About 260 Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) personnel were honored with Union Home Minister’s Special Operation Medal on Sunday for their exceptional service during the military standoff with PLA in eastern Ladakh.
The home ministry in its notification named a total of 397 personnel from various state police and central forces for the award. An ITBP spokesperson said that the award was given to its troops acknowledging their devotion of duty and exemplary courage in eastern Ladakh between May 2020 and February 2021.
The former commander of the ITBP north-west frontier based in Leh, Inspector General (IG) Deepam Seth, is among the awardees. Seth is now posted at the headquarters of the border force in New Delhi. He was also a member of the Indian delegation for the 10th round of military talks between India and China.
The Union Home Minister’s Special Operation Medal was instituted in 2018 and is given for special operations in areas such as counter-terrorism, border action, arms control, prevention of narcotics smuggling, and rescues operations.
