What set him apart as a soldier:

If there was one quality that marked Chuni Lal as a soldier -- it was daredevilry. When bullets were flying around him he said he would lead from the front. Naib Subedar Chunilal was the rarest of the rare in the army. It was not a chance incident where he showed his bravery.

Bravery and valour were in his blood. This is no exaggeration because every time he got an opportunity, he made the best use of it.

He never allowed his subordinates to go ahead of him in danger. Even in this operation, he pulled back one soldier, saying -- 'I am the commander, let me go first.' That kind of ethos and mental attitude is not seen in the real sense.

He was 17 years old when he joined the battalion in 1985. I have seen him grow from one rank to the other. He was dashing, took a lot of initiative, had team spirit and the courage of conviction. He excelled in all military subjects.

Just two years after joining service he got an opportunity to be part of an operation with Subedar Bana Singh in 1987. He volunteered to go into that operation where the post was recaptured and renamed Bana Top. He was the first few to reach that post along with Bana Singh and received a Sena Medal.

In 1999 -- when the unit was deployed in Poonch, there was an attempted intrusion and he fought back. As the post commander, he synchronised the firing and deployment -- 12 infiltrators were killed and he was awarded the Vir Chakra. So before the Ashok Chakra, he was already a twice decorated soldier.

He was a very fit man and served as an instructor at the NCC Officers Academy, Kamptee, Madhya Pradesh. He used to always come first in the battle physical efficiency test.

His stint in Sudan:

He represented the Indian Army in Sudan in 2006 as a United Nations Peacekeeper and displayed devotion to duty while serving in the difficult operational situation in Sudan. We were tasked to set up the initial mission there. There were terrain and climatic challenges and we were tasked to move the entire store from India to Sudan and establish the team site.

There was a crisis between the Sudan Armed Forces and the Sudan People's Liberation Army. Both the forces took out their tanks and guns and started firing and we with the blue berets were required to calm them down. It was successfully carried out by the Indian contingent. Within 7 days it was calmed down. The unit carried out the humanitarian operation, the relief operation and the evacuation of UN officials out of that location to a safe place.

For this the battalion was awarded the United Nations Unit Citation for valour. We are the only battalion to receive a citation from the UN. It is a very rare accomplishment.

Image: Col Ram Pratap Singh, Commanding Officer, 8 J&K Light Infantry
Photograph: Archana Masih

Must read: The soldier who became a legend

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