Finally, Tiger Hill has been captured. For many weeks, the Indian troops had been locked in fierce combat with Pakistani intruders in the Kargil battle, each victory bringing them closer and closer to Tiger Hill until it was theirs. Many a hero, who died in the action, may have dreamt of such a moment and clung to their dream, even as their lives drew away from them. Perhaps Uddhab Das was one of them.

Uddhab Das hailing from Anchali village in Barpeta district of Assam was a gunner with 197 Field Regiment, which was deployed against Pakistani intruders at Kargil. On June 24, Uddhab Das was killed following intense shelling by Pakistani intruders in the Tiger Hill area,

"He had just finished his lunch. The gun was being moved upwards, when a shell landed next to him and exploded hitting him at the back of his head and he died," said subedar Haridev Das of the same unit, who was present at the time of the incident.

Uddhab Das left behind his father Bandhuram Das (45), mother Kunjeswari Devi (40) and a younger sister, Jayanti Das (16).

The 21-year -old martyr had joined the Army in 1997 after passing the Higher Secondary Examination from Baghmora Higher Secondary School.

Uddhab had sent a draft for Rs. 10,000 to pay for his younger sister's education. Hastily scribbled on the money order form, were the words: 'I am fine. The war is going on and we are going to win it within few days.' That were the last words from Uddhab to his parents. A knock on Bandhuram Das' door by the local police station informed him of his son's martyrdom.

"He was always ready to die for his country. His death will definitely bring sorrow and hardships for his poor parents. But we are proud of him," said Bhabeswar Das, uncle of Uddhab Das. "Uddhab was an honest boy and he did what he said," said a 76-year-old villager. Meanwhile Bandhuram Das sat looking at the body of his son in stony silence. When he was told that Uddhab had made entire Assam feel proud, Bandhuram just nodded with tears in his eyes.

The mortal remains of Uddhab Das was received at the airport by Assam Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, the State Chief Secretary and the officials of the 21 Mountain Division.

Trying to come to terms with her son's death, Uddhab's mother whispered, "Why should I cry? My son died for the country".

The village of Anchali has a good number of representatives in the Indian Army. The village has about 60 boys in the Army. There are also about 25 ex-servicemen, said Bhabesh Das, the dead soldier's uncle. "We are proud of Uddhab's supreme sacrifice", he added.

"It is indeed an irony that militant groups in the State have chosen to collaborate with the Pakistanis while young Assamese soldiers of the Indian Army like Uddhab Das are laying down their lives for the country's unity and integrity", Assam's Chief Minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta said in Guwahati. "His death should be an eye opener to the youth of Assam who have gone out of the mainstream to join the rebel groups", a villager from Anchali said.

Uddhab was unusually brave and when he used to come home on his annual leave, he often complained about the activities of the militants in Assam and openly questioned their activities.