Kargil Vijay Diwas or Kargil Victory Day is annually observed across India on 26 July to mark the victory of the Indian Army over Pakistan in the Kargil War of 1999. The Day also pays tribute to the bravery and sacrifice of the Indian Armed Forces during the Kargil War.
26th July 2024 marks the 25th anniversary of the Kargil Vijay Diwas.
- During the Kargil War, the Indian Army carried out an offensive armed action named Operation VIJAY to evict Pakistani intruders from the Indian territory.
Background:
i.The Kargil War began in May 1999, when approximately 1,500 Pakistani soldiers penetrated the Line of Control (LOC) into the Indian territory in Kargil, Jammu and Kashmir (now in the Union Territory (UT) of Ladakh).
- The aim was to cut the link between Kashmir and Ladakh to isolate Indian Army troops on the Siachen Glacier and force India to negotiate a settlement of the Kashmir dispute.
ii.The penetration was a violation of the Shimla Agreement, signed in 1972 between India and Pakistan. The intrusions were first reported on 3 May 1999.
iii.On 26 May 1999, the first air-to-ground strike was launched by the Indian Airforce (IAF), as a part of Operation Safed Sagar.
iv.It was followed by Operation Vijay, by the Indian Army, and after over 60 days of violent confrontation, the war came to an end on 26 July 1999.
- The Indian Army officially declared Operation Vijay a success. India assumed its control of all territory established in the 1972 Shimla Agreement.
Operation Vijay:
i.Operation Vijay, India’s 4th war with Pakistan, was a military and diplomatic victory of Indian soldiers.
ii.The operation includes the recapturing of the Tololing complex and a 5062-meter-high Tiger Hill.
iii.During the operations, 674 Indian soldiers made supreme sacrifice and were awarded 4 Param Vir Chakra, 10 Maha Vir Chakra, and 70 Vir Chakra among others for gallantry.
2024 Events:
On the 25th Kargil Vijay Diwas, Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi, and President Droupadi Murmu, paid tributes to soldiers who sacrificed their lives during the Kargil War at the Kargil War Memorial in Drass, Kargil, Ladakh.
- Union Minister Rajnath Singh, Ministry of Defence (MoD) offered his tributes to the soldiers at the National War Memorial (NWM), in New Delhi, Delhi.
Key People:
Brig (Dr) B D Sharma, Lieutenant Governor of Ladakh, Sanjay Seth, Minister of State (MoS), MoD; Upendra Dwivedi, Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Indian Army(IA); Air Chief Marshal V.R. Chaudhari, Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Indian Air Force (IAF); Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi, Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Indian Navy(IN); General Anil Chauhan, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) were also present at the event.
Event Highlights:
i.The PM virtually witnessed the first blast of the Shinkun La Tunnel Project in Ladakh. Project Yojak has been set up by the government to execute this ambitious project.
- The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) constructing Shinkun La Tunnel at around 15,800 feet. Once completed, this tunnel will become the world’s highest tunnel bypassing Mila Tunnel in China at 15,590 ft.
ii.The project includes a 4.1 kilometer (km) long Twin-Tube tunnel to be built on the Nimu – Padum – Darcha Road for all-weather connectivity to Leh.
iii. The tunnel will ensure swift and efficient movement of the armed forces and equipment and increase economic and social development in Ladakh.
Note: The PM addressed the Shraddhanjali Samaroh and visited Amar Sansmaran and Veer Bhoomi during the 25th Kargil Vijay Diwas in Ladakh.
