Lieutenant Pankaj Arora was born on 20th September 1978 in Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh. After completing his graduation, he got selected to join the army through Combined Defence Services Examination. Consequently, he joined the Indian Military Academy and got commissioned on 10th Dec 2002 at the age of 24 years. He was commissioned into 18 MLI of the Maratha Light Infantry Regiment. In Aug 2003, Lieutenant Pankaj’s unit 18 MLI was deployed in the Poonch district of J&K for counter-insurgency operations.
| Service Number | IC62871 H |
| Place of Birth | Bareilly, UP |
| Rank | Lieutenant |
| Unit | 18 Maratha LI |
| Regiment | Maratha Light Infantry |
| Award | Sena Medal |
| Date of Martyrdom | 24th August 2003 |
On 24th August 2003, based on intelligence information about the presence of some hardcore terrorists in its AOR, the unit decided to launch an operation. Lieutenant Pankaj and his soldiers reached the suspected area as planned. However, before the troops could make contact with the terrorists, they were attacked by over 15 terrorists hiding nearby. Though taken aback by the surprise attack, Lt Pankaj quickly reorganized his team and retaliated. Lieutenant Pankaj showing great courage and gallantry eliminated two terrorists single-handedly. However, due to deliberate wrong information was given by the local informant, Lieutenant Pankaj and his team were caught off-guard. Lt Pankaj was eventually captured by the terrorists and tortured subsequently. His body was recovered later by his unit personnel.
Lieutenant Pankaj Arora was given the gallantry award ‘Sena Medal’ for his courage, leadership, and supreme sacrifice during the operation.
