73rd I-Day: Six Navy men chosen for gallantry awards, one gets Shaurya Chakra

Indian Navy sailor Amit Singh Rana, who was deployed for Operation Rakshak in Jammu and Kashmir and played a vital role in elimination of several terrorists, has been chosen for Shaurya Chakra, officials said on Wednesday.

Eight foreign terrorist were killed in two back-to-back operations -- Operation Danna and Operation Shok Baba. In these operations, the sailor performed exceptionally, the Navy said in a statement.

In Operation Danna, he, as a buddy of Lt Cdr Mahesh Kumar, shot dead one terrorist at extreme close quarters while giving cover to the officer, who shot dead another terrorist, it said.

On September 20-21 , Rana was involved in Operation Shok Baba along with the 14 Rashtriya Rifles in a cordon and search operation.

There were five to six terrorists entrapped at Shok Baba village and despite firing of heavy calibre weapons and grenades, the terrorists remained protected in a cow shed, according to the statement.

It was at this juncture, Rana and a team volunteered to approach the cow shed with a heavy improvised explosive device (IED), it said.

There was a heavy firing on the team, but Rana quickly manoeuvred in and placed the IED at the cow shed, the statement said.

"Rana was fired upon but came out unscathed. He was backed by close cover firing by his buddy. The cow shed was blown up by the IED and three terrorists inside it were eliminated," it said.

Five other persons have been chosen for gallantry medals -- Nao Sena Medal, the Navy said.

Naveen Thapa, as Captain of a Sea King 42 C aircraft, on January 25 displayed exceptional courage and saved the lives of five Indian Coast Guard officers and one Indian Army jawan in extremely rough sea conditions at night, the statement said.

The six people were stranded at sea after their Seabird class sailing boat capsized.

Lt Cdr Ruchir Rakesh Khajuria was officer-in-charge of the team deployed in Jammu and Kashmir for Operation Rakshak from May 24 to November 29, 2018, it said.

In seven months under his leadership, eight hardcore terrorists were eliminated without any casualty in his team.

Three more sailors Takhellambam Rakhesh Singh, Shaminder Singh and Shri Niwash have also been chosen for the gallantry award announced on the eve of the 73rd Independence Day.