Rifleman Rajendra Prasad Meena

Rifleman Rajendra Prasad Meena hailed from  Dilawarpur village in  Dausa district of Rajasthan. Son of Shri Shambhu Dayal Meena and Smt Ramoti Devi, Rfn Rajendra Prasad was born in the year 1991. He had two sisters and a brother as his siblings and was eldest among them. He came from a family of modest means and grew up to be a vey responsible person taking care of his siblings as the eldest brother. He joined the Assam Rifles in the year 2013 at the age of 21 years. He was recruited into 46 Assam Rif battalion of Assam Rifles, the oldest para-military force of India with its headquarters at Shillong.

After serving for few years, Rfn Rajendra Prasad got married to Ms Mamta and the couple had a son Yogesh and a daughter Kavya. Rfn Rajendra Prasad was very affable and compassionate which endeared him to everyone. He also was inclined in social service end even contributed money towards construction of a water tank in his village to improve water supply in the village. By 2021, Rfn Rajendra Prasad had put in about 8 years of service and developed into a devoted and valiant soldier. In 2021, his battalion was engaged in defending the Indo-Myanmar border as well as conducting counter-insurgency operations in the North East states.

Manipur ambush: 13 Nov 2021

During Nov 2021, Rfn Rajendra Prasad's unit 46 Assam Rif battalion, was deployed in Manipur for counter-insurgency operations. There had been increased militant activity in the border region of Manipur since the early part of the year 2021 and in response to this, the Army and paramilitary forces had been conducting coordinated operations along the 1,643-km of an unfenced border between Manipur and Myanmar. On 13 Nov 2021, Rfn Rajendra Prasad his comrades along with their Commanding Officer Col Viplav Tripathi were returning to their battalion headquarters at Khuga after a visit to the unit's forward operating base in Behiang area near India-Myanmar border. Rfn Rajendra Prasad was part of the quick reaction team that was moving in a four vehicle convoy.

However, as the convoy reached Sehkan village in Churachandpur district of Manipur, the militants of PLA (People's Liberation Army) and MNPF (Manipur Naga People's Front) launched a surprise attack in a pre-planned move. At around 1030 hrs in the morning, the militants first detonated an IED and followed it up with indiscriminate firing from vantage points in the surrounding forested area. The attack was very sudden and devastating, giving no time for the soldiers to take any action. Consequently Col Viplav Tripathi, Rfn Rajendra Prasad and three other soldiers lost their lives in this dastardly attack. Besides Rfn Rajendra Prasad and his CO, the other martyred soldiers included Rfn Khatnei Konyak, Rfn Suman Swargiari, and Rfn Shyamal Das. Rfn Rajendra Prasad was a gallant and motivated soldier, who laid down his life in the line of his duty. 

Rfn Rajendra Prasad Meena is survived by his father Shri Shambhu Dayal Meena, mother Smt Ramoti Devi, wife Smt Mamta Devi, son Yogesh and daughter Kavya.