Ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s plan to attend the 25th anniversary of Kargil Vijay Diwas in in Ladakh on July 26, the Maharashtra government is seeking an approval of its proposal to fund a ‘laser sound-&-light show’ at the iconic Kargil War Memorial (KWM) in Drass town in Kargil district.

In the run-up to the silver jubilee celebrations of Kargil Vijay Diwas Maharashtra chief minister Eknath Shinde has written a letter to Indian Army Lt. Gen. Hitesh Bhalla, expressing his government’s desire to fully fund the new attraction there, estimated to cost around Rs. 3 crore.In his letter dated July 9, 2024, Shinde said that his government was  committed to the promise it had made in October 2023 to the then Lt. Gen. Rashim Bali that it would support the “laser sound-&-light show’ the KWM.

However, in October 2023, the proposal had run into procedural hassles, resulting in the delay in the completion of the KWM “laser sound-&-light show’ project.

Having cleared the funding for the project, the Eknath Shinde dispensation is awaiting a go-ahead from the BJP-led NDA government. Once it gets final clearance from the Centre as per the Indian Army recommendation, the MahaYuti government will hand a cheque for Rs 3 crore to the KWM authorities.

Pune NGO Sarhad Founder-President Sanjay Nahar, who is pushing the KWM “laser sound-&-light show’ project,  expressed  confidence the Maharashtra government would make the project a reality in the 25th year of the Kargil War” .

The world-class ‘laser sound-&-light’ show will be an indoor affair with a capacity of 500 getting limpses of the valor plus determination of the Indian soldiers who defended the region against Pakistan’s insurgence, between May and July 1999.

“The show will cover the examples of bravery and shining moments of our jawans as they re-captured from enemy control the strategic areas like Mushkoh Valley, Kaksar, Chorbat, Turtuk, plus the Tiger Hill, Tololing, Batra Top and other unnamed mountains plus the highways, during the two-month long ‘Operation Vijay’, as it was code-named,” Nahar said.Shinde has said that he would visit the KWM laser sound-&-light show once it becomes  operational. 

On its part, the Maharashtra government had earlier given Rs 3 crore for the Trishul War Memorial in Leh and the proposed laser sound-&-light show will be the second major contribution by the state.