20 years later, Kargil braveheart gets hero’s welcome

BENGALURU: Twenty years after he was grievously wounded during the successful campaign to regain Tiger Hills, Captain (retd) Naveen Nagappa was given a hero’s welcome by his friends, family members and several soldiers’ relatives at Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) on Tuesday night.
The warm gesture just about made up for the lacklustre reception he got when he returned to Bengaluru first time after the Kargil War ended. He had to undergo eight major surgeries over 21 months and was declared medically unfit due to long-lasting injuries.
Naveen recalled that only his brother and friends had come to pick him up at the airport then. On Tuesday, however, his wife Sowmya Naveen managed to get all friends together to welcome the war hero, who was returning after taking part in a commemorative trek in honour of the martyrs of the battle of Tiger Hills against Pakistan.
Upon his arrival at 10pm, Naveen was about to book a cab to return home, when 60 members greeted him. Displaying placards proclaiming ‘Welcome Kargil Hero’ and eulogising his valour in defying death, they thanked him for serving the nation.
“I was taken aback when I saw the gathering. Every soldier needs this welcome. When your people recognise the service to the nation, it makes you immensely proud. Father of Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan and parents of Major Akshay Girish were there to greet me. It was an emotional moment,” said Naveen.
On July 7, 1999, Naveen had sustained injuries in his legs when a grenade was hurled at him by the enemies. Currently he is working as superintendent engineer at an Army base camp in Bengaluru.
Commemorative trek
As part of the commemorative trek organised by the Indian Army to celebrate the 20th anniversary of Operation Vijay, Naveen visited Point 4785, where he had sustained injuries and Captain Vikram Batra was martyred. “It was Captain Vikram Batra who saved my life when a hand grenade fell in the bunker where I was sitting. He held my hand and dragged me out of the bunker, which is why I’m alive today,” he recalled.
The same day, Vikram Batra was martyred during a frontline assault on the enemy. “When I visited those places, my emotions were running high. It was a memorable victory, but many of them who were with me laid down their lives in what was a supreme sacrifice for the nation. Vikram’s twin Vishal Batra was also there with us,” he added.