HYDERABAD: Bollarum's Army Public School was brimming with excitement over the release of captured Indian wing commander Abhinandan Varthaman by the Pakistan army on Friday. The senior students, four of whom are set to joining the National Defence Academy (NDA) by end of the year, are inspired and ready to emulate the fighter pilot’s calm demeanour while in captivity behind the enemy lines.
Some of these students come from what is called an ‘army background’, like the class 12 student Chaitanya Gupta, who have grown up listening to stories of army operations. “I could understand what the captured soldier’s family underwent in the last three days,” he said while adding that his personal worries were subdued looking at the confidence displayed by Abhinandan while speaking to the interrogators in the video circulated by Pakistan army.
“Children of defence personnel are a different breed. They grow up watching their parents sacrifice for the nation,” said Smitha Govind principal of APS, Bollarum, who is proud of having sent 13 of her students to the defence forces in the last four years.
As future members of the India’s defence troops, they also opined their views on what path should India tread with the ongoing border tensions. Another student, M Aravind of the same class is of the opinion that war brings no solution as it leads to destruction and losses on both sides.
“(If there is a war) it is not against Pakistan but against the terrorists who are sheltered in that country run by its Army. Pakistan’s political leadership should come out clean,” said M Aravind of the same class. “India has the advantage of support from world powers. The pressure on Pakistan to release our fighter pilot was immense,” he said. All of them vouched for peace in the region through diplomatic talks. “The problem is their government may come forward for talks but the real power to take decisions is with their army,” they said.