Free The Brave: Param Vir Chakra Stories by Rachna Bisht Rawat Page B

been employed by India to counter the Chinese, who had been establishing posts in Ladakh. Since the men of D Company had to be split among a number of posts, only about 28 soldiers were placed at Sirijap 1. A Chinese attack wasn’t really expected there and the Major, who had gone to Ladakh leaving his pregnant wife behind in Dehradun, had even been granted one week’s leave to go home and the officer sent to relieve him had reached Leh. But despite getting permission to proceed on leave, Thapa had insisted upon waiting for his replacement to take over Sirijap since he did not want to leave his company headless.
    On 19 October, Maj Thapa was surprised to find hectic activity on the enemy side and build-up of the Chinese forces on the posts. Suspecting a possible attack, Maj Thapa and his men began preparing their defence. The ground was hard and frozen and it was very difficult to dig in so they piled up sandbags to reinforce their bunkers.
    The men waited anxiously that entire night. There were just 28 of them! But Maj Thapa inspired them with his words of courage. ‘Don’t forget that one Gorkha is equal to 10 others,’ he told them with quiet confidence.
    ‘We did not panic in any way, neither were we afraid of anything except the biting cold outside the trenches, where freezing winds would blow during our patrols at night, ‘ Subedar Major Tulsi Ram Thapa, a survivor, will tell Poonam (Maj Thapa’s youngest daughter) many years later when she is researching for a biography on her father). ‘We had enough clothing. Each of us was issued three pairs of woollen socks, woollen undergarments, trousers, goggles, jackets, sleeping bags, camouflage raincoats, etc., and physically we were quite comfortable. Some of us had even received letters from home. ‘
    That dark night passed without any untoward incident and slowly the soldiers who were not on duty closed their eyes for some rest. At 6 a. m. on 20 October, there was a blast and Sirijap 1 shook under heavy artillery fire. Bombs exploded and the air rang with the deadly hiss of shells and screams of those hit, followed by the boom of heavy mortars. The explosions destroyed the bunkers the Gorkhas had constructed and caused devastation amongst their small force. Many soldiers were killed in their trenches, many more wounded. Very soon the radio network was also disrupted, cutting the company off completely from the rest of the battalion.
    Signal officer Maj Ved Vyas will later remember the last message received from Maj Thapa. ‘Neither will I withdraw, nor will I surrender, ‘ he had said.
    The observation post at Tokung, a ferry point for boats that were used for the maintenance of posts in the Pangong Tso area, was the only place from where soldiers could witness the battle of Sirijap. The soldiers say the shelling went on for more than two hours and Sirijap looked like it had been set on fire.
    While the shelling was on, the Chinese Army managed to get close to the company position. No sooner had the shelling stopped than they attacked in a strength of more than 500. The Gorkhas put up a very brave fight. Most of them were in their early 20s with just a few years of service. Their LMGs and .303s were no match for the sophisticated arms and ammunition with the enemy, but they still managed to create havoc in the Chinese army. Small and slim in stature, they did not lack in courage. Led by their company commander, who was himself just 33 years old, they fixed the enemy soldiers in their gun-sights and shot them down the moment they came close.
    The sheer numbers of the Chinese, however, were overwhelming. Every time they repulsed an advance the enemy would attack in even larger numbers. Naik Krishna Bahadur Thapa, in charge of one section, was hit by a splinter that severed his leg. In spite of his grievous wound, he picked up the LMG of a dead comrade and continued to fire at the advancing enemy till he was hit by another volley of bullets and dropped dead.
    The