Tuesday, December 20 2005 15:24 Hrs (IST) - World Time -

Islamabad: A 19-year-old Sikh youth has become the first one from the minority community to become an officer in Pakistan Army.

Harcharan Singh, hailing from the historical Nankana Sahib in Lahore province, cleared the Inter Services Selection Board (ISSB) examinations for military services in his second sitting this year.

"It was the happiest moment in my life when I came to know about my selection in the Army. I am privileged to have this honour which none of my predecessors could ever achieve," Harcharan was quoted as saying by the 'Dawn' newspaper today.

Though many Christians were serving in the Pakistan military, neither a Hindu nor a Sikh could ever get selected to the army services since the country's inception, the paper said.

Singh, who has passed FSc (a pre-engineering course), was a little 'sceptical' this year while attending the ISSB preliminary exams thinking that such tests were not meant for Sikhs as he could not get through last year.

"This year I got through the preliminary phase and appeared in the ISSB test. However, I was mentally prepared to take admission in BA Architecture," he said.

He said fellow Sikhs were 'really felt proud' about him when they heard the news. "My selection has changed a perception and now people believe that young Sikhs have a fair chance to join the country's most prestigious institutions."