22 years of Kargil Vijay Diwas

• The celebrations of Kargil Vijay Diwas (26 July) have began with the visit to places of action 22 years ago.
• Continuing its rich traditions, the senior Army officers met war veterans and Veer naaris at Lahmochan view point.
• 22nd anniversary celebrations of Kargil Vijay Diwas began with Army traditions of remembering martyrs who laid their lives in the fierce battle India fought.

Kargil War

• The conflict is believed to have been planned by the then Pakistan army chief General Pervez Musharraf without the knowledge of the then Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.
• The war took place between May and July of 1999 in Jammu and Kashmir's Kargil district.
• It started when Pakistani troops and terrorists infiltrated Indian territory.
• During the winter of 1998–1999, some elements of the Pakistani Armed Forces were covertly training and sending Pakistani troops and paramilitary forces, into territory on the Indian side of the line of control (LOC).
• The infiltration was code named ""Operation Badri"".
• The aim of the Pakistani incursion was to sever the link between Kashmir and Ladakh and cause Indian forces to withdraw from the Siachen Glacier, thus forcing India to negotiate a settlement of the broader Kashmir dispute.
• Pakistan also believed that any tension in the region would internationalize the Kashmir issue, helping it to secure a speedy resolution.
• Based on information provided by local shepherds, the Indian Army was able to ascertain the points of incursion and launch what is termed as 'Operation Vijay'.
• Pakistan faced global pressure, with the then US President Bill Clinton persuading Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to pull out from Kargil in early July through a telephonic conversation.
• The war came to an official end on July 26, 1999, thus marking it as Kargil Vijay Diwas.
• 527 soldiers from Indian Armed Forces lost their lives during the war.