Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur on Wednesday said the hill state is small in terms of population but the youths of the state have always been at the forefront in giving sacrifices for the sake of the country.

Addressing the Vijay Divas function at Annadale Ground in Shimla to mark the golden jubilee celebration of the 1971 Indo-Pak war, Thakur said it was a day of glory for us and it was also a day to remember sacrifices made by our brave sons for the nation.

“It was on this day India won on 16 December 1971 after a 13-day long battle with Pakistan wherein over 93,000 Pakistani soldiers surrendered before Commander of Indian Army Lt General Jagjit Singh Arora by accepting defeat.

The brave soldiers of Himachal also created a history of valour in this war,” he added.

The Chief Minister the brave soldiers of Himachal had shown indomitable courage in every war and had not even shied away from making supreme sacrifice while protecting the borders of the country.

Himachal had the honour of being called ‘Devbhoomi’ but the state was also known as ‘Veer Bhoomi’ as lakhs of soldiers were serving the Indian Army.

In the Kargil war out of the total 527 martyrs, 52 were from Himachal and two ‘Paramveer Chakra’ were conferred on Himachali soldiers.

It is a matter of pride for us that the brave soldiers of the state had received 1096 gallantry awards so far, he added.

He further stated that the state government was committed for the welfare of its brave soldiers and many schemes were being implemented for the welfare of ex-servicemen.

“All the dependents of 52 martyrs were given an amount of Rs 5 lakhs and employment has been provided to the dependent of 48 families out of these families.

Besides, ex-gratia grant amount of Rs 20 lakh was being provided to the next of kin of the soldiers and paramilitary forces who laid down their lives during the war and Rs 5 lakh to the soldiers belonging to Defence and paramilitary forces who had suffered over 50 percent physical disabilities during war and military operations,” he added.

Thakur added that not only this, a provision has also been made by the Union Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas to provide petrol pumps and gas agencies for the dependents of the soldiers killed in various military operations.