Republic Day: J-K Police gets max 108 gallantry medals, CRPF 76

The Jammu and Kashmir Police has bagged the maximum number of gallantry honours with 108 medals on the occasion of the 71st Republic Day, followed by 76 by the CRPF, according to an official communication on Saturday.

The tally for the Union Territory police, thickly involved in counter-terrorist operations in the Kashmir Valley, also includes three President's Police Medal for Gallantry (PPMG), out of the total four of these top category decorations announced this time.

These numbers have enabled the Jammu and Kashmir Police to win a lion's share of 108 medals out of the total 290 gallantry awards declared on the eve of the Republic Day, as per the Union Home Ministry.

It is one of the highest tally of gallantry medals won by a police force in recent times, a senior officer in the security establishment said.

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) that is also deployed in the Union Territory for counter-terror duties apart from being the lead force in anti-Naxal operations continued its streak of getting the largest multi-theatre gallantry medals as it has been decorated with 75 Police Medals for Gallantry and a PPMG (posthumously) for CoBRA commando Utpal Rabha.

Rabha was killed in an encounter with Maoists in Jharkhand in June, 2018 and his citation said he displayed "extraordinary valour" during the gunbattle.

Among other awardees of the CRPF is Assistant Commandant Naresh Kumar, who is being decorated with a gallantry medal for the sixth time.

The officer was part of the famed quick action team (QAT) of the CRPF based in Srinagar that specialises in conducting counter-terror operations.

Kumar, who served for about five years in Kashmir, has been involved in operations that killed more than 50 terrorists.

Atul Karwal, Director of Sardar Vallabhai Patel National Police Academy in Hyderabad, the alma mater of the Indian Police Service officers also won a PMG.

Karwal has been awarded for an operation he participated in 2016 when he was the CRPF Inspector General (IG) in Kashmir.

CRPF Director General (DG) A P Maheshwari praised his troops "for keeping the flag of the force flying high".

"I also salute the families of personnel who laid down their lives in the line of duty," the CRPF chief said.

Other forces that have been decorated with the police bravery medal (PMG) include the state police units of Jharkhand (33), Odisha (16), Delhi Police (12), Maharashtra (10), Chhattisgarh (8), Bihar (7), Punjab (4) and Manipur (2).

Among the central forces, the Border Security Force (BSF) got nine PMG followed by SSB 4, and one for the Railway Protection Force (RPF).

Overall, a total of 1,040 police medals have been declared on the eve of the Republic Day that includes 93 distinguished service medals and 657 meritorious service medals.

These police bravery awards are declared biannually on the eve of the Republic Day and Independence Day.