A soldier without uniform

As soon as the weather of Badrinath used to get clear, one helicopter was seen moving. When we reached Army’s helipad the same private helicopter of UT Air was landing. Its engine was warm, the blades were still revolving and from here Army people ran taking five people along with them and from there the pilot of that helicopter himself came out, and they helped in boarding the people one by one. The pilot made someone sit on another one’s bag and someone on another one’s lap. There wasn’t even a co-pilot. On his seat somehow two were adjusted. Somehow he managed to make space from the already jam-packed helicopter and asked to send one more. All were adjusted inside; he somehow closed the door of helicopter and the confidence with which he accelerated the speed of helicopter just after reaching four feet above the ground, everyone was full of praise for him. We came to know that after Army’s MI 17, this is the only private helicopter that has made highest number of sorties and has evacuated highest number of people from Badrinath to Joshimath. Even Army people were praising this brave pilot who was completing one round of Badrinath-Joshimath-Badrinath in just 30 minutes. In the second round when we tried to talk to him he replied let him do his work right now. We decided that we will return from this helicopter tomorrow morning. Next day this was the first helicopter to take off from Joshimath and reach Badrinath. But first it wasn’t me who was air lifted. In the first 3 sorties those women and children were rescued who were more needy, then came my turn. Only when I was getting off he told me his name—Arvind Pandey.               (Jitendra Tiwari)