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Col Dilbag Dabas (Retd)
Kheri Aasra village in Jhajjar district has been following Arya Samaj traditions since the late nineteenth century and is commonly referred to as ‘Arya Samaji Gaon’. But it is not just that, the village has also produced some great military warriors; Lieutenant Ravinder Chhikara, Kirti Chakra winner, is one of the bravest of the braves from this village where almost every household has at least a male member, mostly in the Army, serving the motherland.
Ravinder, son of Dr Ratan Singh, was born on August 6, 1976. After primary education from Kheri Aasra village school, he joined Sports School at Rai in Sonepat. Good in academics as well as in sports, he could excel in any profession, including medical (which his doctor father desired). He has been keenly listening to the stories of valour of Indian Army soldiers from his three Taujis, representing the three pillars of the Army — the cavalry, artillery and the toughest infantry — and decided to opt for the toughest one. During the NDA as well as IMA days, he was adjudged the best sportsman.
On December12, 1998, he was commissioned into 6th Grenadiers Battalion, wherein he could serve gallantly only for one year, seven months and three days. He laid down his life fighting militants in Kashmir and was awarded the coveted Kirti Chakra for his bravery and sacrifice. The battle account of his fierce encounter with militants is recorded in War Diary of 6th Grenadiers.
Kamla Devi, mother of Lt Ravinder Chhikara, recalls while seeing him off after his short leave, she told him, “Beta apna khyal rakhiye”. He smiled and quipped, “Maa tu gadadi (she jackal) mut bun, tannai Sher jam rakhya sa”. She said, “Beta ladai ka mamla sa”. And his last immortal words were, “Maa, ladai me yodha jate hain, gadad (jackal) nahi jate”. And he lived up to his words. “My Ravi was truly a ‘Sher’ and ‘yodha’ at that. His mortal remains showed six bullet wounds, all on the chest”.
The battle account in war Diary of 6 Grenadiers reads...
On July 19, 2000, at 8.15 am, during a joint operation with 16th Sikh Battalion, the Ghatak Platoon under Lt Ravinder Chhikara was launched for a search and destroy mission in Kakora village in Rajouri district. While the platoon was approaching a suspected house in which dreaded militants of Harkat-Ul-Jehad Islami (HUJI) were holed up, it came under heavy automatic and rocket fire. Regardless of personal safety, Lieutenant Chhikara and his men pressed on with retaliatory fire in order to drive out the hidden militants. During the ensuing gunfight, Lieutenant Chhikara, making skillful use of ground and under cover of light machine gun fire, crawled up to the window of the suspected house and with lightning speed leaped up and fired a volley of bullets from his AK-47 rifle and killed a terrorist, who was about to fire a rocket launcher. Seeing their comrade in a pool of blood, two terrorists hiding inside, ran uphill along the nullah in an escape bid not realising that close on heals and on a hot pursuit was Lieutenant Chhikara and his men. Realising the gravity of the situation, the terrorists suddenly jumped behind a boulder and opened heavy volume of fire on the pursuit party. Unmindful of the grave danger, in the true tradition of the Grenadiers, Lieutenant Chhikara also jumped behind another boulder and shot dead another terrorist at close range. Other terrorists fired back and took advantageous position behind the boulders. Lieutenant Chhikara chased the terrorists and killed one more but was shot in the chest by a fleeing terrorist. Despite bleeding profusely, he pounced upon and killed the fourth one in hand-to-hand fight. While he was attempting to assault the fifth terrorist, he was shot again on the chest and the brave-heart died instantly. Inspired by the exemplary courage and leadership of their young leader, the pinned down troops charged and killed three more terrorists, thus resulting in total seven kills and recovery of a huge quantity of foreign-made arms and ammunition. Lieutenant Ravinder Chhikara, in this encounter, displayed conspicuous bravery and dedication beyond the call of duty and made the supreme sacrifice with total disregard to his personal safety.
(The writer is a veteran Gunner, 6 Field Regiment)
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