Now Reading: President’s Medals for 76 personnel; 13 get gallantry award
-
01
President’s Medals for 76 personnel; 13 get gallantry award
New Delhi: On the eve of Independence Day 2026, President Droupadi Murmu awarded President’s Medals for Distinguished Service and Meritorious Service to personnel across multiple forces. Seventeen Delhi Police officers, including Additional…
The Story in Brief
New Delhi: On the eve of Independence Day 2026, President Droupadi Murmu awarded President’s Medals for Distinguished Service and Meritorious Service to personnel across multiple forces. Seventeen Delhi Police officers, including Additional CP Dinesh Kumar Gupta and Sub-Inspector Rajesh Kumar, received medals, with two awarded the Distinguished Service medal. Twenty-one CBI officers and 16 Railway Protection Force personnel were also honoured. In Karnataka, 22 officers from police, fire, and home guard departments received medals.
The Times of India reports that 13 Mumbai Fire Brigade personnel will receive the President’s Medal for Gallantry for rescuing 582 passengers from a stranded Monorail in August 2025. Chief Fire Officer Ravindra Ambulgekar called it the world’s largest rescue operation.
The Indian Opinion
These medals honour decades of service, but some question whether the selection process truly rewards merit over connections. The inclusion of officers from multiple forces and states suggests an effort toward fairness. However, the absence of a public list of all awardees and their specific citations leaves room for doubt. A key test will be whether future announcements include detailed reasons for each award, allowing citizens to judge merit for themselves.
Sources (5): thehindu.com, livemint.com, greaterkashmir.com, timesofindia.indiatimes.com, timesofindia.indiatimes.com (2)
This story was synthesised by AI from the 5 sources linked above.
Updated: this story now draws on 5 sources.
