Of the 15 squadrons that cadets are assigned to on entry into the NDA -- which becomes a part of their identity for the next three years and perhaps for the rest of their military career -- the champion squadron this year was the Lima Squadron.
As a reward for its performance, the Squadron could post the Chiefs of Staff banner on the squadron building for the next year.
The day before the convocation when the cadets received their graduation degrees, the portrait of another young hero was unveiled in the Echo Squadron.
Captain Arun Jasrotia, winner of the Ashok Chakra, the highest battle honour in peace time, and Sena medal of the 9 Para Commandos had died valiantly, eliminating insurgents at a height of 3,000 metres in the Lolab valley in Jammu and Kashmir in 1995.
An NDA alumnus, his parents -- Lieutenant Colonel P S Jasrotia and his wife -- had been invited to unveil their son's portrait. A hardened soldier himself, Colonel Jasrotia, could not hold back the tears while reading a tribute to his son and thanking the Academy for honouring his Arun.
He had carried with him two letters from his home in Pathakot that saluted his son's sacrifice -- one from a former US ambassador to India and one from a Kashmiri Pandit.
Wrote Ambassador Frank Wisner: 'I met your son when I visited the Special Forces operation in Dehradun. He stood out amongst his fellow officers and was most impressed by his bearing and professionalism. Arun was a splendid young man and I miss him.'
Wrote Vijay Koul: 'Your son laid down his life on our soil, for our soil...the soil of Kashmir. We cannot forget his sacrifice.'
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