Surgical Strike: 19 soldiers receive gallantry awards on 68th R-Day

New Delhi: Nineteen Indian soldiers of the 4 and 9 Para were conferred with gallantry medals on occasion of 68^th Republic Day for successfully carrying out the cross-border surgical strike across LoC.

Major Rohit Suri of 4 Para was awarded the Kirti Chakra, second highest peacetime gallantry award, for leading one of the units across LoC. Havildar Prem Bahadur Resmi Magar of the Gorkha Rifles also got the Kirti Chakra posthumously.

Col Kapil Yadav, who was the commanding officer of 9 Para, and Col Harpreet Sandhu, commanding officer of 4 Para, were given the Yudh Sewa Medal, which is one of India's military decorations awarded to mark distinguished service during war time. It may also be awarded posthumously.

Also Read: 68th Republic Day parade ceremony concludes at Rajpath

The award is the wartime equivalent of the Vishisht Seva Medal, which is a decoration for peace time distinguished service.

Five soldiers from the 4 and 9 para units also received Shaurya Chakra while 13 others took Sena Medal (Gallantry).

The Indian Army carried out surgical strike on terror launchpads across the Line of Control in September 2016. The attack was launched in reply to a terror attack on an army camp in Uri, Jammu and Kashmir in which 19 jawans were martyred.

The surgical strike received praises from all corners of the country, and the Army’s new chief General Bipin Rawat has also claimed that the Indian Army is fully prepared to use the tactic again if needed.