Ranjit Muthana

Biography

Major Ranjit Muthana was born on 29 July 1951 in Madikeri taluk of Coorg district, Karnataka. He completed his schooling at Don Bosco, Mumbai, and from childhood nurtured the ambition of joining the armed forces. Selected for the prestigious National Defence Academy in Pune, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant on 24 December 1972 into the Rajput Regiment, an infantry regiment renowned for its fearless soldiers and its motto "Sarvatra Vijay" (Victory Everywhere). Serving with 5 Rajput, he saw duty in Nagaland, Palampur, Suratgarh, Banbasa and Sri Lanka. As a young Captain he had the honour of serving as an instructor at the NDA, later graduating from the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, and serving as Brigade Major of 167 Infantry Brigade from 1985 to 1987. During Operation Pawan with the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka, on 2 December 1987 Major Muthana volunteered for a convoy protection duty beyond his area of responsibility, fully aware of the LTTE threat. As column commander on the Batticaloa–Colombo road, his party came under heavy fire from well-armed militants. Assessing the situation swiftly and employing his fieldcraft, he fought back with his men and forced the militants to abandon their positions, but was struck by a burst of medium machine gun fire and laid down his life in the finest traditions of the Indian Army.