Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina on Sunday met with the families of seven Indian soldiers who died in the 1971 Liberation War and handed to them Rs5 lakh cheques each.
This act marks the beginning of a process of honouring the 1,661 Indian soldiers who sacrificed their lives, according to a report in The Telegraph India.
Similar cheques and citations will be awarded to the families of the remaining soldiers.
The seven soldiers are Lance Naik Albert Ekka, Major Anup Singh Gahlaat, Subedar Malkiat Singh, Naik Sugan Singh, Lt Samir Das, Sqr Ldr AB Samanta, and Lance Naik Mohini Ranjan Chakraborty.
BIOSLance Naik Albert EkkaDied in the battle of Gangasagar in December 1971: Commended for helping to ensure victory in that battle.Major Anup Singh GahlaatGiven credit for helping to beat back Pakistani troops from a key road through hand-to-hand combat, which killed him.Subedar Malkiat SinghHis battalion had been holding a key defense position near Garibpur when it was attacked. As Pakistani troops came within 50 metres, he crawled forward and fought the enemy directly, killing two machine-gunners. He was killed by a tank shell.Naik Sugan SinghWhile advancing on Moynamati, the Indian army came under attack from Pakistani machine guns. Singh charged one of the Pakistani posts and was hit by bullets, but threw a grenade and killed two enemy soldiers. He repeated this with a second post before falling to the ground, dead.Lt Samir DasThe ship diving officer was a member of the core Indian Navy team, training Bengali defectors from the Pakistani Navy well into early 1971. While posted at a training facility, he was killed in a road accident.Sqr Ldr AB SamantaAn air force fighter pilot, enemy fire shot down his plane over Tejgaon in December 1971 while he was on a mission.Lance Naik Mohini Ranjan ChakrabortyA member of BSF, Chakraborty was holding off an attack by Pakistani soldiers on an Indian border post when he was killed.