Sheonan Singh
Sheonan Singh Sandhu (Major General) fought bravely during Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka fighting with militants. He was awarded with Vir Chakra for his act of bravery. He was born in the family of sardar Ranvir Singh, younger brother of Bhagat Singh. Unit: 10 Parachute regiment.
Introduction
| SERVICE NUMBER | IC-30601 |
| RANK Major | General |
| NAME | Sheonan Singh |
| SON OF | Sardar Ranbir Singh |
| RESIDENT OF (Village/District/State)/DOMICILE | Ludhiana/Punjab |
| UNIT/REGIMENT/CORPS | 10 PARA SF |
| SERVICE | Indian Army |
| DATE OF ENROLMENT/ COMMISSION | 16 June 1974 |
| AWARD/DATE OF ACTION | Vir Chakra/12 October 1987 |
| WAR/BATTLE/OPERATION | Operation Pawan |
| OTHER AWARDS WITH DATE |
Major General Sheonan Singh, VrC belongs to a family of revolutionaries, being the nephew of Shaheed Bhagat Singh and thus it can be said that he has the fighting spirit in his blood. He is a trained Para-Commando, avid reader, qualified civil engineer, and an idealist soldier. Major General Sheonan Singh was born in Ludhiana in 1950 to [[Shaheed Bhagat Singh[[’s younger brother, Sardar Ranbir Singh. Ranbir had married a widow, Leela Rani, to break the taboo. As a young boy he was sent to AMU Aligarh for education. Besides perusing education, he learned Urdu language at his own and became proficient in Urdu poetry. He decided to become an engineer and took admission in University of Roorkee (now IIT Roorkee) to become a Civil Engineer. On completion of graduation, he joined the Indian Army and was commissioned into Corps of Engineers. But being the adventurist that he is he volunteered to join Special Forces for a challenging career.
He proved to be a fearless Commander at all levels of command. As commander of the Para Brigade at Agra, he decided to reclaim all encroached land which had been usurped over a period since independence. In spite of all types of pressures including intense political pressure he got all the encroachments removed. During his service he took part in all the insurgency infested areas with outstanding success. He was an instructor at the Commando Training School of the Indian Army and attended all selection grade courses. He also learned and qualified for as interpreter in Tibetan and Bhutanese Languages.
An administrator par excellence who applied his knowledge and skills for improvement of quality of life of men and officers under his command. With all the above, Major General Sheonan Singh was a very strict disciplinarian who never compromised for any dilution. He is a voracious reader and student of history of the world, who always encouraged and appreciated those who had the habit of reading. He used to quote “Those who don’t read enjoy no great advantage over those who can’t read”.
10 PARA was originally established in 1967 as the 9th Parachute Commando Battalion as a sister unit of the 9 PARA (SF) unit. 10 PARA (SF) specializes in Desert warfare and counterterrorism and counter insurgency operations. They are nicknamed the Desert Scorpions.
On 29 July 1987, a historic accord known as the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord was signed by then Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and Sri Lankan President J. R. Jayewardene in Colombo. According to this agreement, India participated directly in counterinsurgency operations in Sri Lanka against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during the Sri Lankan Civil War.1 The Sri Lankan civil war has raged since 1983, making it one of the longest and most intractable armed conflicts in South Asia.2 It has taken the lives of more than 60,000 Sri Lankans, and has made refugees out of more than 300,000 people. Sri-Lanka occupies a strategic place in the Indian Ocean region and a multi ethnic and multi religious land. Eighty two percent of the population is Sinhala and follows Buddhism; and the remaining 18 percent are Tamil and predominantly Hindu.
1. Operation Pawan: India in The Sri Lankan Civil War (Accessed on 20 February 2023) https://www.thedefencearchive.com/post/operation-pawan
2. Nambiar, Satish. For the honour Of India: A History of Indian Peacekeeping. Published by CAFHR, United Service Institution of India, New Delhi
The problem in Sri Lanka between Sinhalese and Tamil minority started when Tamil felt that their interests were neglected. To safeguard their rights, Tamils took arms and declared their intention to achieve ‘Tamil Eelam’- a separate state for Tamils.
The Sri Lankan Government tried to put down the Tamil movement by force but this resulted in the Tamil’s taking to guerrilla warfare. This soon resulted in a large number of refugees emigrating to the southern Indian state Tamil Nadu, which created considerable problems for India. After protracted negotiations, in which leaders of various Tamil groups were involved, an agreement was reached between Sri Lanka and India on 29 July 1987. As per the agreement, an Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) was inducted into Sri Lanka on 03 August 1987.3 It was India's first international peacekeeping mission post-independence. The objective was to eliminate the LTTE from control on the Jaffna Peninsula and impose disarmament. With a total with a military strength of 100,000 soldiers, the IPKF ran a classic counter-insurgency (CI) campaign from December 1987 to March 1990. Due to this even when the LTTE tried to take back Jaffna they were not able to. This operation is also known as OPERATION PAWAN.
On the night of 12 October 1987, the General in command of the IPKF claimed he had intelligence that the Jaffna University complex was being used by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam as their headquarters and the top LTTE leadership would be meeting there. Accordingly, he planned a heliborne operation to capture the LTTE leadership at the University after which the plan was to capture the Jaffna town.
