Digendra Kumar
Havildar Digendra Kumar | |
---|---|
Born | 3 July 1969 |
Allegiance | Republic of India |
Service/ | Indian Army |
Years of service | 1985–2005 |
Battles/wars | Kargil War |
Awards | Maha Vir Chakra |
Digendra Kumar
Early life
Kumar was born to Shivdan Singh and lived in the village of Jhalara, Tehsil
Career
Kumar joined the 2nd Battalion of the Rajputana Rifles on 3 September 1985. After training was completed, his battalion was posted to Kashmir.[2] In 1987 he was selected for the Indian Peace Keeping Force and took part in Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka.
Operation Pawan
Meanwhile, 36 soldiers of the 10th Parachute Regiment were captured and held by the LTTE. Lt. Gen. A.S. Kalkat assigned the task of freeing them to Kumar. Kumar took with him 50 kg ammunition and some biscuits and sailed up the river. Kumar saved the soldiers (who had been held in the forest for 72 hours), destroyed an important ammunition depot, and killed 39 militants.[1]: 43
Kargil war
Major Vivek Gupta, of the 2nd Battalion of the Rajputana Rifles and his company were given the task of recapturing Point 4590 on Tololing Hill in the Dras sector.[1]: 59 The objective was to capture the enemy post, located at high altitude (15,000 feet).
Kumar commanded the Light Machine Gun Group during his company's assault. Besides Kumar, the commando team included Major Vivek Gupta, Subedar Bhanwar Lal Bhakar, Subedar Surendra Singh Rathor, Lance Naik Jasvir Singh, Naik Surendra, Naik Chaman Singh Tewatia, Lans Naik Bachchan Singh, CMH Jashvir Singh, and Havaldar Sultan Singh Narwar.[1]: 51
The Pakistani army had made 11 bunkers on the Tololing hilltop. Kumar was to target the first and the last bunkers. The other commandos were to target the remaining 9 bunkers.[1]: 51
On 13 June 1999, while nearing its objective, the Assault Group came under enemy fire and took casualties. Subedar Bhanwar Lal Bhakar, Lance Naik Jasvir Singh, Naik Surendra, and Naik Chaman Singh were all killed. Major Vivek Gupta himself was killed by a bullet wound to the head.[1]: 54 Although Kumar was hit by a bullet in his left arm, he kept firing on the enemy with his light machine gun. His fire facilitated his men's advancement, allowing them to physically assault the enemy position and clear the area after a hand-to-hand fight. He was responsible for killing 48 Pakistani soldiers single-handedly and received total 18 bullets on his body armour.[4]
Medals and awards
Mahavir Chakra
The nation's second-highest wartime gallantry award, the
Other awards
Kumar was awarded the Sena Medal in 1993 for his anti-terrorist operations in the Kupwara area of Jammu-Kashmir.[1]: 31 In 1994 his services were appreciated for recapturing the Hazratbal Shrine from terrorists.
In popular culture
The 2003
Further reading
- Mansukh Ranwa, Mahavir Chakradhari Digendra Kumar, Kalpana Publications: Jaipur, 2008, ISBN 81-89681-09-5.
References
- ^ ISBN 978-81-89681-09-8.
- ^ Mansukh Ranwa:Mahavir Chakradhari Digendra Kumar, Jaipur, 2008, p. 31
- ^ Operation Pawan. The Battle for Jaffna. Archived 30 March 2009 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Naik Digendra Kumar (2883178A) Archived 6 January 2009 at the Wayback Machine