Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday said that the small hilly State has always been the leader in making sacrifices for the sake of the country.
The Chief Minister was presiding over the Vijay Divas function held at Annadale here to mark the golden jubilee celebration of the 1971 Indo-Pak war.
Thakur said that it was a day of glory for us and it is also a day to remember the sacrifices made by our great sons of the soil for the cause of the nation.
It was on this day India won on December 16, 1971 after a 13-day long battle with Pakistan. Over 93 thousand soldiers of Pakistan surrendered before Commander of Indian Army Lt. General Jagjit Singh Arora by accepting defeat.
The brave soldiers of Himachal Pradesh also created a history of valour in this war, he said.
He further said that the brave soldiers of Himachal Pradesh have shown indomitable courage in every war and have not even shied away from making supreme sacrifice while protecting the frontiers of the nation.
Himachal Pradesh has the honour of being called 'Devbhoomi'.
It was also known as 'Veer Bhoomi' as lakhs of soldiers were serving the Indian Army. In the Kargil war, out of the total 527 martyrs, 52 were from Himachal Pradesh and two 'Paramveer Chakra' were won by Himachali soldiers. It is a matter of pride for us that the brave soldiers of the state had received 1096 gallantry awards so far, he added.
The Chief Minister said that the State Government is committed for the welfare of its brave soldiers and many schemes were being implemented for the welfare of ex-servicemen.
He said that all the dependents of 52 martyrs were given an amount of Rs 5 lakhs and employment has been provided to the dependents of 48 families out of these families. An ex-gratia grant amount of Rs 20 lakh was being provided to the next of kin of the soldiers and paramilitary forces who laid down their lives during the war and Rs 5 lakh to the soldiers belonging to defence and paramilitary forces who have over 50 per cent physical disabilities during war and military operations.
Not only this, a provision has also been made by the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas to provide petrol pumps and gas agencies for the dependents of the soldiers killed in various military operations, he added.
Thakur said that the State government had also released an amount of Rs 45.63 lakh to ARTRAC Shimla for opening CSD Extension Centre at Sundernagar in district Mandi and Jhanduta in district Bilaspur.
On the occasion, the Chief Minister, Sainik Welfare Minister and General Officer Commanding in Chief Army Training Command unveiled the statue of Major Sandeep Shankla, Ashok Chakra (Posthumously) and Photo Mosaic of First Army Test Pilot Late Major Pradeep Agarwal.