Kochi, April 29: Commander Naveen Thapa, a Sea king pilot of the Indian Navy, might not have been thinking of the heroism behind his act when he was flying that dangerous mission through gale force winds and low visibility on August 30 last year to rescue five crew members of a submarine who were washed overboard in rough seas. His flying skills and courage had resulted in the rescue of five Navy personnel.
It was a moment of pride for the entire force when he and four other naval officers who had also displayed heroism and devotion in accomplishing their missions received Nao Sena Medals for gallantry from Admiral Nirmal Verma, Chief of the Naval Staff, at an investiture ceremony held at the Naval Base in Kochi on Thursday.
The Navy chief also presented three unit citations, eight Nao Sena medals for Devotion to Duty and 16 Vishisht Seva Medals for distinguished service. In addition, Uttam Jeevan Raksha Patak for saving life, Lieutenant VK Jain memorial gold medal for Naval research projects and Captain Ravi Dhir memorial gold medal for flight safety were also presented at the ceremony.
Commander Gangupomu Murali commanding submarine INS Shankush, who had displayed tactical acumen and professional courage to achieve operational objectives, was awarded Nao Sena Medal for gallantry. The others to receive Nao Sena awards for gallantry were IL 38 pilot Lieutenant Commander Ajay Kanwar, Bijender, Petty Officer and Rajan Singh, a clearance diver and marine commando.
Lieutenant Commander Ajay Kanwar had displayed courage and endurance when his aircraft suffered total power failure on May 22, 2009, at 12,000 feet 270 nautical miles away from the base. The officer, with just 13 hours of flying experience, accomplished the daunting task of handling the emergency and landing the aircraft safely with eight aircrew onboard, said a Navy release.
Bijender, Petty Officer – Air and aircrew diver, was awarded the medal for rescuing submarine personnel who were washed overboard. Rajan Singh won the medal for the salvage of an Indian Air Force MI-17 helicopter which had crashed at Baglihar Dam in Jammu and Kashmir in October, 2009, the release said.
Unit Citations were presented to destroyer INS Ranjit, MARCOS team from INS Kalinga and INS Matanga. Uttam Jeevan Raksha Patak was presented to Surgeon Commander GK Shreeram for saving the life of a police Jawan injured in anti-Maoist operations in Odisha.
During his address to the parade, the Navy Chief congratulated the award winners and dwelt on the anti-piracy operations of the Indian Navy. The Admiral said that one Indian Navy warship had been on patrol in the Gulf of Eden for anti-piracy operations since October 2008. The Indian Navy had so far escorted to safety over 1,600 ships belonging to 50 different countries, he said.
-Agencies–