2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar Sharma

2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar Sharma got selected to join the Army after completing his graduation. He joined the Officers' Training Academy at Chennai and passed out as a Short Service Commissioned Officer in the rank of Second Lieutenant. He was commissioned into the 13 Garhwal Rifles Battalion of the Garhwal Rifles Regiment, an infantry regiment known for its intrepid soldiers and numerous battle honours.  

J&K Operation (Op Rakshak): 31 Oct 1997

During 1997 2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar Sharma’s unit was deployed in the trouble-torn Kashmir valley as part of "Op Rakshak". As the area of responsibility (AOR) of the unit was affected by militant activities, the unit troops had to maintain a high level of readiness at all times and often undertook operations against the militants. As the area of his unit’s operation was prone to infiltration by militants, the unit deployed armed patrols with regular frequency. The landmines along the patrol routes posed a serious danger to the troops and the Bomb Disposal Squad of the unit was often called upon to sanitize the routes.  Based on the information from the intelligence sources, 2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar along with Maj Sanjeet Choudhary was tasked with a  counter-insurgency operation on 31 Oct 1997.

2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar along with his team set off for the operation on 31 Oct as per the plan. As 2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar Sharma and his comrades were traversing through the challenging terrain as per the planned patrol route, there was a massive IED blast. The blast had a devastating effect, injuring 2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar Sharma, Maj Sanjeet Choudhary and many of their comrades. The injured soldiers were immediately shifted to Base Hospital at Srinagar for medical treatment.  However, 2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar Sharma and Maj Sanjeet Choudhary later succumbed to their injuries and were martyred. 2nd Lt Jitendra Kumar Sharma was a committed soldier and fine officer, who laid down his life at a very young age in the service of the nation.