National awards for 25 young bravehearts

Fifteen-year-old Gaurav Kawduji Sahastrabuddhe from Maharashtra, who sacrificed his life while saving his four friends, and 24 other young bravehearts will be given the National Bravery Awards this year for their extraordinary courageous feats.

Sahastrabuddhe will be awarded with ‘Bharat Award’, the highest of the National Bravery awards, which his parents will receive on his behalf along with the parents of 13-year-old Shivansh Singh, also to be awarded posthumously for sacrificing his life in a valiant effort to save his friend from drowning in Saryu river.

The prestigious Geeta Chopra award will be given to 8-year-old Shivampet Ruchitha of Telangana who displayed exemplary valour in saving two lives when a train hit her school bus, while 16-year-old Arjun Singh will be awarded with Sanjay Chopra Award for displaying outstanding bravery in fighting a tiger to save his mother.

The children will receive the awards from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on January 24 and will also participate in Republic Day parade.

Ramdinthara (15) of Mizoram, who saved two persons from electrocution will be awarded with Bapu Gaidhani Award, along with Rakeshbhai Shanabhai Patel (13) of Gujarat and Aromal SM (12) from Kerala. While Rakeshbhai saved a boy who accidentally fell into a deep well, Aromal rescued two women from drowning.

The other recipients of the bravery awards include Kashish Dhanani (Gujarat), Maurice Yengkhom and Chongtham Kuber Meitei from Manipur, Angelica Tynsong (Meghalaya), Sai Krishna Akhil Kilambi (Telangana), Joena Chakbraborty and Sarwanand Saha (Chhattisgarh), Dishant Mehndiratta (Haryana), Beedhovan, Nithin Philip Mathew, Abhijit KV, Anandu Dillep, Muhammad Shamnad (all from Kerala), Mohit Mahdenrda Dalvi, Nilesh Revaram Bhil, Vaibhav Ramesh Ghangare (all from Maharashtra), Abinash Mishra (Odisha) and Bhimsen from Uttar Pradesh.