Dheerendra Singh Atri, KC

Biography

Lieutenant Dheerendra Singh Atri was a third-generation soldier, following a family tradition of military service — his maternal grandfather was a World War I veteran, and his father, Brigadier Devendra Singh Atri, was an infantry officer of the Rajput Regiment. Born on 12 September 1978 at Mhow in Madhya Pradesh, the only son of his parents, he grew up dreaming of donning an army uniform. He graduated in Hotel Management from Pusa Institute, New Delhi, and briefly worked as an Airport Manager at Santa Cruz Airport in Bombay before he was selected for the Army. Commissioned from the Indian Military Academy on 10 December 2002, he had opted for the Rajput Regiment on a parental claim but was instead allotted the Army Service Corps for want of vacancies. He was then posted to the 3 Rajput Battalion on cross-attachment, where, as a young subaltern, he took part in numerous anti-militancy operations, always leading his men from the front under the simple order: "follow me." In 2002, the 3 Rajput Battalion was inducted into Jammu and Kashmir during one of the most challenging phases of militancy, with Kupwara district an epicentre of terrorist activity. As part of Operation Rakshak, on 18 October 2003 Lt Atri led a cordon-and-search operation into the dense forests of Kupwara based on specific intelligence. When his party came under heavy automatic fire from a well-prepared ambush, he charged towards the militants, drawing their fire upon himself and giving his men time to regroup. Fighting at close quarters, he killed two militants in quick succession and, despite sustaining a serious shoulder wound, pressed forward to eliminate a third before being hit in the chest and succumbing to his injuries. Inspired by his fearless assault, his troops annihilated the remaining terrorists. For his conspicuous gallantry and supreme sacrifice at the age of 25, Lt Dheerendra Singh Atri was posthumously awarded the Kirti Chakra.