In a dignified ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhawan, President Smt Droupadi Murmu conferred 92 Distinguished Service Decorations on personnel from the Indian Armed Forces, the Indian Coast Guard, and the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) during the Defence Investiture Ceremony 2025 (Phase-II). The awards included 30 Param Vishisht Seva Medals (PVSM), 5 Uttam Yudh Seva Medals (UYSM), and 57 Ati Vishisht Seva Medals (AVSM), acknowledging their exemplary leadership, commitment, and service to the nation.
The Param Vishisht Seva Medal is India’s highest peacetime military honor, awarded for service of the most exceptional order to officers across all ranks and services. Instituted in 1960 and renamed in 1967, the PVSM is a symbol of the armed forces’ unwavering dedication to the country.
The Uttam Yudh Seva Medal is conferred for distinguished service during war, conflict, or hostilities, while the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal recognizes high-order performance in peacetime roles.
This year’s awards come at a time when India’s defense preparedness and modernization are under intensified national focus. The Union Budget 2024–25 allocated ₹6.21 lakh crore to the Ministry of Defence, underscoring the government’s emphasis on bolstering operational capabilities. Amidst continued tension along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, particularly in the Depsang Plains, the armed forces have been at the forefront of infrastructure buildup, enhanced surveillance, and winter deployments in high-altitude areas.
The award ceremony was attended by senior government and military officials, including Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who praised the awardees for their outstanding service. The honours spanned various branches and roles, from combat and logistics to engineering and medical support, reflecting the diverse contributions of India’s military personnel in defending national interests.
Here are the awardees:
Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM)
| S. No. | Name of Awardee | Arm/Service |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lt Gen Manoj Kumar Katiyar | Army |
| 2 | Lt Gen Dhiraj Seth | Army |
| 3 | Lt Gen Ram Chander Tiwari | Army |
| 4 | Lt Gen Anindya Sengupta | Army |
| 5 | Lt Gen Devendra Sharma | Army |
| 6 | Lt Gen Dinesh Singh Rana | Army |
| 7 | Lt Gen Pratik Sharma | Army |
| 8 | Vice Admiral Sanjay Jasjit Singh | Navy |
| 9 | Vice Admiral Rajesh Sudhakar Pendharkar | Navy |
| 10 | Vice Admiral Suraj Berry | Navy |
| 11 | Vice Admiral Srinivas Vennam | Navy |
| 12 | Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari | Air Force |
| 13 | Air Marshal Balakrishnan Manikantan | Air Force |
| 14 | Air Marshal Nagesh Kapoor | Air Force |
| 15 | Lt Gen Karanbir Singh Brar | Army |
| 16 | Lt Gen Adosh Kumar | Army |
| 17 | Lt Gen Padam Singh Shekhawat | Army |
| 18 | Lt Gen Amardeep Singh Aujla | Army |
| 19 | Lt Gen Vivek Kashyap | Army |
| 20 | Lt Gen VM Bhuvana Krishnan | Army |
| 21 | Lt Gen Vineet Gaur | Army |
| 22 | Lt Gen Raghavachari Santhana Raman | Army |
| 23 | Lt Gen Raghu Srinivasan | Army |
| 24 | Lt Gen Shankar Narayan | Army |
| 25 | Air Marshal Saju Balakrishnan (Retd) | Air Force |
| 26 | Lt Gen Paramjit Singh Minhas (Retd) | Army |
