Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami ( A forgotten hero )

Lance Naik Mohan Nath Goswami, an Indian Army Special Forces Commando exhibited great valour and dedication to duty, in Kashmir Valley, eliminating 10 terrorists in 11 days before losing his own life in the service of his nation.

Goswami was actively involved in three counter-terrorism operations over the past 11 days. The operations, in the Kashmir valley, saw 10 terrorists eliminated and one captured alive.

Eliminating Three Hardcore LeT Terrorists

The first operation, in Khurmur, Handwara, began on 23 August 15. The operation eliminated three hardcore LeT terrorists of Pakistan origin.

Goswami volunteered for the next operation in Rafiabad, Kashmir. The operation ran over two days on 26 and 27 August, 2015. A fierce gunfight in that operation eliminated three more LeT terrorists.

One LeT terrorist, Sajjad Ahmad alias Abu Ubed Ullah, resident of Muzzafargarh, Pakistan was captured alive in the operation.

HQ Northern Command says the capture of this terrorist proved Pakistan’s complicity in abetting terrorism in Jammu & Kashmir.

An ongoing operation saw Lance Naik Goswami volunteer once more. This next operation, in the dense Hafruda forest near Kupwara, Kashmir, was Goswami’s last, but not before elimination of four more terrorists in a heavy gun battle, Northern Command says.

A true soldier, Lance Naik Goswami breathed his last in action.

The Army says an IAF aircraft flew the mortal remains of this brave heart commando to his home town in Bareilly. From Pant Nagar, an Army helicopter takes him to his native place, to be cremated with full military honours.

About Lance Naik Goswami

Lance Naik Goswami volunteered to join the elite Para Commando outfit of the Indian Army in 2002 and went on to gain the reputation of being one of the toughest soldiers of his unit, no small feat in an outfit that boasts of being one among the best in the world.

He volunteered for all operational missions undertaken by his unit and was a part of numerous successful counter terrorist operations in J&K.

 – GS(IW) Branch, HQ Northern Command

- Source: www.newsblaze.in

Facts about snipers

1. Between heartbeats: Snipers train themselves to shoot between heartbeats because blood flow can affect their fingers while shooting. They achieve this goal by training their own heartbeats to slow down even under harsh desert conditions, which naturally cause a person’s heartbeat to rise.

2: Longest shots on record: The longest documented confirm kill by a sniper team is 2706 yards, by UK sniper Craig Harrison in Afghanistan in November 2009.

3. Etymology: The word “sniper” originated during the 19th-century British occupation of India. The term, which means “shoot from a hidden place,” also refers to a long-billed marsh game bird.

4. Early History: During the U.S. Civil War, Generals Hiram Berdan and Robert E. Lee were the first to use “sharpshooters” during wartime. In WWI, the Germans were the first to place specially trained snipers. Russians were the first to use snipers in two-man teams.

5. Ghillie suits: The word “ghillie” comes from Scotland, which developed the special suits snipers wear to disguise themselves from the naked eye. These suits are modified from old military uniforms and contain heavy canvas to pad a sniper’s torso during those long stretches of lying on the ground.

6. Cost effective: The amount of money used to train snipers teams is huge, but at least they save the military a lot of ammunition. The average amount of rounds expended per kill in Vietnam (by U.S. soldiers) was 200,000. In contrast, the U.S. snipers in Vietnam expended 1.3 bullets per kill. The difference? $2300 vs. 27 cents.

7. Variables: Wind and gravity are a sniper’s two biggest enemies. Heat and humidity also factor into the equation. MOA (minute of angle) is the unit of measurement used by snipers to measure accuracy. MOA measures accuracy of shots by taking distance into consideration. From the greatest distances achieved by snipers, they’ve adjusted for a gravity drop of up to 150 feet.

8. Rewards: During WWII, Germany’s reward system for snipers was sadly hilarious. Not only did a sniper’s badge reflect his grade, but each confirmed kill added up to the following reward scale: (a) 50 kills – wrist watch; (2) 100 kills – hunting rifle; (3) 150 kills – personal hunting trip with military commander Heinrich Himmler.

9. No “natural born killers” allowed: At USMC Scout Sniper School, candidates are weeded out through a series of tests. Surprisingly, being a “good shot” or a “natural born killer” won’t get you in the door. Snipers must be level headed and able to make responsible judgment calls independent of authority.

10. A “perishable skill”: No one learns to be a sniper by reading a book. Simply put, a sniper must “do it over and over, and if you quit doing it for a while you can lose your skills. It’s a perishable skill.”

11. Chinese Proverb: The sniper’s job can be summarized by a proverb on display at Marine Corps Camp Pendleton: “Kill one man, terrorize a thousand.”

Source-www.phactual.com