Hav Mahendra Bhaskar Pardhi

Hav Mahendra Bhaskar Pardhi hailed from Chirekhani village in Tiroda Taluka of Gondia district in Maharashtra and was born in the year 1985. He had one elder brother Chandrashekhar Pardhi and two younger brothers Sonu Pardhi & Phanendra Pardhi. He completed his initial education at Chirekhani village and later at Tiroda in Maharashtra. After completing his education, he joined Army in the year 2004 at the age of 19 years. He was recruited into the Maratha Light Infantry Regiment, an infantry Regiment with a rich history of valour and battle honours.

After serving for few years he got married to Ms.Gayatri and the couple had two sons Janav and Shivaay. By the year-2022 he had been had put in over 18 years of service in the army and had served in various operational areas. 

Snow Storm (Indo-China Border): 22 Mar 2022

During 2022, Hav Mahendra Bhaskar's unit was deployed in the Upper Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh near the Indo-China border. The AOR(Area of Responsibility) of the unit spanned over remote rugged mountainous terrain with extreme weather conditions, especially in the winter season. The troops were deployed on various forward posts and often undertook patrol to monitor the area in between the manned posts. Also heavy snow fall often blocked the roads and hampered the movement of troops which necessitated frequent snow clearance operations. Hav Mahendra Bhaskar was leading one patrol team comprising 4 other soldiers on 22 Mar 2022 in Upper Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh in the AOR of his unit.  As the troops were traversing through the planned route, a horrific snow storm struck them.

The snow storm accompanied with heavy rains lashed the entire area with a ferocity that created havoc in the affected region. The magnitude and suddenness of the storm did not give any time to Hav Mahendra Bhaskar and his comrades to take any evasive actions. As a result Hav Mahendra Bhaskar and his comrades lost contact with each other and got trapped under tons of snow. A massive rescue operation was launched by the Army to trace the soldiers. The rescue team eventually managed to extricate the body of Hav Mahendra Bhaskar, who had lost his life by then owing to prolonged exposure to extreme cold conditions. Hav Mahendra Bhaskar was a committed soldier, who laid down his life in the line of his duty.

Hav Mahendra Bhaskar Pardhi is survived by his wife Smt Gayatri Pardhi, two sons Janav & Shivaay and three brothers Shri Chandrashekhar Pardhi, Shri Sonu Pardhi & Shri Phanendra Pardhi..