The Ashoka Chakra () is India's highest peacetime military decoration. It is the peacetime equivalent of the Param Vir Chakra and is awarded for the "most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent valour or self-sacrifice". The decoration may be awarded either to military personnel or civilians by the Government of India.
The circular medal consists of Ashoka Chakra surrounded by a lotus wreath on the front. The obverse consists of "Ashoka Chakra" written in Devanagari along the upper edge on the medal and in English along the lower rim. It is suspended by a straight bar suspender from a green ribbon with a central saffron stripe.
, there have been 87 recipients of the award. Of these, 68 have been posthumous recipients, and 17 have been civilians. Havildar Bachittar Singh of the Indian Army was the first recipient of the award, in 1952. D. K. Jatar, a pilot of Air India's Kashmir Princess was the first civilian recipient of the award, in 1955. Only two women have ever been awarded the Ashok Chakra, flight attendant Neerja Bhanot in 1987 and police constable Kamlesh Kumari in 2001. Two non-Indians, cosmonauts Gennadi Strekalov and Yuri Malyshev were given the award in 1984. Indian Air Force officer Shubhanshu Shukla, decorated in 2026, is the most recent awardee.
Description
The medal was originally established on 4 January 1952 as the "Ashoka Chakra, Class I" by the President of India deemed to have been in effect from 15 August 1947. It was the highest class of the three gallantry awards established at the time. In January 1967, the award was renamed as Ashok Chakra with the other two classes renamed as Kirti Chakra and Shaurya Chakra respectively.
Eligibility
The Ashok Chakra can be awarded to all enlisted officers of the Indian Armed Forces including the Indian Army, Indian Airforce, and Indian Navy, the Indian Territorial Army, reserve personnel, and any other legally constituted armed force. Nursing members of the armed forces are also eligible for the award. Police personnel including the Central Armed Police Forces, and the Railway Protection Force are also eligible for the award. The award can also be given to any civilian at the discretion of the Government of India. Havildar Bachittar Singh of the Indian Army was the first recipient of the award for his part in the Operation Polo in 1948. Flight lieutenant Suhas Biswas was the first member of the Indian Air Force to be commemorated with the award in 1953. Flight captain D. K. Jatar, who was the pilot of the bombed Air India flight 300, was the first civilian recipient of the award in 1955. Only two women have ever been awarded the Ashok Chakra, flight attendant Neerja Bhanot in 1987 and police constable Kamlesh Kumari in 2001 for their actions during the hijack of Pan Am Flight 73 and 2001 Indian Parliament attack respectively.
Two non-Indians, cosmonauts Gennadi Strekalov and Yuri Malyshev were given the award in 1984 for their Soyuz T-11 mission which also carried Rakesh Sharma, the first Indian to space. Colonel Neelakantan Jayachandran Nair was the only recipient of both the Ashok Chakra and Kirti Chakra, the two highest peacetime honours.
