An Armyman’s son remembers Milkha Singh: ‘I felt like I lost my father once again’

Thirty-year-old Gurbinder Singh nonetheless remembers the day when he first met Flying Sikh Milkha Singh and his spouse Nirmal Kaur. Gurbinder was seven years outdated when the couple visited his Kubaheri village on the bhog ceremony of his father Havildar Bikram Singh, who laid down his life for the nation within the battle of Tiger Hill within the Kargil struggle in 1999. The Milkha couple adopted Gurbinder that day and supported his training until highschool. As 91-year-old Milkha Singh and 85-year-old Nirmal Kaur handed away final week inside days of one another, Gurbinder was recounting the private loss for him and his household.
“I was seven and my younger brother Gaganpreet Singh was six months old, when our father Havildar Bikram Singh sacrificed his life for the country in the battle of Tiger Hill during the Kargil war. Days after his death, Milkhaji and Nirmalji visited our home in our village and adopted me. From class 1 to high school, they got me admitted to the boarding at Shivalik Public School, Mohali, and took care of all the expenses. As we lost Milkha Singhji, I felt like I lost my father once again,” mentioned an emotional Gurbinder Singh.
While Havildar Bikram Singh joined the Indian Army within the 12 months 1986, the household was based mostly at Kubaheri village, 13 km from Kurali. The valiant Armyman was a part of the 8 Sikh regiment, which launched a remaining assault on the Tiger Hill on July 3, 1999. Singh laid down his life on the night time of July 4 preventing the enemy within the effort of his regiment to seize the hill. While Singh was awarded Vir Chakra posthumously, his spouse Paramjeet Kaur was given a submit of peon on the authorities college on the village. Kaur stop the job in six months as she needed to handle her toddler, Gaganpreet. The Milkha couple had promised to undertake Gurbinder on the bhog ceremony. The couple made efforts to get Gurbinder admitted to Shivalik Public School, Mohali, the place the teenager stayed in a hostel.
“My mother had to quit the job of peon in an effort to take care of my younger brother. The Indian Army support happened as per the then protocol but the family was still recovering from the loss. When Milkhaji and Nirmalji got me admitted in the school, it was like the start of a new life for me. My mother tells me that I used to pick fights with neighbourhood kids and if I would not have got a chance to study in a boarding, I could have spoiled my life,” Gurbinder mentioned.

The 30-year-old, who works as Multi-Tasking Staff on the Sector 17 Post Office in Chandigarh, nonetheless remembers when he would meet Milkha Singh and Nirmal Kaur and in addition go to their dwelling with sweets on the day of his college outcomes. “Whenever I met Milkhaji, he would tell me to study hard and not to do anything, which will spoil my family’s name. He would always ask me to take care of my mother. Nirmalji treated me like her son and would often call me to meet them at their Sector 8 home. Sometimes, I visited them with sweets on the day of my school results. I had not met them in the last five-six years but whatever I am today is due to their support,” Gurbinder mentioned.