Vice Admiral S.H.Sarma Critical Veteran on Life Support at city Hospital
Anil Dhir,Posted;Odishabarta
Bhubaneswar : 24th Dec. : Vice Admiral S H Sarma PVSM, the veteran of three wars, is in hospital since the last two days. The senior most living veteran of the country, he had recently been felicitated by the Defence Minister and the Navy Chief at New Delhi. On the 1st December, his 100th birthday was celebrated at his residence in Bhubaneswar. Admiral Sarma is in the critical care unit of Care Hospital.
Admiral Sri Harilal Sarma was the youngest Cadet on the HMS Dufferin, joining at the age of 13 years and 8 months. His rise in the Navy was meteoric. He is the only living veteran who has seen action in World War II and both the 1965 and 1971 wars. His actions in the 1971 war against Pakistan, as the Fleet Commander in the Bay of Bengal, were pivotal in India’s victory. The Eastern Fleet, under his command, launched 93 airstrikes against the enemy instead of a planned five, thus pounding the enemy into submission without loss of any Indian lives.
As part of the commemoration and to coincide with Vijay Divas, Admiral Sarma was invited to New Delhi and was felicitated by the Navy. He is the senior most veteran to grace the events. On 13th December, he laid a wreath at the National War Memorial on behalf of the Indian Navy, and also wrote a message in the electronic visitor’s book there. On the 14th the veterans were felicitated by the Defence Minister, Shri Rajnath Singh at the New Delhi Cantonment. He was the first veteran to be felicitated.
