Every year, since 1999, 26th July is being remembered and celebrated all over India as ‘Vijay Diwas’ or ‘Victory day’ commemorating the historical victory of the Indian armed forces over Pakistani intruders in the treacherous heights of Kargil. Wednesday marks the seventh anniversary of the Kargil conflict.

 The occasion of ‘Victory day’ is not only to remember those courageous men who died defending country’s border, but also to motivate and inspire the younger generation to follow the valiant traditions of the Indian Army and the nation as a whole. The nation owes as immense debt of gratitude to these intrepid warriors.

Troops were sent to Kargil with a simple brief - do not cross the LoC but win back the peaks.

To do that they had to climb almost vertical slopes loaded with ammunition and weapons in altitudes where every breath was difficult.

They had to do this while under constant shell and machine gunfire from an enemy dug in behind stone sangars.

As army units cleared the enemy off peak after peak, India was discovering new heroes - Anuj Nayyar, Vikram Batra, Manoj Pandey - all very young, very brave and all of them dead.

The war was reaching a crescendo and the climax was the fall of Tiger Hill in July to the 18th Grenadiers. This battle too had a young hero 18-year-old Yoginder Yadav who sustained 18 bullet wounds but won the peak.

More than 600 Indian soldiers fell in Kargil.

While our brave jawans are still on a tough mission to uphold the dignity of our nation, the least the rest of the countrymen can do is give them moral support. Though we are hundreds of miles away, living in the comfort of our homes and with our families around us, we must assure them that we are with them all the time.