"Enemies killed my men, I'll not leave them alive": Kargil hero Major Saravanan's last words to his commanding officer

Tiruchirapalli (Tamil Nadu) [India], July 26 (ANI): Twenty six years on this very day the Indian Army recaptured its posts in Kargil occupied by the Pakistani forces and brought to an end the three-month-long war.
As the country celebrates Kargil Vijay Diwas on Saturday, the story of Major Mariappan Saravanan, an officer in the prestigious Bihar Regiment of the Indian Army continues to inspire. The late officer laid down his life fighting Pakistani forces on Jubar ridge on the western side of Batalik, the second-highest battlefield in Ladakh.
Batalik sector, close to the Line of Control (LoC), is characterized by high altitude, rugged terrain, and deep valleys, which presented significant logistical and operational challenges during the Kargil war.
Major Saravanan's battle cry "Jawano karo ya maro" still echoes from the peaks of Kargil. His exceptional bravery led to him being referred to as the "Hero of Batalik".
On May 28, 1999, Major Saravanan's unit was tasked to capture point 4268 on Jubar ridge whose terrain comprised of jagged rocks covered with snow and knife-edge ridges.
According to an obituary citation from his regiment, Major Saravanan led a frontal attack against the Pakistani intruders with the final command to his men "Jawano karo ya maro (Do or Die)."
The next morning, he killed two enemy soldiers by firing a rocket launcher at them. In the exchange of fire that ensued, Saravanan was wounded in the stomach by a shrapnel but he soldiered on ignoring calls by his seniors to return.
"Major Saravanan charged through a hail of bullets and killed two more enemy soldiers. His commanding officer asked him to return back in view of many casualties, but Major Saravanan replied- Sir, 'Dushmano ne mere Jawano ki jaan li hai, main unko jinda nahi chodunga (Sir, enemies have killed my brave men and I will not leave them alive). He added, "Nothing will happen to your Chenghis, which was his code name," the citation read.
He was the first to reach the top before being hit by bullet in the head at 6:30 am in the cold terrain and fell into a ravine, it said.
His mortal remains were recovered from the ravine, 37 days after his martyrdom by the Bihar Regiment troops who made several attempts to retrieve the mortal remains due to heavy shelling by the enemy forces.
Major Saravanan was posthumously awarded 'Vir Chakra', the country's third highest wartime gallantry award after the Param Vir Chakra and Maha Vir Chakra. The gallantry award was presented to his proud mother by then President K R Narayanan.

A bridge has also been renamed in the memory of Vir Chakra awardee Major Saravanan in Dah village of Batalik Sector in Kargil.
"People of the village still remember him with so much love and affection. He had stayed there for couple of days before he starting out to Jubar ridge" in Batalik, his sister Dr Chitraa told ANI.
In a fitting tribute to Major Saravanan, his home state Tamil Nadu has included his life story in the English Supplementary Reader of Class VII of the state education board to inspire students to choose the Army as a career option.
When asked about Saravanan's last conversation with family members, his sister Dr Chitraa Senthil Kumar said he had told his mother, " 'I'll get you a Vir Chakra!"
On May 14, 1999, he made his last phone call to Amma, and said, 'I'll get you a Vir Chakra. I love you all. Do take care of yourself, Chithra and Revati," Dr Chitra told ANI.

Even earlier, after his battalion was moved to the insurgency-infested area in Jammu & Kashmir, "I remember clearly -- he had written to our mother, Amirthavalli. He was excited and had said he was waiting for an opportunity to prove his mettle!," the proud sister said.
Major Saravanan was the eldest and only son with two sisters and was just 17 when his father Lt Colonel A Mariappan, who introduced him to military life, passed away.
After the father's death he "became the pillar of strength and moral support for us," the grateful sister said.
"He was the eldest child in the family. Our father, Lt Colonel A Mariappan, was an Army medical officer, and right from a very early age. He taught him how to hold a gun and shoot at Fig 11 targets at the open ranges," she further said.
Recalling her Kargil visit after the war, Chitraa said people of Dah village remember Saravanan very fondly even after 26 years of his martyrdom.
"It took us hours to reach that place and during the entire journey, I was thinking how could he (Major Saravanan) and his team have negotiated this difficult terrain. It was unimaginable that he actually launched a frontal attack in such a dangerous terrain surprising the enemy in a hand-to-hand combat."
"Whatever is said about the bravery of Saravanan and his achievements is less. No words can ever explain what all he undoubtedly endured during the combat- to reach that place and to face the enemy. It left me awe admiration and wonder of the skinny young lad who would pull my pigtails was capable and make me cry was capable of such courage and fearlessness."
"What greater pride for a sister to know that her brother is alive even after 26 years of his martyrdom because what he achieved. Saravanan has made the country proud, the military strategies he employed are the lessons for the young officers, his exemplary professionalism unmatched saga of pure patriotism and sacrifice," Dr Chitraa said.
"At Dah, a bridge has been renamed in the name of Major Saravanan, and people of the village still remember him with so much love and affection. He had stayed there for couple of days before he starting out to Jubar and people remember him very fondly even now," she added.
Born on August 10, 1972 in Rameswaram and an alumunus of St Joseph's College, Tiruchirapalli, Major Saravanan was posted to Tamalpur, Cooch Behar and Bhutan before moving to Kargil.
To keep alive his undying spirit, Major Saravanan's family instituted a memorial trust and built a martyr's memorial cenotaph at Trichy in 2007, Kargil Vijay Diwas. The aim of the trust is to encourage and fire the patriotic fervor and spirit of nationalism in the hearts and minds of the youth to 'Join the Army and Serve the Nation' with honor and dignity.

India observes July 26 as Kargil Vijay Diwas every year to commemorate the victory over Pakistan in the 1999 Kargil War. The war, which began on May 3, 1999, and concluded on July 26 of the same year, took place in the rugged, unforgiving terrains of the Kargil district in Ladakh. (ANI)