Captain Vikram Batra who is also known as Sher Shah is a war hero, the Kargil war hero. Born on September 9th, the boy from a small town named Palampur is posthumously awarded the Param Vir Chakra, India’s highest and most prestigious award for valor.

The love towards a nation which we call dearly ourselves as patriotism is an emotion that is un-measurable which helps most of the patriots to make happen unachievable feet on many occasions.

Patriotism can be very inspiring.

To commemorate the memory of Captain Vikram Batra (Sher Shah) on his birthday let’s dwell on the brave actions he did to capture Point 5140 and Point 4875.

Not a few days ago a 23-year-old youngster who won a gold medal for India in the Tokyo Olympics is being praised as a hero showered with love and appreciation. Bringing medals and representing your country by showing spirit is one heroic way to show your love towards your country.

And there is another brave and heroic way to present yourself as a patriot by defending your country within and on the borders and protecting your country’s land from enemies and intruders who try to claim or occupy your land.

Captain Batra was just 24 years old when he sacrificed his life for the safety of the nation and love towards the nation. With a slogan “Yeh Dil Mange More!” And a statement “I’ll either come back after raising the Indian flag in victory or return wrapped in it. But I’ll come for sure” Sher Shah was truly an inspiration to many of his fellow soldiers and many of the young soldiers in this generation. He challenged the Pakistani’s troops when they tried to threaten him not to climb Point 4875.

Captain Vikram Batra was a hero and a patriot who didn’t bother about his life while serving the Indian Army with a purpose to not allow any intruders and while he was about to shield bullets for protecting his troop while re-capturing the Point 4875.

Journey of Vikram Batra into the Indian Army

Which kid doesn’t fancy himself to become a hero and save the lives of others. For many that childhood dream still floats in Disneyland. But Vikram Batra’s childhood dream never floated anywhere aimlessly all his life. He dreamt of joining the Indian Army and serve the nation from his initial days of life when he knew what he was doing.

Vikram Batra’s family was an ordinary family where his father was a government school principal and his mother a school teacher. He was elder to his twin brother by fourteen minutes.

In his entire childhood and teenage Batra excelled not only in studies but also in sports and karate. He represented his school in the nationals for table tennis and he is also a green belt holder in karate.

Vikram Batra was a graduate in B.Sc. medical sciences from DAV college, Chandigarh. During his graduation, he joined the Air Wing in the NCC (National Cadet Corps). He was considered to be the best Air Wing cadet in the directorate during his time in the cadet corps.

He was qualified for the ‘C’ certificate in the NCC and attained the rank Senior Under Officer in his NCC unit. Captain Vikram Batra took part in the Republic Day parade in the year 1994 as an NCC Cadet.

During his graduation, Batra got a job opportunity in the merchant navy. He wanted to accept the job to earn money and marry the love of his life but he changed his mind later saying to his mother that “Money is not everything in life”.

After the completion of his graduation, Batra felt that he doesn’t want to be a burden to his father so he enrolled for the course MA English in the Punjab University where he can prepare for the CDS exam. During this period, he was also working as a part-time manager for a travel agency in the region to support his earnings.

Vikram Batra cleared the CDS exam and was also selected in the SSB interview round. He was among the top 35 candidates that were selected. He went on to join the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun in June 1996.

In the words of his father,

Vikram had found his purpose in life. He had found the way to a righteous path that would lead him to his goal — to a service that was extraordinarily high and supreme.

From Lieutenant to Captain Vikram Batra

The Indian army is a different kind of universe where you can find more love, more action, and more bravery than in most box office movies. The love for their country and the people of their country, the action at the borders and in their drills, the bravery they show in strength when an enemy tries to intrude into the country’s borders.

