Kargil Vijay Diwas | 26 Jul 2022

Why in News?

The 23^rd anniversary of Kargil Vijay Diwas is being observed on the 26^th of July 2022.

• The day is dedicated to the martyred soldiers of the Kargil war.

What do we know about the Kargil War?

• About:
  • After the Indo-Pak war of 1971, there had been many military conflicts.
    • Both the countries conducted nuclear tests in 1998 which further escalated tensions and finally the Kargil War in 1999.
  • Kargil War, also known as the Kargil conflict, was fought between May-July of 1999 in the Kargil (now a district in the UT of Ladakh) district of Jammu and Kashmir along the Line of Control (LoC) in which India got the victory.
• Operation Vijay:
  • In the year 1999, India and Pakistan signed the Lahore Agreement to mutually resolve the Kashmir issue in a peaceful manner.
  • However, the Pakistani troops began infiltrating toward the Indian side of the Line of Control (LoC) under Operation Badr, hoping to cut off Indian Troops in Siachen.
    • The Indian Army responded by launching Operation Vijay.
  • On 3^rd May 1999, Pakistan started this war when it had infiltrated into the high altitudes in the rocky mountainous region of Kargil with around 5,000 soldiers and captured it.
  • When the Indian Government got the information about it, ‘Operation Vijay’ was launched by the Indian army to throw back the intruders who had treacherously occupied Indian Territory.

What is the National War Memorial?

• Inaugurated in 2019, it is around 400 meters from India Gate.
• The layout of the structure comprises four concentric circles, named:
  • the "Amar Chakra" or Circle of Immortality.
  • the "Veerta Chakra" or Circle of Bravery.
  • the "Tyag Chakra" or Circle of Sacrifice.
  • the "Rakshak Chakra" or Circle of Protection.
• The proposal for a National War Memorial was first made in the 1960s.
• The memorial is dedicated to soldiers who laid down their lives defending the nation during:
  • Sino-Indian war in 1962
  • Indo-Pak wars in 1947, 1965 and 1971
  • Indian Peace Keeping Force Operations in Sri Lanka 1987-90
  • Kargil Conflict in 1999.
• The National War Memorial also commemorates the soldiers who participated and made supreme sacrifices in United Nations peace-keeping missions, Humanitarian Assistance Disaster Relief (HADR) operations, counterinsurgency operations and Low-Intensity Conflict Operations (LICO).

Source: TH