Ashok Chakra for Air Force’s Garud commando

New Delhi, January 25 

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President Ram Nath Kovind will tomorrow present Ashok Chakra, India’s highest peacetime military decoration, posthumously to Corporal Jyoti Prakash Nirala, a Garud commando of the Indian Air Force who died fighting terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir last year. 

Kirti Chakra has been awarded to Major Vijayant Bisht,  who led an ambush in Chorgali forest of Kashmir’ s Uri district, killed two terrorists and saved the life of another soldier.

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Corporal Nirala was part of an offensive launched by the Garud detachment and a Rashtriya Rifles battalion in Chanderger village of Bandipora district on November 18.

The Garud detachment laid a close quarter ambush around the house where the terrorists were tipped to be hiding. Nirala positioned himself close to the approach of the hideout. While the detachment laid in wait, six terrorists rushed out, shooting and lobbing grenades. 

Nirala retaliated, gunning down two top Lashkar-e-Toiba terrorists and injuring two others. He also received gunshot wounds. While being critically injured, Nirala continued retaliatory fire and succumbed to his injuries. All six terrorists were killed.

Meanwhile, two CRPF CoBRA commandos — Assistant Commandant Vikash Jakhar and SI Riyaz Alam Ansari — have been selected, besides 12 others, for the Shaurya Chakra for an anti-Naxal operation in Jharkhand that led to the killing of six Maoist cadres in 2016. — Agencies