{| class="wikitable"
|+ Key
|-
| align=center style="background-color:lightblue" |†
| Indicates posthumous honour
|-
| align=center style="background-color:pink" | ^
| Indicates non-Indian recipient
|}
{|class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:left;" style="font-size: 90%"
|+ Ashok Chakra recipients
! scope="col" | Year
! scope="col" | Recipient
! Rank
! Entity
! Action
|-
| 1952
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Bachittar Singh†
| Havildar
| Indian Army
| Operation Polo
|-
| 1952
| Narbahadur Thapa
| Naik
| Indian Army
| Operation Polo
|-
| 1953
| Suhas Biswas
| Flight Lieutenant
| Indian Air Force
| Stricken flight landing
|-
| 1955
| style="background-color:lightblue" |D. K. Jatar†
| Flight Captain
| Air India
| Kashmir Princess bombing
|-
| 1956
| Sundar Singh
| Lance Naik
| Indian Army
| Kashmir conflict
|-
| 1957
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Jagannath Raoji Chitnis†
| Lieutenant Colonel
| Indian Army
| Nagaland insurgency
|-
| 1957
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Joginder Singh†
| Havildar
| Indian Army
| Nagaland insurgency
|-
| 1957
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Pollur Mutthuswamy Raman†
| Second Lieutenant
| Indian Army
| Nagaland insurgency
|-
| 1958
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Eric James Tucker†
| Captain
| Indian Army
| Nagaland insurgency
|-
| 1962
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Khadka Bahadur Limbu†
| Subedar Major
| Indian Army
| Nagaland insurgency
|-
| 1962
| Man Bahadur Rai
| Captain
| Indian Army
| Nagaland insurgency
|-
| 1965
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Chaman Lal†
|
| Firefighter
| Train fire
|-
| 1965
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Lajja Ram†
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1965
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Purshottam†
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1965
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Tej Singh†
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1967
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Shankar Lal Shrivastava†
| Head Constable
| Madhya Pradesh Police
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1968
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Takhat Singh†
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1968
| Dhanpat Singh
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1968
| Govind Singh
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1968
| Hukum Singh
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1968
| Lakhan Singh
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1969
| Jas Ram Singh
| Captain
| Indian Army
| Mizo insurgency
|-
| 1971
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Baij Nath Singh†
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1972
| Bhure Lal
| Constable
| Madhya Pradesh Police
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1972
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Ummed Singh Mahra†
| Captain
| Indian Army
| Nagaland insurgency
|-
| 1974
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Gurnam Singh†
| Naib Subedar
| Indian Army
| Mine explosion
|-
| 1974
| Munni Lal
|
| Civilian
| Dacoit attack
|-
| 1981
| Cyrus Addie Pithawalla
| Second Lieutenant
| Indian Army
| Manipur insurgency
|-
| 1984
|style="background-color:pink" | Gennadi Strekalov^
| Flight Engineer
| Roscosmos
| Soyuz T-11
|-
| 1984
| style="background-color:pink" |Yury Malyshev^
| Colonel
| Soviet Air Forces
| Soyuz T-11
|-
| 1985
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Bhawani Datt Joshi†
| Naik
| Indian Army
| Operation Blue Star
|-
| 1985
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Bhukant Mishra†
| Major
| Indian Army
| Operation Blue Star
|-
| 1985
| Chhering Mutup
| Lance Havildar
| Indian Army
| Siachen conflict
|-
| 1985
| Jasbir Singh Raina
| Captain
| Indian Army
| Operation Blue Star
|-
| 1985
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Nirbhay Singh Sisodiya†
| Naik
| Indian Army
| Operation Blue Star
|-
| 1985
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Ram Prakash Roperia†
| Lieutenant
| Indian Army
| Operation Blue Star
|-
| 1985
| Rakesh Sharma
| Wing Commander
| Indian Air Force
| Soyuz T-11
|-
| 1986
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Vijay Jagirdar†
|
| Civilian
| 1984 anti-Sikh riots
|-
| 1987
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Neerja Bhanot†
|
| Pan Am
| Pan Am Flight 73 hijack
|-
| 1991
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Randhir Prasad Verma†
| Superintendent of Police
| Bihar Police
| Bank robbery
|-
| 1992
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Sandeep Sankhla†
| Major
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 1993
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Rakesh Singh Malhan†
| Second Lieutenant
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 1994
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Neelakantan Jayachandran Nair†
| Colonel
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 1995
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Harsh Uday Singh Gaur†
| Lieutenant Colonel
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 1995
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Rajiv Kumar Joon†
| Major
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 1995
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Sujjan Singh Yadav†
| Subedar
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 1996
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Arun Singh Jasrotia†
| Captain
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 1997
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Puneet Nath Datt†
