Sankalp Yadav, SM

Biography

Major Sankalp Yadav was born on 29 March 1993 in Jaipur, Rajasthan, to Shri Surendra Kumar Yadav and Smt Usha Yadav. He studied at Maharaja Sawai Man Singh Vidyalaya and later at Kapil Gyanpeeth, Jaipur. He joined the National Defence Academy (126th course) and graduated in 2014, followed by pre-commission training at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. He was commissioned as a Lieutenant in June 2015 into the 324 Field Regiment of Artillery. After his initial posting in the Drass sector of Kargil, Major Yadav volunteered for the Army Aviation Corps and qualified as a helicopter pilot. In 2019, he was posted to 663 Army Aviation Squadron at Srinagar, eventually achieving the rank of Major. On 11 March 2022, Major Yadav was piloting a HAL Cheetah helicopter on a casualty evacuation mission to airlift an ailing BSF soldier from Chorogah near the Line of Control. While operating in the Baraub area of Gurez, the aircraft developed a technical snag and crashed. Despite immediate evacuation to 92 Base Hospital in Srinagar, Major Yadav succumbed to his severe injuries at the age of 29. He was posthumously awarded the Sena Medal on Independence Day, 15 August 2022, for his dedication and service to the nation.