Babaloo Singh, SM

Biography

Sepoy Babaloo Singh hailed from Jhandipur village in the Mathura district of Uttar Pradesh and was born on 10 July 1987. He completed his early education at Deen Public School and studied through classes IX and X at Jawahar Inter College before finishing class XII at Seth Prem Sukhdas Bhagat Inter College. In 2005, at the age of 18, he joined the Army and was recruited into the 18 Jat battalion of the Jat Regiment, an infantry regiment renowned for its gallant soldiers and numerous battle honours. After completing his training, Sepoy Babaloo Singh served in varied terrain and operational environments, including the troubled regions of Assam and Jammu & Kashmir. He took part in several important operations, among them Operation Rhino in Assam, Operation Rakshak in J&K and Operation Alert in Sikkim. By 2016, with about eleven years of service behind him, he had evolved into a committed and battle-hardened soldier. During that year he was serving on deputation with the 61 Rashtriya Rifles battalion, engaged in anti-militancy operations in the militant-infested areas of Jammu & Kashmir. On the night of 29/30 July 2016, militants attempted to infiltrate through the Nowgam sector, about 120 km from Srinagar. When two of his patrolling comrades came under fire around 0030 hrs, Sepoy Babaloo Singh was rushed forward as reinforcement to the ambush area. Amid the ongoing gun battle he came face to face with a terrorist who fired at him from a distance of about 15 metres. Though seriously wounded, he displayed courage and gallantry of a very high order, retaliating and killing the terrorist to eliminate the threat to his comrades. He later succumbed to his injuries at the age of 29. For his conspicuous bravery, devotion to duty and supreme sacrifice, he was awarded the Sena Medal.