On the eve of India’s 79th Independence Day, President Smt Droupadi Murmu has sanctioned 127 Gallantry awards, 40 Distinguished Service awards, and 290 Mention-in-Despatches to personnel of the Armed Forces and Central Armed Police Forces, recognizing exceptional bravery, dedication, and distinguished service.
Gallantry Awards
The Gallantry Awards include:
- Kirti Chakra: 4 awards
- Vir Chakra: 15 awards
- Shaurya Chakra: 16 awards
- Bar to Sena Medal (Gallantry): 2 awards
- Sena Medal (Gallantry): 58 awards
- Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry): 6 awards
- Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry): 26 awards
Kirti Chakra
| S No | Rank & Name | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Captain Lalrinawma Sailo, 4 PARA (Special Forces) | Army |
| 2 | Lieutenant Shashank Tiwari, The Army Service Corps, 1 Sikkim Scouts | Army |
| 3 | Lance Naik Meenatchi Sundaram A, The Regiment of Artillery, 34 Rashtriya Rifles | Army |
| 4 | Sepoy Janjal Pravin Prabhakar, The Mahar Regiment, 1 Rashtriya Rifles | Army |
Vir Chakra
| S No | Rank & Name | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Colonel Koshank Lamba, 302 Medium Regiment | Army |
| 2 | Lieutenant Colonel Sushil Bisht, 1988 (Independent) Medium Battery | Army |
| 3 | Naib Subedar Satish Kumar, 4 Dogra | Army |
| 4 | Rifleman Sunil Kumar, 4 Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry | Army |
| 5 | Group Captain Ranjeet Singh Sidhu, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 6 | Group Captain Manish Arora, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 7 | Group Captain Animesh Patni, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 8 | Group Captain Kunal Kalra, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 9 | Wing Commander Joy Chandra, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 10 | Squadron Leader Sarthak Kumar, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 11 | Squadron Leader Siddhant Singh, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 12 | Squadron Leader Rizwan Malik, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 13 | Flight Lieutenant Aarshveer Singh Thakur, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 14 | Sub Inspector (GD) Mohd Imteyaj | MHA |
| 15 | CT/GD Deepak Chingakham | MHA |
Shaurya Chakra
| S No | Rank & Name | Service |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lieutenant Colonel Neetesh Bharti Shukla, 19 Sikh | Army |
| 2 | Major Bhargav Kalita, The Kumaon Regiment, 50 Rashtriya Rifles | Army |
| 3 | Major Ashish Kumar, 7 Para (Special Forces) | Army |
| 4 | Major Aditya Pratap Singh, SM, The Rajputana Rifles, 44 Assam Rifles | Army |
| 5 | Assistant Commandant Mohd Shafiq, 26 Assam Rifles | Army |
| 6 | Subedar Shamsher Singh, 4 Para (Special Forces) | Army |
| 7 | Lance Naik Rahul Singh, 4 Para (Special Forces) | Army |
| 8 | Rifleman Bhoj Ram Sahu, 3 Assam Rifles | Army |
| 9 | Lieutenant Commander Suraj Prashar | Navy |
| 10 | Ram Goyal, SEA II | Navy |
| 11 | Wing Commander Abhimanyu Singh (30725), Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 12 | Inspector Shri Laxman Kewat | MHA |
| 13 | Inspector Shri Rameshwar Prasad Deshmukh | MHA |
| 14 | Constable/GD Saddam Hussain | MHA |
| 15 | Constable/GD Feda Hussain Dar | MHA |
| 16 | Constable/GD Sanjay Tiwari | MHA |
Bar to Sena Medal
| S No | Rank & Name | Service | Award |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Major Rahul Dutta, SM, The Regiment of Artillery, 6 Rashtriya Rifles | Army | Bar to Sena Medal (Gallantry) |
| 2 | Sepoy Nadim Iqbal Shah, SM, 163 Infantry Battalion Territorial Army | Army | Bar to Sena Medal (Gallantry) |
Sena Medal
