Brigadier Saurabh Singh Shekhawat, KC, SC, SM, VSM, with IC-52871, is the most decorated serving officer in the Indian Army. He is an accomplished mountaineer and a member of the 21st Battalion of The Parachute Regiment (Special Forces). Brigadier Shekhawat has been awarded the Kirti Chakra, Shaurya Chakra, Sena Medal, and Vishisht Seva Medal for his acts of gallantry in anti-terrorist operations and mountaineering, along with distinguished service. Additionally, he has served with the Maratha Light Infantry.
5 Inspiring Facts About Brigadier Saurabh Singh Shekhawat
- He has received the Kirti Chakra, Shaurya Chakra, Sena Medal, and Vishisht Seva Medal for demonstrating gallantry in anti-terrorist operations, mountaineering, and distinguished service.
- He has additionally been honored with the Samanya Seva Medal, Operation Vijay Star Medal, Special Service Medal, Siachen Glacier Medal, Operation Vijay Medal, and Operation Parakram Medal. In a letter to Army headquarters in 2017, he referred to himself as the “highest decorated serving officer in the army with an unblemished operational profile.”
- He was commissioned in the Indian Army as a second lieutenant in 1994 from the Officers Training Academy, Chennai, through the UPSC Combined Defence Services Examination in May 1992. He was promoted to lieutenant on June 11, 1996, and to captain on June 11, 1999. Further, he was promoted to lieutenant-colonel on June 11, 2007, and to colonel on January 6, 2010 (with seniority from January 1). He attained the rank of Brigadier in March 2020.
- He has successfully climbed Mount Everest three times, in 2001, 2003, and 2005.
- He has also scaled Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa, as well as Mount Blanc, the highest peak in the Alps and Western Europe. In October 2009, he led the joint Indo-Kazakh team to summit the Kazakhstan peak of Marble Wall Peak. Shekhawat has successfully climbed 14 high peaks, some multiple times.
