Ritesh Sharma

Biography

Major Ritesh Sharma was born on 27 October 1973 in Aligarh, a historic town in Uttar Pradesh, and spent his early years in Badayun and Bareilly. From a young age he admired the Armed Forces and dreamed of wearing the Army uniform. He completed his Intermediate studies at the renowned La Martiniere College, Lucknow, and earned a Bachelor's degree in Commerce from Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi. After graduation he cleared the Combined Defence Services examination and joined the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, in 1994. Commissioned in 1995 into the 17 Jat Battalion of the Jat Regiment, he was first posted to Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan, where he honed his soldiering skills and completed commando training before his unit was deployed to Jammu and Kashmir for counter-insurgency operations. In 1999, when Pakistani intrusions were detected along the Line of Control, the 17 Jat was redeployed to the Kargil conflict zone, and by then Major Sharma was commanding a company. He played a key role in the assault on Point 4875, later renamed "Batra Top", sustaining splinter injuries during the intense fighting around Pimple 2 in July 1999 but rejoining his men to see the battle through. His company delivered the decisive blow against the Pakistani 12 NLI Battalion, and he went on to contribute to the capture of vital positions in the Mushkoh Valley sector. Even after the war formally ended, tensions persisted along the Line of Control. In September 1999, acting on intelligence about infiltrators in the Kupwara sector, Major Sharma's unit launched a search-and-destroy mission on 25 September 1999. Leading the assault team into dense, rugged terrain, he came under sudden enemy fire. In the ensuing gun battle he and his men neutralised four terrorists, but he was struck by a bullet and fell into a deep gorge. Evacuated to the Military Hospital in Udhampur, he battled for his life and succumbed to his injuries on 6 October 1999, upholding the finest traditions of his Regiment and the nation.