Bhubaneswar: Just like Major Vikram Batra, the Kargil War hero, who wrote a letter to his parents days before he was martyred, another war hero, Odisha’s Major Padmapani Acharya also wrote a letter to his father on June 19, 1999, in which he described his experiences in the war and talked about the then Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s visit, the food served, use of Vaseline cream, the Bengali doctor in their unit and the lessons of Mahabharata.
He made the state proud when he was awarded the Maha Vir Chakra, the nation’s second highest gallantry award, for his outstanding bravery, unfaltering leadership, and supreme sacrifice. Just a week after his birthday, on June 28, 1999, Indian Army’s 2nd Rajputana Rifles was assigned the task to take possession of the enemy bunker at the Tololing Top as it was a dominant position overlooking the Srinagar – Leh Highway (NH 1D). The success of the battalion hinged on the early capture of this position.
Unfortunately, the assault company suffered a large number of causalities owing to heavy artillery attack by enemy forces. Undeterred, Maj Acharya went ahead with his assigned mission and took the reserve platoon, leading it through raining bombardment. Some of his men were seriously injured but he continued to encourage them and charged at the enemy with the remaining soldiers. He himself crawled up to the enemy bunker and lobbed grenades. When he was severely injured and unable to move, he ordered his men to leave him and attack the enemy while he continued to fire. After a night-long fierce hand-to-hand battle, the battalion succeeded in recapturing Tololing top, thus turning the course of Kargil War. Maj Acharya, however, succumbed to his injuries.
He wrote in the letter to his father that “casualties are a professional hazard which go beyond our control but for a good cause” and advised him to tell his six-month-pregnant wife Charulatha a story from Mahabharata every day so that his child “imbibes good values”.
Maj Padmapani Acharya was born on June 21, 1968 in an Air Force family originally belonging to Odisha, but settled down in Hyderabad, in Telangana. Maj Acharya was married to Charulatha, who was pregnant with Aparijita, their daughter when her husband was martyred in 1999. Major Acharya’s father, Wg Cdr Jagannath Acharya, is a former wing commander of the Indian Air Force and had served during the 1965 and 1971 wars with Pakistan.
