Vir Chakra

Vir Chakra
Vir Chakra and its ribbon, the third highest military decoration of India
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, whether on land or at sea or in the air.
Status	Currently Awarded
Post-nominals	VrC
Statistics
First awarded	1947
Last awarded	1999
Precedence
Next (higher)	Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
Next (lower)	Shaurya Chakra

Vir Chakra is an Indian award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. It replaced the British Distinguished Service Cross (DSC), Military Cross (MC) and Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC). Award of the decoration carries with it the right to use Vr.C. as a postnominal abbreviation (note the care to distinguish this abbreviation from that for the Victoria Cross (V.C.). It is third in precedence in the war time gallantry awards and comes after the Param Vir Chakra and Maha Vir Chakra.

Established by the President of India on 26 January 1950 (with effect from 15 August 1947). The statutes were amended 12 January 1952 to readjust the order of wearing as new decorations were established.

The medal is 1-3/8 inch circular silver medal. A five pointed star, with the chakra in the center, and, on this, the domed gilded state emblem. The decoration is named on the rim and suspended from a swiveling straight-bar suspender. The decoration is almost always named and dated on the edge. Around a plain center, two legends separated by lotus flowers; above Vir Chakra in Hindi and in English. The ribbon is 32 mm, half dark blue and half orange-saffron. Dark blue 16 mm, saffron 16 mm.

The award carries with it a cash allowance and, in some cases, a lump sum cash award. This has been a rather controversial issue throughout the life of the decoration. From 1 February 1999, the central government set a monthly stipend of Rs. 850 for recipients of the award. In addition, many states have established individual pension rewards for the recipients of the decoration.

Some of the notable Vir Chakra awardees include: