NEW DELHI: The names of six Indian soldiers killed in action in May 2025 during Operation Sindoor, the four-day military clash with Pakistan, have been inscribed on the National War Memorial in Delhi, officials familiar with the matter said on Friday.
The victims included five army men and one from the Indian Air Force. Two of them were posthumously honored with gallantry awards last year for their heroism: marksman Sunil Kumar (Vir Chakra) and Sergeant Surendra Kumar (Vayu Sena Medal). Sunil Kumar was from the 4th Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry, while Surendra Kumar was a medical assistant posted at 39 Wing in Udhampur.
The names and units revealed for the first time are Major Subedar Pawan Kumar (HQ 10th Infantry Brigade; died 10 May 2025), Lance Naik Dinesh Kumar (5th Field Regiment; died 7 May 2025), AV Mood Muralinaik (851st Light Regiment; died 9 May 2025) and Havildar Sunil Kumar Singh (237 Field Workshop). The company died on June 6, 2025).
The soldiers were deployed to front-line bases during the operation. However, the sequence of events that led to their deaths was not immediately known.
In May 2025, the army revealed that it had lost five soldiers during Operation Sindoor.
On August 14, 2025, India recognized the heroism of its soldiers who participated in the operation, as they played a pivotal role in striking terrorist and military targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir; Then President Draupadi Murmu approved dozens of wartime honors for them.
Of the 127 gallantry medals and 40 distinguished service awards received by the President on the eve of the 79th Independence Day, there were four Kirti Chakra Medals, 15 Vir Chakra Medals, 16 Shaurya Chakra Medals, two Bar to Sena Medals (Galantry), 58 Sena Medals (Galantry), six Nao Sena Medals (Galantry) and 26 Vayu Sena Medals. (Gallantry), seven Sarvotam Yudhis Seva medals, nine Uttam Yudhis Seva medals and 24 Yudhis Seva medals.
The Vir Chakra winners included Colonel Kushank Lamba, Lieutenant Colonel Sushil Bisht, Deputy Subedar Satish Kumar, Rifle Gunner Sunil Kumar, Group Captain Ranjit Singh Sidhu, Group Captain Manish Arora, Group Captain Animesh Patni, Group Captain Kunal Kalra, Wing Commander Joy Chandra, Squadron Leader Sarthak Kumar, Squadron Leader Siddhant Singh and Squadron Leader Rizwan Malik. Flight Lieutenant Arshveer Singh, BSF Sub-Inspector Muhammad Imtiaz (posthumous) and Constable Deepak Chingkham (posthumous).
India launched Operation Sindoor in the early hours of May 7, 2025, striking Pakistani and PKK terrorist and military installations following the Pahalgam terror attack that killed 26 people.
Between the launch of the operation in the early hours of May 7 and the ceasefire on the evening of May 10, Indian forces bombed nine terrorist camps in Pakistan and PoK, killing at least 100 terrorists. The Indian Air Force also struck targets at 13 Pakistani air bases and military facilities. The nine terror camps that Indian forces struck with a combination of missiles and smart munitions included Subhan Allah Center in Bahawalpur, Taiba Center near Muridke, Mahmuna Joya in Sialkot, Sawai Nala and Syed Na Bilal in Muzaffarabad, Gulpur and Abbas in Kotli, Barnala in Bhimber, and Sargal.
The IAF struck targets in Bahawalpur and Muridke. The army struck the rest.
In May 2026, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh said Operation Sindoor signaled India’s collective resolve and new military ethos, and that the “short-duration, deep-penetration, high-intensity, high-impact operation” forced Pakistan’s surrender. It caused four days of strikes and counter-strikes with combat aircraft, missiles, drones, long-range weapons and heavy artillery before the two sides reached an understanding on cessation of all military actions on May 10.
