Param Vir Chakra

The Param Vir Chakra (PVC) is India's highest military decoration, awarded for displaying distinguished acts of valour during wartime.^[5][6] The PVC is equivalent to the Medal of Honor in the United States and the Victoria Cross in the United Kingdom. Only 21 soldiers have received this award to date.^[7][8]

Param Vir Chakra
Awarded by the President of India
Country	India
Type	Military award
Status	Active
Post-nominals	PVC
Statistics
Established	26 January 1950
First awarded	3 November 1947[a]
Last awarded	6 July 1999
Total awarded	21
Posthumous awards	14
Distinct recipients	21
Precedence
Next (higher)	Bharat Ratna[2][3]
Equivalent	Ashoka Chakra[b][3][2]
Next (lower)	Maha Vir Chakra[c]

The history of present-day Indian gallantry awards can be traced back to the rule of the East India Company, when the first formal award was instituted by Lord William Bentinckin 1834 as the Order of Merit, later renamed the Indian Order of Merit in 1902. During the First World War, the British awards system was adopted and continued through the Second World War. Post-independence, new awards were instituted on 26 January 1950, with retroactive effect from 15 August 1947.

Param Vir Chakra translates as the "Wheel of the Ultimate Brave", and the award is granted for "most conspicuous bravery in the presence of the enemy". The medal of the PVC was designed by Savitri Khanolkar, whose daughter's brother-in-law, Major Somnath Sharma, was coincidentally awarded the first PVC. As of January 2018, the medal has been awarded 21 times, of which 14 were posthumous and 16 arose from actions in Indo-Pakistani conflicts. Of the 21 awardees, 20 have been from the Indian Army, and one has been from the Indian Air Force. A number of central and state governments and ministries of India provide allowances and rewards to recipients of the PVC (or their family members in case of the recipient's death).