Ajay Kothiyal | |
---|---|
Born | Tehri, Uttarakhand, India | 26 February 1969
Allegiance | India |
Service | Indian Army |
Years of service | 1992–2018 |
Rank | Colonel |
Service number | IC-51821X [1] |
Unit | The Garhwal Rifles |
Commands | 4th Battalion/Nuranang Battalion; 10th Battalion, of The Garhwal Rifles |
Battles / wars | Kargil War |
Awards | Kirti Chakra Shaurya Chakra Vishisht Seva Medal |
Spouse(s) | Unmarried |
Relations | Inspector General (Retd.) Satyasharan Kothiyal (father); Late. Sushila Kothiyal (mother) |
Other work | Principal of Nehru Institute of Mountaineering; [2] Founder of Youth Foundation Uttarakhand, India [3] |
Website | Youth Foundation Uttarakhand |
Colonel Ajay Kothiyal, KC, SC, VSM (Retd) is an Indian politician and a former officer of the Indian Army. He is a BJP leader, earlier he was leader of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and was the CM Candidate for 2022 Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly elections. Kothiyal lost the election to BJP candidate in Gangotri Assembly constituency. In May 2022, he resigned from AAP and joined BJP. [4]
He is also a mountaineer and philanthropist, and was the principal of Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM), Uttarakhand. [5] [6]
He was the head of Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, Uttarkashi when the institute was given the task of rescue and rehabilitation around the Kedarnath Temple, after its destruction by a flash flood in 2013. Kothiyal is unmarried. His non-profit trust, "Youth Foundation" trains young boys and girls from Uttarakhand to join the Indian Army. [7] He was given the Uttarakhand Ratna award in 2016 for his contribution to uplift and provide employment to youth of Uttarakhand. [8]
Kothiyal was born on 26 February 1969, as the eldest son of Inspector General (Retd.) Satyasharan Kothiyal, Border Security Force and Sushila Kothiyal. His alma mater include St. Joseph's Academy, Dehradun, Brightlands School, Kendriya Vidyalaya Dehradun, D.A.V.Post Graduate College Dehradun and Indian Military Academy. [5] [9]
After completing his graduation, he cleared the CDS exam and joined the Fourth Battalion of Garhwal Rifles Regiment as Second Lieutenant in 1992. In 1994, Colonel Kothiyal started training in 'basic mountain warfare' from High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS).[ citation needed ]
Colonel Kothiyal (then Major) was part of the first team of the Indian Army that successfully summited the Mount Everest in 2001, under the leadership of Brigadier Krishan Kumar AVSM.[ citation needed ]
On 13 May 2003, then Major not caring for his personal safety; displayed raw courage and killed off charging 4 terrorists with accurate fire. He was wounded in the operation, in which seven terrorists were neutralized. He was awarded Kirti Chakra. [10] [11] He still has two bullets inside his body. [12]
In 2011, he decided to scale the eighth highest peak in the world, Mt. Manaslu. No Indian had ever successfully climbed this mountain. Fighting harsh weather and inhospitable conditions, his team unfurled the Indian Flag at the peak of Manaslu on 9 May 2011. He was awarded "Vishisht Seva Medal". [13]
In 2012, Colonel Kothiyal led a team of seven female officers from Indian army and successfully scaled the world's highest peak for the second time. Mrs Pratibha Singh Patil, President of India at that time, awarded him Shaurya Chakra. [14]
In 2013, Kedarnath Temple, India's pilgrimage shrine was hit by natural disaster in which many lost lives. Colonel Kothiyal and his team were among the first to reach the affected area. He was given the responsibility of search and rescue operations. Under his supervision, Kedarnath was rebuilt and restored to its pristine form. He is credited with taking charge of the restoration process of Kedarpuri the shrine area at Kedarnath, at an elevation of more than 11,000 feet supervising more than 1000 workers who worked hard in harsh sub zero climate. [15] [16]
In the same year, he also started a nonprofit trust called Youth Foundation to help the rural youth in Garhwal region to join the Indian Military and Para Military Services. The Foundation also helps in providing medical facilities to the poor people in Garhwal region. [17]
