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The Story Of Indian Army Braveheart Arun Khetarpal – The Hero Of 1971 War Leaves Infant Intrigued

The youngest recipient of Param Vir Chakra, Second Lieutenant Arun Khetarpal, is remembered for his bravery during the 1971 Indo-Pak War. Born on 14 October 1950 in Pune, Khetarpal had army blood running in his veins as he was going to be the fourth generation officer from his family.

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With his 70th birth anniversary passed recently, a series of tributes have flooded the social media along with the picture of an infant holding the book on Khetarpal going viral on WhatsApp. This raises a question that what was Khetarpal’s role in the 1971 war, what made him a hero of the war?

In December 1971, the Indian Army was assisting Bangladeshi resistance under the leadership of Chief of Army Staff Sam Manekshaw and Indira Gandhi, which resulted in escalating tensions between India and Pakistan along the Western border.

INDIAN-ARMY

Khetarpal, commissioned into the Poona Horse (17 Horse) armoured regiment earlier in August the same year, was given the job of operating a battle-tank. Pakistan Air Force launched pre-emptive strikes on eleven airfields across north-western India on 3 December.

At the same time, the 17 Horse was engaging the Pakistani Army in the Shakargarh Sector on the western border, where the warfare was concentrated around the river Basantar, a tributary that met the Ravi further south.

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