Medal replica stolen from Kargil martyr's statute

DHARAMSHALA: A replica of the Paramveer Chakra affixed on the statute of Kargil hero Vikram Batra has been stolen at Palampur of Kangra. Earlier, the miscreants had damaged Mahatma Gandhi's statute in the town.
The martyr's statute, located near the PWD rest house and local courts, has evoked criticism from social workers and kin of the late war hero. No one had any information when the incident occurred.
Terming it as unfortunate, Vikram Batra's father GL Batra, who retired as principal, said that this was the sign of overall degradation in moral values among the youth.
"The incident is very unfortunate one. Martyrs are to be respected as they sacrificed their lives for the nation. The statutes being erected in their memory should have proper handling procedure," he said.
Expressing their annoyance, local residents said that the authorities were not aware of it and were informed by them. They said the leaders were also concerned only till the inauguration of the statutes, after that they did not care about these monuments. They said it was a dishonour to them.
"Politicians are only concerned with the inauguration of these statutes to make their vote bank. The martyrs should be respected from heart. It should not be a mere show off to the public," said Himanshu Tank, a local resident of Palampur.
When contacted, Palampur SDM Ashish Singh said that an inquiry had been ordered and they would soon reaffix the replica of the medal on the statue. "We ordered an inquiry immediately after we came to know about it. I assure things will come to the light soon and we would reaffix the medal at the earliest," he said.