Sportsman, artist, a people's person and an eternal optimist, he hailed from Sainik School Satara. He loved sports dearly and was well known for his skills in hockey and cricket, and was also a great carrom player- his carrom matches at the School are a part of folklore.

In NDA he was a physically tough, studious, and a simple soul. Ramanujam remembers Atul Dhuri as an ever-helpful Golfie always with a word of constructive encouragement. Thanks to Atul, Ramanujam managed to pass the Horse PT Test and did not get relegated. His simple advice to take a leap earlier helped. Dhuri was the classic team player, like a Dravid- solid, ever-dependable, and like a good Golfie- got going when the going got tough.

David Devasahayam and Atul were part of the same platoon in IMA. One of the tasks was the preparation of the ground sheet-based cloth model for the exercises. David had a reasonably good hand for drawing, so he would draw the outline, and Atul along with Bharat Singh would fill the outline with the required colours. They produced many a “masterpieces” under the most trying circumstances. The one thing David associates with Atul, who was physically extremely tough, was his pale pink plastic box full of coloured chalks and crayons, that was always a part of his big pack; aside from his ever-smiling, selfless, gentle, and helpful attitude.

He was commissioned into the Corps of Signals and served a tenure at IMA as an instructor. A great soul, kind-hearted man who took a stand for his command. As a soldier, he worked for his command and was loved by his unit. He always had the unit's interest as his priority. He retired after re-employment in Jan 2017. Mathew remembers Atul as the perfect gentleman and would take great efforts in perfecting anything he believed in. He had an amazing sense of fairness and justice and was always out there to help anyone in need.

Anil Pote and Atul Dhuri bonded well, being squadron type and ‘tant’ during NDA days and later having served together at Hyderabad in 2007. Pote can’t forget the hospitality of Atul's family- Surekha and their two sons. They loved to have outings and enjoy. Their son's marriage in Pune RSI in Nov 2016 was a memorable one. Atul was known to be computer savvy and helped out Pote with his retirement documentation. They both retired in the same month- Jan 2017. His desire to settle down at his native place Vengurla, and do social work for the locals was very strong.

What struck P N Chaudhary most was about the couple’s willingness to give back to humanity. A few weeks before the heart attack took Atul away, the couple had discussed and decided to donate their bodies. But this was only amongst themselves. Salute to the lady for keeping all emotions at bay- she did as per his desires. Hats off to Atul and Surekha.

A cheerful and active person whom we lost in April 2017 inexplicably due to a heart attack. His untimely demise was a total shock. He is survived by his lady wife Surekha who resides at Vengurla, District - Sindhudurg, Maharashtra, and children Aditya working with NGO and Alok pursuing photography.

🙏May his soul rest in peace🙏