President Pranab Mukherjee hosted a tea party for veterans of the 1965 war at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in the national Capital on Tuesday.
The President also felicitated four veterans of the war – Marshal of the Air Force Arjan Singh, DFC; CQMH Abdul Hamid, PVC (Posthumous); Lt Col AB Tarapore, PVC (Posthumous) and Chaman Lal, Ashoka Chakra (Posthumous). Rasoonan Bibi, Zarine Mahir and Asha Rani received the honour in behalf of Late CQMH Abdul Hamid, Late Lt Col AB Tarapore and Late Chaman Lal, respectively.
Arjan Singh was the chief of the Air Staff in 1965. As a squadron leader, he had led the squadron against the Japanese during the Arakan Campaign in 1944, for which he received the Distinguished Flying Cross the same year. Arjan Singh was awarded Padma Vishushan for his leadership of the Air Force. In recognition of his services, the Government of India also conferred on him the rank of the Marshal of the Air Force in January 2002, making him the first and the only ‘Five Star’ rank officer in the Indian Air Force.
Lt Col Ardeshir <g data-gr-id="26">Burzorji</g> Tarapore, commandant, Poona Horse, fought tank battle for six days in September 1965 at Phillora Jassoran and <g data-gr-id="27">Butur</g>-Dograndi. On September 16, 1965, he was wounded and breathed his last on the battlefield. His courage and determination earned him the Param Vir Chakra, posthumously.
Company Quarter Master Havildar Abdul Hamid of the 4th Battalion, the Grenadiers, was in command of a detachment equipped with the 106mm recoilless <g data-gr-id="28">anti tank</g> gun when Pakistani guns opened fire on the Khem Karan area in Punjab on September 10, 1965. He was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, posthumously.
Chaman Lal was posted with the Northern Railways during the war. His exemplary courage, foresight and self-sacrifice earned him the ‘Ashoka Chakra’, posthumously.