21 years of Kargil War: India remembers Param Vir Chakra awardees Captain Vikram Batra, Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey, Rifleman Sanjay Kumar, Grenadier Yogender Singh Yadav

The nation is observing the 21st anniversary of India’s victory in Kargil war,  remembering its brave martyrs who laid down their lives to safeguard our borders from Pakistani intruders. 

The bravest of the brave were awarded with the Param Vir Chakra, India's highest gallantry award for armed forces personnel. While two bravehearts – Captain Vikram Batra and Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey – received the honour posthumously, two Kargil heroes – Rifleman Sanjay Kumar and Grenadier Yogender Singh Yadav – were awarded PVC after India's decisive victory in the war.

Let's have a look at the tale of these bravehearts:

1. Captain Vikram Batra: He was an officer of Jammu and Kashmir Rifles. Batra received the gallantry honour posthumously in 1999. In an operation as part of Operation Vijay, Captain Batra killed five enemy soldiers in a hand to hand fight at point black range. Batra's code name was Sher Shah. Batra will always be remembered for achiving a near-impossible task in the face of heavy enemy fire. Captain Vikram Batra led one of the toughest operations in mountain warfare during the Kargil war

2. Lieutenant Manoj Kumar Pandey: Lieutenant Pandey was an officer of Gorkha Rifles and he was bestowed with the Param Vir Chakra (posthumous) in 1999. Lieutenant Pandey was a part of a series of attacks during Operation Vijay and he played an important role in forcing back the Pakistani intruders. Lieutenant Pandey was martyred on July 3 during the attack on Jubar Top, Khalubar Hills in Batalik Sector. He is still remembered as 'Hero of Batalik' for his valour. 

3. Rifleman Sanjay Kumar: He belonged to 13 Jammu and Kashmir Rifles and was awarded PVC in 1999 after the conclusion of war. Rifleman Kumar indulged in hand-to-hand combat with Pakistani intruders during an operation to capture a point in the Mushkoh Valley. The brave Indian soldier even chased the enemy, using their machine gun and killed many of them.

4. Grenadier Yogender Singh Yadav: Grenadier Yadav of 18 Grenadiers was part of the leading team of Ghatak platoon tasked to capture Tiger Hill. Grenadier Yadav fixed the rope for his team to climb up the hill and braved enemy firing to crawl up to the enemy position. He was just 19-year-old at that time and was part of the commando platoon 'Ghatak' which was assigned to capture three snow-covered bunkers on Tiger Hill. While climbing up the hill, Yadav and other Indian soldiers were attacked by an enemy bunker, in which the platoon commander and two others were martyred. However, an inured Yadav climbed up the remaining 60 feet and reached the top. 

Param Vir Chakra is awarded for most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent act of valour or self-sacrifice, in the presence of the enemy. PVC is circular in shape and is made of bronze. On obverse of the PVC, there are four replicas of ‘Indra’s Vajra’ with the State Emblem (including the motto) embossed in the centre. On its reverse, it shall have embossed Param Vir Chakra both in Hindi and English with two lotus flowers between Hindi and English.