Service No: IC-13158
Date of Birth : Apr 10, 1941
Place of Birth : Multan(Pak)
Service: Army
Last Rank: Major
Unit : 5 Sikh
Arm/Regt : The Sikh Regiment
Operation : Op Cactus Lily
Date of Martyrdom : 05 Dec 1971
Major Devinderjit Singh Pannu was born on 10th April 1941 in Multan of present day Pakistan and later his family got settled in Jullundur, Punjab. Son of an Army veteran Lt Col Gurdial Singh, Maj Devinderjit Singh Pannu joined the Army on 10 June 1962 at the age of 21 years. He was commissioned into 5 Sikh of the Sikh Regiment, an infantry Regiment known for its intrepid soldiers and scores of battle honours.
By 1971, Maj Pannu had put in about 9 years of service and gathered substantial experience in various challenging operations. Son of an Army officer, Maj Pannu was a soldier at heart and soon evolved into a no-nonsense and committed soldier. As the tensions with Pakistan escalated in 1971, his battalion 5 Sikh was deployed in Chhamb-Jaurian sector of J & K.
Indo-Pak War: 4 /5th Dec 1971
The Indo-Pak war of 1971 officially commenced on 03 Dec 1971 when Pakistani Air Force attacked various air fields of the IAF. Within hours after the air attack Pakistan’s 23 Division opened Artillery fire with all its nine Regiments along a 30-40 Kms front in the Chhamb sector. Soon therafter a well-coordinated attack with armour was launched on 191 Brigade, which was the only Brigade of 10 Division of Indian Army defending the area west of the Munawar Tawi river at that time. 5 Sikh battalion commanded by Lt Col Prem Khanna was part of the 191 Brigade and was given the task of blunting the Pakistani attack. Maj Devinderjit Singh Pannu was commanding one of the companies of the battalion and was given the responsibility of defending one of the important approaches to the sector.
Maj Devinderjit Singh Pannu was given the gallantry award, “Vir Chakra” for his outstanding courage, unyielding fighting spirit, and supreme sacrifice.
The Citation of Vir Chakra awarded to him reads:
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