Today marks the 20th anniversary of the battle of Tololing which was a crucial juncture in the Kargil War where the Indian soldiers fought against Pakistani forces to capture the Tololing Top.
Jawans of the Indian Armed forces fought Pakistan Army's Northern Light Infantry who were aided by Pakistan-backed irregulars to successfully recapture the peak after three weeks of bitter fighting.
"Tololing was turning point in Kargil war. After 3 weeks of bitter fighting Tololing Top was successfully recaptured. 18 Grenadiers had set the stage for assaults & 2 Rajputana Rifles achieved the victory against overwhelming odds," the Indian Army said on its Instagram handle.
The Indian Army's Twitter handle also paid a homage to the courageous soldiers who fought a bitter war for 3 weeks to recapture Tololing Top.
‘Operation Vijay’ 13 Jun 1999
Naik Digendra Kumar, 2 Rajputana Rifles during assault on Tololing feature in Drass Sector displayed conspicuous gallantry, courage & grit in the face of enemy & generated huge volley of firepower. Awarded #MahaVirChakra. https://t.co/obX4kQKnhA pic.twitter.com/nidpsbJGCe
— ADG PI - INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) June 13, 2019
‘Operation Vijay’ 13 Jun1999
Tololing was turning point in Kargil war. After 3 weeks of bitter fighting Tololing Top was successfully recaptured. 18 Grenadiers had set stage for assaults & 2 Rajputana Rifles achieved the victory against overwhelming odds.#20YearsToKargilVijay pic.twitter.com/FLomxhycdB
— ADG PI - INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) June 13, 2019
The Tololing, a dominant position overlooking Srinagar- Leh Highway (NH-1D), was so strategic that after it was conquered it was only a matter of six days for Indian troops to notch up a string of successes by evicting well-entrenched intruders in four nearby outposts.
Major General Mohinder Puri, who headed the 8 Mountain Division, recounted how after several failed attempts to capture the peak he had asked his men to attack again the next evening, but by the time he reached his headquarters, India had already conquered the strategic feature.
He said, Colonel MB Ravindranath, Commanding Officer of the 2 Rajputana Rifles, radioed him, camping some 20-km away and said in a terse message, "Sir, I'm on Tololing top." "After I was informed that we have not been able to capture Tololing, I just asked them to consolidate and in the evening I said, 'have a go.' By the time I reached the headquarters, I was told that we have captured Tololing.
Major General Mohinder Puri stated that the speed and spontaneity of the Indian Soldiers lead to their victory in the 1999 Kargil war.
Puri's Division was responsible for spearheading the Army's offensive in the Kargil sector which restored the sanctity of the Line of Control by capturing Tololing, Tiger Hill and Point 4875.
Gripping accounts of valour and fortitude from the battle front of the war between India and Pakistan were recollected in a book penned by Puri. The book titled Kargil: Turning the Tide, which was launched on December 29, 2016, is a first-hand narrative of the operations of 8 Mountain Division, which was tasked to evict the enemy from the Drass-Mushkoh Sector during 'Operation Vijay'.
(With PTI inputs)