2nd Lt Makarand Raghunath Ghanekar was born on 19th July 1949. He belonged to Mumbai in Maharastra. He was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant into 5 Maratha LI of the Maratha Light Infantry Regiment. During the 1971 war 2nd Lt Makarand Raghunath Ghanekar’s unit, 5 Maratha was deployed at Kotchandpur.
| Service Number | |
| Place of Birth | Mumbai |
| Rank | 2nd Lieutenant |
| Unit | 5 Maratha LI |
| Regiment | Maratha Light Infantry |
| Award | Shaurya Chakra |
| Date of Martyrdom | 5th December 1971 |
On the night of 4th December 1971 after capturing Kotchandpur, 2nd Lt Ghanekar and his team went on a reconnaissance mission towards Elangi / Kaliganj. The team went further ahead near a village whereas a precautionary measure, 2nd Lt Ghanekar launched a grenade. Since this action did not evoke any response from the enemy, they assumed that the area was clear and proceeded towards a nearby lake. However, here the reconnaissance team came under attack from the enemy forces. 2nd Lt Ghanekar managed to kill a senior officer of the Pakistani army. 2nd Lt Ghanekar and his team had to engage in close combat with the enemy soldiers and during this fight, he was hit on the head by a rifle butt. Unfortunately, he fell in the lake after the hit and was martyred.
2nd Lieutenant Ghanekar was given the gallantry award, “Shaurya Chakra” posthumously.
