Captain Somesh Shrivastava was born on 23 September 1971 in Samastipur, Bihar. He pursued Civil Engineering at the Maharashtra Institute of Technology, Pune, before joining the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, in 1994.
He was commissioned into the Indian Army in June 1996 and joined the Corps of Engineers. He was subsequently posted to 15 Engineer Regiment. In 1999, he joined the Border Roads Organisation on deputation as a Platoon Commander and served in difficult border areas.
In March 2001, Captain Somesh Shrivastava was serving in the Ladakh region and was involved in maintaining road connectivity in the strategically important Manali–Leh sector. The area frequently experienced heavy snowfall, icy conditions and difficult terrain, making road clearance a demanding task.
On 4 March 2001, he was supervising a snow-clearance operation when the vehicle he was travelling in skidded on an icy stretch and plunged down a slope. Captain Somesh Shrivastava died in the accident while carrying out his assigned duty.
He was 29 years old at the time of his death. He is remembered for his service with the Corps of Engineers and his contribution to maintaining vital road connectivity in the high-altitude Ladakh region.