Ratnesh Kumar Chaturvedi, VrC

Biography

Major Ratnesh Kumar Chaturvedi was born on 19 April 1956 in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. He completed his schooling at the Sainik School, Rewa, where his inclination towards the armed forces took root and laid the foundation for his future military career. After school he was selected for the prestigious National Defence Academy and later moved to the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, from where he was commissioned on 11 June 1977 at the age of 21 into 5 Rajputana Rifles, an infantry regiment renowned for its fearless soldiers and numerous battle honours. By 1987 he had completed nearly ten years of service and had been promoted to the rank of Major. During Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka, his unit was deployed as part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force against the LTTE. On 18 October 1987, tasked with leading an assault near Jaffna Fort, Major Ratnesh came under heavy machine-gun fire. Though shot in the chest, he personally led his company's charge on the enemy gun position, pressing forward and urging his men on. The militants fled, and he accounted for two of them. Refusing evacuation, he succumbed to his wounds. For his conspicuous courage, gallant leadership and supreme sacrifice, he was awarded the Vir Chakra.