Havildar Hangpan Dada receives Ashok Chakra posthumously; Shaurya Chakra goes to Lt Col Niranjan

On the eve of the 70th Independence Day, the government today honoured the martyrs who fought bravely to secure country’s interest.

Havildar Hangpan Dada of 35 Rashtriya Rifles was awarded posthumously with Ashok Chakra. He sacrificed his life after killing four terrorists in North Kashmir in May this year. The 36-year-old martyr, an Arunachal Pradesh resident, was survived by wife and two children.

“Havildar Hangpan Dada displayed raw courage, unflinching grit, presence of mind and with utter disregard to his personal safety and despite bleeding profusely, discharged his duties and made supreme sacrifice for the nation.”

The third highest peacetime gallantry medal “Shaurya Chakra” went to late Lt Col Niranjan E Kumar, head of NSG’s bomb disposal unit who died while sanitizing a terrorist’s body during the Pathankot air base terror attack in January this year.

With input from PTI