Colonel Bikumalla Santosh Babu was born on 13th February 1983, to Shri Bikumalla Upender Babu and Smt Manjula. He was a native Suryapet district of Telangana. After completing his school, he got selected in the prestigious National Defence Academy and later joined the Indian Military Academy. He was commissioned on 10th December 2004. He got commissioned into 16 Bihar of the Bihar Regiment. On 2nd December 2019 he was appointed as the Commanding Officer of 16 Bihar, his parent unit deployed in Ladakh.
| Service Number | IC64405M |
| Place of Birth | Suryapet, Telangana |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Unit | 16 Bihar |
| Regiment | Bihar Regiment |
| Award | Maha Vir Chakra |
| Date of Martyrdom | 15th June 2020 |
During June 2020, Sepoy Jai’s unit was deployed in eastern Ladakh close to the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as part of Operation Snow Leopard. Since early June the tension along the LAC was building up due to construction work in Galwan valley close to the road going from Leh to Daulat Beg Oldie. On 15th June 2020 night, restless Chinese activities were noticed in Galwan valley. Considering the seriousness of the situation, Colonel Santosh Babu the commanding officer of 16 Bihar battalion deployed in the area decided to lead the negotiations. However, the negotiation turned into altercation and altercation turned into scuffle which ultimately took the form of a violent clash with the Chinese soldiers. The clashes continued for hours and many Indian soldiers including Colonel Santosh Babu got seriously injured. Colonel Santosh Babu and 19 other soldiers later succumbed to their injuries.
Colonel Santosh Babu was awarded the prestigious ‘Maha Vir Chakra’ posthumously on 26th January 2021, for showing valiance in the battlefield.
