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Tiger Hill victory 'greatest event since Bangladesh war'

Former chief of army staff, General (retired) Shankar Roy Chowdhury has said the recapture of the strategic Tiger Hill is the '''greatest event for the Indian Army since the Bangladesh war''.

''It was a tremendous victory of our armed forces. I am delighted, and proud of our boys who have done the job,'' he said in Calcutta.

''I was very confident that they would recapture the very important and strategic location up on the mountains. It was a well co-ordinated move and the result has come ultimately. By any yardstick it was the greatest thing to happen since the Bangladesh victory,'' he said.

Terming the Indian forces as ''one of the very best in the world,'' the general, who has recently been named as the consensus candidate for a Rajya Sabha seat from West Bengal, however, ruled out the possibility of a nuclear war on the Kargil issue.

''The intruders have already paid very heavily for their misadventure and I do not think they would make any more mistakes,'' he said.

Asked how long the 'war' at Kargil might continue after the recapture of Tiger Hill, the former army chief refused to set any deadline. ''It is very difficult to pinpoint the end of such situations. But, obviously, the sooner it is, the better for all of us,'' he said.

To another query on whether the Indian Army, after pushing back the Pakistani-backed intruders across the Line of Control, should also cross it themselves to consolidate their strategic gains, he replied in negative and said, ''our first aim should be to recapture the entire LoC in Kargil, Drass and Batalik sectors to prevent more casualties.''

However, with the recapture of Tiger Hill, the strategic Srinagar-Leh highway would now be free from any attacks from the intruders. ''We shall now be able to monitor the movement on the highway from atop the hill,'' he said.

About Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharief's sudden visit to the United States, he said it seemed to be yet another attempt to seek international mediation on the Kargil issue.

He also ruled out the possibility of opening any other front by the intruders to keep the issue alive.

UNI

The Kargil Crisis

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