Ladakh: Recently, in the Galwan attack over 20 Indian soldiers succumbed to death. A memorial has been built to commemorate the lives of these 20 Indian soldiers who matured during a bloody skirmish with the Chinese Army in eastern Ladakh’s Galwan Valley. The memorial has the names of 20 soldiers and the details of the June 15 operation.
The prime location of the memorial is at the unit level near the KM-120 post on the strategic road Durbuk-Shyok-Daulat Beg Oldie, Ladakh. It has been built to honor the courage and bravery of the martyrs. These bravehearts had fought off China’s PLA and evicted them from an observation post near the Y-junction area under Operation Snow Leopard.
The memorial wall reads: “On June 15, 2020 at Galwan Valley, Col B Santosh Babu Commanding Officer, 16 Bihar led the Quick Reaction Force of 16 Bihar and attached troops tasked to evict the PLA OP from Gen AY Nala and move further to Patrolling Point 14. The column successfully evicted the PLA OP from Y Nala and reached PP 14 where a fierce skirmish broke out between the IA and PLA troops. Col B Santosh Babu led from the front and his troops fought gallantly in hand-to-hand combat, causing heavy casualties to the PLA. In the ensuing fight twenty “Gallants of Galwan” achieved martyrdom, “it says.
Galwan attacks took place on 15/16 June 2020 between Chinese forces and Indian troops. Chinese objected to Indian road construction in the Galwan River valley. According to Indian sources, the battle resulted in the deaths of 20 Indian soldiers and casualties of 43 Chinese soldiers. Media reports stated that soldiers were taken captive on both sides and released in the coming few days. The deadly conflict lasted for seven-hour involved three staggered clashes and saw the Indian soldiers put up a fierce fight against Chinese troops. The clash involved 600 soldiers from both sides, with the Indians badly outnumbered.