James Thomas, KC

Biography

Major James Thomas was born on 6 September 1976 and hailed from Bikaner in Rajasthan. The son of Shri P T Thomas and Smt Mary Kutty Thomas, he was drawn towards the Armed Forces from his childhood. He completed his schooling at Bikaner Boys' School and went on to study at Rajkiya Dungar College, Bikaner. Pursuing his dream, he was eventually selected for the Army and was commissioned into 10 Sikh LI of the Sikh Light Infantry Regiment, an infantry unit renowned for its fearless soldiers and numerous battle honours. During 2005-06, his unit was deployed in Jammu & Kashmir and was frequently engaged in counter-insurgency operations. The unit's area of responsibility fell in Poonch district, a stretch prone to infiltration by militants from across the border. On 27 January 2006, intelligence sources reported an infiltration attempt in the area, and Major James Thomas was tasked to lead the operation to neutralise the threat. Reaching the suspected area that night with his soldiers, he laid an ambush as planned. At 0230 hours on 28 January, he observed a group of terrorists attempting to skirt the ambush and infiltrate towards the right flank. Realising the danger to his own troops in the rear, he moved forward to intercept them, lobbing grenades and engaging in a fierce firefight in which he single-handedly killed four terrorists, sustaining grave splinter injuries in the process. Spotting two more terrorists closing in from the other flank, and despite his wounds, he crawled forward, hurled grenades and fired his personal weapon, killing both before succumbing to his injuries. For his exceptional courage, unyielding fighting spirit and supreme sacrifice, Major James Thomas was awarded the Kirti Chakra, the nation's second highest peacetime gallantry award.