Major (Retd) Hitman Gurung Honoured with an MBE
Major (Retd) Hitman Gurung MBE
It is with great pleasure that we announce that Major (Retired) Hitman Gurung has been appointed as an Honorary Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (MBE).
This honour has been bestowed upon him by His Majesty The King in recognition of his dedicated service supporting the families of Gurkha soldiers who were killed or seriously wounded in action during the Afghanistan conflict. His steadfast commitment, compassion, and advocacy have provided vital strength and reassurance to those facing profound loss and hardship.
Major Gurung’s appointment as an Honorary MBE stands as a fitting tribute to his exemplary service and his enduring contribution to the welfare of Gurkha families.
Major Gurung volunteered to establish and chair a new Royal Gurkha Rifles Regimental Association in Nepal in 2005. Through is charismatic leadership and voluntary work, he has fostered an enduring sense of camaraderie and elan amongst the RGR veteran community in Nepal, directly helped to preserve, protect and promote the good name and reputation of his Regiment, and consequently the British Army and UK amongst both veteran and wider civilian community, acted as a line of communication between families and sources of support and benevolence.
Crucially he has supported the families of 11 Gurkhas killed in action in Afghanistan and over 54 seriously wounded.
Major Gurung epitomises the very best of the Gurkha soldier. Enlisting in 1973, he enjoyed an exemplary career within the Brigade of Gurkhas, serving across the globe on multiple operations. Retiring in 2002, and in contrast to most of his contemporaries, he elected to return to Nepal, to support the ageing Gurkha veteran community, as a Welfare Officer within the Welfare Gurkha Trust. This required prolonged periods of unaccompanied work in remote parts of Nepal during the country’s civil war. He never flinched from taking personal risk to ensure aid was provided to the elderly veteran community during this period.
In 2005 and in consultation with the professional head of his old regiment, he established a Regimental Association in Nepal to promote the interests of the Regiment’s veterans and families. In normal circumstances this would involve maintaining a network of veterans across Nepal, providing Regimental updates, organising celebratory gatherings and acts of remembrance, but Major Gurung took on the role just has combat operations began in Afghanistan.
The conflict inevitably generated heightened anxiety for the families of those soldiers serving in the Afghan theatre, and enormous stress and heartbreak for those families who lost sons killed in action or seriously wounded. Major Gurung acted as a link between these families and the Regiment, demonstrating immense compassion and emotional intelligence. In coordination with other Ministry of Defence personnel, he supported the families through the highly emotional process of loss, repatriation and corresponding bureaucracy.
Throughout his tenure as Chair, he has facilitated visits by serving personnel to families in Nepal, organised special gatherings and crucially made the families feel part of the Regimental family and identifying any additional needs.
Most recently he brought the families of all those killed in action together for an event in Pokhara, Western Nepal, where they were presented with special portraits of their loved ones. The complexity of dealing with different family members who have suffered loss cannot be underestimated.
Major Gurung has been exceptional in this regard and an outstanding ambassador for both the UK and Nepal.
