Late Second Lt. Arun Khetrapal (PVC) was 21 years old when he passed out from IMA and was commissioned into the 17 Poona Horse of the Indian Army. Just 6 months of his joining 1971 Indo-Pak war broke out. He was undergoing the Young Officers’ Course at Ahmednagar at that time. He was recalled from the course and soon joined his unit to take part in the famous “Battle of Basantar” in the Shakargarh sector.
On 16 December that year, he had rushed to the aid of his fellow soldiers, decimating several Patton tanks of the Pakistan Army in his Centurion Mk 7 tank. When his tank chassis got hit he was grievously wounded. He was ordered to abandon his tank, but realising that the enemy was still pressing forward, he stuck to his position firing till the very end.
Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal was killed in action but he had, by his intrepid valour saved the day; the enemy was denied the breakthrough he was so desperately seeking. Not one enemy tank got through.
For his valour he was awarded Paramvir Chakra. Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal was killed in action on the battlefield of Basantar in the 1971 Indo-Pak war, but not before he blunted and deterred the enemy counter-attack.
His final words over the radio to a superior officer who had ordered him to abandon his burning tank were,
"No, Sir, I will not abandon my tank. My main gun is still working and I will get these bastards." (Source: Wikipedia)
The younger generation of Indians should know what a 21 year old boy is capable of doing, which Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal so valiantly demonstrated on battlefield. Every one is not lucky to be donning the uniform for the country, but the lessons of his sacrifice are worthy of emulation by all of the countrymen, especially the younger generation. The country is not an abstraction; it is our home, and comprises of each one of us. It is our duty to enrich the lives of our countrymen by contributing positively in whichever way possible/ feasible; do what we can to ensure that it thrives. Youth is idealistic, but sometimes unsure of which direction to tread. Late Khetarpal has shown us the way; choose the harder right.
The right thing to do, at any age, is usually tougher and always more demanding than the normal thing to do, but it is something that inspires generations that follow.
Heroes are respected even by one's so called enemy; the following quote by a Pakistani military historian is proof of the heroism displayed by Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal (PVC).
"The only occasion when a breakthrough could have occurred was when two squadrons of 13 Lancers attacked together in the afternoon, but a gallant last ditch lone stand by 2/Lt Arun Khetarpal of Poona Horse averted the danger."
— Maj. A. H. Amin (Retd.) ( Pakistan Armour Corps – Columnist and Historian)
It is important that we choose our heroes, and role models, wisely. This is especially so for the younger generation, which is at an impressionable age. Can we as a nation help in this direction? How?
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