| S No | Rank & Name | Service | Unit/Regiment |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lt Col Thakur Maheshsingh Ramshankarsingh | Army | The Mahar Regiment, 1 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 2 | Lt Col Palugulla Mastan Reddy | Army | Eastern Command Intelligence Battalion |
| 3 | Lt Col Parikshit Panwar | Army | 12 Mahar |
| 4 | Lt Col Mohan Singh | Army | 4 Rajput |
| 5 | Lt Col Nikhil Thakur | Army | 160 Infantry Battalion, Territorial Army |
| 6 | Major Jappanpreet Singh | Army | The Armoured Corps, 22 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 7 | Major Sumeet Grohwal | Army | 9 Punjab |
| 8 | Major Shiladitya Singh Ranawat | Army | 21 Para (Special Forces) |
| 9 | Major Hitesh Singh Verma | Army | 5 Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry |
| 10 | Major Yogesh Kumar | Army | The Regiment of Artillery, 57 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 11 | Major Ankur Yadav | Army | 5 Sikh |
| 12 | Major Shivank Pathak | Army | The Madras Regiment, 8 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 13 | Major Amit Bhatti | Army | 302 Medium Regiment |
| 14 | Major Dhananjay Jamwal | Army | The Grenadiers, 29 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 15 | Major Nikhil Sharma | Army | 4 Para (Special Forces) |
| 16 | Major Anuj Mahajan | Army | The Mechanised Infantry, 36 Assam Rifles |
| 17 | Major Aman Dhar | Army | The Corps of Signals, 22 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 18 | Major Roger Saul Kamuo Mao | Army | The Kumaon Regiment, 43 Assam Rifles |
| 19 | Major Gagandeep Singh | Army | 9 Rajputana Rifles |
| 20 | Major Swaroop Anjan Behera | Army | 5 Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry |
| 21 | Captain Varun Chadha | Army | 19 Sikh |
| 22 | Subedar Major Pawan Kumar | Army | The Punjab Regiment, 10 Infantry Brigade Camp |
| 23 | Subedar Pradeep Kumar | Army | 278 Medium Regiment |
| 24 | Subedar Girraj Singh Rajpoot | Army | 1851 Light Regiment |
| 25 | Subedar Roshan Singh | Army | 17 Garhwal Rifles |
| 26 | Subedar Manish Kumar Dubey | Army | 131 Air Defence Regiment |
| 27 | Naib Subedar Rakesh Kumar | Army | 2 Para (Special Forces) |
| 28 | Naib Subedar Satnam Singh | Army | 30 Punjab |
| 29 | Naib Subedar Arvind Kumar | Army | The Rajputana Rifles, 57 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 30 | Naib Subedar Birender Singh | Army | The Mahar Regiment, 1 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 31 | Naib Subedar Prem Bahadur Singh | Army | 5/9 Gorkha Rifles |
| 32 | Naib Subedar Surja Deb Barma | Army | 1832 Light Regiment |
| 33 | Battalion Havildar Major Pawan Singh | Army | 49 Air Defence Regiment |
| 34 | Regiment Havildar Major Ankur | Army | 302 Medium Regiment |
| 35 | Havildar Sunil Kumar Singh | Army | 625 Electronics and Mechanical Engineers Battalion |
| 36 | Havildar Gurpreet Singh | Army | 19 Sikh |
| 37 | Havildar Medade Vikas Ramdas | Army | 18 Maratha Light Infantry |
| 38 | Havildar Jaswant Singh | Army | 4 Rajput |
| 39 | Havildar Gopal Pradhan | Army | 12 Mahar |
| 40 | Lance Havildar Morey Santosh Bhagwan | Army | 34 (M) Field Regiment |
| 41 | Lance Havildar Lagariya Dineshbhai Palabhai | Army | 12 Grenadiers |
| 42 | Lance Havildar Jobanpreet Singh | Army | 13 Sikh Light Infantry |
| 43 | Naik Gurjeet Singh | Army | 7 Para (Special Forces) |
| 44 | Naik Sunil | Army | The Mechanised Infantry, 9 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 45 | Naik Gurpreet Singh | Army | The Regiment of Artillery, 34 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 46 | Naik Bhupinder Singh | Army | 19 Sikh |
| 47 | Naik Robin Singh | Army | 19 Sikh |
| 48 | Lance Naik Dinesh Kumar | Army | 5 Field Regiment |
