From left: Radha Mohan, Mangla, Lekh Raj, Abdul Sattr, Lt Rajesh
Pattu, Sheikh Suhel Ahmed, Ganesh, Rajesh, Sunder
"When
there are people caught in a fire, you don't think of heroism."
Lt Rajesh Pattu |
Heroes are not always people of "outstanding
achievement", as the dictionary says. They are also ordinary men who disregard their
own safety in one extraordinary moment. Lt Rajesh Pattu is an ordinary enough Army
soldier: a cavalry officer with a love for riding, and a suppressed desire to experience
battle. His extraordinary moment came one warm August evening when he repeatedly went back
into the raging inferno of Delhi's Uphaar theatre to pull out at least 10 people. Ordinary
too were 10 fishermen who eke out a living on the banks of the Yamuna in Delhi. Their
extraordinary moment came when they saw a school bus plunge into the foul, turgid waters.
Young and middle-aged, Hindu and Muslim, 10 fishermen saved at least 30 young lives.
Common men of uncommon courage. These, truly, are India's real heroes. |
