AN ENCOMIUM ON MAJOR MARIAPPAN SARAVANAN

I know very well that, this post is an obsolete one. Better late than never! And it’s not too late. I consign this post to My Beloved Brother S.K.Shiva Subramani. It gives me an immense sense of pride, privilege and a plethora of hyper patriotism when I start typing this post and feeling really proud in dedicating it to a real hero for a change. This post shall be an accolade for the “Hero of Batalik” and for an officer in the most esteemed Bihar Regiment of the Indian Army, Major Saravanan.

               “Men Love their country not because it is great, but because it is their own” said Seneca, the roman philosopher. The above slogan was indeed outlived by Major Saravanan. The Name “Saravanan” is a customary common name as and when you come across men from Tamil Nadu before 29^th may 1999, until, the hero of this article, Major Captain Saravanan lost his precious life while combating and killing four Pakistani intruders in the Line of Control during the Kargil War.

                   He was possibly the first Indian martyr to have been killed in the Kargil war. Major Saravanan was born on 10^th August 1972 in the island of Rameshwaram in Tamil Nadu. It’s not that easy to decide about your future when you have kids of your age group around you telling that they want to become a cricketer, Software Engineer, An IAS, A doctor, a lawyer and what not? But Saravanan was an exceptional kid who showed deviance from the rest. Having been born to an Lt.Colonel it would have been inane if Saravanan had chosen something else as his career rather than joining the most prestigious Indian Army; it was no wonder that the Army Blood was innate in Saravanan.

                    Saravanan Graduated from St.Joseph’s college, Trichy. As a first step towards joining the Indian infantry he joined the NCC infantry unit in his college. From then there was no looking back, Saravanan made rapid strides in his Army career, he joined the first Bihar regiment as a lieutenant. His dedication and sincerity then made him grow by leaps and bounds. He was ranked captain and Major in the successive years. When you spell out the name “Major Saravanan (INDIAN ARMY)” aloud, it will bring you boundless joy and a spirit that could ignite your minds with some positive vibration.

                    “Forgiving Terrorists is left to God, but Fixing their Appointment with God

                       Is our responsibility “ - INDIAN ARMY

         

                            As the above Awe-Inspiring Quote goes, Major was assigned a new operation. He was supposed to move to Kargil from Assam that would never be an easy mutation for any normal human being even if you are in your pink of health. Adapting to the coldest weather of Kargil all of a sudden from a sultry hot Assam weather is neither a joke nor that easy that too at an altitude of 14500 feet. Saravanan never knew that May 28^th, 1999 was going to be his last day in this world. It all happened when Major was assigned the operation of capturing a Pakistani position at the above quoted altitude in the Batalik sector. 

                              He and his fellow army men planned an attack at around 4 am. The plan was perfectly executed when our Army men along with Major Saravanan shot a series of bullets at first, which was then followed by an intensive back firing from our most hated rivals. There were plenty of ammos scattered all around that area which failed and fumbled to pierce the Noblest Indian Army. The brawl got intense and so our Major had to use the Rocket launcher during the combat which would have easily weighed somewhere between 3 to 5 kg. He triggered the launcher which killed two of our foes, during the launch Major Saravanan got badly hit by the shrapnel. He was then acutely injured; he never gave up.

                          
                        Major made the motive crystal clear in his mind “DO IT FOR OUR MOTHER AND THEN DIE”, his perseverance to save our mother India made him continue the combat. Meanwhile the Pakistani soldiers charged a volley of bullets which injured many of our men. The Commanding officer ordered our Major to retreat and elude because too many Indian Army men had been injured.  Major Saravanan was code named “Genghis Khan” for this operation. “Genghis Khan Fall back” came the order, “Not Today sir, we are almost close to the enemy position and the objective” replied major. He then went on to kill two more Pakistani soldiers, but this time Major Saravanan got hit by a bullet straight in the head. Major cuddled and curled up slowly before he became a martyr and his name got carved in the history of Indian Army. His fortitude and patriotism will always be etched in our memories. A true warrior, for whom the artilleries were the only backbones, had bereaved us.  You might wonder what is so very special about this particular martyr while there are plenty of others as well; yes it was only because of him I got to understand the meaning of a martyr for the very first time in my life when I was just 9 years old. It was he who taught me “For our better tomorrows the Army men have been giving their todays”.  It costed him his precious life to receive the highest individual award “VEER CHAKRA” posthumously.

MY SMALL TRIBUTE TO BELOVED MAJOR:

  “Major Saravanan would have enjoyed sleeping in his mom’s lap just like you and I

    He would have enjoyed his mom’s food just like you and I

    He would have enjoyed his childhood and adolescence just like you and I

    He would have enjoyed being with his friends just like you and I

    He would have enjoyed Rajni and Kamal just like you and I                                       

    He would have enjoyed Rahman and Ilayaraja just like you and I

    He would have also enjoyed Sachin, Dravid and Ganguly just like you and I

    But in the end he died for a stranger: U and I

If ever there is something called rebirth or next birth in my life, I would desperately want  to join the Indian Army and serve my nation. I take a bow, Respect and Salute all the martyrs of India who sacrificed their most precious lives in the noble cause of protecting our Mother India. Proud to be an Indian forever.  Long Live the Indian Army!