In a remarkable continuation of one of India’s enduring military family traditions, Lieutenant Shivam Ahlawat has been commissioned into 1 Horse (Skinner’s Horse), becoming the fifth consecutive generation of his family to serve as an officer in the same regiment.
Commissioned on 5 September 2026, the young officer has extended an association with Skinner’s Horse that began with his ancestor Lieutenant Sheochand Ahlawat in 1886 — completing an extraordinary 140 years of family service linked to a single regiment.
For the Ahlawat family of Haryana, the occasion was more than another commissioning ceremony. It represented the passing of a military legacy from one generation to the next, stretching across colonial campaigns, two World Wars, the wars fought by independent India, Kargil and the modern era of the Indian Army.
Five Generations, One Regiment
The family’s association with Skinner’s Horse began in 1886, when Lieutenant Sheochand Ahlawat joined 3rd Skinner’s Horse.
He served for 32 years and saw action during operations in Kabul and Kandahar, the Boxer Rebellion in China in 1900 and the First World War in France and Flanders.
The military tradition was subsequently carried forward by Captain Daryao Singh Ahlawat, who served from 1918 to 1948. His career included service during the Second World War, including a tenure as Adjutant while the regiment was deployed in Italy.
The third generation entered the regiment when Lieutenant Colonel Shamsher Singh Ahlawat was commissioned in December 1955.
His service spanned some of the defining military operations of independent India. He participated in the 1961 Liberation of Goa, Daman and Diu and fought in both the 1965 and 1971 Indo-Pakistan wars.
During the 1965 war, his tank was hit and destroyed by enemy shelling. He survived but suffered an injury that left him with a disability in his left eye. He eventually retired in 1982 after approximately 27 years of service.
Colonel Sandeep Ahlawat Became the Fourth Generation
The tradition continued in June 1993 when Colonel Sandeep Ahlawat joined the regiment as its fourth-generation officer from the family.
His career took him from armoured formations to some of India’s most demanding operational environments.
During Operation Vijay in 1999, he served while attached to 8 JAT and participated in the capture of a Pakistani position at an altitude of around 16,000 feet during the Kargil conflict.
He subsequently served in counter-insurgency operations under Operation Rhino in Assam and Operation Hifazat in Manipur, and was mobilised during Operation Parakram.
He later went on to command Skinner’s Horse itself.
The family’s achievement had already attracted national attention when Colonel Sandeep Ahlawat was recognised in the Limca Book of Records for representing the fourth generation of his family to serve as an officer in the same regiment.
Lieutenant Shivam Ahlawat Becomes the Fifth Generation
Now, more than a decade after the four-generation legacy was publicly documented, Lieutenant Shivam Ahlawat has carried it forward.
His commissioning on 5 September 2026 makes him the fifth generation of the Ahlawat family to wear the insignia of Skinner’s Horse.
Photographs following the commissioning showed the young Lieutenant during the traditional pipping ceremony alongside a senior Ahlawat officer, widely identified as Colonel Sandeep Ahlawat.
Regional reports have linked the family to Gochhi village in Haryana’s Jhajjar-Rohtak region, an area with a longstanding tradition of service in the armed forces.
Detailed information about Lieutenant Shivam’s age, education and route of entry into the Army has not yet been made public.
Skinner’s Horse — More Than Two Centuries of History
The regiment Lieutenant Shivam joins is itself steeped in military history.
1 Horse (Skinner’s Horse) traces its origins to 23 February 1803, when Colonel James Skinner, popularly known as “Sikandar Sahib”, raised an irregular cavalry formation at Hansi in present-day Haryana.
Its cavalrymen became famous as the “Yellow Boys”, a reference to the distinctive yellow uniforms worn by its early sowars.
Over more than two centuries, the regiment evolved from horse-mounted cavalry into a modern armoured regiment of the Indian Army.
Skinner’s Horse has participated in numerous campaigns and conflicts, including operations in Afghanistan, the Boxer Rebellion, both World Wars and the Indo-Pakistan wars.
Its famous motto is:
Himmat-e-Mardaan, Madad-e-Khuda — “The bravery of man is by the help of God.”
From 1886 to 2026
What makes Lieutenant Shivam Ahlawat’s commissioning particularly significant is not simply that he comes from a military family.
It is the continuity of service in the same regiment across five successive generations.
The lineage now reads:
Lieutenant Sheochand Ahlawat → Captain Daryao Singh Ahlawat → Lieutenant Colonel Shamsher Singh Ahlawat → Colonel Sandeep Ahlawat → Lieutenant Shivam Ahlawat.
From cavalrymen fighting in campaigns more than a century ago to modern tank crews of the Indian Army, the nature of warfare has transformed dramatically during those 140 years.
The family-regiment connection, however, has endured.
On 5 September 2026, that history entered its fifth generation as Lieutenant Shivam Ahlawat received his stars and began his own journey with 1 Horse (Skinner’s Horse).
Four generations built the legacy before him. The fifth will now carry it forward.
