List of 21 Param Vir Chakra Awardees Who Will Motivate You

Param Vir Chakra (PVC) is the highest gallantry award for officers and other enlisted personnel of all military branches of India for the highest degree of valour in the presence of the enemy. Introduced on 26th January 1950, this award may be given posthumously.

If any recipient of the PVC shall again perform such an act of bravery as would have made him or her eligible to be recorded by a Bar to be attached to the riband by which the Chakra is suspended, and for every such additional act of bravery, an additional Bar shall be added, and any such Bar or Bars may also be awarded posthumously. For every Bar awarded a replica of the ‘Indra’s Vajra’ in miniature shall be added to the riband when worn alone.

Literally, Param Vir Chakra means ‘Wheel of the Ultimate Brave’. In Sanskrit, ‘Param means Ultimate, ‘Vir (Pronounced veer) means Brave and ‘Chakra means Wheel.

The PVC is the equivalent award of the Medal of Honour in the United States, and the Victoria Cross in the United Kingdom.

21 Param Vir Chakra Awardees — Paramvir Chakra of Naib Subedar Bana Singh

One amongst the luminous recipients of this honour was Flying Officer Nirmal Jiit Singh Sekhon, who was awarded the Param Vir Chakra posthumously in the year 1971. He is the lone Indian Air Force officer to have been honoured with the Param Vir Chakra till date.

Param Vir Chakra translates as the “Wheel of the Ultimate Brave”, and the award is granted for “most conspicuous bravery in the presence of the enemy”. As of January 2018, the medal has been awarded 21 times, of which 14 were posthumous and 16 arose from actions in Indo-Pakistani conflicts. Of the 21 awardees, 20 have been from the Indian Army, and one has been from the Indian Air Force. Major Somnath Sharma, was the first recipient. A number of state governments of India as well as ministries of the central government provide allowances and rewards to recipients of the PVC (or their family members in case of the recipient’s death). Only 21 military personnel have received this award to date

Name	Rank^**	Unit	Date of action	Conflict
Somnath Sharma	Major	Kumaon Regiment	3 November 1947*	Battle of Badgam
Jadunath Singh	Naik	Rajput Regiment	6 February 1948*	Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Rama Raghoba Rane	Second Lieutenant	Bombay Sappers	8 April 1948	Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Piru Singh	Company Havildar Major	Rajputana Rifles	17 July 1948*	Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Karam Singh	Lance Naik	Sikh Regiment	13 October 1948	Indo-Pakistani War of 1947
Gurbachan Singh Salaria	Captain	1 Gorkha Rifles[d]	5 December 1961*	Congo Crisis
Dhan Singh Thapa	Major	8 Gorkha Rifles	20 October 1962	Sino-Indian War
Joginder Singh	Subedar	Sikh Regiment	23 October 1962*	Sino-Indian War
Shaitan Singh	Major	Kumaon Regiment	18 November 1962*	Sino-Indian War
Abdul Hamid	Company Quarter Master Havildar	The Grenadiers	10 September 1965*	Battle of Asal Uttar
Ardeshir Tarapore	Lieutenant Colonel	Poona Horse	11 September 1965*	Battle of Chawinda
Albert Ekka	Lance Naik	Brigade of the Guards	3 December 1971*	Battle of Hilli
Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon	Flying Officer	No. 18 Squadron IAF	14 December 1971*	Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
Arun Khetarpal	Second Lieutenant	Poona Horse	16 December 1971*	Battle of Basantar
Hoshiar Singh Dahiya	Major	The Grenadiers	17 December 1971	Battle of Basantar
Bana Singh	Naib Subedar	Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry	23 May 1987	Operation Rajiv
Ramaswamy Parameshwaran	Major	Mahar Regiment[e]	25 November 1987*	Operation Pawan
Manoj Kumar Pandey	Lieutenant	11 Gorkha Rifles	3 July 1999*	Operation Vijay
Yogendra Singh Yadav	Grenadier	The Grenadiers	4 July 1999	Battle of Tiger Hill
Sanjay Kumar	Rifleman	Jammu and Kashmir Rifles	5 July 1999	Kargil War
Vikram Batra	Captain	Jammu and Kashmir Rifles	5 July 1999*	Operation Vijay