The history of commemoration day goes back to October 21 1959 when a patrol party of the CRPF, led by SI Karam Singh, was ambushed by Chinese forces at Hot Springs in Ladakh and 10 jawans were killed. The bravery and the resulting sacrifice of jawans, fighting at 16,000 ft altitude in extremely cold conditions and against all odds, is an epitome of the rarest of the rare courage. The Indo-Tibetan Border Police sends a representative party of all police forces of the country to Hot Springs, Ladakh, every year to pay homage to the martyrs who laid down their lives on October 21, 1959, while guarding the national frontiers.Since then on October 21 every year, commemoration parades are held in all police units as a mark of respect to brave police martyrs who sacrificed their lives in the line of duty. Arms are reversed and a two-minute silence is observed in the honour of the departed souls. The names of police martyrs of states, police and paramilitary forces are read out to acknowledge the supreme sacrifices made by them.