Kargil Vijay Diwas: 25 years ago the father defeated Pakistan and now the son is taking over the command

India's most memorable war

The Kargil War was a memorable victory for India. This war was one of the toughest high-altitude wars in the world. The 8 Mountain Division played an important role in this war. The Indian Army, under the leadership of General VP Malik, drove away the Pakistani intruders. This victory is a symbol of the valor and courage of the Indian Army. Major General Sachin Malik has taken command of the 8 Mountain Division, which has further increased the pride of this division. Both father and son have had a deep bond with this division.

25th Anniversary

General VP Malik paid tribute to the soldiers martyred in the war on the 25th anniversary. On this occasion, he said, 'This is the 25th anniversary, which is a special occasion. I always come here to pay tribute to the officers and soldiers martyred in the war and to remember all the good work done by our army.' This time the occasion became even more special because Sachin was also present on this occasion. Sachin is commanding the same division where General Malik fought the war. General Malik said, 'This year it has become even more special because Sachin is here and he is commanding the same division where I fought the war, the same place where we fought the war.'

Commanding the 8th Mountain Division was a huge challenge

Major General Sachin Malik spoke about the challenges of commanding the 8 Mountain Division. The 8 Mountain Division operates in difficult conditions on the Line of Control. Major General Malik considers it a privilege and a great responsibility. He said, 'I consider it a privilege as well as a great responsibility.' Major General Malik has taken command of the 8 Mountain Division. This division has always been in operation since 1963, so it is called 'Forever in Operations'. On the 25th anniversary of the Kargil war, Major General Malik said that most of the soldiers of his division are deployed on the Line of Control. This is so that no incident like Kargil can happen again. He said that this is a huge responsibility. A lot of blood has been shed on these peaks. We will never let anyone do this again. We have to be always alert. We have to be prepared for any situation at any time. We have to ensure that this never happens again.

'A lot of blood has been shed on these peaks'

Major General Malik has described it as a great honour to command the 8 Mountain Division. He said, 'It is a great honour to command the 8 Mountain Division, which is called an 'always in operation' division – it has always been in operation since its inception (in 1963).' He further said, 'While we are celebrating the silver jubilee of the Kargil war, we have to remember that a large part of my division is deployed on the Line of Control to ensure that nothing like this happens again.' He described this responsibility as important. According to him, 'The first thing that comes to mind is a huge responsibility. A lot of blood has been shed on these peaks… and there is no way we can allow anyone to do this again. So we always have to be on full alert, we have to be prepared for everything and we have to ensure that nothing like this happens again.' In February, Major General Sachin Malik took over as the 42nd General Officer Commanding of the Mountain Division.

Pakistan had to bow down

The Kargil War was fought between May and July 1999. Infiltrators from Pakistan had occupied the Indian side of the LOC. The Indian Army and Air Force fought them valiantly and recaptured several strategic posts. This forced the infiltrators to retreat from the rest of the posts.