Grenadier Bhati — youngest Shaurya Chakra awardee

Col Dilbag Dabas (Retd)

Grenadiers Infantry Regiment, one of the oldest Sword Arm, has the distinction of giving to the Indian Army five bravest among the braves; three of them were awarded the Param Vir Chakra and two Ashok Chakra. Even peace-time gallantry award tally of the Grinders (as Grenadiers are commonly referred to) speaks volumes of these brave men. One of its Grinders Naik Jardish Ahmed is among the very few in the Indian Army to have been awarded the Shaurya Chakra twice and another Grinder Devinder Singh Bhati is the youngest Shaurya Chakra awardee in the Indian Army till date.

Devinder was the fourth generation soldier; the earlier two generations were also Grenadiers. He grew up listening to the stories of valour of Indian jawans from his father and grandfather and knew he was destined to follow into their footsteps. And he chose to be a Grinder like his grandfather and great grandfather.

 Devinder, son of Havildar Giri Raj Singh, was born in Kaurali village of Faridabad district on June 10, 1980. He was so impatient to join the Army that he didn’t even complete his senior secondary education and passed all preliminaries to become an Army jawan. And on October 28, 1998, he became Grenadier Devinder Singh Bhati of 14 Grenadiers. 

The Kashmir valley has been the hotbed of militancy in Jammu and Kashmir but the Jammu region has also not remained unaffected. Areas around Poonch, Mendhar, Riasi and Udhampur have often been used by militants to cross over to the Kashmir valley. 14 Grenadiers Battalion was deployed near Udhampur in 1999 when militants were suspected of having their hideouts in hamlets around there. It was during one cordon and search operation around Udhampur that Grenadier Devinder Singh Bhati of 14 Grenadiers laid down his life while gallantly fighting the militants, an act of valour for which he was awarded the Shaurya Chakra posthumously. The battle account of his bravery is recorded in digest of service of 14 Grenadiers.

Bhagwan Devi, mother of Devinder Bhati, recalls: “Jatey jatey mera beta mujhe mere doodh ki taqat ka ahsas kara gaya. Bola maa, maine tera doodh piya hai, dekhna ugrawadion pe main kitna bhari padta hun”. 

Havildar Giri Raj Singh, father of Devinder, had only this to say to his son while seeing him off at the Kaurali bus stop: “Beta nirbhay hokar apni duty karna. Pura Kaurali gaon tere saath hai”. And the last words of Devinder to his father were: “Pita Ji, main Bhati Rajput hun, voh bhi chodah Grenadier ka. Aisa kuchh karke lautunga ke gaon ke mere sarey dost mujhe salute marenge”. 

And not only his friends, the entire Kaurali village lined up and saluted the mortal remains of Grenadier Devinder Singh Bhati, the youngest Shaurya Chakra awardee in the Indian Army.

As a mark of respect, the alma mater of this brave heart is now Saheed Devinder Singh Bhati Government Senior Secondary School, Kaurali, Faridabad. 

The account of his bravery in digest of service of 14 Grenadiers reads...

Grenadier Devinder Singh Bhati was part of a column, which was carrying out a cordon and search operation in Thinmarg village near Udhampur in Jammu and Kashmir on October 12, 2000 .The area of operation was extremely rugged and with steep gradients at an altitude of over 13,000 feet. Grenadier Devinder’s column reached its location after an arduous march in extreme cold conditions and deployed its stops during daylight hours. After it got dark, a group of six terrorists attempted to break through Devinder’s portion of the cordon. The stops came under intense and automatic fire by the terrorists from a dominating position. The terrorists even lobbed hand grenades to silence the stops. Grenadier Devinder rushed to cover the stops but in the process was hit by bullets and splinters of grenades. Ignoring his grave injuries, he asked his cordon to take cover and engaged the terrorists in a fierce combat, killing two of them. 

Though Devinder had sustained severe injuries, he remained alert and proceeded to dislodge the terrorists who were bringing down devastating fire. Defying apogee of human endurance, Grenadier Devinder Singh Bhati charged towards the terrorists and sprayed the area with bullets, killing one more. Despite sustaining mortal injuries, the super human effort of Grenadier Devinder Bhati ensured that all the terrorists were killed in this operation. He attained martyrdom after sustaining 22 bullet injuries. 

For his raw courage, exemplary determination and supreme sacrifice in the best traditions of the Indian Army, Grenadier Devinder Singh Bhati was awarded the Shaurya Chakra posthumously. 

(The writer is a veteran Gunner, 6 Field Regiment)