
Srikakulam armyman receives Kirti Chakra Award for exceptional courage
SRIKAKULAM: Major Malla Rama Gopal Naidu of the Indian Army (Rashtriya Rifles) has been honoured with the Kirti Chakra Award, India's second-highest peacetime gallantry award, for eliminating four terrorists and saving the lives of army personnel at the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir on October 26, 2023.
Recognising his courage and bravery in neutralising terrorists and saving army personnel, the Government of India conferred the Kirti Chakra Award on Rama Gopal Naidu, which he received from the President of India, Droupadi Murmu, on May 22 in New Delhi.
Naidu hails from Nagaripenta village in Santhabommali mandal of Srikakulam district. His father, Appala Naidu, is a farmer. Naidu is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA), Pune and also graduated from the Indian Military Academy at Dehradun with a gold medal.
He joined the Indian Army as a Lieutenant and was promoted to Major. Naidu is one of the four Kirti Chakra awardees and is the lone survivor. He is the first person from both Telugu-speaking states to receive the honour from the Indian Army.
Union Minister for Civil Aviation, K Rammohan Naidu, congratulated the army major in New Delhi on Friday for his achievement and called his bravery a symbol of Telugu pride displayed at the LoC. Minister for Agriculture, K Atchannaidu, also expressed joy over the achievement of Ram Gopal Naidu and lauded his courage and intelligence.
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Indian Express
29 minutes ago
- Indian Express
Neighbourhood policy at work: India to fly home Nepal, Sri Lanka citizens from Iran
In a major diplomatic outreach to its neighbours, India said Saturday it will evacuate nationals of Nepal and Sri Lanka who are stranded in Iran and want to leave the country. Officials in Delhi framed it as an example of India's 'neighbourhood first policy' — of helping its neighbours in times of crisis, be it conflict, natural calamity or pandemic. This announcement came on the day two more flights, operated by the Iranian Mahan Air, landed in Delhi. The Indian embassy in Tehran, in a post on X, said, 'On request of the Governments of Nepal and Sri Lanka, the Indian Embassy's evacuation efforts in Iran will also cover citizens of Nepal and Sri Lanka.' 'The citizens of Nepal and Sri Lanka may urgently reach out to the Embassy, either on the Telegram channel or over the emergency contact numbers: +989010144557;+989128109115; +989128109109,' it stated. Nepal's Foreign Minister Arzu Rana Deuba expressed Kathmandu's gratitude. In a post on X, she thanked External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar 'for India's swift assistance in helping to evacuate Nepali nationals from Iran'. 'India's support in Nepal's evacuation efforts is a reflection of the strength of Nepal-India ties,' she said. Sources said about 16 Nepal nationals are in touch with the Nepalese embassy in Delhi. Sri Lanka's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in a post, said, 'Sri Lanka extends its sincere gratitude to the Government of India for the timely assistance to evacuate Sri Lankan nationals from Iran alongside Indian citizens. This act of solidarity exemplifies the strong and enduring partnership between Sri Lanka and India, and is deeply appreciated by the people of Sri Lanka.' So far, a total of 827 Indians have been evacuated from Iran. 'Another evacuation flight from Mashhad landed in New Delhi at 1630 hrs on 21 June with 310 Indian nationals from Iran. With this, a total of 827 Indians have been evacuated,' Randhir Jaiswal, spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs, said. A group of about 290 Indian nationals, including students, reached Delhi late Friday night and early Saturday after being evacuated from Iran as its war with Israel intensified. On Wednesday, India announced the launch of Operation Sindhu to evacuate its nationals from Iran. 'Operation Sindhu flight brings citizens home. India evacuated 290 Indian nationals from Iran, including students and religious pilgrims by a charter flight. The flight arrived in New Delhi at 2330 hrs on 20 June and was received by Secretary (CPV& OIA) Arun Chatterjee,' Jaiswal wrote on X. 'Government of India is grateful to the Government of Iran for the facilitation of the evacuation process,' he said. The first batch of 110 Indian nationals, evacuated under Operation Sindhu, arrived in India Thursday, with many evacuees sharing firsthand accounts of the frightening situation they witnessed before being moved to safer locations. This is not the first time that Delhi has stepped in to evacuate citizens of its neighbours. In the early days of the Ukraine war, India evacuated nationals of neighbouring countries along with its own. Delhi managed to persuade Tehran to open Iranian airspace for the evacuation of around 1,000 Indians via the north-eastern town of Mashhad. Sources said Delhi, after days of negotiations, moved its nationals to Mashhad and secured overflight permissions from Iran and Turkmenistan to fly Indians out of harm's way. Mashhad is close to Iran's border with Turkmenistan, and India found an air corridor for a safe flight out. Indians were moved from Tehran to Qom and then to Mashhad, with the help of the Indian embassy and Iranian authorities. India's ties with Iran and Israel puts it in a delicate spot, where it has to do some diplomatic balancing act. Delhi has strategic stakes with Iran – from Chabahar port to shared concerns on Pakistan and Afghanistan. So, it has been very careful in its statements. It has a very strategic security and defence