This article is about the military decoration. For the symbol, see Ashoka Chakra.
The Ashoka Chakra (alternative spelling: Ashok Chakra) is India's highest peacetime military decoration awarded for valor, courageous action, or self-sacrifice away from the battlefield. It is the peacetime equivalent of the Param Vir Chakra (PVC) and is awarded for the "most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent valour or self-sacrifice" other than in the face of the enemy. The decoration may be awarded either to military or civilian personnel.
Officers, men and women of all ranks of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force, of any of the Reserve Forces, of the Territorial Army, Militia and of any other lawfully constituted forces.
Members of the Nursing Services of the Armed Forces.
Civilian Citizens of either sex in all walks of life and members of Police Forces including Central Para-Military Forces and Railway protection Force.[1]
HavildarBachittar Singh and Naik Narbahadur Thapa were the first recipients of the Ashoka Chakra. Subsequent awards of the Ashoka Chakra are recognized by a bar to the medal ribbon. A recipient can be awarded the Kirti Chakra or Shaurya Chakra in addition to separate acts of gallantry.
The medal was originally established on 4 January 1952 as the "Ashoka Chakra, Class I" as the first step of a three-class sequence of non-combatant bravery decorations. In 1967, these decorations were removed from the "class-based" system and renamed as the Ashoka Chakra, Kirti Chakra, and Shaurya Chakra. This is an important point in understanding the independent Indian view of decorations. It would also lead to changes in the Padma Vibhushan series, the distinguished service medal series, the life-saving medal series, and the Defence Security Corps medal series.
From 1 February 1999, the central government instituted a monthly stipend for Ashoka Chakra recipients of Rs. 1400. Jammu and Kashmir awarded a cash award of Rs. 1500 for recipients of this award.
Overview
Obverse: Circular gold gilt, 1-3/8 inches in diameter. In the center, the chakra (wheel) of Ashoka, is surrounded by a lotus wreath with an ornate edge. Suspended by a straight bar suspender. The medal is named on the edge.
Reverse: Blank in the center, with "Ashoka Chakra" in Hindi along the upper edge on the medal and the same name in English along the lower rim. On either side is a lotus design. The center is blank, perhaps with the intent that details of the award be engraved there. There is no indication of the class on the pre-1967 awards, and, in fact, there is no difference between these medals & the post-1967 awards.
Ribbon: 32 mm, dark green with a 2 mm central saffron stripe.
Ashoka Chakra recipients
As of August 2021[update], the medal has been awarded to 86 awardees, of which 68 were to posthumous recipients.
Bhure Lal, a constable from Madhya Pradesh Police who is the first state policeman to be awarded the Ashoka Chakra. (Note that Shankar Lal Shrivastava, a retired head constable from Madhya Pradesh Police was posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra in 1967.)
^"Precedence of Medals". Indian Army. from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 17 May 2014.
^"Precedence of Medals". indianarmy.nic.in/. Indian Army. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
^"Precedence of Medals". Indian Army, Govt of India official website.
^"As Jammu and Kashmir Police bags gallantry medals, DGP heaps praises". Hindustan Times. 14 August 2021.
^"411 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced". pib.nic.in. Press Information Bureau, Government of India.
^ abcdefghi"Ashoka Chakra recipients (2009–16)". Indian Army Web Portal. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
^"The President, Shri Pranab Mukherjee giving away the highest gallantry award Ashok Chakra to Shri K. Venkatraman father of the Reserve Inspector, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh, Shri K.L.V.S.S.H.N.V. Prasad Babu, (Posthumous), during the 65th Republic Day Parade 2014, in New Delhi on January 26, 2014". Press Information Bureau, India. 26 January 2014. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
^ abcdefghijk"Ashoka Chakra awardees and their saga of gallantry" (Press release). Press Information Bureau, India. 25 January 2009. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
^ abcdefghijklmnopqr"Ashoka Chakra recipients (1993–2009)". Indian Army Web Portal. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
^"Suresh Chand Yadav". National Security Guards. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
^ abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzaa"Ashoka Chakra recipients (1952–92)". Indian Army Web Portal. Retrieved 18 January 2017.
^Aggarwal, Rashmi (2021). "Sri Takhat Singh". Ashoka Chakra Recipients. p. 63.