| 49 | Lance Naik Pradeep Kumar | Army | 1 Para (Special Forces) |
| 50 | Lance Naik Abhiman Singh | Army | The Regiment of Artillery, 34 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 51 | Lance Naik Subhash Kumar | Army | 7 Jat |
| 52 | Sepoy Gurjodh Singh | Army | The Sikh Regiment, 6 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 53 | Rifleman Hilal Ahmad Bhat | Army | Territorial Army, 19 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 54 | Rifleman Mohit Rathour | Army | The Rajputana Rifles, 57 Rashtriya Rifles |
| 55 | Rifleman Diwaker Singh | Army | 17 Garhwal Rifles |
| 56 | Rifleman Najum Ud Din Khan | Army | 4 Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry |
| 57 | Agniveer Kulveer Singh | Army | 7 Sikh Light Infantry |
| 58 | Agniveer Mood Muralinaik | Army | 851 Light Regiment |
Nao Sena Medal
| S No | Rank & Name |
|---|---|
| 1 | Captain Suraj James Rebeira |
| 2 | Captain Vikas Garg |
| 3 | Commander Saurabh Kumar |
| 4 | Commander Kapil Kumar |
| 5 | Commander Vivek Kuriakose |
| 6 | CHME Manoj Kumar |
Vayu Sena Medal
| S No | Rank & Name | Role/Branch |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Group Captain Manav Bhatia | Flying (Pilot) |
| 2 | Group Captain Varun Bhoj | Flying (Pilot) |
| 3 | Group Captain Omar Browne | Flying (Pilot) |
| 4 | Group Captain Deepak Chauhan | Flying (Pilot) |
| 5 | Wing Commander Kunal Vishwas Shimpi | Flying (Pilot) |
| 6 | Wing Commander Deepak Dogra | Flying (Pilot) |
| 7 | Wing Commander Ravinder Kumar | Flying (Pilot) |
| 8 | Group Captain Ankur Hakim | Flying (Pilot) |
| 9 | Squadron Leader Abhay Singh Bhadoria | Flying (Pilot) |
| 10 | Squadron Leader Kaustubh Nalawade | Flying (Pilot) |
| 11 | Squadron Leader Malapati NV Naveen Kumar | Flying (Pilot) |
| 12 | Squadron Leader Shubham Sharma | Flying (Pilot) |
| 13 | Squadron Leader Gaurav Khokher | Flying (Pilot) |
| 14 | Sergeant Surendra Kumar | Medical Assistant |
| 15 | Squadron Leader Mihir Vivek Chaudhari | Flying (Pilot) |
| 16 | Squadron Leader Aman Singh | Flying (Pilot) |
| 17 | Wing Commander Rupak Roy | Flying (Navigator) |
| 18 | Wing Commander Devendra Babasaheb Autade | Flying (Pilot) |
| 19 | Squadron Leader Amandeep Singh Dihot | Flying (Pilot) |
| 20 | Group Captain Yasir Faruqi | Flying (Pilot) |
| 21 | Wing Commander Anuraj Minhas | Flying (Navigator) |
| 22 | Corporal Varun Kumar S | Medical Assistant |
| 23 | Wing Commander Mayank Paliwal | Flying (Pilot) |
| 24 | Wing Commander Adarsh Gupta | Flying (Pilot) |
| 25 | Flight Lieutenant A Naveen Chandar | Administration/Fighter Controller |
| 26 | Squadron Leader Rakesh Sharma | Administration/Fighter Controller |
Distinguished Service Awards
The Dustinguished Service Awards include:
- Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal: 7 awards
- Uttam Yudh Seva Medal: 9 awards
- Yudh Seva Medal: 24 awards
Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal
| S No | Rank & Name | Decorations & Unit/Role | Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lieutenant General Pratik Sharma | PVSM, AVSM, SM, The Madras Regiment, Headquarters Northern Command | Army |
| 2 | Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai | UYSM, AVSM, SM, The Kumaon Regiment, Integrated HQ of MoD (Army) | Army |
| 3 | Vice Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh | PVSM, AVSM, NM | Navy |
| 4 | Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari | PVSM, AVSM, VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 5 | Air Marshal Nagesh Kapoor | PVSM, AVSM, VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 6 | Air Marshal Jeetendra Mishra | AVSM, VSM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 7 | Air Marshal Awadhesh Kumar Bharti | AVSM, VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
