CRPF commandants Pramod Kumar and Chetan Cheeta have been awarded Kirti Chakra, the second highest peacetime gallantry medal, on the eve of Independence Day for their brave exploits against terrorists in Kashmir.
Kumar, commanding officer (CO) of the Srinagar-based 49th battalion of the paramilitary force, has been decorated with the military medal posthumously.
He was killed in an encounter with terrorists at Nowhatta Chowk in Srinagar soon after he unfurled the national flag at his camp on August 15 last year and rushed to help his troops who were engaged by two armed, foreign militants.
Forty-four-year-old Kumar suffered a fatal bullet injury in his skull and succumbed to it, not before inflicting severe injuries on the militants.
Cheeta, CO of the 45th CRPF battalion, was shot nine times during an operation against militants in the Hajin area of Kashmir Valley on February 14 this year.
He made a "miraculous" recovery after suffering such fatal injuries.
Cheeta, who hails from Rajasthan, bore the initial brunt of the militants when a joint team of the Army, CRPF and state police had laid siege following intelligence inputs that two foreign terrorists were hiding in the area.
The brave officer was initially taken to the base hospital in Srinagar where he was operated upon and given primary treatment, after which he was flown to the AIIMS Trauma Centre here.
While Home Minister Rajnath Singh had praised Cheeta's courage, will and determination, Army chief General Bipin Rawat had visited him while he was in the hospital.
Cheeta had joined the CRPF in Jaunary, 1998.
Two other troops of the about three lakh-strong paramilitary have been decorated with military medals today.
Assistant Commandant Chandan Kumar and Constable Amarnath Mishra have been awarded the Shaurya Chakra, the third highest peacetime gallantry medal.
The force, designated as the lead force for operations against Naxals, also won the maximum -- 53 -- Police Medal for Gallantry (PMG) this year.
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