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This article is about the military decoration For the symbol see Ashoka Chakra The Ashoka Chakra alternative spelling Ashok Chakra is India s highest peacetime military decoration awarded for valor courageous action or self sacrifice away from the battlefield It is the peacetime equivalent of the Param Vir Chakra PVC and is awarded for the most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre eminent valour or self sacrifice other than in the face of the enemy The decoration may be awarded either to military or civilian personnel Ashoka ChakraAshoka Chakra and its ribbonTypeMedalAwarded forAwarded for most conspicuous bravery or some act of daring or pre eminent act of valour or self sacrifice otherwise than in the face of the enemy 1 DescriptionIndia s highest peacetime military decorationCountryIndiaPresented byRepublic of IndiaEligibilityOfficers men and women of all ranks of the Army the Navy and the Air Force of any of the Reserve Forces of the Territorial Army Militia and of any other lawfully constituted forces Members of the Nursing Services of the Armed Forces Civilian Citizens of either sex in all walks of life and members of Police Forces including Central Para Military Forces and Railway protection Force 1 Post nominalsACStatusActiveEstablished1952 71 years ago 1952 First awarded1952Last awarded2021Total86 As of 2021 2 3 Total awarded posthumously68Total recipients86PrecedenceNext higher Bharat RatnaEquivalentParam Vir Chakra a 5 6 7 Next lower Padma Vibhushan 8 Havildar Bachittar Singh and Naik Narbahadur Thapa were the first recipients of the Ashoka Chakra Subsequent awards of the Ashoka Chakra are recognized by a bar to the medal ribbon A recipient can be awarded the Kirti Chakra or Shaurya Chakra in addition to separate acts of gallantry Contents 1 History 2 Overview 3 Ashoka Chakra recipients 4 Ashoka Chakra recipients by year and service 5 Superlatives 6 References 7 External linksHistory EditThe medal was originally established on 4 January 1952 as the Ashoka Chakra Class I as the first step of a three class sequence of non combatant bravery decorations In 1967 these decorations were removed from the class based system and renamed as the Ashoka Chakra Kirti Chakra and Shaurya Chakra This is an important point in understanding the independent Indian view of decorations It would also lead to changes in the Padma Vibhushan series the distinguished service medal series the life saving medal series and the Defence Security Corps medal series From 1 February 1999 the central government instituted a monthly stipend for Ashoka Chakra recipients of Rs 1400 Jammu and Kashmir awarded a cash award of Rs 1500 for recipients of this award Overview EditObverse Circular gold gilt 1 3 8 inches in diameter In the center the chakra wheel of Ashoka is surrounded by a lotus wreath with an ornate edge Suspended by a straight bar suspender The medal is named on the edge Reverse Blank in the center with Ashoka Chakra in Hindi along the upper edge on the medal and the same name in English along the lower rim On either side is a lotus design The center is blank perhaps with the intent that details of the award be engraved there There is no indication of the class on the pre 1967 awards and in fact there is no difference between these medals amp the post 1967 awards Ribbon 32 mm dark green with a 2 mm central saffron stripe Ashoka Chakra recipients EditAs of August 2021 update the medal has been awarded to 86 awardees of which 68 were to posthumous recipients Key Indicates posthumous honourList of award recipients showing the year Year Rank Recipient Branch Refs 2021 Assistant Sub Inspector Babu Ram Jammu and Kashmir Police 9 2019 Lance Naik Nazir Ahmad Wani Territorial Army Indian Army 10 2018 Corporal Jyoti Prakash Nirala Indian Air Force 3 2017 Havildar Hangpan Dada Indian Army 11 2016 Lance Naik Mohan Goswami Indian Army 11 2014 Major Mukund Varadarajan Indian Army 11 Naik Neeraj Kumar Singh Indian Army 11 Sub Inspector K Prasad Babu Andhra Pradesh