Bangladesh
Gallantry awards
A total of 677 participants of the Bangladesh War of Independence received gallantry awards for their service and bravery. Four categories of gallantry awards were created after the war in Bangladesh. These were:
The Bir Sreshtho (Bengali : বীরশ্রেষ্ঠ) (Valiant of Courage), is the highest military award of Bangladesh. It was awarded to seven freedom fighters who showed utmost bravery and died in action for their nation. They are considered martyrs. [1]
Recipients All the recipients of this award were killed in action during the Bangladesh War of Independence in 1971. The award was published by the Bangladesh Gazette on 15 December 1973. It is the highest military award of Bangladesh, similar to the U.S. Medal of Honor or the UK's Victoria Cross. It has only been given in 1973 to seven people. Listed below are the people who have received the Bir Srestho medal. They are all considered 'Shaheed' (Martyrs).
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Captain Mohiuddin Jahangir † - Sepoy Hamidur Rahman †
- Sepoy Mostafa Kamal †
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Engine room artificer Ruhul Amin † - Flight Lieutenant Matiur Rahman †
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Lance Naik Munshi Abdur Rouf † - Lance Naik Nur Mohammad Sheikh †
Recipients
| No. | NAME | SECTOR | RANK |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Khaja Nazimuddin Bhuiyan, (posthumous) | Sector-04 | Leader Public Force/Gano Bahini |
| 02 | K M Shafiullah | Commander, S Force | Major |
| 03 | Ziaur Rahman | Commander, Z Force | Major |
| 04 | Chittoronjon Datta | Sector Commander-04 | Major |
| 05 | Kazi Nuruzzaman | Sector Commander-07 | Major |
| 06 | Mir Showkat Ali | Sector Commander-05 | Major |
| 07 | Khaled Mosharraf | Commander, K Force | Major |
| 08 | Abdul Manzur | Sector Commander-08 | Major |
| 09 | Abu Taher | Interim Sector Commander-11 | Major |
| 10 | A N M Nuruzzaman | Sector Commander-03 | Captain |
| 11 | Rafiqul Islam | Sector Commander-01 | Captain |
| 12 | Abdus Salek Choudhury | Sector Commander-02 | Captain |
| 13 | Aminul Haque | Commander, 8 East Bengal | Major |
| 14 | Mohammad Abdur Rab | Army chief, AHQ | Lieutenant Colonel |
| 15 | A K Khandker | Deputy Chief of Staff Army | Group Captain |
| 16 | Shahjahan Omar | – | – |
| 17 | Kader Siddique | – | – |
| 18 | Liakat Ali Khan | – | – |
| 19 | Shahabuddin Ahmed | – | – |
| 20 | Anwar Hossain Pahari | – | – |
| 21 | Aftab Ali | (Sector-11)3rd East Bengal | subeder |
| 22 | Motiur Rahman | – | Lieutenant Colonel |
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Bir Bikrom (Bengali : বীর বিক্রমValiant hero)
A total of 175 fighters have been awarded on 15 December 1973 for their heroic actions at the Liberation War of Bangladesh in 1971. The government of Bangladesh declared the name of the awardees in Bangladesh Gazette on 15 December 1973. In recent 1 Bir Bikrom title award postponed. So total Bir Bikram awarded person is 174.
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Bir Protik (Bengali : বীর প্রতীকIdol of Courage)
This award was officially declared on 15 December 1973 through the Bangladesh Gazette. According to the Ministry of Liberation War Affairs, a total of 426 people have received the award. [2]
Liberation War medals
 | Samor Pawdok (War Medal) |
 | Joy Pawdok (Victory Medal) |
 | Rono Taroka (Campaign Star) |
 | Mukti Taroka (Liberation Star) |
Civilian awards
The Independence Day Award (Bengali : স্বাধীনতা পদক), [3] also termed Independence Award (Bengali : স্বাধীনতা পুরস্কার), Swadhinata Padak, and Swadhinata Puroskar, is the highest state award given by the government of Bangladesh. Introduced in 1977, this award is bestowed upon Bangladeshi citizens or organisations in recognition of substantial contribution to one of many fields, including the War of Liberation, the language movement, education, literature, journalism, public service, science and technology, medical science, social science, song, games and sports, fine arts, rural development, and other areas.
- Bangladesh Freedom Honour -(Bengali : বাংলাদেশ স্বাধীনতা সম্মাননাBānglādēśa sbādhīnatā sam'mānanā); posthumously conferred on former Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi. [4]
- Bangladesh Liberation War Honour -(Bengali : বাংলাদেশ মুক্তিযুদ্ধ সম্মাননাBānglādēśa muktiyud'dha sam'mānanā); conferred to heads of states and heads of governments:
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King Jigme Dorji Wangchuck [5] -
President Fidel Castro [6] -
President Pranab Mukherjee [7] - Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral. [8]
- Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee [9]
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President Ram Baran Yadav - Prime Minister/ Acting Head of state Girija Prasad Koirala [10]
- Prime Minister Bishweshwar Prasad Koirala [11]
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General Secretary Leonid IIyich Brezhnev - President Nikolai Viktorovich Podgorny
- Prime Minister Alexei Nikolaevich Kosygin
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Prime Minister Sir Edward Richard George Heath -
President Marshal Josip Broz Tito [11]
- Friends of Liberation War Honour -(Bengali : মুক্তিযুদ্ধ মৈত্রী সম্মাননাMuktiyud'dha maitrī sam'mānanā); conferred to individuals, six organisations and Mitra Bahini. The individuals include 257 Indians, 88 Americans, 41 Pakistanis, 39 Britons, 9 Russians, 18 Nepalese, 16 French and 18 Japanese.[ citation needed ] Three ceremonies were held between March 2012 [12] and October 2012. [13]
