An Immortal BITSian

When the packed auditorium gives a standing ovation to a brave son of India, you get goose bumps. BITS Pilani honoured its proudest alumni Capt Ravi Shankar (P) with the Distinguished Services Award in Hyderabad. The award was received by Mrs Krishnamurthi, mother of the fallen hero who fell to terrorists bullets in J&K, 25 years ago. Today's pictures for you:

Who is Capt Ravi Shankar?

We wrote this original story four years ago. Read on.

Twenty seven is no age to go.

Just six years of commissioned service.

Driven by passion and spirit of adventure.

Rescued and tended an injured eagle in the desert.

Fought the terrorists till the last bullet.

Such bravehearts do not die. They become immortal.

This is the story of Capt Ravi Shankar, a fellow BITSian who laid down his life 21 years ago this day 6th of December. It is not an obituary. Because the brave do not want their death to be mourned. To borrow Prachi Singh's words, the soul of a martyr soldier says, "I regret I have only one life to give for my country".

Captain Ravi Shankar was larger than life. An avid reader and nature lover, he was referred to as a walking encyclopedia by his friends in the Army. Ravi was very fond of animals, birds and children. Once he rescued an injured eagle and sheltered it in his hostel room in Pilani. Full of life, he was always keen on adventure. 

Ravi was born on 15th Jan 1969 in the historic town of Thanjavur. He was the only son and brother to three sisters. All the pictures are courtesy Dr Chitra Shanker, Ravi's sister. Chitra- many thanks.

His father Mr R Krishnamurthi an engineer, worked with Neyveli Lignite Corporation's fertiliser plant in various capacities.  Ravi did his schooling at St Joseph of Cluny and Jawahar Higher Secondary School at Neyveli. He was a brilliant student and made it to BITS Pilani in 1986 without any coaching! He completed his BE in Civil engineering from BITS in 1990.

Suresh Subramanian, a fellow BITSian recalls Ravi thus, "Salute da. Proud to be your relative. Still the memories afresh of your chirpiness and easy going yet caring attitude towards me during my freshmen college days. Miss you". 

Another fellow BITSian Vijayasarathi Ramaswami remembers Ravi as his next door neighbor in Neyveli. He adds, "I learnt almost everything from him as a child, be it cycling, games. He used to be so active, sharp and had varied interests. He was highly innovative. No wonder he made it into BITS effortlessly. He used to make such a huge positive difference to people around him even at that age".

Graduating from BITS Pilani Ravi interned for a year in Mumbai and then joined the Army. 

He was commissioned into 118 Engr Regiment in the Corps of Engineers. 

Belonging to the Bombay Engineer Group he was deputed to 20 Rashtriya Rifles in J&K during Op Rakshak. It was during the anti-terrorist operations in Kashmir that he attained martyrdom on 6th December 1997 at a young age of 27 years. With total disregard to personal safety, Ravi braved oncoming gunfire to save the lives of his combat team mates and made the supreme sacrifice. 

Even though 21 years have passed, those who came in contact with him remember him as a person who would do anything for them. And that is what he exactly did. He did what most would dare not. He laid down his life for all of us. Brave hearts like Ravi are immortal.

Ravi  we salute your bravery, your guts and your sacrifice. We hope to rejoin you someday. Till then, take care Buddy.


   - A fellow BITSian/ 6th December 2018/ Harsh-the-Ghumakkad with inputs from Dr Chitra Shanker

Postscript:

29th July 2022. BITS Pilani, Ravi's alma mater honoured him with the Distinguished Services Award. It is the first time that the Institute has given any award posthumously. See the announcement below.

Ravi certainly deserved it. Jai Hind!

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