22 young heroes to get National Bravery Awards 2013

New Delhi, Jan 18 (IANS) Young bravehearts who saved their friends and others from drowning and exposed social evils will be among the 22 children, including four girls, who will be conferred the National Bravery Awards for 2013, it was announced Friday.

One of the award would be given posthumously to Ramdinthara of Mizoram, who died while trying to rescue his friend from drowning, the Indian Council for Child Welfare said Friday.

The Bharat Award has been conferred on 17-year-old Tarang Atulbhai Mistry of Gujarat who saved four people from drowning in the Narmada River.

Eleven-and-a-half-year-old Renu will be given the prestigious Geeta Chopra Award for exposing the perpetrators of inhuman treatment of a children’s home.

The Sanjay Chopra Award has been given to 11-and-a-half-year-old Gajendra Ram of Chhattisgarh who saved a child from drowning in a well.

Vijay Kumar Sainik, 17, of Uttar Pradesh, Akanksha Gaute, 16, of Chhattisgarh and Hali Raghunath Baraf, 16, of Maharashtra will receive theBapu Gaidhani Awards.

Other recipients are Devansh Tiwari and Mukesh Nishad (Chhattisgarh), Lalrinhlua (Mizoram), E. Suganthan (Tamil Nadu), Ramith.K, Mebin Cyriac and Vishnu M.V. (Kerala), Koroungamba Kuman (Manipur), Sameep Anil Pandit (Maharashtra), Viswendra Lohkna, Satendra Lohkana and Pawan Kumar Kanaujiya (Uttar Pradesh), Stripleaseman Mylliem (Meghalaya), Sapna Kumari Meena (Rajasthan) and Suhail K.M. (Karnataka).

The children will receive their Awards from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh prior to Republic Day 2013 and will also participate in the Republic Day Parade atop an elephant.

The awardees will receive a medal, certificate and cash.

A reception in honour of the children will also be held by President Pranab Mukherjee, and Defence Minister A. K. Antony.

Since the inception of the scheme in 1957, the Indian Council for Child Welfare has given awards to 846 brave children – 602 boys and 244 girls.

IANS 2013-01-18 22:00:08