Major General Sheonan Singh was the Second-in-Command of 10 PARA Commando and was deployed to Sri Lanka. During his entire service he never compromised in quality of work and
3. Param Vir: Our Heroes in Battle. Maj Gen Ian Cardozo. (2003). The Lotus Collection, Roli Books Pvt. Ltd. New Delhi, India.
accepted all challenges he faced. During his tenure with IPKF in Sri Lanka he participated boldly and bravely. In the initial stage of operations, he led a heliborne task force into the LTTE Headquarters then located in the Jaffna University. The assault was to begin at the Jaffna University grounds - a few kilometres from the IPKF headquarters at the Palali airbase. Major General Singh and his men were tasked with clearing space for the assault fo rces. On 12 October 1987, they heli-landed at Kokkavil to secure the Battalion position for an assault on the militant's Headquarters in Kondavil area. After landing, Major General Sheonan Singh occupied buildings directly opposite the militant's headquarters.
He and his commandos brought pressure on militants’ headquarters and inflicted casualties. He held on to his position for a period of 28 hours. During this period of 28 hours, his force was surrounded from all directions and effectively engaged by the militants from dominating buildings. The task force was heavily outnumbered but it continued its efforts to complete the task till ordered to pull back.
Major Sheonan Singh, Second-in-Command of 10 Para Commando, was deployed in Sri Lanka as part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force. On 12 October 1987, at 0200 hours Major Singh helilanded at Kokkavil to secure the battalion position for an assault on the militant's headquarters in Kondavil area. After landing, Major Singh occupied buildings directly opposite the militant's headquarters. He and his commandos brought pressure on militants’ headquarters and inflicted casualties. He held on to his position tenaciously for 28 hours till link-up was established at 0600 hours on 13 October 1987 with our force. During this period of 28 hours, his force was surrounded from all directions and effectively engaged by the militants from dominating buildings. Having completed his task, the officer left his position only when ordered to extricate at 0640 hours on 13 October 1987.
Major Sheonan Singh thus displayed conspicuous courage and devotion to duty of the highest order in the face of militants. Reference: Gazette of India, Notification No. Sr. 18 dated April, 1983 Part - 1
REFERENCES
1. Operation Pawan: India in The Sri Lankan Civil War (Accessed on 20 February 2023) https://www.thedefencearchive.com/post/operation-pawan
2. Nambiar, Satish. For the honour Of India: A History of Indian Peacekeeping. Published by CAFHR, United Service Institution of India, New Delhi
3. Param Vir: Our Heroes in Battle. Maj Gen Ian Cardozo. (2003). The Lotus Collection, Roli Books Pvt. Ltd. New Delhi, India.
1. Operation Pawan: India in The Sri Lankan Civil War (Accessed on 20 February 2023)
https://www.thedefencearchive.com/post/operation-pawan
2. Nambiar, Satish. For the honour Of India: A History of Indian Peacekeeping. Published by CAFHR, United Service Institution of India, New Delhi
3. Param Vir: Our Heroes in Battle. Maj Gen Ian Cardozo. (2003). The Lotus Collection, Roli Books Pvt. Ltd. New Delhi, India.
मेजर श्योनन सिंह
मेजर श्योनन सिंह
यूनिट - 10 पैराशूट रेजिमेंट (Desert Scorpion)
ऑपरेशन पवन
मेजर श्योनन सिंह का जन्म महान क्रांतिकारी भगत सिंह के छोटे भाई सरदार रणवीर सिंह के घर में हुआ था। 16 जून 1974 को उन्हें भारतीय सेना की पैराशूट रेजिमेंट की 10 बटालियन में सैकिंड लेफ्टिनेंट के रूप में कमीशन प्राप्त हुआ था।
वर्ष 1987 में 10 पैरा बटालियन के सैकिंड-इन-कमांड मेजर श्योनान सिंह को भारतीय शांति सेना के एक भाग के रूप में ऑपरेशन पवन के अंतर्गत श्रीलंका में तैनात किया गया था।
12 अक्टूबर 1987 को, रात्रि के 2:00 बजे मेजर सिंह जाफना के कोंडाविल क्षेत्र में लिट्टे के मुख्यालय पर आक्रमण के लिए बटालियन की स्थिति को सुरक्षित करने के लिए कोकोविल में हेलीकॉप्टर से उतरे। उतरने के पश्चात, मेजर सिंह ने लिट्टे मुख्यालय के सटीक समक्ष के भवनों पर अधिकार कर लिया।
मेजर सिंह और उनके कमांडो ने लिट्ट मुख्यालय पर दबाव बनाया और उन्हें क्षति पहुंचाई। 13 अक्टूबर 1987 को प्रातः 6:00 बजे हमारी सेना के साथ जुड़ने से पूर्व 28 घंटों तक वह दृढ़तापूर्वक अपनी स्थिति पर डटे रहे।
28 घंटों की इस अवधि में, उनके बल को चारों ओर से घेर लिया गया और वहां के भवनों पर आधिपत्य किए लिट्टे उग्रवादियों द्वारा प्रभावी रूप से आक्रमण किए गए। मेजर सिंह ने उनका कार्य पूर्ण होने के पश्चात, अपनी स्थिति को तभी छोड़ा, जब 13 अक्टूबर 1987 को प्राप्त 6:40 बजे उन्हें वहां की स्थिति छोड़ने का आदेश दिया गया।
इस प्रकार मेजर श्योनन सिंह ने लिट्टे उग्रवादियों के समक्ष अदम्य साहस और सर्वोच्च कोटि की कर्तव्यनिष्ठा का प्रदर्शन किया। उन्हें वीर चक्र से सम्मानित किया गया। वह मेजर जनरल के रूप में सेवानिवृत्त हुए।
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