Vidushi Gaur/ New Delhi

Some heroes are remembered for the battles they win. Others are remembered for the lives they save. Havildar Hangpan Dada, an Assam Regiment soldier who was posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra, belongs to the latter.

His final battle in the mountains of Jammu and Kashmir was a story of extraordinary courage, leadership and sacrifice. In the face of armed terrorists, difficult terrain and overwhelming danger, he chose to move towards the threat rather than away from it.

Ashok Chakra Havildar Hangpan Dada with his wife

Hangpan Dada was born on 2 October 1979 in Borduria village of Tirap district in Arunachal Pradesh. Growing up in the Northeast, he developed an early connection with the armed forces and eventually joined the Indian Army. He served with the 3 Assam Regiment, earning the respect of his comrades for his determination, physical courage and willingness to lead from the front.

In May 2016, he was serving in the Kupwara sector of Jammu and Kashmir when intelligence inputs indicated the presence of heavily armed terrorists in the area.

The ensuing operation would become the defining moment of his life.

On 26 May 2016, terrorists were detected near the Line of Control. They had infiltrated through the difficult mountain terrain and taken shelter in the forests around the area. Indian troops moved to intercept them.

Ashok Chakra Havildar Hangpan Dada's wife accepting the Ashok Chakra from Ex President Pranab Mukherjee

The terrain was unforgiving. Steep slopes, dense vegetation and treacherous mountain paths made the operation extremely difficult. But the soldiers knew that allowing the terrorists to escape could put civilian lives and nearby security positions at risk.

Havildar Hangpan Dada led his men towards the hiding terrorists.

During the encounter, he displayed remarkable courage, engaging the militants at close range. He successfully killed two terrorists and kept on chasing another who was trying to escape through the mountainous terrain.

Even after sustaining injuries, he refused to withdraw.

Ashok Chakra Havildar Hangpan Dada

He followed the terrorist uphill, determined to prevent him from escaping. In the ensuing firefight, Hangpan Dada was critically wounded. Yet his final moments were spent doing what he had always done, leading from the front and protecting his comrades.

He succumbed to his injuries on 27 May 2016.He was 36.

The news travelled thousands of kilometres to his home in Arunachal Pradesh, where his family was left to confront a grief that no military honour could ease. His wife and children had lost a husband and father. His parents had lost their son. His regiment had lost a soldier who had placed the lives of his comrades above his own.

But the nation had gained another symbol of courage.

For his exceptional bravery and supreme sacrifice in the face of terrorists, Havildar Hangpan Dada was awarded the Ashoka Chakra, India's highest peacetime gallantry award, posthumously. His wife, Chasen Lowang, received the honour on his behalf from the President of India.

Behind the medal was a deeply human story.

Hangpan Dada was not a character from a legend. He was a husband who worried about his family, a father whose children waited for him to return home and a soldier who understood that every operation carried the possibility of never seeing his loved ones again.

Yet when duty called, he moved forward.

Ashok Chakra Havildar Hangpan Dada

His story is particularly powerful because of the distance between his home in Arunachal Pradesh and the battlefield where he made the ultimate sacrifice. He represented a Northeast India whose sons and daughters have served the country with distinction, often far from their homes and families.

Today, his name lives on in his native Arunachal Pradesh and within the Indian Army. Memorials and institutions associated with his name remind younger generations of the price that soldiers sometimes pay to keep others safe.

The circumstances of his final operation capture the essence of military courage: he did not wait for danger to disappear. He confronted it.

When the terrorists tried to flee, he pursued them despite his injuries. When his own safety was at stake, he continued thinking about the mission and his men.

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That was Havildar Hangpan Dada's final act of service.

He went into the mountains as a soldier and came back as a national hero.