This Gujarat village swears by one tradition: A soldier from every home

India is celebrating the 21st Vijay Diwas, on Sunday. After fighting for nearly two months, India attained victory [Vijay] over Pakistan on July 26, 1999. To commemorate the valour and sacrifice of the martyrs, the then Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee decided to mark this day as the ‘Vijay Diwas’ [Victory Day]. It is celebrated as such, since then.

On this special occasion, let’s take you to Gujarat’s Kodiyawada village in Sabarkantha district, where you will find a soldier in every home. Since the birth of a child, their parents decide to send them to serve in the army.

Opoyi talked to the residents of Kodiyawada, who narrated how every child in this village aspires to become a soldier.

The village head (Sarpanch), Khilji Bhai told Opoyi that Kodiyawada has a population of around 3,200 to 3,300, out of whom 500 to 600 are currently serving on the border. Also, 250 to 300 peope have retired, which pegs the number of those serving or have served in the army to around 800. This shows that every home in this village has a member serving in the army. 

He also spoke about two brothers, Deeta Bhai and Jeeta Bhai, who served in the Indo-Pakistan war of 1965. One could sense a feeling of valour in Khilji Bhai’s voice as he narrated this tale.

Valjibhai Patel, who retired from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in 2016, said that every child in the village aspires to serve in the army. Jignesh Kumar, younger among Patel’s two sons was also a soldier. He was martyred in a Naxal attack in Chattisgarh’s Bijapur, on August 9, 2014.

The bereaved father said that his son sacrificed his life for the country and left behind his family. 

In his honour, a school in the village has installed Kumar’s statue. 

Kids in Kodiyawada can be spotted running and exercising early in the morning, so that their fitness doesn’t become an issue in their pursuit to serve in the army.

The retired army men in the village train them. The villagers work extremely hard to train their children. The whole atmosphere in this village is filled with patriotism.