At around 5:30 am on 18 September 2016, smoke bellowed from the army brigade headquarters in Jammu and Kashmir’s Uri sector. Gunshots were heard as security personnel took their positions to charge at the terrorists who had entered the base.
For the next six hours, a rigorous gun battle ensued in which 19 soldiers lost their lives. Miles away the martyrs’ families were going about their daily chores when they received a message that would shatter their world. Some didn’t believe the news, others went numb with shock.
A year later, six-year-old Rishant, son of late Sepoy Rajesh Singh, points at a newspaper clipping that talks of the bravehearts who lost their lives and says: “Dekhiye papa ka photo nikala hai (Look, papa’s photo is in the newspaper)”. Late Sepoy Gangadhar’s mother weeps for her “little child”.
Most families try to make ends meet with meagre earnings and still await assistance from state administrations. But even as they strive hard to move on, they hold their loved ones’ memories close to them.
Video Editor: Vivek Gupta
Video Producer: Rupinder Kaur
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