The Ahlawat family of Gochhi village in Jhajjar district has carved out a unique place in the Army history. With the commissioning of Lt Shivam Ahlawat on September 5, the family completed an extraordinary 140-year association with 1 Horse, popularly known as Skinner’s Horse.Spanning five generations, the uninterrupted legacy stands as a rare example of a military tradition being passed down within a family, with every generation serving in the same regiment.Residents of Gochhi are elated by the historic achievement and are planning a grand felicitation to welcome the Ahlawat family to the village.“The family’s journey with Skinner’s Horse began in 1886, when my great grandfather Sowar Sheo Chand Ahlawat joined the regiment. Little could he have imagined that his decision to pick up the lance and sword and wear the regiment’s distinctive yellow uniform would begin a tradition spanning five generations,” said Col Sandeep Ahlawat, father of Lt Shivam Ahlawat.Currently stationed at Gurugram, Colonel Sandeep said his great grandfather served with the regiment from 1886 to 1918. His military career took him to China during the Boxer Rebellion in 1900, then to Afghanistan and later to the battlefields of the First World War. The tradition was then carried forward by his son Captain Daryao Singh Ahlawat, who served the same regiment from 1918 to 1948 and was a veteran of the Second World War, he added.“The third generation was represented by my father, Lt Col Shamsher Singh Ahlawat, who served in the regiment from 1955 to 1982. He took part in the Liberation of Goa and the India-Pakistan Wars of 1965 and 1971 and was seriously wounded during one battle. I then carried forward the family tradition as the fourth generation, joining the regiment in 1993. During my service, I have taken part in the Kargil conflict and counter-insurgency operations in the Northeast. I have the honour of commanding Skinner’s Horse,” said Colonel Sandeep.He said now, the mantle had been passed over to the fifth generation with the commissioning of Shivam. “This extraordinary association with this particular Cavalry Regiment has been recognised in the Limca Book of Records 1995 as a unique and enduring legacy of service,” he added.Interestingly, the family’s connection with Skinner’s Horse extends beyond the Ahlawats. Jemadar (now Havildar) Ram Saroop Phoughat–the maternal grandfather of Colonel Sandeep’s wife, Dr Shalini Chaudhry–who holds a doctorate in law, also served in Skinner’s Horse during the Second World War.He served in Italy alongside Colonel Sandeep’s grandfather, Capt Daryao Singh Ahlawat. Adding another chapter to his legacy, a residential colony in Rohtak has been named after his grandfather Daryao Singh, (Daryao Singh Nagar).Talking about Shivam, Colonel Sandeep said he was educated at The Lawrence School, Sanawar, and had long cherished a dream of joining the regiment of his forefathers and carrying forward the family’s proud tradition by serving in the Army as the generations before him.