Put assistance to good use

CHENNAI: In  a bid to ensure their independence, ex-servicemen and naval widows must strive to step away from the support offered to them by the Indian Navy. And only if they stick together, can the delivery of various government schemes for sailors and their families be ensured. This was the message conveyed at a get-together of veteran sailors and naval widows at the naval base INS Adyar on Sunday morning.“We must not be under the impression that the Navy will keep doing things for us. We must make good use of the assistance and support offered to us. And we must get proper education to become independent,” Commander SR Prasad, secretary of the Chennai Chapter of the Navy Federation, told the gathering. “Don’t criticise all the time. Ask questions to yourselves,” he added.The get-together, organised by the Veteran Sailors Forum, also urged veteran sailors and naval widows to be aware of the services and schemes available to them, so that their delivery to the intended beneficiaries could be ensured.The meeting also paid respects to the 18 officers and 176 sailors who laid down their lives in the sinking of the INS Kukri in the 1971 war with Pakistan.Rajya Sabha MP N Balaganga and naval widows together planted a sapling inside the INS Adyar campus in memory of the sailors who went down with the INS Kukri. The planting was done in the presence of Commodore Amar K Mahadevan, Naval Officer-in-Charge (TN&P).Various cultural events and competitions such as lemon-and-spoon race and musical chairs for children were also held. Dr Karthiyayini Mahadevan, wife of the Naval Officer-in-Charge, gave away the prizes.