Being an Army officer was my dream as I had witnessed a lot of Army life in my childhood and it being a noble profession always attracted me as it gathers you lot of respect in society. I got the call in Nov’14 and went for SSB (Services Selection Board) at Allahabad as a Tech. entry, among the 32 filtered out of 400 candidates. On our fifth day of stay activities included all the tests like physical, ground test and interview, all of us went through these tests, during the day of the conference; 5 out of 32 got recommended for Medicals.

After medical was done with I eagerly waited for my name on the merit list. Thereafter came the verdict, the merit list came out and to my surprise; I found my name on the list! It was the greatest moment of my life, it made my parents proud and everyone at village congratulated my parents for my placement. I joined OTA (Officer Training Academy) on 5th April 2014, after 49 weeks of rigorous training in Chennai I got commissioned on 14 April 2015 to Indian Army as a Lieutenant and as an Infantry Officer.

My dream for serving the nation was seeded in me when I was young, which gave me the inspiration and then I made up my mind to work towards joining the Army Services, and today, here I am living my dream – all this made possible by the great academics and spirituality which is induced in me though Paath and discipline at Akal College. It instilled into me the much-required discipline and habit of following routines because of which I could easily adapt to the Army regime.

The main advantage that I feel being a part of this prestigious institution was is that they inculcated in us to project our Sikhi as we move outside into the real world helping us to keep us firmly connected to our roots, heritage and ‘Dharam’. Qualities like teamwork, morality, and leadership were also imbibed in me during my course of study in Akal College which helped me lot in building my career as an Army Officer.

My mother has always been my role model as she taught me how to be at balance in life and morality towards society.I feel proud when I hear about the updates from the school and how well they are transforming India with their Modern Gurukuls for the Rural. My future goals are to be a better professional in coming years and walk shoulder to shoulder with the jawaans, serving my best to my country. My motto is to lead my future Sikh generations as an exemplary.

My message is for youth of my nation is to strive for excellence irrespective of results in whatever field they choose. Stay away from Drugs & be morally upright. Last but not least respect Women and treat them as an important sector of our society.

Randeep Singh demonstrated an essence of a true Warrior, consistently pulling himself up the rope of growth with the grip of strong efforts & strength of will power. He defined his destiny the way he dreamt as with the help & guidance of Akal College of Engineering & Technology, under the aegis of the Kalgidhar Society. He bequeathed the spirit of self-sacrifice & service in her & kept stepping forward on the ladder of success.

~ Tapasleen Kaur