| 27 | Lt Gen Preet Mohindera Singh (Retd) | Army |
| 28 | Air Marshal Chakalayil R Mohan (Retd) | Air Force |
| 29 | Air Marshal Rajesh Kumar Anand (Retd) | Air Force |
| 30 | Brig Sanjay Kumar Mishra | Army |
Uttam Yudh Seva Medal (UYSM)
| S. No. | Name of Awardee | Arm/Service |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai | Army |
| 2 | Lt Gen Zubin A Minwalla | Army |
| 3 | Lt Gen Hitesh Bhalla | Army |
| 4 | Air Marshal Sujeet Pushpakar Dharkar (Retd) | Air Force |
| 5 | Air Marshal Pankaj Mohan Sinha (Retd) | Air Force |
Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM)
| S. No. | Name of Awardee | Arm/Service |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lt Gen Pushpendra Pal Singh | Army |
| 2 | Lt Gen Sandeep Jain | Army |
| 3 | Lt Gen Vijay Bhaskaran Nair | Army |
| 4 | Lt Gen Rajesh Pushkar | Army |
| 5 | Lt Gen Rahul Raghavendra Singh | Army |
| 6 | Lt Gen Sadhna S Nair | Army |
| 7 | Lt Gen Suresh Chandra Tandi | Army |
| 8 | Lt Gen Shrinjay Pratap Singh | Army |
| 9 | Lt Gen Rajagopal C Srikanth | Army |
| 10 | Lt Gen Mukesh Chadha | Army |
| 11 | Lt Gen Rajiv Kumar | Army |
| 12 | Lt Gen Bhavnish Kumar | Army |
| 13 | Lt Gen Vineet Sharma | Army |
| 14 | Lt Gen Divya Gaurav Misra | Army |
| 15 | Lt Gen Shivinder Singh | Army |
| 16 | Lt Gen Devinder Pal Singh | Army |
| 17 | Vice Adm Lochan Singh Pathania | Navy |
| 18 | Vice Adm Rajesh Dhankhar | Navy |
| 19 | Vice Adm CR Praveen Nair | Navy |
| 20 | Air Mshl V Rajasekhar | Air Force |
| 21 | Air Mshl MS Sridhar | Air Force |
| 22 | Air Mshl Sanjiv Ghuratia | Air Force |
| 23 | Air Mshl PV Shivanand | Air Force |
| 24 | DG Paramesh Sivamani | ICG |
| 25 | Lt Gen Anil Kumar Samantara (Retd) | Army |
| 26 | Lt Gen Sanjeev Kumar Singh (Retd) | Army |
| 27 | Air Mshl Rajesh Vaidya (Retd) | Air Force |
| 28 | Maj Gen Rohit Sawhney | Army |
| 29 | Maj Gen Harsh Chhibber | Army |
| 30 | Maj Gen Abhinaya Rai | Army |
| 31 | Maj Gen M Khalid Zaki | Army |
| 32 | Maj Gen Rajwant Singh | Army |
| 33 | Maj Gen Manish Luthra | Army |
| 34 | Maj Gen Rajesh Sethi | Army |
| 35 | Maj Gen Neeraj Shukla | Army |
| 36 | Maj Gen Balbir Singh | Army |
| 37 | Maj Gen Madanraj Pande | Army |
| 38 | Maj Gen Akaash Johar | Army |
| 39 | Maj Gen Sameer Srivastava | Army |
| 40 | Maj Gen Balachandran Nambiar | Army |
| 41 | R Adm Sandeep Mehta | Navy |
| 42 | R Adm Manish Sharma | Navy |
| 43 | R Adm Manish Chadha | Navy |
| 44 | R Adm Janak Bevli | Navy |
| 45 | AVM Suhas P Bhandare | Air Force |
| 46 | AVM Ajay Kumar Pan | Air Force |
| 47 | AVM V Srinivas Choudary | Air Force |
| 48 | AVM Venkat T Mare | Air Force |
| 49 | AVM Manish Sahdev | Air Force |
| 50 | AVM Anand Sondhi | Air Force |
| 51 | Maj Gen Mukesh Aggarwal (Retd) | Army |
| 52 | Maj Gen Abhay Dayal (Retd) | Army |
| 53 | R Adm Cyril Thomas (Retd) | Navy |
| 54 | AVM Niraj Nainwal (Retd) | Air Force |
| 55 | AVM PTK Sreekumar (Retd) | Air Force |
| 56 | AVM RV Ramkishore (Retd) | Air Force |
| 57 | ADGBR George P Cherian (Retd) | BRO |
Since the establishment of these service decorations in 1950, India has continued to uphold the tradition of recognizing dedication and excellence within its defense forces. The Defence Investiture Ceremony 2025 (Phase-II) reaffirmed this legacy, celebrating those whose leadership and professionalism continue to strengthen India’s defense posture.