Police 12 2012 Lieutenant Navdeep Singh Indian Army 11 2011 Major Laishram Jyotin Singh Indian Army 11 2010 Havildar Rajesh Kumar Indian Army 11 Major D Sreeram Kumar Indian Army 11 Major Mohit Sharma Indian Army 11 2009 Havildar Bahadur Singh Bohra Indian Army 13 Joint Commissioner of Police Hemant Karkare Indian Police Service 13 Inspector Vijay Salaskar Maharashtra Police Service 13 Additional Commissioner of Police Ashok Kamte Indian Police Service 13 Assistant Sub Inspector Tukaram Omble Maharashtra Police Service 13 Havildar Gajender Singh Bisht NSG 13 Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan NSG 13 Inspector Mohan Chand Sharma Delhi Police 13 Colonel Jojan Thomas Indian Army 13 Deputy Superintendent of Police R P Diengdoh Meghalaya Police 13 Assistant Commandant of Police Pramod Kumar Satapathy Odisha Police 13 2008 Major Dinesh Raghu Raman Indian Army 14 2007 Captain Radhakrishnan Nair Harshan Indian Army 14 Naib Subedar Chuni Lal Indian Army 14 Colonel Vasanth Venugopal Indian Army 14 2004 Lieutenant Triveni Singh Indian Army 14 Paratrooper Sanjog Chhetri Indian Army 14 2003 Subedar Major Assistant Commander Grade I Suresh Chand Yadav National Security Guard 15 2002 Subedar Surinder Singh Indian Army 14 Naik Rambeer Singh Tomar Indian Army 14 2001 Shri Jagdish Prasad Yadav Security Assistant Rajya Sabha SecretariatShri Matbar Singh Negi Security Assistant Rajya Sabha SecretariatConstable Kamlesh Kumari CRPF 14 2000 Major Sudhir Kumar Walia Indian Army 14 1997 Second Lieutenant Puneet Nath Datt Indian Army 14 Lieutenant Colonel Shanti Swarup Rana Indian Army 14 1996 Captain Arun Singh Jasrotia Indian Army 14 1995 Major Rajiv Kumar Joon Indian Army 14 Subedar Sujjan Singh Indian Army 14 Lieutenant Colonel Harsh Uday Singh Gaur Indian Army 14 1994 Colonel Neelakantan Jayachandran Nair Indian Army 14 1993 Second Lieutenant Rakesh Singh Indian Army 14 1992 Captain Sandeep Sankhla Indian Army 16 1991 Police Officer Randhir Prasad Verma Police Service 16 1987 Flight Attendant Neerja Bhanot Pan Am 16 1986 Shri Vijay Jagirdar Civilian1985 Lance Havildar Chhering Mutup Indian Army 16 Naik Nirbhay Singh Indian Army 16 Naik Bhawani Datt Joshi Indian Army 16 Lieutenant Ram Prakash Roperia Indian Army 16 Captain Jasbir Singh Raina Indian Army 16 Major Bhukant Misra Indian Army 16 Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma Indian Air Force 16 1984 Flight Engineer Gennadi Strekalov Soviet Flight Engineer 16 Colonel Yury Malyshev Soviet Airforce 16 1981 Second Lieutenant Cyrus Addie Pithawalla Indian Army 16 1974 Shri Munni Lal CivilianNaib Subedar Gurnam Singh Indian Army 16 1972 Shri Bhure Lal Madhya Pradesh PoliceCaptain Ummed Singh Mahra Indian Army 16 1971 Shri Baij Nath Singh Civilian1969 Captain Jas Ram Singh Indian Army 16 1968 Shri Takhat Singh Civilian 17 Shri Lakhan Singh CivilianShri Hukum Singh CivilianShri Govind Singh CivilianShri Dhanpat Singh Civilian1967 Head Constable Shankar Lal Shrivastava Madhya Pradesh Police1965 Shri Tej Singh CivilianShri Lajja Ram CivilianShri Chaman Lal CivilianShri Purshottam Civilian 16 1962 Subedar Major Kharka Bahadur Limbu Indian Army 16 Captain Man Bahadur Rai Indian Army 16 1958 Captain Eric James Tucker Indian Army 16 1957 Lieutenant Colonel Jagannath Raoji Chitnis Indian Army 16 Second Lieutenant Pollur Mutthuswamy Raman Indian Army 16 Havildar Joginder Singh Indian Army 16 1956 Lance Naik Sundar Singh Indian Army 16 1955 Pilot Damodar Kashinath Jatar Air India1953 Flight Lieutenant Suhas Biswas Indian Air Force 16 1952 Naik Narbahadur Thapa Indian Army 16 Havildar Bachittar Singh Indian Army 16 Ashoka Chakra recipients by year and service EditAward recipients by year Year Number of recipients1952 1959 091960 1969 131970 1979 051980 1989 121990 1999 102000 2009 242010 2019 122020 2029 01 Award recipients by service Field Number of recipientsIndian Army 52Indian Air Force 03Indian Navy 00Indian Civilians 17Indian State Police 11Foreigners 02CAPF 01Superlatives EditThis section contains a list of miscellaneous information Please