Maha Vir Chakra
(1952--)
Awarded for the acts of valor in the presence of the enemy. It may be awarded posthumously.
Provision was made for the award of a bar for a second award of the Maha Vir Chakra, the first two being awarded in 1965. To date, there are six known awards of a first bar: Wing Commander Jag Moham Nath (1962 and 1 September 1965), Major General Rajindar Singh (19 March 1948 and 6 September 1965), Lieutenant General Arun Shridar Vaidya (16 September 1965 and 5 December 1971), Wing Commander Padmanabha Gautam (6 September 1965 and 5 December 1971 [posthumous]), Major Chewing Rinchen (July 1948 and 8 December 1971), and Brigadier Sant Singh (2 November 1965 and January 1972),. No second bars have been awarded. Award of the decoration carried with it the right to use M.V.C. as a postnominal abbreviation.
The award carries with it a cash allowance for recipients under the rank of second lieutenant (or appropriate service equivalent) and, in some cases, a lump-sum cash award. This has been a rather controversial issue throughout the life of the decoration. From 1 February 1999, the central government set a monthly stipend of Rs. 1200 for recipients of the award. In addition, many states have established individual pension rewards for the recipients of the decoration.
Established: 26 January 1950 by the President of India (with effect from 15 August 1947). The statutes amended 12 August 1952 to readjust the order of wearing as new decorations were introduced.
Obverse: 1-3/8 inch circular silver medal, with a five-pointed star. On the center of this star. a domed gilded state emblem. The medal is suspended from a swiveling straight bar suspender. The medal is almost always seen named and dated on the edge.
Reverse: Around a plain center, two legends separated by lotus flowers: above "Maha Vir Chakra" in Hindi and below "MAHA VIR CHAKRA".
Ribbon: 32 mm, half white, half orange-saffron. White 16 mm, saffron 16 mm.
Awards: To understand the award better, a sample recipient would be IC-9015 Lieutenant Colonel Sawai Bhawani Singh, Parachute Regiment: "On the night of 5 December 1971, Lt. Col. Sawai Bhawani Singh, who was commanding a battalion of the Parachute Regiment (commandos), led his men deep into the enemy territory and for four days and nights, with complete disregard for his personal comfort and safety, made skillful and relentless raids on the strongly held enemy posts at Chachro and Virawah. His inspired leadership and personal courage led to the capture of large areas of the enemy territory and created panic and confusion among the enemy, forcing him to retreat leaving behind large number of prisoners and equipment. In this operation, Lt. Col. Sawai Bhawani Singh set an example of personal courage, exceptional qualities of leadership and devotion to duty in the highest traditions of the Indian Army."