Ramaswamy Parameshwaran
Encyclopedia
Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran, was born on 13 September 1946, in Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...

, Maharashtra
Maharashtra
Maharashtra is a state located in India. It is the second most populous after Uttar Pradesh and third largest state by area in India...

, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

. He was granted Short Service Commission in the Mahar Regiment
Mahar Regiment
The Mahar Regiment is an Infantry Regiment of the Indian Army. Although it was originally intended to be a regiment consisting of troops from the Mahars in Maharashtra, the Mahar Regiment is one of the only regiments in the Indian Army that is composed of troops from all communities and regions of...

 on 16 January 1972. He took part in a number of operations undertaken by the Indian Army and was awarded the Param Vir Chakra
Param Vir Chakra
The Param Vir Chakra is India's highest military decoration awarded for the highest degree of valour or self-sacrifice in the presence of the enemy. It can be, and often has been, awarded posthumously....

, India's highest military decoration, for his bravery.

Military Action

Under the Indo-Sri Lanka Agreement many Indian Army
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. With about 1,100,000 soldiers in active service and about 1,150,000 reserve troops, the Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army...

 units were dispatched to Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka is a country off the southern coast of the Indian subcontinent. Known until 1972 as Ceylon , Sri Lanka is an island surrounded by the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait, and lies in the vicinity of India and the...

 to maintain law and order there. The Mahar Regiment, Major Parameswaran's unit, was also sent to Sri Lanka to participate in Operation Pawan. On 25 November 1987, Major Parameswaran was returning with his column from a search operation late in the night. Suddenly, his column was ambushed by a group of militants.

With great presence of mind he encircled the militants from the rear and boldly charged them. This completely surprised the enemy. During the hand-to-hand combat that followed, one militant shot him in the chest. Undaunted by his grave injury, he snatched the rifle from a militant and shot him dead. Though critically wounded he continued to give orders and inspire his command until he breathed his last. The ambush was finally cleared. In this action, five militants were killed and three rifles & two rocket launchers were captured. For the most conspicuous bravery & supreme sacrifice, Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran was honoured with the highest wartime gallantry medal, Param Vir Chakra, posthumously.

Citation

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

MAJOR RAMASWAMY PARAMESWARAN

8 MAHAR REGIMENT (IC-32907)
Mahar Regiment
The Mahar Regiment is an Infantry Regiment of the Indian Army. Although it was originally intended to be a regiment consisting of troops from the Mahars in Maharashtra, the Mahar Regiment is one of the only regiments in the Indian Army that is composed of troops from all communities and regions of...


On 25 November 1987, when Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran was returning from search operation in Sri Lanka, late at night, his column was ambushed by a group of militants. With cool presence of mind, he encircled the militants from the rear and charged into them, taking them completely surprise. During the hand-to-hand combat, a militant shot him in the chest. Undaunted, Major Parameswaran snatched the rifle from the militant and shot him dead. Gravely wounded, he continued to give orders and inspired his command till he breathed his last. Five militants were killed and three rifles and two rocket launchers were recovered and the ambush was cleared .

Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran displayed the most conspicuous gallantry and thought nothing of dying at his post.

See also

Jai Hind Jai Bharat
  • Indian Army
    Indian Army
    The Indian Army is the land based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. With about 1,100,000 soldiers in active service and about 1,150,000 reserve troops, the Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army...

  • Param Vir Chakra
    Param Vir Chakra
    The Param Vir Chakra is India's highest military decoration awarded for the highest degree of valour or self-sacrifice in the presence of the enemy. It can be, and often has been, awarded posthumously....

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