Nb Sub Inder Singh

Nb Sub Inder Singh hailed from Nara village in Kirtinagar tehsil of Tehri Garhwal district in Uttarakhand and was born on 06 Nov 1943. Son of Shri Hari Singh and Smt Fathri Devi, he had two brothers and two sisters as his siblings. He joined the Indian Army after completing his initial education on 06 Nov 1963 at the age of 20 years. He was enrolled into 5 Guards Battalion of the Brigade of the Guards, an infantry Regiment known for its gallant soldiers with a long history of numerous battle exploits. By 1986, he had put in over 22 years of service and had been promoted to the rank of Naib Subedar. By then he had served in various field areas and gained the field-craft skills required to be a battle-ready soldier and dependable Junior Commissioned Officer. 

Operation Meghdoot : 23 May 1986

During May 1986, Nb Sub Inder Singh's unit was deployed at the Siachen Glacier. After the end of the first Indo-Pak War of 1947-48, a Cease Fire Line (CFL) was established from Manawar in Jammu to Khor (NJ9842) in Ladakh, just short of the Karakoram glaciers. No precise line was extended beyond this and under the Shimla Agreement of 1972, the CFL was redefined and named as the Line of Control (LoC).  The easternmost stretch of the ceasefire line was not demarcated beyond a point called NJ9842 since it was inhospitable and uninhabited. It simply said that from NJ9842, the line would run “thence North to the glaciers”.  But between 1964 and 1972, Pakistan began depicting the ceasefire line as extending from NJ9842 to a point just west of the Karakoram Pass, not northwards as the agreement said and the dispute of Siachen began taking serious dimensions. After provocative actions by Pakistan in the Siachen area, India captured the area in April 1984 during "Operation Meghdoot".

Subsequently a large number of Indian troops got deployed in the Saltoro ridge area and Nb Sub Inder Singh was one among them in 1986. Nb Sub Inder Singh and his comrades had to face very hostile weather conditions along with unprovoked firing by Pakistani soldiers. With sub-zero temperatures and unpredictable snow blizzards/avalanches patrolling the area was very challenging and risky.  On 23 May 1986, one such patrol was launched under the leadership of Nb Sub Inder Singh. While leading the patrol Nb Sub Inder Singh got trapped and buried under snow due to an avalanche triggered by enemy firing. A massive rescue operation was launched by the Army but the inclement weather coupled with harsh terrain made the task very difficult.  As a result Nb Sub Inder Singh could not survive and was martyred. Nb Sub Inder Singh was a valiant soldier and dedicated JCO, who laid down his life in the service of the nation.

Nb Sub Inder Singh is survived by his wife Smt Mangshri Devi, sons Shri Balwant Singh & Shri Gambhir Singh and daughter Smt Maheshwari Devi.