The safety, honour and welfare of your country comes first, always and every time. The honour, welfare and comfort of the men you command come next. Your own ease, comfort and safety come last, always and every time.” Etched and gilded on dark hardwood in Chetwood Hall at the Indian Military Academy, these words inspire and remind all officers and the men they command of their aims and very purpose of their life as a soldier. Most make it their motto in life, and some even willingly sacrifice or risk their lives every day of their service.
I am a war-wounded and decorated soldier who has had his men die in his arms, but the 1971 war is history, and I would rather talk of the present so that my fellow countrymen are assured that their safety, honour and welfare is safe in the hands of the present generation of soldiers, sailors and airmen.
Lieutenant DPK Pillai was a platoon commander when his unit received information of a clash between tribal groups in a remote area of Manipur. This was in 1994, when internecine tribal warfare was at its height and the Army was inducted to restore peace and normalcy. Marching overnight through thick jungle and pouring rain, Pillai and his platoon surprised the militants in their hideout in Tamenglong village. After a three-hour firefight, several militants were dead, and he received near-mortal wounds—a bullet through the chest, three in the arm and grenade splinter in his foot.
In the ensuing hand-to-hand fight, he received a blow on the back from a rifle butt, which cracked his spine. As he was lapsing into unconsciousness, he was told that a boy and a girl had been wounded in the crossfire. An IAF helicopter landed, but Pillai insisted that the children be evacuated. After refusing initially, the pilot took the children and Pillai lost conscience. When he came to, he was on a hospital operating table surrounded by doctors and nurses. After dropping the children at the hospital, the pilot returned to evacuate him.
Years later, Pillai was posted in Delhi in Army Headquarters, and got an opportunity to visit Manipur. He decided to visit Tamenglong. The villagers gave him a hero’s welcome; after Pillai’s willingness to sacrifice himself for the sake of their children, their attitude towards the Army was of love and friendship. But he was saddened that the village was backward. The girl who had been shot was married and had a child, and the boy was working outside Manipur.
Pillai took up the task of bringing development to the village, water supply, education, health and employment opportunities. The Army and other agencies pitched in, but the work was handicapped due to the remoteness of the village. By chance he met Mr Nitin Gadkari, Minister for Surface Transport, and narrated to him the plight of Tamenglong. Today, Tamenglong is linked to the rest of the country by a national highway.
Pillai belongs to 4th Battalion of the Brigade Of Guards (1 Rajput), in which I also served and fought a war long ago. Pillai was awarded a Shaurya Chakra for his action.
Major (retd) Chandrakant Singh
1971 war veteran