The Kargil War had many unsung heroes, and one of them was former IAF pilot Sreevidya Rajan, who was one of the first female pilots to fly in the war.
The Kargil Vijay Diwas is celebrated every year on July 26, a date when India claimed victory over Pakistan in the Kargil War and many Indian Army soldiers lost their lives to defend their country. One such unsung hero of the Kargil war is former IAF pilot Sreevidya Rajan.
While former IAF pilot Gunjan Saxena is called ‘The Kargil Girl’ for being the first female pilot to be a part of a dangerous Kargil war mission, not many know about the contributions of Sreevidya Rajan, who flew alongside Gunjan Saxena during the Kargil war.
Sreevidya Rajan belonged to a small village in Kerala, where her mother was a schoolteacher and her father was an officer of the Indian Army. Her father inspired her to be a part of the armed forces and ignited her dream of being an Indian Air Force pilot in her.
After getting professional training and battling gender norms, Sreevidya Rajan finally became a part of the Indian Air Force, got rid of her long hair and fingernails, and was put hard at work during her training period.
Rajan, during an interview, said that there was no gender discrimination inside the Indian Air Force and that both men and women received the same kind of treatment. After over a year of being an IAF pilot, Sreevidya was posted to Udhampur in Jammu and Kashmir sector.
When the Kargil War broke out in 1999, both Sreevidya Rajan and Gunjan Saxena were part of an IAF squad of 25 pilots, who were the nearest to the scene. They were immediately deployed in the Kargil war, but little did they know, they would become the first women to be in an active combat zone in India.
Sreevidya Rajan was tasked with rescuing injured soldiers and taking them to the Army Hospital in Srinagar. Through her mission, she saved the lives of dozens of Indian Army soldiers and spent two weeks in the Kargil War alongside Gunjan Saxena.
While people remember the contributions of IAF pilot Gunjan Saxena, known as The Kargil Girl, the bravado and determination of Sreevidya Rajan in the Kargil War remain little known.
READ | Kargil Vijay Diwas 2023: How Kargil War was planned in 1999? Know timeline and significance
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 "Kargil Vijay Diwas: Meet IAF's Sreevidya Rajan, Kargil’s unsung hero who flew with Gunjan Saxena, saved soldiers’ lives")
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