Armed Forces Flag Day observed with pride and honour

To mark the occasion of the Indian Armed Forces Flag Day, which is observed on December 7 every year, the political fraternity expressed solidarity and paid homage to honour the sacrifice of the Indian soldiers.

President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with the officers of the Kendriya Sainik Board in New Delhi to mark the event.

An important feature of this day that it provides an opportunity to all citizens to voluntarily contribute towards the well-being of the veterans and the families of those who laid down their life in the line of duty.

In the spirit of the day, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman urged the people to contribute to the Armed Forces fund for the welfare of ex-servicemen and their families.

"On the Armed Forces Flag Day we salute and pay respect to the courage, bravery and supreme sacrifice of our soldiers and veterans. Our armed forces will always remain the pride of our nation. I appeal to the citizens to voluntarily contribute at http://ksb.gov.in/FundPayment.htm," Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh tweeted.

Army veteran and defence and security expert, Col. (Retd.) Jaibans Singh said, "The Indian Army has incessantly been called upon to face the most brutal forms of foreign sponsored terrorism and insurgency in various parts of the country."

Indian soldiers work in some of the harshest climatic conditions, especially in border areas of Jammu and Kashmir and India-China border.

"It is due to the operations being conducted at the cost of great sweat and blood that foreign sponsored terrorism has not succeeded in its objective of breaking the country's intrinsic fabric," Col. (Retd.) Jaibans added.

Underscoring the need of the nation to acknowledge the endeavours of the soldiers, the army veteran said that, "The Indian soldier is an epitome of all that is the best in the country due to his demonstrated qualities of courage, self sacrifice, integrity, strength of character and commitment to the cause of the Nation. It is therefore, the bounden duty of the nation to ensure that the blood spilled by the soldier as also his contribution to the national cause is given its due acknowledgement."

The Indian Armed Forces Flag Day is observed every year since 1949. The fund, collected on this day, is administered by the Kendriya Sainik Board and managed by a committee headed by the Union Defence Minister. The funds are utilised for the welfare of the veterans as it's not the money but the thought behind the act that is important.