The Param Vir Chakra: An ode to the bravest of all

The Parama Vira Chakra (PVC) is India's highest military decoration awarded for the highest degree of valour or self-sacrifice in the presence of the enemy.The PVC was established on 26 January 1950 (the date of India becoming a republic), by the President of India, with effect from 15 August 1947 .It can be awarded to officers or enlisted personnel from all branches of the Indian military. It is the second highest award of the government of India after Bharat Ratna (amendment in the statute on 26 January 1980 resulted in this order of wearing). It replaced the former British colonial Victoria Cross (VC).

Provision was made for the award of a bar for second (or subsequent) awards of the Parama Vira Chakra. To date, there have been no such awards. Award of the decoration carries with it the right to use P.V.C. as a postnominal abbreviation.

The award also carries a cash allowance for those under the rank of lieutenant (or the appropriate service equivalent) and, in some cases, a cash award. On the death of the recipient, the pension is transferred to the widow until her death or remarriage. The paltry amount of the pension has been a rather controversial issue throughout the life of the decoration. By March 1999, the stipend stood at Rs. 1500 per month. In addition, many states have established individual pension rewards that far exceeds the central government's stipend for the recipients of the decoration.

Subedar Major Bana Singh of the Eighth Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry was the only serving personnel of the Indian defence establishment with a Parama Vira Chakra till the Kargil operations. .The medal was designed by Savitri Khanolkar who was married to an Indian Army officer, Vikram Khanolkar. This was done following a request from the first native Adjutant General, Major General Hira Lal Atal, who in turn had been entrusted with the responsibility of coming up with an Indian equivalent of the Victoria Cross by Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of the Indian Union. Coincidentally, the first Parama Vira Chakra was awarded to her son-in-law, Major Somnath Sharma for his bravery in the Kashmir operations in November 1947. He died while evicting Pakistani infiltrators and raiders from the Srinagar Airport. This was when India and newly-formed Pakistan had the first war over the Kashmir issue.

The medal is a circular bronze disc with a 1-3/8 inch (approximately 3.5 cm) diameter. In the center, on a raised circle, the state emblem. Surrounding this, four replicas of Indra's Vajra

  Ribbon of the Parama Vira Chakra

The decoration is suspended from a straight swiveling suspension bar. It is named on the edge.On the rear, around a plain center, are two legends separated by lotus flowers. The words Parama Vira Chakra are written in Hindi and English.

Although every officer from the defence who has received this honor is a jewel and needs to be mentioned and saluted, let us read one story  of one IAF officer who received the Param Vir Chakra.The Indian Air Force received only one Param Vir Chakra to date, awarded posthumously to Fg Off Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon in the 1971 War.

Fg Off Nirmal Jit Singh Sekhon was born on 17 July 1943, in Ludhiana, Punjab. He was commissioned into the Indian Air Force in  4th June 1967. During the 1971 Operations, Fg Off Sekhon was with No.18 "Flying Bullets" Squadron flying the Folland Gnat fighter based at Srinagar. In accordance with the international agreement dating back to 1948, no air defence aircraft were based at Sirinagar, until the outbreak of hostilities with Pakistan. Flying Officer Sekhon was, therefore, unfamiliar with the terrain and was not acclimatised to the altitude of Srinagar, especially with the bitter cold and biting winds of the Kashmir winter. Nevertheless, from the onset of the war, he and his colleagues fought successive waves of intruding Pakistani aircraft with valour and determination, maintaining the high reputation of the Gnat aircraft.

Early Morning on the 14th of December 1971, Srinagar Airfield was attacked by a wave of six enemy Sabre aircraft. Flying Officer Sekhon was on readiness duty at the time. However, he could not take off at once because of the clouds of dust raised by another aircraft which had just taken off. By the time the runway was fit for take-off, no fewer than six enemy aircraft were overhead, and strafing of the airfield was in progress. Nevertheless, inspite of the mortal danger of attempting to take off during an attack, and inspite of the odds against him, Flying Officer Sekhon took off and immediately engaged a pair of the attacking Sabres. He succeeded in damaging two of the enemy aircraft. In the fight that followed, at tree top height, he all but held his own, but was eventually overcome by sheer weight of numbers. His aircraft crashed and he was killed.

In thus, sacrificing himself for the defence of Srinagar, Flying Officer Sekhon achieved his object, for the enemy aircraft fled from the scene of the battle without pressing home their attack against the town and the airfield. The sublime heroism, supreme gallantry, flying skill and determination, above and beyond the call of duty, displayed by Flying Officer Sekhon in the face of certain death, set new heights to Air Force traditions