Jai Hind, I am CDT. Shruti Nandu from 1.MAH.ARMD.SQDN. People often say “inspire and be inspired”. Here is the story of a legend inspired me the most. He once said “The enemy is only 50 yards from us. We are heavily outnumbered. We are under devastating fire. I shall not withdraw an inch but will fight to the last man and the last round.” –Major Somnath Sharma, India’s First Param Vir Chakra recipient”. The legendary Major Somnath Sharma needs no introduction. Major Somnath Sharma is a legend in himself and the first recipient of Param Vir Chakra which is the highest military decoration in India. He was posthumously given the decoration for laying his life in preventing infiltrators from entering the Srinagar airport in the first Indo-Pak war of 1947. He was born in the year 1923 in the pre-independence undivided India in Kangra District. He came from a family which for generations had martial service. Most of Major Sharma’s siblings were also Military officers. After his schooling, Major Sharma undertook his military training from Prince of Wales Royal Military College at Dehradun. Subsequently from Royal Military College Sandhurst. On February 22, 1942, Somnath Sharma was formally commissioned as an officer, into the 8th Battalion of the 19th Hyderabad regiment (later 4th Battalion, Kumaon Regiment) in the year 1942. This brave former Indian army officer is spoken in the same annals as Shaheed Bhagat Singh, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Chandra Shekhar Azad. Somnath Sharma was serving as a Major in the Delta Company of 4th Kumaon regiment when the Pakistani invasion of Jammu and Kashmir began on October 22, 1947. By the next morning, the first troops and equipment had begun being airlifted from Delhi’s Palam airport to Srinagar. Major Sharma’s company too was airlifted to Srinagar on October 31, 1947. And Major Sharma insisted on going with them in spite of the fact that his hand was in plaster due to a previous day hockey game. Major Somnath Sharma reached Badgam at first light. The unit was put on patrol duty to block any infiltrators coming into Srinagar. On November 3rd he ensured that his troops took up a fighting position immediately. Enemy movement had been seen near the Badgam village but Major Sharma surmised that the movement in Badgam village was meant to divert attention while the real attack would come from the west. Despite being fired from the local residents, he and his unit refused to fire back to avoid innocent casualties. Suddenly a force of about 700 infiltrators approached Badgam from Gulmohar side. Major Sharma decided to hold on to his position at any cost. As ground ceding would mean access to Srinagar and its airport for the infiltrators. Major Somnath Sharma knew the importance of holding onto his position. The Srinagar airfield was the only lifeline Army had between the Kashmir Valley and the rest of India – had the enemy seized the airfield, they would have been able to block the induction of Indian troops into the Valley by air. Realising the gravity of the situation, he ran from post to post, often exposing himself to danger as he urged his company to fight bravely. Two forward platoons had already fallen but Major Sharma ensured that his company clung to its position tenaciously, even under heavy fire. He was outnumbered 7 to 1 but still fought bravely. To ensure continuous fire, he decided to distribute the ammunition to the unit Jawans who were handling Light Machine Gun fire. The last message Major Sharma sent to the headquarters stated: ‘The enemy are only 50 yards from us. We are heavily outnumbered. We are under devastating fire. I shall not withdraw an inch but will fight to the last man and the last round.’ Soon after, Major Somnath Sharma was martyred in a mortar shell explosion, fighting till his last breath to stem the tide of the enemy advance. However, his sacrifice did not go in vain. Inspired by their leader’s gallantry and tenacity, the soldiers continued to fight the enemy for six hours after Major Sharma had been killed. The spirited defence by 4th Kumaon Regiment delayed the enemy for six crucial hours, thus gaining time for reinforcements to get into position. However, by the time the relief company of 1st Battalion Kumaon Regiment reached Badgam, the position had suffered heavy damage. Along with Major Somnath Sharma, one Junior-commissioned officer and 20 other soldiers of the D company of 4 Kumaon had been killed in battle. It had inflicted much heavier losses on the enemy. The raiders had lost over 200 men and their leader had been incapacitated, resulting in their movement losing its impetus. This also bought time for additional Indian troops to land at the airport, reorganize and block all routes of ingress to Srinagar. For his selflessness, dogged determination and raw courage in the face of the enemy, Major Somnath Sharma was posthumously awarded independent India’s highest wartime gallantry award, Param Vir Chakra. Soldiers like Major Somnath Sharma are not born every day. The sacrifice of this heroic warrior must forever be remembered with gratitude by the country he died protecting. Jai Hind. Major Somnath sharma (centre) .