On republic day, every year Indian children between the ages
of 6 to 18 are awarded for their brave acts by the Government of India and the
Indian Council for Child Welfare (ICCW).
This year, eight of them are from south, i.e. six from Kerala and two from Telangana, are among the 25 National Bravery Award winners. All did brave deeds on their part as the one from Kerala is a 13 year old kid Nithin Philip Mathew, who saved his neighbor's family after their house caught fire in a cylinder blast. The other one rescued two children from drowning in a 14-feet pond, his name is Aromal.
The other winners from Kerala are Beedhovan (14), Anandu Dileep (14), Abhijith KV (15) and Muhammad Shamnad (14). The youngest winner is Shivampet Ruchitha who is from Telangana. She saved two children on her school bus when a train hit their vehicle. The other child from Telangana, Sai Krishna saved his maid from getting electrocuted inside their house.
The National Bravery award is awarded to those who set exemplary performances like Joena Chakraborty, who ran after two men on the road without caring about the danger. They snatched her father's phone. Another one is Gaurav Kawduji Sahastrabuddhe from Maharashtra, who sacrificed his life while saving his four friends
The winners will be rewarded on 24th January at Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence. The awardees will perform at the Republic Day Parade which includes a total of 25 (22 boys and 3 girls).
The National Bravery Award is given to children between the ages of 6 to 18 for their brave deeds and it started way back in 1957. The awards consist of the following categories:
The Bharat Award, since 1987
The Sanjay Chopra Award, since 1978
The Geeta Chopra Award, since 1978
The Bapu Gaidhani Award, since 1988
General National Bravery Awards, since 1957
There is a committee for selecting children which comprises of representatives from leading government and non-government organizations i.e. the secretariats of the president and the vice-president, the Central Social Welfare Board, the Indian Police, All India Radio, Doordarshan, the National Bal Bhavan, and the SOS Children's Villages of India.
The awardees are given financial assistance to complete their schooling, as a part of ICCW's sponsorship programme, under the Indira Gandhi scholarship scheme. While, the Bharat award winner gets a gold medal, others get a silver medal.