NEW DELHI: The Indian army has built a memorial for the 20 staff members who died while fighting valiantly against Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh on June 15, official sources said on Saturday.
The monument, located at position 120 in eastern Ladakh and inaugurated earlier this week, mentions the heroism of the ‘Galwan gallants’ under Operation ‘Snow Leopard’ and the way they dislodged army troops from liberation of the Chinese people (PLA) from the area while inflicting “heavy casualties” on them in “hand-to-hand combat”.
China has not yet disclosed the number of soldiers killed and wounded in the clash, although it officially admitted to having suffered casualties. According to a US intelligence report, the death toll on the Chinese side was 35.
Post 120 is located along the Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) road. The names of the 20 Indian army personnel were inscribed on the monument at the unit level.
Colonel B Santosh Babu, the commander of the 16 Bihar Regiment, was among the Indian army personnel killed in the confrontation that had significantly increased border tension between the two countries with India and called it “a premeditated and planned action by China.”
Chinese soldiers used stones, nail sticks, iron bars and clubs to carry out brutal attacks on Indian soldiers after they protested the construction of a guard post by China around patrol point 14 in the valley. of Galwan.
In giving a brief account of Operation “Snow Leopard”, the Army mentioned on a plaque on the monument that Colonel Babu led the “Rapid Reaction Force” of 16 Bihar Regiment and adjunct troops charged with evicting a group of Chinese troops from the general area at ‘Y nala’ (a junction) and preventing them from advancing towards Patrol Point 14.
“The column successfully dislodged the PLA OP from Y Nala and reached PP14, where a fierce skirmish broke out between the IA (Indian Army) and the PLA troops. Colonel B Santosh Babu led from the front and his troops fought bravely hand-to-hand combat, causing heavy casualties to the PLA. In the ensuing fighting twenty ‘Gallants of Galwan’ achieved martyrdom, “wrote the Army.
The list of 20 staff members at the monument included three naib subedars, three havildars, and 12 sepoys.
The Defense Ministry has also started the process to inscribe the names of Colonel Babu and other soldiers in the National War Memorial in Delhi.
During a visit to the Lukung outpost in eastern Ladakh on July 17, the Defense Minister Rajnath singh He personally conveyed his thanks and compliments to the troops of the Bihar regiment for showing exemplary courage and determination in the fight against Chinese troops.
In his speech to the soldiers, the defense minister said that the Indian soldiers killed in Galwan Valley Choque not only showed exemplary courage in protecting the border, but also protected the pride of 130 crore Indians.
Army Chief General MM Naravane has already awarded ‘Commendation Cards’ to five soldiers in the unit for their bravery in dealing with Chinese troops during the fighting in the Galwan Valley, as well as for facing them in Pangong Tso In May.
India and China are locked in a bitter five-month-long border standoff in eastern Ladakh that has significantly strained bilateral ties.
Both sides held a series of diplomatic and military talks to resolve the dispute. However, no progress has been made to end the confrontation.
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