Manpreet Singh (soldier)

Singh was born in 1982 in Amritsar, Punjab. He was a resident of village Bharonjian located in the Mohali district of Punjab. He was the son of Late Naik Lakhmeer Singh and Smt. Manjeet Kaur. His grandfather Sheetal Singh and uncle Ranjit Singh had also served in the Indian Army. He had a brother Sandeep Singh and sister Sandeep Kaur. He did his schooling at the Kendriya Vidyalaya in Mullanpur, Punjab. He completed his graduation at SD College in Chandigarh, where he pursued a B. Com degree. Thereafter he got a degree in Chartered Accountancy. He worked as a chartered accountant for a few years. Then, he successfully cleared the Combined Defence Services (CDS) examination in 2004 and joined the Army.^[3]

He passed out from the Indian Military Academy, located in Dehradun, and was commissioned as a Lieutenant in 2005. He was commissioned into the 12 Sikh Light Infantry unit of the Indian Army. Later he was deputed to serve with the 19 Rashtriya Rifles Battalion, deployed in the state of Jammu and Kashmir for counter-insurgency operations. He served as the Second in Command (2IC) from 2019 to 2021 with 19 RR, and later became the Commanding Officer.^[4]

During 2023, 19 RR was deployed in the Anantnag district of Jammu and Kashmir for counterinsurgency operations. In the span of 5 years, Lt Col Manpreet Singh had taken part in numerous operations and was decorated with the Sena Medal for gallantry in 2021.^[5] On 13 Sep 2023, the security forces received information from the intelligence services about the presence of some hardcore terrorists in the dense forests surrounding Gadool village of Kokernag in South Kashmir's Anantnag district.^[6] A joint team of 19 RR and Jammu and Kashmir Police was dispatched to that location on the same night. When the team arrived, the hidden terrorists initiated heavy gun fire to cover their escape. Singh was commanding the operation and ordered his soldiers to start firing. A fierce gun battle was going on. In the operation Col. Manpreet Singh, Major Aashish Dhonchak, Sepoy Pradeep Singh from 19 RR and DSP Himayun Bhat from Jammu and Kashmir Police were killed in action.^[7] For Singh's bravery, legacy and leadership, he was posthumously awarded India's second highest peacetime gallantry award, the Kirti Chakra, on 15 August 2024.^[8][9] DSP Himayun Bhat was also awarded the Kirti Chakra posthumously for his bravery, while Major Aashish Dhonchak and Sepoy Pradeep Singh were awarded with the third highest peacetime gallantry award the Shaurya Chakra posthumously.^[10] In one single operation, 2 Kirti Chakras and 2 Shaurya Chakras were posthumously awarded to the fallen soldiers.