25 children to be honoured with National Bravery Awards

Three girls and 22 boys including Mohammed Shamnad of Kerala are to be presented on Sunday with National Bravery Awards which are a much anticipated feature of the Republic Day celebrations every year.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will honour the 25 children, including as many as six from Kerala, with the awards for the year 2015 for their acts of valour, it was announced here on Monday.

Shivampet Ruchitha from Telangana’s Medak district, who is all of eight, is one such child who saved two children’s lives as her school bus stopped on a railway track before it got hit by a speeding train.

style="font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;">The Bharat Award will be conferred posthumously on 15-year-old Gaurav Kawduji Sahastrabuddhe from Maharashtra, who sacrificed his life in an attempt to save four of his friends.

The Sanjay Chopra Award will be presented to 16-year-old Arjun Singh, who fought a tiger in Uttarakhand to save his mother. All awardees will receive a medal and financial assistance in their education. They will also participate in and be felicitated in the Republic Day parade.

The awards scheme, initiated by the Indian Council for Child Welfare, aims to recognise those children who distinguish themselves by performing outstanding deeds of bravery.