Soldiers who died fighting terrorists given posthumous Ashoka Chakra

Major Varadarajan of the army's 44 Rashtriya Rifles died during  battle with  terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian village in April last year. The 31-year-old Varadarajan killed three terrorists before dying.

He has been commended for showing "exemplary leadership skills, raw courage and swift action."

President Pranab Mukherjee handed over the award to  Bharadarajan's widow .

Naik Neeraj Kumar Singh, also from Rashtriya Rifles, was killed while he was leading a search operation at Kupwara in Jammu & Kashmir in August.He rescued an injured soldier and shot dead one of the terrorists.

"Despite serious injuries, displaying unparalleled courage, he killed another terrorist in hand-to-hand combat," reads his citation, which was handed over to his wife.

Two naval officers who died on board the INS Sindhuratna while trying to save fellow sailors are among the 12 to have been awarded the Shaurya Chakra.
Lt Cdr Manoranjan Kumar and Lt Cdr Kapish Singh Muwal were last seen alive fighting fire and smoke in their submarine, from where they evacuated 13 sailors. They saved the lives of over 90 crew members before they died fighting the fire.

Among other awardeeds,  Wing Commander Huvey Upadhyaya of the Indian Air Force received Shaurya Chakra. He flew his helicopter in treacherous weather conditions to look for a chopper that had crashed in Siachen, the world's highest battlefield. He landed his plane in soft snow, amid strong winds near the crash site at an altitude of 17,600 feet, saving the lives of two Army pilots.