Maj Gen Akash Kaushik, Chief of Staff at 14 Corps, pays tribute to Galwan martyrs in Leh.

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, June 15

The Army on Tuesday remembered the bravehearts of the Galwan clash with China on June 15 last year, saying their sacrifice and valour would remain etched in memory of the nation.

Twenty Indian soldiers had died in a bloody clash in eastern Ladakh. In February, China officially acknowledged that its five military officers and soldiers were killed in the clash with the Indian Army though it is widely believed that the death toll was much higher.

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The Indian Army tweeted: “General MM Naravane and all ranks of Indian Army pay homage to the bravehearts who made supreme sacrifice in Galwan Valley, Ladakh, while defending the territorial integrity and sovereignty of the country. Their valour will be eternally etched in memory of the nation.”

Today is the first anniversary of the deadly clash. The Army said it was in the face of unprecedented Chinese aggression that 20 Indian soldiers laid down their lives defending our land and inflicted heavy casualties on the PLA. The gallant soldiers fought in the most difficult high-altitude terrain, said the Army. The clash occurred at an altitude of 15,000 feet.

At Leh, the headquarters of the 14 Corps, a solemn ceremony was organised where Major General Akash Kaushik, Chief of Staff of the Corps, laid a wreath at the war memorial. Military posturing by India and China continues on either side of the Line of Actual Control (LAC).