Saurabh Van Vihar on the outskirts of Palampur in Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh is a tribute to Kargil hero, Captain Saurabh Kalia, who was one of the first officers to report the 1999 incursion in Kargil in Jammu and Kashmir.

Nestled in the lap of the snow-clad Dhauladhar mountains, the unique memorial is not only a reminder of the sacrifice of the brave soldier, it offers nature and solitude.

Captain Kalia, along with five other soldiers of 4 Jat Regiment ~ Sepoys Arjun Ram, Bhanwar Lal Bagaria, Bhika Ram, Moola Ram and Naresh Singh ~ were taken hostage by Pakistani troops on 15 May 1999. They were subject to torture in captivity before their mutilated bodies were handed over to the Indian government on 9 June 1999. Captain Kalia was newly commissioned into the Indian Army and was just 22 then.

A pall of gloom over the sacrifice and the injustice meted out to the young soldier had engulfed his home town Palampur as his coffin reached the Mission ground so that people could have a last glimpse of the hero. His memorial was announced by the senior BJP leader from Palampur and then Union minister Shanta Kumar.

Spread on a sprawling 13 hectares of land, the green ‘memorial’ to the Kargil hero came up with the patronage of the state forest department and Shanta Kumar, Lok Sabha MP from Kangra, continuously mobilising funds and providing huge amounts of money from his MP LAD fund to establish it.

The area is managed by Saurabh Van Vihar Management Society (Palampur) that works under the control of Divisional Forest Officer (DFO), Palampur. The entry gate of Van Vihar signifies the battle and bravery, with statues of two horse riders on either side.

A walk inside takes one back to the memories of the Kargil war. It houses Captain Kalia’s statue on the platform of a big boulder and that of Indian soldiers in action in the Kargil war taking on the Pakistan soldiers.

Son of noted artist Nek Chand, who gave shape to the famous Rock garden of Chandigarh, Anuj Saini has created 64 statues in the Van Vihar with much perfection. These include 27 of Indian soldiers and 16 Pakistani soldiers.

The flowing waters inside, the stony paths, the varied flora and a small lake, where one can go boating, everything lends serenity and seriousness to the environs. To make it more meaningful, the discharge of the lake water is turned into a Kuhl (water channel) for irrigation purposes.

There is one Meen Vatika (aquarium) too with 24 aquariums, having 32 species of fishes.

The Van Vihar is connected with small pavements, with systematic plantation of Deodar trees aside.

“We intend to expand the Van Vihar and will add several activities to it, including children’s park, botanical garden and flower garden. The Government of India (Tourism ministry) had recently sanctioned Rs 3 crore for its expansion, out of which Rs 1 crore has been released,” DFO, Palampur, BS Yadav told The Statesman.

Still being developed, the memorial of Kargil hero has gradually become a ‘must visit spot’ for the locals and tourists alike, who come to Palampur town, attracted by its natural beauty, greens and the mountains.

As many as 527 soldiers from the country laid down their lives to liberate the Indian territories occupied by Pakistani forces during the 64-day long Kargil war in 1999. Out of these, 52 martyrs were from HP.

Two soldiers from the state, Captain Vikram Batra of Palampur (posthumously) and Rifle Man Sanjay Kumar of Bilaspur were awarded with Param Vir Chakra, the highest gallantry award of Indian army.