He scored 99 percentile in CAT but chose the Army. Col Anurag faces a new battle now
A 99th percentile in CAT could have taken Col Anurag Upadhyay towards a very different life. He could have pursued an MBA, entered the corporate world and built a successful management career.
And not just any military posting. He volunteered for the Para Special Forces, completed his probation with 3 PARA (SF), and later joined the raising team of 12 PARA (SF). According to a public appeal shared by YourStory founder and member of the National Startup Advisory Council, Shradha Sharma, his service took him through some of the toughest assignments.
Then, in 2008, he suffered a heart attack. Thereafter, he returned to active duty.
This resilience alone says something about the life he had chosen. But his most difficult battle was still ahead.FROM CAT SUCCESS TO PARA SF
Upadhyay’s 99th percentile CAT score could have opened the door to India’s corporate and management world. Instead, he chose a path defined by physical risk, discipline and service.
He volunteered for the Special Forces, completed the demanding probation process with 3 PARA (SF), and became part of the team that helped raise 12 PARA (SF).
Publicly available Armed Forces Tribunal records also identify an officer named Anurag Upadhyay in the Infantry, Para regiment, although his complete educational and service biography could not be independently established from the records available online.
In August 2025, Upadhyay suffered a severe posterior circulation stroke.
According to the appeal, he now lives with locked-in syndrome. The condition can leave a person conscious and mentally aware while severely limiting voluntary movement and the ability to speak.
The description of his present condition is difficult to absorb.
His body has been severely affected. His mind, however, remains alert.
The appeal says he remembers people and events, understands what is happening around him, thinks clearly and communicates complete thoughts through eye movements and alphabet-based scanning.
Subsequent complications also resulted in bilateral below-knee amputations, according to the same account.
Imagine having an entire conversation inside your mind, but needing to communicate it letter by letter through your eyes.THIS IS AN APPEAL FOR POSSIBILITY
The family is not asking people to offer miracle cures or make promises about recovery.
They are looking for credible expertise.
They want to connect with neurologists and neuro-rehabilitation specialists who have experience with locked-in syndrome or similar conditions, advanced rehabilitation centres, researchers studying neurological recovery, and teams working on brain-computer interfaces, eye-tracking and assistive communication.
Veteran organisations and people who can connect the family with the right institutions are also being sought.
The question is not whether anyone can guarantee a recovery. No one can.
The question is whether potentially useful options should remain unexplored simply because the right specialist, researcher or institution is outside the family’s network.WHAT MORE COULD BE POSSIBLE?
Upadhyay once made a life-changing choice when he chose military service over a more conventional corporate future.
He returned to duty after a heart attack.
Today, his family is navigating a very different kind of uncertainty, trying to find ways to improve his communication, rehabilitation, independence and quality of life.
As Sharma’s appeal puts it, the family does not want the limits of his future to be decided by a lack of information, access or connections.
If you know neurologists, neuro-rehabilitation specialists, locked-in syndrome researchers, assistive-technology teams, BCI researchers, eye-tracking specialists or veteran support organisations that may be able to help, please consider sharing this appeal with them.
The family can be reached through @talesofagypsy on Instagram.
Some stories are not about an easy triumph or a neatly packaged inspirational ending.
Some are about a person who has already faced extraordinary challenges, and a family still asking one important question: What possibilities have we not explored yet?
Disclaimer: This story is based on a social media post. The details, including figures, background, and outcomes, have not been independently verified by India Today. The article is intended for informational purposes only, and readers are advised to exercise their own discretion before drawing conclusions or making decisions based on the content.- EndsPublished By: Roshni Published On: Sep 12, 2026 16:45 ISTRead | 27-year-old Amazon engineer gives up Rs 46 lakh package to fulfil Army dreamRead | NIT Calicut engineer leaves corporate job to join Army: Meet Athira Suresh
