The Indian Army has confirmed a rare cross-border operation along the Indo-Myanmar border carried out in July 2025, following the award of a Shaurya Chakra to Lieutenant Colonel Ghatage Aditya Shrikumar of 21 Para Special Forces.
The gallantry citation, approved by the President on the eve of Republic Day 2026, marks the first official acknowledgement of the covert strike.
Shaurya Chakra for Lt Col who led op to ‘eliminate’ terror leadership along Indo-Myanmar border
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Lieutenant Colonel Shrikumar was honoured for planning and personally leading a precision operation between 11th and 13th July, 2025. According to Army sources, the mission destroyed a fortified militant camp and killed nine armed cadres, including senior leaders of a notorious anti-national group.
The award note praised his leadership and tactical planning, but did not reveal operational details.
The operation had drawn attention last year after the United Liberation Front of Asom Independent (ULFA-I) issued a series of statements on 13th July claiming that Indian Army drones had hit its eastern headquarters in Myanmar in the early hours.
At the time, the Army denied carrying out any such strike. The outfit later said that its self-styled Lieutenant General Nayan Medhi, also known as Nayan Asom, was killed in the attack.
It further claimed that while his funeral was underway, fresh strikes took place, killing Brigadier Ganesh Asom and Colonel Pradip Asom.
ULFA-I, which follows an anti-talks line and demands a sovereign Assam, operates mobile camps inside Myanmar’s Sagaing region along the long and porous border with India. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had earlier said that the state police had no role in any such action.
The July strike came weeks after another intense incident along the same border. On 14th May, 2025, Major Arshdeep Singh of 1 Assam Rifles was leading a special patrol when his team came under sudden fire from a dominating height.
Despite heavy firing and difficult terrain, Major Singh assaulted the position through dense undergrowth and neutralised multiple armed cadres, including one carrying an RPG launcher.
His actions ensured zero casualties among his troops, earning him the Kirti Chakra, India’s second-highest peacetime gallantry award.
It remains unclear whether the May encounter directly led to the July operation, but both actions underline heightened military activity along the Indo-Myanmar border during that period.
