Uttar Pradesh: Army chief inaugurates PVC Manoj Pandey memorial at his ancestral village in Sitapur

LUCKNOW: On Friday, Army chief of staff general Manoj Mukund Naravane visited Rura, the ancestral village of Param Vir Chakra captain Manoj Pandey and inaugurated a memorial of him.
The war hero Pandey had laid down his life in 1999 Kargil war. Memorial was constructed under aegis of Surya command and was dedicated by general Naravane in presence of the family of slain officer and senior army officers, government officials and ex-servicemen.
In brief address to local gathering, COAS said, “It was a proud privilege for me to be standing in Rura Village of Sitapur district. This is the very soil that gave birth to a legend, the immortal Captain Manoj Pandey. I bow my head in reverence to Gopi Chand Pandey and Mohini Pandey for raising the 'Hero of Batalik' to be fearless, patriotic and determined; who stared the enemy right in his eyes.”
The memorial, in addition to paying respect to the ultimate sacrifice, is also meant to serve as an inspiration to the coming generations to emulate the young officer and in dedicating their lives in the service of our nation.
During the interaction with local school children, a cheque of Rs 1 lakh was also presented to the government pre secondary school of the village as a token of assistance by general Naravane.
Later, COAS visited headquarters central command at Lucknow and was briefed by lieutenant general I S Ghuman, General Officer Commanding in Chief, CC on the state of operational preparedness of the central army.
“COAS expressed satisfaction on the efforts being made to ensure capability enhancement and operational effectiveness to meet all contemporary and emerging challenges, the vision enunciated by him as head of the organisation,” read the press statement.