Colonel Colonel ( ; abbreviated as Col., Col, or COL) is a senior military Officer (armed forces), officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th, and 19th centuries, a colon ...

Ajay Kothiyal, KC, SC, VSM (Retd) is an Indian politician and a former officer of the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

. He is a BJP leader, earlier he was leader of

Aam Aadmi Party The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP, ) is a List of political parties in India, political party in India. It was founded on 26 November 2012 by Arvind Kejriwal and his then-companions, following the 2011 Indian anti-corruption movement against then gover ...

(AAP) and was the CM Candidate for

2022 Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly election Legislative Assembly elections were held in Elections in Uttarakhand, Uttarakhand on 2022 elections in India, 14 February 2022 to elect List of constituencies of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly, 70 members of the Uttarakhand Legislative Ass ...

s. Kothiyal lost the election to BJP candidate in Gangotri Assembly constituency. In May 2022, he resigned from AAP and joined BJP. He is also a

mountaineer Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sports ...

and philanthropist, and was the principal of Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM),

Uttarakhand Uttarakhand (, ), also known as Uttaranchal ( ; List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2007), is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. The state is bordered by Himachal Pradesh to the n ...

. He was the head of Nehru Institute of Mountaineering,

Uttarkashi Uttarkashi is a town and the headquarters of Uttarkashi district in Uttarakhand, India. Geography Uttarkashi is located at . It has an average elevation of . Demographics India census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is t ...

when the institute was given the task of rescue and rehabilitation around the

Kedarnath Temple Kēdāranātha Temple (Sanskrit: केदारनाथ मंदिर, IAST: ''Kēdāranātha Mandira'', ) is a Hindu temple, one of the twelve ''jyotirlinga'' of Śiva. The temple is located on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Manda ...

, 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. He was given the Uttarakhand Ratna award in 2016 for his contribution to uplift and provide employment to youth of Uttarakhand.

Early life

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 The Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan () is a system of Government of India, central government schools in India. Governed by the Ministry of Education (India), Ministry of Education, Government of India. , it has a total of 1,257 schools in India, ...

Dehradun, D.A.V.Post Graduate College Dehradun and

Indian Military Academy The Indian Military Academy (IMA) is one of the oldest military academies in India, and trains officers for the Indian Army. Located in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, it was established in 1932 following a recommendation by a military committee set up ...

Military service

After completing his graduation, he cleared the CDS exam and joined the Fourth Battalion of

Garhwal Rifles The Garhwal Rifles, are an infantry regiment of the Indian Army. It was originally raised in 1887 as the 39th (Garhwal) Regiment of the Bengal Army. It then became "The Royal Garhwal Rifles" as part of the British Indian Army, and after the Inde ...

Regiment as Second Lieutenant in 1992. In 1994, Colonel Kothiyal started training in 'basic mountain warfare' from High Altitude Warfare School (HAWS). Colonel Kothiyal (then Major) was part of the first team of the

that successfully summited the

Mount Everest Mount Everest (), known locally as Sagarmatha in Nepal and Qomolangma in Tibet, is Earth's highest mountain above sea level. It lies in the Mahalangur Himal sub-range of the Himalayas and marks part of the China–Nepal border at it ...

in 2001, under the leadership of Brigadier Krishan Kumar AVSM. 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 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 ...

. He still has two bullets inside his body. 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 The Vishisht Seva Medal (VSM, ) is a decoration of the Indian Armed Forces. It is awarded to recognize "distinguished service of a high order" to all ranks of the Indian Armed Forces. From 1980, the Yudh Seva Medal was introduced to recognize ex ...

". 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 The president of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, and the commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the Indian Armed ...

at that time, awarded him

Shaurya Chakra The Shaurya Chakra () is an Indian military decoration awarded for valour, courageous action or self-sacrifice while not engaged in direct action with the enemy. It may be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel, sometimes posthum ...

. In 2013,

, 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. 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.

Social work

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

. 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. In 2018, Colonel Kothiyal took voluntary retirement from army to focus on social work through Youth Foundation.

Political career

He joined the

on 19 April 2021. He was the Chief Ministerial candidate from Aam Aadmi Party in

. He contested from Gangotri Assembly constituency of Uttarakhand and came third with the BJP candidate winning the seat. He left the Aam Aadmi Party on 18 May 2022. Six days later on 24 May 2022 he joined the

Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...

while describing it as a "course correction".

Military decorations

Awards

* Salaam India Awards – Special Award * Uttarakhand Ratna

References

"30% jump in applicants after Army eases height rule"

* [https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/dehradun/preparations-in-full-swing-for-pms-state-visit-day-after-diwali/articleshow/61134979.cms "Nehru Institute of Mountaineering, director Col Ajay Kothiyal are invitees for the PM's function."]
"Youth Foundation to organise selection camps from June 12"

Day-long 'Raibaar' discusses ways to solve U'khand's pressing issues

External links

Colonel Ajay Kothiyal (Kirti Chakra, Shaurya Chakra, Vishisht Sewa Medal)

Cross Fire Col.Ajay Kothiyal Sadhna Prime 6.30 PM 8 August

Kudos to women Army officials

Mission Kedarnath Documentary

Salaam India Awards winner Col Ajay Kothiyal

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kothiyal, Ajay 1969 births Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Uttarakhand Garhwali people Indian Army officers Indian summiters of Mount Everest Living people Military personnel from Uttarakhand People from Tehri Garhwal district People from Uttarakhand Recipients of the Kirti Chakra Recipients of the Shaurya Chakra Recipients of the Vishisht Seva Medal