relocate any relevant information into other sections or articles August 2021 Havildar Bachittar Singh Naik Narbahadur Thapa were the first recipients of the Ashoka Chakra Shri Amrat Lal Mehra was first youngest recipient of Ashoka Chakra from Madhya Pradesh Flight Lieutenant Suhas Biswas was the first recipient of the Ashoka Chakra from Indian Air Force Paratrooper Sanjog Chhetri aged 20 when posthumously awarded was the youngest recipient of the Ashoka Chakra Colonel Neelakantan Jayachandran Nair was awarded both Ashoka Chakra and Kirti Chakra Damodar Kashinath Jatar a pilot who was the first civilian recipient of the Ashoka Chakra Colonel Yury Malyshev and Flight Engineer Gennadi Strekalov from Russia were the first foreign recipients of the Ashoka Chakra both were astronauts Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma is the first Indian astronaut to be awarded the Ashoka Chakra Neerja Bhanot a flight attendant of PAN AM who was the first female recipient of the Ashoka Chakra Kamlesh Kumari a constable of CRPF who was the first recipient of the Ashoka Chakra from Central Armed Police Forces Bhure Lal a constable from Madhya Pradesh Police who is the first state policeman to be awarded the Ashoka Chakra Note that Shankar Lal Shrivastava a retired head constable from Madhya Pradesh Police was posthumously awarded the Ashoka Chakra in 1967 Lt Col Harsh Uday Singh Gaur 10 Bihar Regiment On November 29 1994 https www mynation com news saluting lt col harsh uday singh gaur ashok chakra posthumous pj04mfReferences Edit Though the Ashoka Chakra is placed below the PVC in order of wear it is considered as a peacetime equivalent to Param Vir Chakra or PVC 4 Chakravorty B C 1995 Stories of Heroism PVC amp MVC Winners New Delhi Allied Publishers ISBN 978 81 7023 516 3 a b http www indianarmy gov in Site FormTemplete frmTempSimple aspx MnId p6xUHC5yMgV3Tyuw9ZIb6w amp ParentID tFRV4t12pKRhSFm2sMq5yQ dead link Awardees Gallantry Awards gallantryawards gov in a b Martyred Corporal Jyoti Prakash Nirala joins elite IAF club tomorrow India News Times of India The Times of India Awards Warb PDF Ministry of Home Affairs India p 1 Archived from the original PDF on 4 March 2016 Retrieved 5 September 2016 Chakravorty 1995 p 40 Precedence of Medals Indian Army Archived from the original on 4 March 2016 Retrieved 17 May 2014 Precedence of Medals indianarmy nic in Indian Army Retrieved 9 September 2014 Precedence of Medals Indian Army Govt of India official website As Jammu and Kashmir Police bags gallantry medals DGP heaps praises Hindustan Times 14 August 2021 411 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced pib nic in Press Information Bureau Government of India a b c d e f g h i Ashoka Chakra recipients 2009 16 Indian Army Web Portal Retrieved 18 January 2017 The President Shri Pranab Mukherjee giving away the highest gallantry award Ashok Chakra to Shri K Venkatraman father of the Reserve Inspector Govt of Andhra Pradesh Shri K L V S S H N V Prasad Babu Posthumous during the 65th Republic Day Parade 2014 in New Delhi on January 26 2014 Press Information Bureau India 26 January 2014 Retrieved 18 January 2017 a b c d e f g h i j k Ashoka Chakra awardees and their saga of gallantry Press release Press Information Bureau India 25 January 2009 Retrieved 18 January 2017 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r Ashoka Chakra recipients 1993 2009 Indian Army Web Portal Retrieved 18 January 2017 Suresh Chand Yadav National Security Guards Retrieved 21 June 2020 a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z aa Ashoka Chakra recipients 1952 92 Indian Army Web Portal Retrieved 18 January 2017 Aggarwal Rashmi 2021 Sri Takhat Singh Ashoka Chakra Recipients p 63 External links EditAshoka Chakra at Indian Army website Bharat Rakshak Page on Ashoka Chakra Ashoka Chakra awardees of the Indian Air Force Recipients of Ashoka Chakra Award Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Ashoka Chakra military decoration amp oldid 1144909782, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
