New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind has approved awards of 455 Gallantry and other Defence decorations to Armed Forces personnel and others on the eve of 72nd Republic Day celebrations.
These include one Mahavir Chakra, 05 Kirti Chakras, 05 Vir Chakras, 07 Shaurya Chakras, 04 Bar to Sena Medal (Gallantry),130 Sena Medal (Gallantry), one Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry), 04 Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry), 30 Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM), 04 Uttam Yudh Seva Medal (UYSM), 51 Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM), 11 Yudh Seva Medal (YSM), 03 Bar to Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty),43 Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty) including 02 COVID Warriors, 08 Nao Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 14 Vayu Sena Medal (Devotion to Duty), 03 Bar to VishishtSeva Medal (VSM) including one COVID Warrior and 131 VishishtSeva Medal (VSM) including 12 COVID Warriors.
Besides these, the President has approved the Mention-in-Despatches Award for 54 personnel on the recommendation of the Army Headquarters.
Earlier, Ram Nath Kovind, unveiled a portrait of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday.
The unveiling was to mark the beginning of year-long celebrations to commemorate the 125th Birth Anniversary Year of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
President of India’s official Twitter handle shared the news and wrote, “President Kovind unveils the portrait of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose at Rashtrapati Bhavan to commemorate his 125th birth anniversary celebrations.”
“Tributes to Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose as the nation commences his 125th birth anniversary celebrations. It is befitting to celebrate this day as “Parakram Diwas” to honour his boundless courage & valour. Netaji instilled the fervour of nationalism among his countless followers,” said the President.
“Netaji is one of our most beloved national heroes who made an extraordinary contribution to India’s freedom struggle. Netaji’s patriotism and sacrifice shall always inspire us. We are committed to strengthening the spirit of freedom so strongly espoused by him,” he added.
Meanwhile, on the evening of Republic Day, Kobind addressed the nation. He said, “Greetings to all of you on the eve of the 72nd Republic Day of the world’s largest and most vibrant democracy. In this land of ours, enriched by diversity, with many festivals, our national festivals are celebrated by everyone with great patriotic fervor. We celebrate the national festival of the Republic Day with enthusiasm and express our respect for the national flag, and our faith in the Constitution.”
He added, “This day has come to mean a lot to all Indians living within the country and abroad. Seventy-one years ago, on this very day, we the people of India adopted, enacted, and gave to ourselves a unique Constitution. For all of us, then, this is the day to also pause and ponder over the core values that the Constitution propounds. These values – Justice, Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity – outlined in the Preamble of our Constitution are sacred to all of us. Its abiding adherence is meant not only for those who are mandated to govern but for the people at large.”
“I would like that we go further back into history and inquire why precisely these values guided our nation-builders. And the answer is obvious: This land and its inhabitants have cherished these ideals from time immemorial. Justice, Liberty, Equality, and Fraternity are perennial principles of our philosophy of life. They come to us from the dawn of this civilization through an unbroken chain. It is, of course, the task of every generation to seek out the meaning of these values for its times. As the freedom fighters did in their day, so should we in our time. These key principles should light our development path,” said the President.