Major Somnath Sharma's Early Life
- Name : Somnath Sharma
- Born : 31st January 1923, Dadh, Khangra Disct.
- Years of Service : 1942-1947
- Service No. : IC-521
- Rank : Major
- Unit : 4th Kumaon Regiment
- Battles : World War II, Indo-Pakistan war of 1947
- Father Name : Amarnath Sharma
- Mother Name : Not known
- Died : 3rd November 1947, Jammu & Kashmir
On 31st January 1923, Major Somnath Sharma was born into a Dogra Brahmin family. he belongs to a military family. His father, Major General Amar Nath Sharma, was also a military officer. His brothers, Surindar Nath Sharma was Lt. General and General Vishwa Nath Sharma was also in military. His sister Major Kamla Tiwari was a doctor.
Major Somnath Sharma did his schooling from Sherwood College, Nainital. After that the Prince of Wales Royal Military College in Dehradun Later on, he joined the Royal Military College, Sandhurst.
Military Career
After the graduation from the Royal Military College, on 22nd February 1942, his military service began. Major Somnath Sharma was commissioned into the 8th Battalion, 19th Hyderabad Regiment (later 4th Battalion Kumaon Regiment), of the British Indian Army. During World War II, he served under the command of Colonel K. S. Thimmayya in Burma with the British Army. Somnath Sharma saw action against the Japanese in Burma during the Arakan Campaign. For his bravery and action against Japanese during Arakan Campaign he was awarded a "Mentioned in Despatches".
Indo-Pakistani War of 1947 (Battle of Badgam)
On October 22, there was an attack in Kashmir Valley from the side of Pakistan. In response of that, on 27 October 1947, a contingent of troops of the Indian Army was air-lifted into Srinagar. The 4th Battalion of Kumaon Regiment, under the command of Major Somnath Sharma, was flown in to Srinagar. His left hand was injured and in a plaster cast, as he had broken it in a hockey match, but he persuaded his seniors to go with the company.
A batch of three companies was deployed to the Badgam village on 3 November. The two deployed companies returned to Srinagar at 2:00 pm as there was no enemy movement. But Major Somnath Sharma's D Company, was ordered to stay in position until 3:00 pm. Suddenly, after a while, a tribal “lashkar” of 700 raiders approached Badgam from the direction of Gulmarg. D Company was soon surrounded from three sides and sustained heavy casualties from mortar fire. Somnath realized the importance of holding onto his position as both the city of Srinagar and the airport would be vulnerable if it were lost. Under heavy fire, he urged his company to fight bravely, often exposing himself to danger as he ran from post to post.
Major Somnath Sharma took responsibility of filling the magazines and issuing them to men, operating light machine guns, when heavy casualties adversely affected the firing power of his company. While busy in fighting with the Lashkars, a mortar shell exploded on the ammunition near him. Before he died, he transmitted the last message in the headquarters and said : "The enemies 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 our last man and our last round."
A relief company from the 1st Battalion of the Kumaon Regiment, reached Badgam after a while, the position had been overrun. The tribal infiltrators suffered 200 casualties and caused them them to lose the impetus to advance. This gave time to Indian Troops to fly into Srinagar airfield and block all routes of ingress to Srinagar itself.
During Major Somnath Sharma along with 21 other ranks of D company officers were killed in action. Three days later, his body was recovered.
Awards and Honours
- Major Somnath Somnath was awarded Param Vir Chakra on 21 June 1950.
- In the 1980s, the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI), a Government of India enterprise, named fifteen of their crude oil tankers in honour of Major Somnath Sharma.
- His statue was build at Param Yodha Sthal, National War Memorial, New Delhi in his honour.
Major Somnath Sharma laid down his life for the nation. He was just 25 years old. He became the recipient of first “Param Vir Chakra” of Independent India. His saga of bravery, leadership and unyielding fighting spirit will continue to inspire the future generations.
