Kovind turns emotional while giving gallantry awards.
President Ram Nath Kovind became emtional and was seen wiping his eyes after he awarded the Ashok Chakra, India's highest peacetime military decoration, posthumously to Air Force Garud commando Corporal Jyoti Prakash Nirala in New Delhi.
Corporal Nirala laid down his life after gunning down two terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Bandipora district in Nov. After presenting the award to Corporal Nirala's wife Sushmanand and his mother Malti Devi at the Republic Day Parade, Kovind was seen wiping his face and eyes with his handkerchief. Corporal Nirala was part of a Garud Special Forces Unit of the IAF, a detachment of which was attached to a Rashtriya Rifles battalion under the aegis of 'Op Rakshak'.
On 18 November, 2017, based on specific tech intelligence, an offensive was launched jointly by the Garud detachment and Rashtriya Rifles Battalion in Chanderger village of Bandipora district in J&K. The Garud detachment covertly approached the target house where the suspected terrorists were hiding and laid a close quarter ambush. Cpl Nirala, displaying exceptional battle craft, positioned himself close to the approach of the hideout, thus cutting off all possibilities of an escape by the terrorists. Laying this ambush itself at such close quarters demanded a very high degree of courage and professional acumen.
While the detachment laid in wait, six terrorists hiding in the house, rushed out, shooting and lobbing grenades at the Garuds. Cpl Nirala, disregarding personal safety and displaying indomitable courage, retaliated with effective lethal fire and gunned down two category ‘A’ terrorists and injured two others. In this violent exchange of fire, Cpl Nirala was hit by a volley of small arms fire. Despite being critically injured, the Corporal continued retaliatory fire. Subsequently, he succumbed to fatal gunshot wounds received in the fierce encounter, which resulted in the killing of all six dreaded terrorists.
Corporal Jyoti Prakash Nirala exhibited most conspicuous gallantry in fighting with terrorists and made supreme sacrifice.
With agency inputs
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