BEYOND THE HEROISM

It's not every day that you save another person's life. PIONEER speaks to 2nd Lieutenant (2LT) (NS) Kamalasivam s/o Shanmuganathan about his act of bravery and his personal National Service (NS) experiences.

The safety lever springs from the grenade and the clock starts ticking. "Throw!" commands 2LT (NS) Kamalasivam. But the recruit stands stock still, stunned by the unexpected twist of events. "Throw!" shouts 2LT (NS) Kamalasivam again while tapping the recruit harder on his back.

Only then does the recruit regain his composure and toss the grenade high up into the air. In a flash, 2LT (NS) Kamalasivam pulls the recruit down into the grenade throwing bay. Just as the officer shields the recruit's body with his own, the grenade explodes mid-air five metres away. Fortunately, both escape with just minor wounds.

At that time, the Platoon Commander from Basic Military Training Centre (BMTC) School 1 only had one thing on his mind: the state of the recruit. "I was really glad to see that he only sustained a minor injury and I m happy that he's safe."

Indeed, most would recognise the 25-year-old - whose composure and quick reflexes saved a life - as a hero. But look behind the heroic deed and you find a young man who enjoys hanging out with his friends on weekends and playing football, just like any other ordinary Singaporean youth.

Training as an officer cadet

Unlike most comic book heroes, 2LT (NS) Kamalasivam is not invincible. In fact, he went Out-Of-Course shortly after joining the Officer Cadet School (OCS) in November 2011 because he aggravated a hamstring injury. He had sustained the injury from playing football a day before entering the school.

Describing that moment as the lowest point in his life, he elaborated: "I had always wanted to be an officer because I wanted to achieve something big during my two years of NS."

After spending five months recovering, 2LT (NS) Kamalasivam was then scheduled for a re-course beginning April 2012. However, due to the long period of physical inactivity, he found returning to officer cadet training extremely difficult.

"I was thinking hard to myself whether I should re-course as it was a big transition to make. But my Tango Wing 2nd-in-Charge said this to me: 'You were posted to OCS for a reason. You have the ability to become an officer, so you should do it.' That really woke me up."

Eventually, his proud moment arrived on 12 Jan when he was commissioned as an officer. As commissioned officers in the Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) have to serve a minimum term of six months, he had to extend his NS by one month.

2LT (NS) Kamalasivam served the additional month gladly. He explained: "As my ORD (Operationally Ready Date) was now extended to 12 Jul, I would be able to see my current batch of recruits pass out on 14 Jul I'm very happy to witness their moment of glory as they become ready for unit life."

Inspired to serve

Nonetheless, all this would not have been possible if the Malaysia-born Indian had not become a Singapore citizen five years ago.

He attributed his positive attitude towards NS to his elder brother, who had served as a Guardsman: "Whenever he booked out, he would share his stories with me and that gave me a deeper insight of what army life would be like. He would describe the training sessions that he went through and that really piqued my interest in the military."

He added: "My brother also encouraged me to be an understanding officer so that I could make a difference in the lives of my men."

As recruits often face adjustment issues, BMTC Platoon Commanders hold regular interviews to find out about their woes and concerns. 2LT (NS) Kamalasivam was no different.

"The most common problem that recruits face is break-ups. I'll try to keep them preoccupied with activities so that they won t be thinking about it all the time. At night, some of them can t sleep, so I pull them out of their bunks and provide a listening ear," he said.

Dream to teach

Counselling aside, 2LT (NS) Kamalasivam relished the opportunity to teach recruits new soldiering skills.

"I'm there as an instructor and it really gives me a great sense of achievement and satisfaction when I see my recruits being able to apply all that they've learnt, especially during outfield training."

He hopes to enrol into the National Institute of Education to be a teacher after his NS: "It has always been my passion When I see my students achieve something, I feel a sense of happiness that cannot be described."

For his act of valour, 2LT Kamalasivam (NS) received the SAF Medal for Distinguished Act on 1 Jul. He said: "If it was another officer in my shoes, I'm sure he would have done the same thing. In OCS, we are all trained to work under stress and to remain composed and make the right call."

Upon receiving the award, he said: "I'm honoured to receive the award and I'm happy to be able to complete my NS on such a positive note."