Bollywood actor Aamir Khan on Sunday visited the Sainik School in Satara, Maharashtra and said he was impressed by the discipline and patriotism of its students.
Addressing students of India’s first Sainik school, inaugurated in 1961 by the then Defence Minister, the actor lauded the supreme sacrifice by its alumnus Col Santosh Mahadik, said the school’s registrar Lt Col Ranjit Nalawad.
37-year-old Col Mahadik was martyred during a fierce gun-battle with militants in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district last year.
The officer, who originally belonged to the elite 21 Para unit of the Special Forces, was awarded the Sena Medal (Gallantry) for his exceptional service and leadership as a young officer.
He was commissioned into the army in 1998. The son of a milkman, Col Mahadik studied at the Satara Sainik School.
“I am impressed by your discipline and patriotism,” the 51-year-old actor told students at an event at the school auditorium.
The Fanaa star also asked students to save water, in view of water scarcity in many parts of Maharashtra.
He also attended a water conservation event in Satara on Sunday.
The school is spread over 45 hectares, comprising the main building, NCC office, sports fields, cadets mess and hostels, staff quarters, boxing ring, firing range, swimming pool and a horse riding facility.
