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"I would die with a brass on my chest. I would not die an ordinary death," a shattered but proud Smriti recalled the words of her husband Capt Anshuman Singh of the Army Medical Corps who has been posthumously awarded the Kirti Chakra for exceptional bravery.
Wearing a white saree and grief on her face, the young wife of the late officer, with her mother-in-law Manju Singh by her side, accepted India's second-highest peacetime gallantry award from President Droupadi Murmu on Friday during an investiture ceremony.
In a video posted by the spokesperson of the ministry of defence on 'X' on Saturday, Smriti shared her memories of her husband and how they became soulmates.
"He was very much capable. He would tell me, 'I would die with a brass on my chest. I would not die an ordinary death like no one would know'," recalled Smriti.
And, indeed the story of his death is anything but ordinary. Capt Singh died while rescuing people from a major fire in July last year.
In a post on 'X', the Rashtrapati Bhavan said, "President Droupadi Murmu conferred Kirti Chakra upon Captain Anshuman Singh, The Army Medical Corps, 26th Battalion The Punjab Regiment, posthumously. Disregarding his own safety, he exhibited exceptional bravery and resolve to rescue many people in a major fire incident."
Along with the post, the Rashtrapati Bhavan also shared a photograph of Captain Singh's wife accepting the Kirti Chakra.
President Murmu conferred 10 Kirti Chakras, including seven posthumously, to personnel of the Army and paramilitary forces for displaying indomitable courage and extraordinary valour in the line of duty.
The video posted on 'X' by the Ministry of Defence spokesperson has been widely shared on the social media platform.
In the clip, Smriti could be seen fighting tears as she shared that their relationship began with "love at first sight" and after eight years of long-distance relationship, they got married.
"So, we met on the first day of college. I don't want to be dramatic but it was love at first sight. After a month, he got selected into the AFMC (Armed Forces Medical College). We met at an engineering college but then he got selected in a medical college. Super intelligent guy. From then on, after just one month of meeting, it was a long-distance relationship for eight long years," she recalled.
"Then we decided to get married. Unfortunately, within two months of marriage, he got posted to Siachen. On July 18, we had a long conversation about how our life will be in the next 50 years. We are going to build a house, we are going to have kids, whatnot. On the 19th morning (last year), I got up, and I got a call that he is no more," Smriti said.
She said that she has been unable to come to terms with the loss till today.
"For the first seven to eight hours, we could not accept that anything of that sort has happened. Till date, I am not coping. Just trying to figure out thinking maybe it is not true.
"But now that I have the Kirti Chakra in my hand, I realise it is true. But it's okay, he is a hero. We can manage a little of our lives because he has managed a lot. He gave up his life and family so that the other three families could be saved," the proud wife said.