While working in Kedarnath, Colonel Kothiyal had recruited a few young men from nearby villages to assist him. He observed that the youth of Garhwal wanted to join the Indian Army but lacked proper training to do so. To bridge the gap, Colonel Kothiyal started a training program for such people. He self-funded the cause. The first batch had only 11 trainees, and the Army recruited all of them. In 2013, 28 out of the 30 youths he had trained were recruited in the Garhwal Rifles. [18] This success drew huge number of youth to seek his guidance and training. As a result, in 2015 he registered "Youth Foundation" as a charitable not-for-profit trust. [19]
In 2018, Colonel Kothiyal took voluntary retirement from army to focus on social work through Youth Foundation. [20]
He joined the Aam Aadmi Party on 19 April 2021. He was the Chief Ministerial candidate from Aam Aadmi Party in 2022 Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly election. He contested from Gangotri Assembly constituency of Uttarakhand and came third with the BJP candidate winning the seat. [21] He left the Aam Aadmi Party on 18 May 2022. [22]
Six days later on 24 May 2022 he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party while describing it as a "course correction". [23]
Garhwal is one of the two administrative divisions of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Lying in the Himalayas, it is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon, on the south by Uttar Pradesh state, and on the northwest by Himachal Pradesh state. It includes the districts of Chamoli, Dehradun, Haridwar, Pauri Garhwal, Rudraprayag, Tehri Garhwal, and Uttarkashi. The people of Garhwal are known as Garhwali and speak the Garhwali language. The administrative center for Garhwal division is the town of Pauri. The Divisional Commissioner is the administrative head of the Division, and is a senior Indian Administrative Service officer. As the administrative head of the division, the Commissioner is overall incharge of the 7 districts in the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, and is aided in his duties by an additional commissioner and the district magistrates. Sushil Kumar is the divisional commissioner of the Garhwal Division since December 2021.
The Brigade of The Guards is a mechanised infantry regiment of the Indian Army. It was raised as the first "all India", "all class" infantry unit of the Army where troops from all parts of India serve together, as opposed to other regiments that recruit from specific regions, ethnic groups or religions.
The Kirti Chakra is an Indian military decoration awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice away from the field of battle. It may be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel, including posthumous awards. It is the peacetime equivalent of the Maha Vir Chakra. It is second in order of precedence of peacetime gallantry awards, comes after Ashoka Chakra and before Shaurya Chakra. Before 1967, the award was known as the Ashoka Chakra, Class II.
Bachendri Pal is an Indian mountaineer. In 1984, she became the first Indian woman to climb the summit of the world's highest mountain, Mount Everest. She was awarded the third highest civilian award in India, Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 2019.
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Uttarkashi, meaning Kashi of the north, is a town located in Uttarkashi district in Uttarakhand, India. Uttarkashi town is headquarters of the district. Uttarkashi is also known as Somya Kashi. Uttarkashi is a Hindu religious place for spiritual and adventurous tourism. Uttarkashi town is also called as Shivnagri. The town has number of temples and ashrams. Uttarkashi is known for its religious people, weather, education.
Lt. Col. Maharaja Manabendra Shah was a member of the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th and 14th Lok Sabha of India. He represented the Tehri Garhwal constituency of Uttarakhand and was a member of the Indian National Congress before joining the Bharatiya Jan Sangh and later the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) political party. He became one of the BJP's longest-serving members. Shah was ambassador to Ireland from 1980 to 1983.
Kedarnath Temple is a Hindu temple, one of the twelve jyotirlinga of Shiva. The temple is located on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini river, in the state of Uttarakhand, India. Due to extreme weather conditions, the temple is open to the general public only between the months of April and November. During the winters, the vigraha (deity) of the temple is carried down to Ukhimath to be worshipped for the next six months. Kedarnath is seen as a homogeneous form of Shiva, the 'Lord of Kedarkhand', the historical name of the region.
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