Sepoy Narender Singh Jakhar was born on 17 September 1978 in Mehuwala village of Bhattu Kalan Tehsil, Fatehabad district, Haryana. He was the son of Shri Jai Singh Jakhar, a BSF veteran, and Smt Reshma Devi. Coming from a family with a strong military tradition, Narender Singh developed an early desire to serve in the Armed Forces. His father had served in the Border Security Force, while his grandfather had also served in the Army, making him a third-generation member of his family to serve the nation.
Narender Singh completed his schooling at Tekanpur Cantonment in Gwalior district, Madhya Pradesh, and later continued his education in Fatehabad. He had a keen interest in sports and actively played volleyball and cricket. After completing his school education, he joined the Indian Army in 1996 at the age of 18 and was enrolled in the 8 Jat Battalion of The Jat Regiment.
During the Kargil conflict of 1999, 8 Jat was deployed along the Line of Control in Jammu & Kashmir under 28 Infantry Division. As part of Operation Vijay, the battalion was tasked with dominating important areas and preventing enemy infiltration across the LoC.
In July 1999, Sepoy Narender Singh was part of a team assigned to dominate a strategically important feature at an altitude of approximately 17,000 feet near the LoC. The terrain was extremely steep and rugged. On 8 July 1999, Narender Singh and his comrades began climbing a steep cliff using specialised mountaineering equipment. Their movement was detected by the enemy, who responded with heavy machine-gun, mortar and artillery fire.
Despite the intense enemy fire and extremely difficult terrain, the platoon continued its advance and successfully reached and captured the objective after a fierce engagement. However, later that night, the enemy launched a counter-attack under the cover of darkness and fog, supported by heavy artillery bombardment.
During the intense shelling, an artillery shell landed near Sepoy Narender Singh, severely injuring him. He succumbed to his injuries on 9 July 1999 and made the supreme sacrifice during Operation Vijay. He was not yet 21 years old.
Sepoy Narender Singh Jakhar is remembered for his courage, dedication to duty and sacrifice during the Kargil War. His sacrifice came during an operation in which several soldiers of 8 Jat also laid down their lives, including Havildar Sis Ram Gill, Havildar Lachhaman Singh, Lance Naik Azad Singh and Sepoy Pavitra Kumar Sheoran.
He was survived by his father Shri Jai Singh Jakhar, a BSF veteran, and his mother Smt Reshma Devi.