Lance Havildar Umed Singh

Lance Havildar Umed Singh hailed from Khirja Asha village in Shergarh tehsil of Jodhpur district in Rajasthan. Son of Shri Madhosingh Gogadeo and Smt Tara Kanwar, L/ Hav Umed Singh was born  on 12 Dec 1953. Right from his younger days, like many young boys of his village, L/ Hav Umed Singh always wished to don the Army uniform. Following his dream, he joined the army after completing his school education on 12 Dec 1971 at the age of 18 years. He was recruited into 11 Raj Rif battalion of the Rajputana Rifles Regiment, an infantry Regiment known for its brave soldiers and numerous battle honours. After serving for a few years, he got married to Ms Meera Kanwar hailing from Rajasthan.

Operation Pawan: 20 Jan 1989

During Jan 1989, L/ Hav Umed Singh's unit was deployed in Sri Lanka as part of IPKF. After the induction of Indian forces in Aug 1987, the militants were supposed to surrender but the dreaded LTTE backed out and unleashed war on Indian forces. Initially, only 54 division of the Army was inducted but the escalation of the operations brought three more divisions 3, 4 and 57 into the conflict. By Jan 1989, Indian forces had undertaken numerous operations against LTTE but the war was far from over. L/ Hav Umed Singh's unit,11 Raj Rif Battalion was ordered to go to Sri Lanka on July 12, 1988. The battalion departed from Madras (Chennai) on September 28, 1988, and upon arrival in Sri Lanka, was deployed in the Mullaitivu District. On January 20, 1989, the battalion received credible information from confidential sources about LTTE militants hiding in local houses in the unit's AOR (Area of Responsibility). Based on this information, the 11 and 12 Platoons of the Battalion’s ‘Delta’ Company were sent to conduct a search operation in the area.

These two platoons successfully thwarted the strong defenses and fierce attacks of the LTTE’s suicide squads, eleiminating many LTTE militants. Lance Havildar Umed Singh played a crucial role in this operation. However, during the exchange of fire, L/ Hav Umed Singh and Nk Uttam Singh got severely injured in the operation. The injured soldiers were shifted to the medical facility of the Army, but L/ Hav Umed Singh and Nk Uttam Singh soon succumbed to their injuries and were martyred. L/ Hav Umed Singh was a gallant and committed soldier who laid down his life in the line of his duty displaying indomitable courage and determination.

Lance Havildar Umed Singh is survived by his wife Smt Meera Kanwar.