The 75th Republic Day inches closer with every second and President Draupadi Murmu has declared her approval for 277 gallantry awards to be bestowed on the valiant personnels of India, as a mark of honour for their spirited and fearless services.
Of the 277 gallantry awards, 275 will be awarded the Medal for Gallantry (GM) while two Border Security Forces (BSF) personnel will be medalled with the President’s Medal for Gallantry (PMG).
The BSF personnel will be accoladed with the PMG for their exceptional services in maintaining peace and playing their role in the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) as comrades of the 15th Congo Contingent of BSF at the Moroccan Rapid Deployment Battalion (MORRDB) Camp at Butembo.
Region-wise Segregation
The 277 awards are further bifurcated based on the regions of the country. 72 personnel from Jammu and Kashmir will proudly dress the medal on their chests, 65 medals will be borne by the CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force), 21 from the SSB (Sashastra Seema Bal).
18 medals will be received by the Maharashtrian forces, 26 staff from Chhattisgarh will be bestowed with the awards, 23 from Jharkhand, 15 from Odisha, 8 from Delhi and the other awards will be conferred on the personnel from the State/Union Territories and CAP (Combat Air Patrol) for their heroism. regions are being awarded for their gallant action.
The Gallantry Awards in a Timeline
The Gallantry Awards are accorded by the Government on India twice a year – Republic Day (26th January) and Independence Day (15th August). They are shining symbols of acknowledgement to recognize the bravery and self-lessness of the defence officers.
The ritual of awarding these awards started after Independence as the government launched the premier three awards, naming them – Param Vir Chakra, Maha Vir Chakra and Vir Chakra on 26th January, 1950.
The list was further extended by adding Ashoka Chakra Class-I, Ashoka Chakra Class-II and Ashoka Chakra Class-III on 4th January, 1952. Later, in 1967, these awards were relabelled as Ashoka Chakra, Kirti Chakra and Shaurya Chakra respectively.
As years rolled by, the government took the task to condense the 16 categories of gallantry or service medals into four brackets.: Medal for Gallantry (GM), President’s Medal for Gallantry (PMG), President’s Medal for Distinguished Service (PMG), and Medal for Meritorious Service (MSM).
26th Jan: Let’s Salute Gallants
GM and PMG have been laureled to 277 personnel/BSF for displaying exceptional gallantry while the President’s Medal for Distinguished Service will be awarded to 102 personnel and 753 officers (including the police forces, firearms and civil defence officers) will receive the MSM.
In all, 1132 personnel from the various sectors of defence will be honoured for their services at the 75th Republic Day of the Country.
Comments 1