Rajinder Singh (brigadier)

Brigadier Rajinder Singh, MVC (14 June 1899 – 26 October 1947) was an officer in the Jammu and Kashmir State Forces. He was the first recipient of Maha Vir Chakra in independent India, when he was awarded the honor posthumously by the then Army Chief Field Marshall K.M. Cariappa.[2][3]

Brigadier

Rajinder Singh

MVC
Born14 June 1899[1]
Bagoona
Died26 October 1947 (aged 48)
Buniyar
Buried
Missing in Action, declared dead.
(Missing in Action)
Allegiance India
Service/branchJammu and Kashmir State Forces
Years of service-1947
Rank Brigadier
Battles/wars
  • Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Awards Maha Vir Chakra

Maha Vir Chakra Citation

The citation for the Maha Vir Chakra awarded to him reads:

Gazette Notification:2 Pres 50, 26.1.50

Operation: 1948 Polo – Hyderabad Date of Award: 1948

Citation: Immediately after the partition of the Indian Sub continent in 1947, thousands of raiders assisted by Pakistani regulars invaded the State of Jammu & Kashmir all along its border. The Jammu & Kashmir State Forces, stretched along a 550-mile long border deployed in penn-packets with limited arms, ammunition and supplies, without road communications, and heavily-outnumbered, fought tenaciously holding on to their positions. Kohla-Domel garrison fell to the invaders on 22 October 1947. The fate of the Valley as of the whole State hung precariously on a slender thread.

Brigadier Rajender Singh, Chief of Military Staff, took over the command of a relief column and proceeded to check the raiders. Another column with all available troops (nearly 100) was despatched on 23 Oct 1947 to join Brigadier Rajender Singh with orders from Maharaja Hari Singh, C-in-C as follows:- "Brigadier Rajender Singh is commanded to hold the enemy at Uri at all costs and to the last man. Reinforcement is sent with Capt Jwala Singh ......."

Brigadier Rajender Singh and his band of soldiers carried out the orders of the Maharaja to the letter and spirit. Fighting bravely for every inch of land, they delayed enemy advance by two crucial days during which important decisions were taken. The Indian Army joined the fight and the J&K State was thus saved for India by Brigadier Rajender Singh. He made the supreme sacrifice of his life on 26 October 1947 valiantly fighting the Pakistani raiders in Uri-Rampur sector.[4]

gollark: ```luawhile true do for i = 1, 5 do print("RF/t:", math.random(0, 100000)) print("Heat:", math.random(0, 100000)) os.sleep(30) end -- do stuff to clear screen hereend```
gollark: Because 2 lines per run.
gollark: You mean 10, right?
gollark: I think.
gollark: ```luawhile true do print("RF/t:", math.random(0, 100000)) print("Heat:", math.random(0, 100000)) os.sleep(30)end```

References
  1. Brig Rajendra Singh, MVC @ TWDI. Twdi.in. Retrieved on 27 November 2018.
  2. "Brigadier Rajinder Singh:India's Unsung War Hero".
  3. "Tributes paid to 1947 hero Brigadier-Rajinder Singh".
  4. Mahavir Chakra (MVC), Awardee: Brig Rajendra Singh, MVC @ TWDI. Twdi.in. Retrieved on 2018-11-27.
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