Captain Vikram Batra graduated from the IMA (Indian Military Academy) on 6th December 1997 after his completion of 19 months of training in the academy. He was first commissioned as a Lieutenant in the Army. He was commissioned into the 13th battalion of the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles (13 JAK Rif)

Vikram Batra got his first posting at Sopore in the Baramulla district of Jammu and Kashmir, an area with significant militant activity. During his posting in Sopore, Batra had several encounters with militants. In one of those encounters when Batra was leading an ambush with his platoon into an area of dense forest, he had a miraculous escape when a bullet fired by a militant grazed his shoulder and struck one of Batra’s men behind him, killing the soldier. Believing that the bullet was meant for him and not his colleague, he ordered his men to nab the militants, and by morning all of the militants were killed. Batra, however, was saddened, because he knew that the bullet was meant for him. “Didi, it was meant for me and I lost my man,” he had told his elder sister over the phone.

Captain Vikram Batra and his Sacrifice in the Kargil war (1999)

Operation Vijay or Kargil War the names are different but the war was the same. Kargil war outbreak happened during the May to July 1999. Even though Pakistan claims to be no involvement of their military troops in the Kargil war, there are many proofs and documents left behind during the war proving their role and involvement otherwise in the Kargil war.

Vikram Batra and his battalion 13 JAK Rif were only supposed to be the reserve forces during the Kargil war while capturing Point 5140 in the Dras sector which can provide strategic advancement in attacking the enemies. Under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Yogesh Kumar Joshi, the 13 JAK Rif was divided into Bravo and Delta teams led by under the command of Lieutenant Sanjeev Singh Jamwal and Lieutenant Vikram Batra respectively to recapture the peak from the intruders.

Before the dawn on 21st June, both the Bravo and Delta companies were able to recapture Point 5140 without a single casualty.

The re-capture of Point 5140 helped Vikram Batra to rise to the rank of Captain from lieutenant.

The capture of Point 5140 set in motion a string of successes, such as the captures of Point 5100, Point 4700, Junction Peak, and the Three Pimple Complex.

The entire nation was celebrating his success and an interview of Vikram Batra was being telecasted over the televisions screens all over India.

The sacrifice and the bravery of Captain Vikram Batra cannot be simply described in any number of words that easily, because the capture of the 4875 peaks is a true inspiration for many soldiers. During the operation to re-capture the peak, Batra was unwell and suffering from high temperature and fatigue from the previous encounter at peak 5140.

Even in that deterred condition, he was ready to climb the peak as reinforcement for another battalion who is fighting on the peak. Looking at his condition his commanding officer didn’t have the heart to send him up but his grit and determination changed the course of the fight. Batra along with his team went up the peak in the dark to help the soldiers on the peak.

When a radio message was sent to the peak about the arrival of Sher Shah, the camp on the top felt relieved and the Pakistani troops intercepted the message and tried to threaten Batra to not come up.

After climbing peak 4875 Batra and his was able to destroy the enemies’ machine guns gain the advantage by holding the ledge on the peak. On 6-7 July the Indian army and the Pakistani intruders were engaged in high action fight with a lot of shelling, bombing, and close-range firing.

When everything was going right for Captain Vikram Batra and the Indian soldiers, even in the zero visible mountain range, there was one ledge on Peak 4875 which was still under the holding of the Pakistani troops. They started firing at the Indian soldiers and a sniper targeting them from a difficult-to-find location injured Batra’s fellow soldier. While trying to save his life and destroy the enemy stronghold he found no way from any direction other than the front.

Captain Vikram Batra courageously exposed himself to enemy fire to drag the injured soldier to safety, and in the process was shot in the chest by an enemy sniper from very close range, and a split-second later, by a splinter from an RPG which hit him in the head. Batra collapsed next to the injured soldier, succumbing to the fatal wounds.

The Indian military has many heroes who serve the nation without even thinking of their lives. Heroes are not made they are born that way. Captain Vikram Batra was born a hero who dreamed all his life to only serve the nation by joining the army. Even in the face of death, he didn’t think of his life instead he sacrificed his life for the nation and faced bullets to protect his fellow soldiers.

Even after 22 years of his death Captain Vikram Batra and his sacrifice is celebrated and remembered across the nation.

Source Vikram Batra – Wikipedia