President Droupadi Murmu approved 78 gallantry awards ahead of Independence Day.
Thirteen honours will be awarded posthumously across Armed Forces and CAPFs.
Awards include nine Kirti Chakras, 19 Shaurya Chakras and 36 Sena Medals.
President Droupadi Murmu has approved 78 gallantry awards for personnel of the Armed Forces and Central Armed Police Forces on the eve of India’s 80th Independence Day, the Ministry of Defence said on Friday. Thirteen of the honours will be awarded posthumously.
The honours include nine Kirti Chakras, 19 Shaurya Chakras, 36 Sena Medals for Gallantry, three Nao Sena Medals for Gallantry and five Vayu Sena Medals for Gallantry. The President has also approved one Bar to the Shaurya Chakra and five Bars to Sena Medals for Gallantry.
Of the nine Kirti Chakras, India’s second-highest peacetime gallantry award, seven have been awarded posthumously.
Nine Personnel Awarded Kirti Chakra
Lieutenant Colonel Maneo Francis PF of 21 Para (Special Forces) and Major Jitendra Rathee of 2 Para (Special Forces) are among those awarded the Kirti Chakra.
Havildar Gajendra Singh of 2 Para (Special Forces) has been awarded the honour posthumously. The six other posthumous Kirti Chakra recipients are Head Constable Jagbir Singh, SG Constables Jaswant Singh, Balvinder Singh and Tariq Hussain, Head Constable Bashir Ahmad and STF Inspector Sunil Kumar.
Major Aditya Pratap Singh of the Rajputana Rifles, serving with 44 Assam Rifles, has been awarded a Bar to the Shaurya Chakra.
19 Shaurya Chakras Announced
The President approved 19 Shaurya Chakras, including one posthumous honour. The recipients include Major Paramveer of the Garhwal Rifles, Major Tarun Vasudevan of the Corps of Engineers, Major Keshav Kumar of 12 Dogra, Major Gaurav Singh Brijwal of 21 Grenadiers and Major Vipeen Kumar of the Corps of Signals.
Lance Naik Narender Sindhu of the Rajputana Rifles, serving with 9 Rashtriya Rifles, has been awarded the Shaurya Chakra posthumously. Lieutenant Commander Shivam Kumar of the Navy and Squadron Leader Sudhir Kumar of the Air Force are also among the recipients.
The list further includes personnel under the Ministry of Home Affairs, including DySP Dheeraj Singh Katoch, Inspector Ajay Singh Chib, DySP Sukhvir Singh, Assistant Sub-Inspector Niyaz Ahmad, Deputy Commandant Anjani Kumar and Constable Deepak Sah.
Sena, Navy And Air Force Gallantry Medals
Thirty-six personnel have been approved for Sena Medals for Gallantry, five of them posthumously, while five others will receive a Bar to the Sena Medal for Gallantry.
Three Navy personnel, Commander Vineet Sharma, Commander Yuvraj Kumar and POA (FD) Avinash Annaso, have been awarded the Nao Sena Medal for Gallantry.
Five Air Force personnel have been selected for the Vayu Sena Medal for Gallantry: Group Captains Rahul Jagotta and Rahul Rawat, Wing Commander Ashish Rajpoot, Flight Lieutenant Yash and Master Warrant Officer Ravinderjit Singh.
89 Mention-in-Despatches Approved
Apart from the gallantry awards, President Murmu approved 89 Mention-in-Despatches. These include 75 Indian Army personnel, four from the Indian Navy and 10 from the Indian Air Force.
The Army personnel recognised through Mention-in-Despatches served across operations including Rakshak, Hifazat, Orchid, Meghdoot and Snow Leopard, among others. The list also includes Army dog Tyson of 2 Para (Special Forces), recognised under Operation Rakshak.
