Bangalore, January 15, 2012 ; Major Tejus M of Corps of Engineers from Bangalore and Colonel Rajeev K.Babu of Sikh Regiment from Belgaum today conferred with Gallantry awards at Jhansi in Uttar Pradesh, according to Press release by PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU (DEFENCE WING) GOVERNMENT OF INDIA . The Awards were presented by Lieutenant General AK Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Headquarters Southern Command on the occasion of Army Day celebrations held under the aegis of White Tiger Division. Totally 31 brave soldiers were presented with the gallantry and distinguished awards from Southern Command during Army Day celebrations. On Jan 15th every year Army Day is celebrated in recognition of Field Marshal KM Cariappa’s taking over as the first Commander in Chief of the Indian Army.
Maj Tejus M awarded with Sena Medal for his valiant act in Kupwara district of Jammu & Kashmir. Maj Tejus was posted to a Rashtriya Rifle Battalion deployed in Kupwara District, J&K. On 15 Apr 2011 at 2345 hours during a patrol he observed suspicious movement of a terrorist near a village in Kupwara.
He immediately rushed with his party of four to the location. Within twenty meters of distance he drew two bursts of effective fire from the terrorist. With utter disregard to personal safety, he closed in and fired to seriously incapacitate the terrorist. His surgical strike combined with aggressive speed caught the terrorist by surprise. While engaging the terrorist with effective fire, the officer prevented his escape by immediately setting a tight cordon with the Quick Reaction Teams of his company. In the ensuing fire fight the terrorist was successfully eliminated.
For this most conspicuous act of valour and swift action at night which resulted in the elimination of one hard core terrorist, Major Tejus has been awarded “SENA MEDAL . After receiving the award he felt very happy and said it is a very proud moment for him and his family and he dedicated this award to his unit and the brave soldiers who had fought alongwith him.
Col Rajeev K Babu has been awarded Vishisht Seva Medal for his dedication to duty.
Shri Akhilesh Yadav, Hon’ble Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, was th Chief Guest. He interacted with the award winners and felicitated them on their achievements.
Headquarters Karnataka and Kerala Sub Area held a reception on this occasion which was graced by His Exellency Shri HR Bhardwaj, Governor of Karnataka and other senior civil and military dignitaries.
