Captain Ashutosh Kumar of 18 Madras Regiment was killed during a gun battle with terrorists who were trying to infiltrate the Line of Control in north Kashmir’s Machil sector, on the intervening night of November 7 and 8, 2020.
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Captain Ashutosh Kumar, a native of Bihar’s Madhepura district, was killed in the line of duty in November 2020.
According to Hindustan Times, he has two sisters, his father works at a veterinary hospital, and his mother is a homemaker.
EDUCATION
Captain Ashutosh Kumar had graduated from Sainik School in Bhubaneswar, Odisha. Kumar enrolled in the 132nd session at the National Defence Academy in Pune after graduating high school. He then attended the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun to finish his military training.
PHYSICAL APPEARANCE
• Height : 5’9″
• Weight ( approx) : 55kg
• Eye Color : Black
• Hair Color : Black
ABOUT
On the intervening night of November 8, 2020, the 24-year-old officer was murdered during a counter-terror operation in Jammu and Kashmir’s Kupwara, near the Line of Control (LoC).
He was serving in the Army’s Madras Regiment’s 18th battalion at the time.
As the area was plagued by active militancy, the forces were frequently involved in counter-insurgency operations. The LoC also witnessed ceasefire violations that occurred without notice.
Apart from maintaining front positions in Kupwara’s Machil region, Kumar’s battalion also conducted operations to counter infiltration efforts. At about 1 a.m., the BSF patrol detected such an infiltration attempt roughly 3.5 kilometres from the LoC.
The 18 Madras, along with Kumar’s squad, engaged in a fire fight with the insurgents. During the firefight, three terrorists were killed, but Kumar and four of his companions were also wounded and seriously injured.
In the same operation, Havildar Praveen Kumar, Rifleman Ryada Maheshwar, and Border Security Force (BSF) jawan Sudip Kumar were killed.
AWARD
The late officer was one of 13 recipients of the country’s third-highest heroism medal.
The braveheart’s parents attended the award ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
