Indian Army officer, Major Prabhanjan Padhi (30) from Paradip received the ‘Sena Medal’ for his exceptional display of bravery and valour.
An officer of Rashtriya Rifles, Padhi was awarded the Sena Medal on Army Day (January 15) by President Droupadi Murmu.
Padhi led a counter-terrorism operation in South Kashmir as a company commander and successfully completed the operation which saw terrorists throwing grenades and mortars apart from indiscriminate firing of bullets.
His family expressed happiness over the recognition of their son and felt proud of the exceptional valour of their son.
“He (Prabhanjan) got an information about Pakistani terrorists hiding in a village in south Kashmir. He led a quick-action team to the spot. Seeing the Army approaching, the terrorists sprayed bullets indiscriminately from their automatic rifles. While the terrorists do not care for civilians, the Army has to carefully conduct the operation so that there are no civilian casualties. He neutralised two terrorists in that operation evacuating the civilians safely,” said his father Basant Padhi.
The Sena Medal is awarded to members of the Indian Army, of all ranks "for such individual acts of exceptional devotion to duty or courage as have special significance for the Army." Awards may be made posthumously and a bar is authorized for subsequent awards of the Sena Medal.