There are three stories that I remember clearly when I think of Gurdeep Salaria. But I should introduce him properly, as I was trained to do, when I was in the military. Gurdeep Singh Salaria was my coursemate in the National Defence Academy. We were in the same squadron and effectively lived together from 1990 to 1993. He died while fighting militants in Kashmir on January 9, 1996 — it is eleven years today — and was posthumously awarded a Shaurya Chakra. I have stories to tell about him, of how we as a nation honour him, and men like him, and what it tells us about our country.

Camp Rovers is a typically grueling army-training event held in the second year of the Academy. It is a map reading cum basic survival training and endurance testing exercise, and concludes with a ‘race back’ to the Academy with weapons and heavy loads that, appropriately, qualify it to be one of the toughest exercises for that age group in any army in the world. Winning the ‘race back’ is prestigious for the squadron as it is a measure of team spirit and physical toughness.

On the final day, while our squadron was leading the race, one of our fellow coursemates collapsed from heat and exhaustion, 2 km short of the finishing line. Getting him along was crucial as a drop-out meant a loss of crucial points. At that stage there were only four or five of us left as the rest of the squadron had already staggered ahead. We not only had to distribute his load and weapon but also had to carry him on our shoulders to complete the race. Our feet and shoulders hurt, the heat was killing and we swore at each other, but we bonded, as people who undergo adversities together do. Unsurprisingly, Salaria was one amongst us — he was someone like that. Throughout the camp, he played the role of a leader, worker and unifier. He pushed, cajoled and cursed us — forcing us to work together. Under a blazing sun, we carried our coursemate and stumbled across the finish line. We won Camp Rovers that year.

... contd.