Does India remember its war heroes?
Indians are not much of history buffs. We have short memories and rarely remember the glorious deeds of the past by our countrymen. Two years ago most Indians danced in the streets after the much hyped victory in Kargil, but today all that is forgotten. Indian jawans fought gallantly in both World Wars but not one young student today will be able to point out the location of El Alamein, Cassino or even Imphal and Kohima. Indians won the second highest number of Victoria Crosses in the world. But an ungrateful nation just gave each winner an extra Rs 90 per month and called it “jangi inam.” It is therefore not entirely surprising that not many will remember that this year brings us the 60th, 40th and 30th anniversaries of some of the most important actions and battles of our times. By a coincidence all of them took place in December, a month when the cool climate may be expected to make people pursue peaceful pursuits. This year is the 60th anniversary of the Japanese attack on Pearl Ha
