Rifleman Adarsh Negi

Rifleman Adarsh Negi hailed from Thati Dagar village of Tehri district in Uttarakhand and was born on 14 Jan 1999. Son of Shri Dalbir Singh Negi, and Smt Guddi Devi, Rfn Adarsh Negi was the youngest among three children and had a sister Anjali, and a brother Abhishek as his siblings. He wanted to serve in the Armed Forces since his childhood like many youngsters in Uttarakhand and continued to follow his dream while pursuing studies. He completed his intermediate from Government Inter College Piplidhar and then studied at Garhwal University for his graduation in science.

However, he left his college studies midway to fulfill his dream of serving the country, when he got selected to join the Army. He joined the Army in the year 2018 at the age of 19 years. He was recruited into the 22 Garhwal Rifles Battalion of the Garhwal Rifles Regiment, an infantry Regiment known for its brave soldiers with a rich history of various battle honours. 

Kathua Operation (J&K): 08 Jul 2024

During Jul 2024, Rfn Adarsh Negi's unit 22 Garhwal Rifles was deployed in the Kathua district of J&K and was engaged in operations against the militants frequently. As the unit’s AOR(Area of Responsibility) was prone to infiltration by the militants, the unit troops had to maintain a high state of alert at all times. The unit undertook operations regularly in its AOR to check the infiltration. Based on information from intelligence sources about the presence of some hardcore terrorists in Kathua district, the security forces launched an armed patrol to track down the terrorists on 08 Jul 2024. Rfn Adarsh Negi was part of the team that was tasked with the operation. On 08 Jul 2024, Rfn Adarsh Negi and his comrades set off for the suspected site for a search and cordon operation in the Kathua district.

However, as the convoy carrying the soldiers was on its way, the suspected terrorists attacked the Army vehicle near the Machedi area of Kathua district. In a pre-planned move, the terrorists chose the site of the attack in an area that was hilly with an undulating terrain and had dense forest. The terrorists used grenades and automatic weapons to carry out the attack. The sudden attack had a devastating effect and as a result, many soldiers got severely injured. Rfn Adarsh Negi and four other soldiers soon succumbed to their injuries and were martyred. Besides Rfn Adarsh Negi the other four martyred brave hearts included Nb Sub Anand Singh Rawat, Hav Kamal Singh, Nk Vinod Singh, and Rfn Anuj Negi. Rfn Adarsh Negi was a gallant and committed soldier who laid down his life at the age of 25 years in the line of his duty.

Rfn Adarsh Negi is survived by his father Shri Dalbir Singh Negi, mother Smt Guddi Devi, sister Smt Anjali, and brother Shri Abhishek Negi.