Martyr More leaves Vijayapura in tears

Belagavi: It was a solemn moment filled with pride for  people of Savalsang as they filed past the body of Army jawan Sahadev Maruti More , who took a volley of bullets fighting terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir while saving his comrades.

A sea of people arrived from a dozen neighbouring villages to pay their respects to  the brave soldier as his body arrived in the village from Vijayapura. The funeral held with full military honours saw several prominent leaders and officers in attendance. A large number of  young men from the village who are serving in the Indian Army were also present to salute his bravery.

“Sahadev is an inspiration to the youth of the village and many more are now willing to join the Army. He has brought pride to our village by sacrificing his life for the country . This is no time for tears,” said an ex-serviceman from Savalsang, Mallikarjun Pujari

Proud of his departed son,  Sahadev's father said he was willing to support any member of his family who was keen on joining the Indian Army even now. His brother,  Amoghsidda , who is with the Border Security Force in Shillong and was present at the funeral , said crying over Sahadev's death would amount to disrespecting his sacrifice. “Once someone joins the Army, he should be prepared to lay down his life if neccessary,”  he added stoically .

Members of  around 30 families from the village whose sons are serving in the Indian Army, also displayed great pride in the fact and showed no fear of their fate should they continue fighting for the country.   Mr Pujari said he himself had served in the Army for 30 years and was deployed at Kupwara too.