”

-Capt. Vikram Batra PVC

The Army is not an easy task, it involves several risks and the risks are adverse enough to take oneâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s life. But still, army takes the privilege of maintaining the integrity and sovereignty of the nation. Soldiers are the backbone of the army. They are mere human beings possessing outstanding courage to exhibit their real patriotism by joining the army and serving the nation. They perform the jobs of serving motherland and protecting innocent civilians from the dangers caused by the nature and enemies. They are well trained and disciplined and are the real heroes of the Nation.

This book is an account of their daily routine and risks during their service period.

Hope you will celebrate them after reading this bookâ&#x20AC;Ś..