Indian soldier Jaswant Singh Rawat, who was martyred fighting alone on the border, is still immortal. Five soldiers of the Army are engaged in his service 24×7. Not only this, his shoes are polished daily, and the clothes are ironed. This is an astonishing story of the soldier who fought for the country in the Indo-China war of 1962.
Jaswant Singh Rawat was born on 19 August 1941 in Badaun, Pauri-Garhwal district of Uttarakhand. The patriotism in him was such that he went to join the Army at the early age of 17. However, he was not taken in because of his young age. The man waited, and at a reasonable age, on 19 August 1960, Jaswant was inducted into the Army as a rifle man. Jaswant’s training was completed on 14 September 1961. On 17 November 1962, the Chinese Army attacked the North-East part of India, intending to capture Arunachal Pradesh.
During the war, a battalion of the Garhwal Rifles was deployed on the Nuranang Bridge. This also included Jaswant Singh Rawat. The Chinese Army was becoming dominant, so the Indian Army withdrew the 4th Battalion of the Garhwal unit. However, three soldiers refused to back off. These involved Jaswant Singh, Lance Naik Triloki Singh Negi, and Gopal Gusain. They wanted to get rid of the Chinese machine gun that was firing from an elevation. The three men, hiding behind rocks and bushes, evading heavy fire, went close to the Chinese army bunker and hurled hand grenades from a distance of just 15 yards.
In the procession, Jaswant Singh lost his comrades. His will would not allow him to give in, and he decided to hold the post alone. To give the Chinese Army an impression that there was not one but multiple soldiers they were fighting against, he kept rushing from post to post and hailed fire upon them. Later, when the Chinese learned that it was just one Indian soldier, they were awestruck.
Even today, the place where Jaswant Singh was martyred, a temple has been built in his name. The idol handed over by China is kept in this temple. Even today, the jawans posted there report that if a soldier falls asleep on duty, he is woken up with a slap. Jaswant Singh is still protecting his land even after death. Jaswant Singh Rawat story is now known to everyone.
Jaswant Singh is the only soldier of the Indian Army who is promoted even after being martyred. Now he has moved from rifleman to the post of a captain. His family gets his salary. The Government of India has named the post as ‘Jaswant Garh.’ All his belongings are kept in the memorial. Recently a movie was also made on his life.