Gunner Mam Chand

Gunner Mam Chand joined the Indian Army after completing his school education and was recruited into 313 Fd Regt of the Regiment of Artillery, an important combat support arm of the Indian Army known for its booming field guns. 

Op Rhino (Assam): 06 Aug 1998

During 1998, Gnr Mam Chand’s unit 313 Fd Regt was deployed in the Nalbari district of Assam as part of "Operation Rhino".  As the AOR(Area of Responsibility) of the unit was affected by militancy, the unit troops were engaged in operations against the militants on a regular basis. The unit launched regular patrols to monitor suspicious activities as part of their operations to keep militancy under check. The militants invariably belonged to ULFA (The United Liberation Front of Assam) a designated revolutionary rebel organization, which sought to establish an independent state of Assam.  At that time, Assam was in a very fragile and volatile state owing to the frequent insurgent activities. The militants often launched surprise attacks on the security forces in retaliation to the counter-insurgency operations being undertaken by them. On 06 August an army convoy of five vehicles belonging to 313 Field Regiment was returning from Balilecha to Nalbari in Assam after completing an operational task. The convoy commander Lt Digvijay Panwar and Gnr Mam Chand were travelling in a Jonga as the lead vehicle. 

As the convoy reached Japarkuchi near College Chowk about 1 km off Nalbari district headquarters, the insurgents from ULFA exploded an improvised explosive device (IED) in a pre-planned attack. Soon after the blast, the heavily armed insurgents resorted to firing at the soldiers. The IED blast followed by indiscriminate firing by the ultras took Gnr Mam Chand and his comrades by surprise and did not give them any time to react. Consequently, Gnr Mam Chand, the convoy commander Lt Digvijay Panwar, and L/Nk Surjit Singh having borne the brunt of the attack got severely injured. They soon succumbed to their injuries and were martyred. Additionally, three more soldiers got wounded, who were shifted to the base hospital at Basistha. Gnr Mam Chand was a dedicated and committed soldier, who laid down his life in the line of his duty.