Mahavir Chakra

Maha Vir Chakra
Maha Vir Chakra Medal
Awarded by Republic of India
Country	Republic of India
Type	Medal
Eligibility	Military personnel only
Awarded for	"... acts of gallantry in the presence of the enemy on land, at sea or in the air."
Status	Currently awarded
Statistics
Established	26 January 1950
First awarded	1947
Last awarded	2001
Precedence
Next (higher)	Param Vishisht Seva Medal
Next (lower)	Kirti Chakra
Service Ribbon

The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) (literally great warrior medal) is the second highest military decoration in India, after the Param Vir Chakra, and is awarded for acts of conspicuous gallantry in the presence of the enemy, whether on land, at sea or in the air. It replaced the British Distinguished Service Order (DSO). The medal may be awarded posthumously.

The medal is made of standard silver and is circular in shape. Embossed on the obverse is a five pointed heraldic star with circular center-piece bearing the gilded state emblem of India in the center. The words "Mahavira Chakra" are embossed in Devanagari and English on the reverse with two lotus flowers in the middle. The decoration is worn on the left chest with a half-white and half-orange riband about 3.2 cm in width, the orange being near the left shoulder.

More than 155 acts of bravery and selfless courage have been recognized since the inception of the medal. The most MVCs awarded in a single conflict was in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, when eleven were given to the Indian Air Force.

Provision was made for the award of a bar for a second award of the Maha Vir Chakra, the first two being awarded in 1965. To date, there are six known awards of a first bar:

No second bars have been awarded. Award of the decoration carries with it the right to use M.V.C. as a postnominal abbreviation.

The Mahavir Chakra awardees include: