The Twenty of Galwan
Honoring Every Martyr by Name
Naib Subedar Nuduram Soren (VrC), Havildar K. Palani (VrC), and 18 others - from Bihar, Punjab, West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Jharkhand, and across India. This lesson names and honors each of the 20 Galwan martyrs. Their backgrounds, their families, their sacrifice.
Twenty Names, One Nation
On the frozen heights of Galwan, 20 Indian soldiers made the supreme sacrifice on the night of June 15, 2020. They came from across India - from Bihar and Punjab, Tamil Nadu and Jharkhand, Uttarakhand and West Bengal. They spoke different languages, followed different customs, came from different backgrounds. But they fought as one - as Indians.
This lesson honors each of them by name. Because names matter. Because behind every statistic is a human being - a son, a husband, a father. Because forgetting their names would be forgetting their sacrifice.
The Commanding Officer
1. Colonel Bikumalla Santosh Babu, MVC (Posthumous) 16 Bihar Regiment | Age: 37 | From: Suryapet, Telangana
The first among equals. Colonel Santosh Babu led from the front and died fighting. A third-generation Army officer, he refused to step back when Chinese troops violated the disengagement agreement. When the ambush began, he rallied his men and fought hand-to-hand until his last breath.
He leaves behind his wife Santoshi and two children - 9-year-old daughter Abhigna and 5-year-old son Anirudh. His mother Manjula said: "I am proud of my son. He died for the nation."
The Gallantry Award Recipients
2. Naib Subedar Nuduram Soren, VrC (Posthumous) 16 Bihar Regiment | Age: 36 | From: Mayurbhanj, Odisha
A Santhal tribal from the forests of Odisha. Nuduram Soren joined the Army to escape poverty, but found purpose in service. At Galwan, he fought beside his commanding officer, battling Chinese soldiers with bare hands. He was awarded the Vir Chakra, India's third-highest wartime gallantry award.
He leaves behind his wife and two daughters. The village of Raipur in Mayurbhanj district mourned their hero.
3. Havildar K. Palani, VrC (Posthumous) 16 Bihar Regiment | Age: 41 | From: Ramanathapuram, Tamil Nadu