Uttam Yudh Seva Medal
| S No | Rank & Name | Decorations & Unit/Role | Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lieutenant General Manoj Kumar Katiyar | PVSM, AVSM, The Rajput Regiment, Headquarters Western Command | Army |
| 2 | Lieutenant General Prashant Srivastava | AVSM, SM, The Parachute Regiment, Headquarters 15 Corps | Army |
| 3 | Lieutenant General Prasanna Kishore Mishra | AVSM, YSM, SM, The Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry, Headquarters 16 Corps | Army |
| 4 | Vice Admiral Tarun Sobti | AVSM, VSM | Navy |
| 5 | Air Marshal Manish Khanna | AVSM, VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 6 | Air Marshal Praveen Keshav Vohra | AVSM, VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 7 | Air Commodore Ajay Kumar Chaudhary | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 8 | Air Commodore Prabhat Malik | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 9 | Group Captain Kamran Nazeer | Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
Yudh Seva Medal
| S No | Rank & Name | Decorations & Unit/Role | Service |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Major General Sandeep Sudharshan Sharda | SM, VSM, The Dogra Regiment, Integrated HQ of MoD (Army) | Army |
| 2 | Brigadier Rakesh Nair | SM, VSM, 9th Gorkha Rifles, Integrated HQ of MoD (Army) | Army |
| 3 | Brigadier Vivek Goel | The Army Air Defence, HQ 616 (Independent) Air Defence Brigade | Army |
| 4 | Brigadier Surjeet Kumar Singh | SM, The Intelligence Corps, HQ Intelligence & Field Security Group | Army |
| 5 | Brigadier Sonender Singh | SM, The Corps of Engineers, HQ 75 (Independent) Infantry Brigade | Army |
| 6 | Brigadier Vivek Puri | SM, The Assam Regiment, HQ 19 Infantry Brigade | Army |
| 7 | Brigadier Mudit Mahajan | The Sikh Regiment, HQ 93 Infantry Brigade | Army |
| 8 | Subedar Vinod Kumar | 152 Air Defence Regiment | Army |
| 9 | Naib Subedar Ratneswar Ghosh | 152 Air Defence Regiment | Army |
| 10 | Vice Admiral AN Pramod | AVSM | Navy |
| 11 | Rear Admiral Rahul Vilas Gokhale | NM | Navy |
| 12 | Air Vice Marshal Joseph Suares | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 13 | Air Vice Marshal Prajual Singh | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 14 | Air Commodore Shashi Kant | Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 15 | Air Commodore Sagar Singh Rawat | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 16 | Air Commodore Ashok Raj Thakur | VM | Air Force |
| 17 | Air Commodore Pradeep Batra | Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 18 | Air Commodore Kanwal Preet Singh Dham | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 19 | Air Commodore Devashish Kukreti | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 20 | Air Commodore Rohit Kapil | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 21 | Group Captain Alok Kumar Sharma | Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 22 | Group Captain Vikas Verma | Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 23 | Group Captain Ankit Mehrotra | VM, Flying (Pilot) | Air Force |
| 24 | Wing Commander Gobind Singh | Aeronautical Engineering (Mechanical) | Air Force |
Mention-in-Despatches
A total of 290 personnel were recognized, including 115 from the Indian Army, 5 from the Indian Navy, 167 from the Indian Air Force, and 3 from the Border Roads Development Board (BRDB).
Conclusion
President Murmu’s announcement highlights India’s continued recognition of its armed forces’ bravery and dedication in safeguarding national security and serving the nation with distinction.
