Mumbai, April 1 The Navy chief, Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi, awarded Yudh Seva Medals to two top naval officers on Wednesday for their distinguished service during Operation Sindoor, which was conducted last year following the terror attack in Pahalgam.
At a naval investiture ceremony here, Admiral Tripathi awarded the medals to Vice Admiral A N Pramod, Director General of Naval Operations (DGNO), and Vice Admiral Rahul Gokhale.
A citation given to Vice Admiral Pramod stated that he played a vital role in shaping naval operations during Operation Sindoor last year. In the face of the rapidly deteriorating security situation with Pakistan in April 2025, he was entrusted with the task of quickly formulating and executing the Indian response plan.
As DGNO, he ensured the formulation of a precise escalation matrix, in accordance with all higher directives, to ensure a punitive response to Pakistani forces, who were severely threatening their sea lanes of communication, as well as safeguarding own units, trade and India's maritime interests, it said.
"His detailed planning, aggressive deployment of the Indian Navy assets in the North Arabian Sea, and innovative utilisation of Special Operations teams during Operation Sindoor resulted in denying the Pakistani Navy a safe space to operate, and compelled the Pakistani Navy to remain in their harbours, or operate close to the Pakistan Coast, thereby nullifying any seaborne threat to India's national interests," it said.
"In recognition of his professionalism, meticulous operational planning, and single-minded devotion to duty for the nation, and his service as Director General Naval Operations during Operation Sindoor, Vice Admiral A N Pramod is awarded the Yudh Seva Medal," he said.
The Yudh Seva Medal is awarded for distinguished service of a high order during war/conflict/hostilities.
A citation given to Vice Admiral Gokhale stated that, following the Pahalgam attack and the subsequent launch of Operation Sindoor, his strategic foresight ensured six successful missile firings, including surface-to-surface and surface-to-air vectors, and full combat readiness of 22 Fleet warships within 96 hours. This marked one of the largest naval mobilisations since the 1971 war.
"This Task Force acted as a force for compellence, paralysed Pakistan's naval mobility and confined its Navy close to the coast. Subsequent manoeuvres by the fleet induced an urgent diplomatic outreach by the adversary, achieving the nation's desired political ends without resorting to armed action," it said.
His understanding of maritime doctrine and the adversary's mental psyche, based on his past diplomatic assignment as Naval Adviser at the Indian High Commission in Islamabad, significantly contributed towards the Indian Navy establishing sea control in the Northern Arabian Sea and "non-contact" force projection, it added.
"In recognition of his strategic foresight, operational brilliance, pragmatic, bold and decisive leadership of exceptional order as the fleet commander of the Western Fleet, displayed in extremely dynamic, hostile and challenging conditions, Vice Admiral Rahul Vilas Gokhale was awarded the Yudh Seva Medal," the citation said.
Captain Suraj Rebeira and Captain Vikas Garg, who commanded frontline warships during Operation Sindoor, Captain Piyush Katiyar, Commander Rajeshwar Sharma, Commander Vivek Kuriakose, who commanded frontline submarines, were awarded the Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry).
Commander Kapil Kumar, Lieutenant Commander Rishabh Purbia and Chief Mechanical Engineer Manoj Kumar were also awarded the Nao Sena Medal (Gallantry) for their role in Operation Sindoor.