partnership with Israel as well. Shubhajit Roy, Diplomatic Editor at The Indian Express, has been a journalist for more than 25 years now. Roy joined The Indian Express in October 2003 and has been reporting on foreign affairs for more than 17 years now. Based in Delhi, he has also led the National government and political bureau at The Indian Express in Delhi — a team of reporters who cover the national government and politics for the newspaper. He has got the Ramnath Goenka Journalism award for Excellence in Journalism '2016. He got this award for his coverage of the Holey Bakery attack in Dhaka and its aftermath. He also got the IIMCAA Award for the Journalist of the Year, 2022, (Jury's special mention) for his coverage of the fall of Kabul in August 2021 — he was one of the few Indian journalists in Kabul and the only mainstream newspaper to have covered the Taliban's capture of power in mid-August, 2021. ... Read More


India Gazette
an hour ago
- India Gazette
Sri Lanka expresses gratitude to India for evacuating nationals from conflict-hit Iran
Colombo [Sri Lanka], June 22 (ANI): The Sri Lankan Government extended its heartfelt gratitude to the Government of India for its timely assistance in evacuating Sri Lankan nationals from Iran amidst the Islamic Republic's ongoing conflict with Israel. The gesture, part of India's Operation Sindhu, underscores the robust and enduring partnership between the two nations, as the Foreign Ministry of Sri Lanka stated in a post on X on Saturday. 'Sri Lanka extends its sincere gratitude to the Government of India for the timely assistance to evacuate Sri Lankan nationals from Iran alongside Indian citizens,' the post read. 'This act of solidarity exemplifies the strong and enduring partnership between Sri Lanka and India and is deeply appreciated by the people of Sri Lanka,' it added. The statement highlights the collaborative spirit that has characterised Indo-Sri Lankan relations, particularly in times of crisis. Earlier on Saturday, the Indian Embassy in Iran said that it had made efforts to evacuate citizens of Nepal and Sri Lanka and noted that the efforts were made at the request of the Governments of Nepal and Sri Lanka. 'On request of the Governments of Nepal and Sri Lanka, the Indian Embassy's evacuation efforts in Iran will also cover Citizens of Nepal and Sri Lanka,' the Indian Embassy in Iran posted on X. The Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka had also issued a notice to the Sri Lankan nationals in Iran for the evacuation. 'Notice to Sri Lankan Nationals in Iran. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Foreign Employment and Tourism informs all Sri Lankans in the Islamic Republic of Iran that the Government of Sri Lanka has made arrangements with the Government of India to assist Sri Lankans who wish to leave Iran by accommodating them in their flights,' the notice said. 'Accordingly, any Sri Lankans who wish to leave Iran can reach out to the Indian Embassy in Tehran, either on the Telegram Channel or over the following emergency contact numbers: +98 901 014 4557; +98 912 810 9115; +98 912 810 9109,' it added. Meanwhile, another special flight carrying 290 Indians stranded in conflict-hit Iran landed safely in New Delhi on Saturday night, bringing the total number of people evacuated under Operation Sindhu to 1,117. This marks the fifth batch of Indians evacuated from Iran as part of the ongoing operation. In a post on X, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) stated, 'Operation Sindhu gains momentum. 290 Indian nationals have returned home safely from Iran on a special flight from Mashhad that landed in New Delhi at 2330 hrs on 21 June 2025.' 'With this, 1,117 Indian nationals have been evacuated from Iran,' the MEA added. The conflict between Israel and Iran entered its ninth day on Saturday. The conflict started after Israel, on June 13, launched a massive airstrike on Iranian military and nuclear sites, dubbed 'Operation Rising Lion'. In response, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) launched a large-scale drone and missile operation, 'Operation True Promise 3', targeting Israeli fighter jet fuel production facilities and energy supply centres. (ANI)


India.com
3 hours ago
- India.com
India assures Sri Lanka of evacuating its nationals from Iran
Colombo: India on Saturday, June 21 assured Sri Lanka that it will evacuate its nationals currently stranded in Iran amid the Islamic nation's conflict with Israel. Sri Lanka extended gratitude to India adding that this 'act of solidarity exemplifies the strong and enduring partnership between India and Sri Lanka.' 'Sri Lanka extends its sincere gratitude to the Government of India for the timely assistance to evacuate Sri Lankan nationals from Iran alongside Indian citizens,' Foreign Ministry of Sri Lanka posted on X on Saturday. Earlier, the Indian mission in Iran had said that it would help in evacuating nationals of Nepal and Sri Lanka following requests from their respective governments. 'On request of the Governments of Nepal and Sri Lanka, the Indian Embassy's evacuation efforts in Iran will also cover Citizens of Nepal and Sri Lanka,' the Indian Embassy said. The Sri Lankan Foreign Ministry advised its citizens in Iran to contact the Indian Embassy in Tehran if they wish to leave the country. 'The government of Sri Lanka has made arrangements with the government of India to assist Sri Lankans who wish to leave Iran by accommodating them in the flights,' the ministry said in an official release. According to the Foreign Ministry, there are less than 100 Sri Lankan nationals in Iran, while some 20,000 are employed in Israel.