| Second Lieutenant
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 1997
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Shanti Swaroop Rana†
| Lieutenant Colonel
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2000
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Sudhir Kumar Walia†
| Major
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2001
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Jagdish Prasad Yadav†
|
| Rajya Sabha secretariat
| 2001 Indian Parliament attack
|-
| 2001
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Matbar Singh Negi†
|
| Rajya Sabha secretariat
| 2001 Indian Parliament attack
|-
| 2001
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Kamlesh Kumari Yadav†
| Constable
| Central Reserve Police Force
| 2001 Indian Parliament attack
|-
| 2002
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Surinder Singh†
| Subedar
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2002
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Rambeer Singh Tomar†
| Naik
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2003
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Suresh Chand Yadav†
| Subedar Major
| National Security Guard
| Akshardham Temple attack
|-
| 2004
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Sanjog Chhetri†
| Paratrooper
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2004
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Triveni Singh†
| Lieutenant
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2007
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Chuni Lal†
| Naib Subedar
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2007
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Radhakrishnan Nair Harshan†
| Captain
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2007
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Vasanth Venugopal†
| Colonel
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2008
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Dinesh Raghu Raman†
| Major
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2009
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Ashok Kamte†
| Additional Commissioner
| Maharashtra Police
| 2008 Mumbai attacks
|-
| 2009
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Bahadur Singh Bohra†
| Havildar
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2009
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Gajender Singh Bisht†
| Havildar
| National Security Guard
| 2008 Mumbai attacks
|-
| 2009
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Hemant Karkare†
| Joint Commissioner
| Maharashtra Police
| 2008 Mumbai attacks
|-
| 2009
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Jojan Thomas†
| Colonel
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2009
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Mohan Chand Sharma†
| Inspector
| Delhi Police
| Batla House encounter
|-
| 2009
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Pramod Kumar Satapathy†
| Assistant Commandant of Police
| Odisha Police
| Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
|-
| 2009
| style="background-color:lightblue" |R. P. Diengdoh†
| Deputy Superintendent
| Meghalaya Police
| Meghalaya Insurgency
|-
| 2009
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Sandeep Unnikrishnan†
| Major
| National Security Guard
| 2008 Mumbai attacks
|-
| 2009
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Tukaram Omble†
| Assistant Sub-Inspector
| Maharashtra Police
| 2008 Mumbai attacks
|-
| 2009
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Vijay Salaskar†
| Inspector
| Maharashtra Police
| 2008 Mumbai attacks
|-
| 2010
| D. Sreeram Kumar
| Major
| Indian Army
| Manipur insurgency
|-
| 2010
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Mohit Sharma†
| Major
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2010
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Rajesh Kumar†
| Havildar
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2011
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Laishram Jyotin Singh†
| Major
| Indian Army
| February 2010 Kabul attack
|-
| 2012
|style="background-color:lightblue" |Navdeep Singh†
| Lieutenant
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2014
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Mukund Varadarajan†
| Major
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2014
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Neeraj Kumar Singh†
| Naik
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2014
| style="background-color:lightblue" |K. Prasad Babu†
| Sub-Inspector
| Andhra Pradesh Police
| Naxalite–Maoist insurgency
|-
| 2016
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Mohan Nath Goswami†
| Lance Naik
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2017
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Hangpan Dada†
| Havildar
| Indian Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2018
| style="background-color:lightblue" |Jyoti Prakash Nirala†
| Corporal
| Indian Air Force
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2019
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Nazir Ahmad Wani†
| Lance Naik
| Territorial Army
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2021
|style="background-color:lightblue" | Babu Ram†
| Assistant Sub-Inspector
| Jammu and Kashmir Police
| Kashmir insurgency
|-
| 2026
| Shubhanshu Shukla
| Group Captain
| Indian Air Force
| Axiom Mission 4
|}
Summary
{|class="plainrowheaders"
|+
! scope="col" style="vertical-align:top" |
! scope="col" style="vertical-align:top"|
|}
See also
- List of highest military decorations by country
Notes
References
Further reading
External links
- Ashoka Chakra awardees of the Indian Air Force.