Kargil Vijay Diwas 2020: Kargil Day is observed in India to celebrate the sacrifices made by soldiers of the Army during the 1999 Kargil war. The war was fought by India and Pakistan in the Kargil sector of Jammu and Kashmir, and was named as ‘Operation Vijay’. It was on July 26, 1999, the Indian Army had declared successful culmination of ‘Operation Vijay’, declaring a victory after nearly three-month-long battles on the icy heights of Kargil
Indian Army had recaptured the peaks occupied by the Pakistan Army and hoisted the tricolour atop the high-altitude Kargil. As we celebrate the 21st anniversary of the Kargil war today, let’s take a moment to learn about this historical event:
After the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971, the two sides rarely engaged in direct armed conflicts even though both the countries have consistently tried their best to control the Siachen Glacier by setting up military outposts on nearby mountain ridges. This had resulted in military scuffles in the ’80s which escalated in the ’90s. The nuclear tests that were conducted both by India and Pakistan in 1998 only made it worse. But just when everything seemed to be lost, both the countries signed the Lahore Declaration in February of ’99 to provide peaceful solutions for the Kashmir conflict.
But, by some accounts, in the same year elements of the Pakistani armed forces were secretly training their troops to enter the Indian side of the Line of Control (or LoC). Their aim was to sever the link between Ladakh and Kashmir and also to force the Indian Armed Forces to withdraw from the Siachen Glacier.
Initially, the Indian armed forces had very little idea about the nature of this infiltration. Assuming they were jihadis, Indian armed forces expected to evict them in just a couple of days. However, it was only later that they realized that the whole plan of attack from Pakistan was much bigger and they spotted infiltration also along the LOC.
The war
The Pakistani soldiers had positioned themselves at higher altitudes, which gave them an advantage over their Indian counterparts as they could easily shoot down on them. As a result, two Indian fighter jets were shot by Pakistan, while one more was crashed during the operation. Pakistan had asked the US to intervene in the war. To which, the then US President Bill Clinton said that Pakistan will need to withdraw from the Line of Control if it wanted the US intervention. As Pakistan worked on withdrawing its troops, the Indian armed forces attacked the rest of the outposts. By July 26, the Indian Army had managed to conquer back the last of them.
Casualties
A total number of 527 soldiers of the Indian Armed forces lost their lives during this war. Pakistan had lost 700 men.
After the war
Initially, Pakistan denied its role in the conflict. It backed its stand by saying that India was having a face-off with “Kashmiri freedom fighters”. Later, the country awarded medals to its soldiers for the conflict. This made clear their involvement in the Kargil conflict.
Coming to India, after the Army declared the mission successful on July 26, the day is now celebrated annually as Kargil Vijay Diwas. The war also prompted the country to increase its defence spending in the upcoming budget year.
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