Parakram Diwas 2023: PM Modi To Name 21 Islands, Inaugurate Model Of Proposed Netaji Memorial In Andamans Today

21 islands of Andamans will be named after 21 Param Veer Chakra awardees. Largest unnamed island will be named after first Param Veer Chakra awardee, second largest after second awardee and so on.

New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi will today participate in a ceremony to name 21 largest unnamed islands of Andaman and Nicobar today at 11 am via video conferencing, on the occasion of Parakram Diwas marking freedom fighter Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s 126th birth anniversary. During the event, he will also unveil the model of the National Memorial dedicated to Netaji, to be built on Netaji Subash Chandra Bose Dweep. 

In the honour of Netaji, the Union Territory’s Ross Island was named as Netaji Subash Chandra Bose Dweep by Modi during his visit to the island in 2018. Likewise, Neil Island and Havelock Island were also renamed as Shaheed Dweep and Swaraj Dweep. 

The 21 islands will be named after 21 Param Veer Chakra awardees and the largest unnamed island will be named after first Param Veer Chakra awardee, the second largest unnamed island will be named after the second Param Vir Chakra awardee, and so on.

Giving due respect to the real-life heroes of the country has always been accorded highest priority by the Prime Minister. Going ahead with this spirit, it has now been decided to name the 21 largest unnamed islands of the island group after 21 Param Vir Chakra awardees, said the Prime Minister’s Office in its official statement. 

This step will be an everlasting tribute to our heroes, several of whom had made the ultimate sacrifice to protect the sovereignty and integrity of the nation, it added. 

These islands have been named after the 21 Param Vir Chakra awardees, viz. Major Somnath Sharma; Subedar and Hony Captain (then Lance Naik)  Karam Singh, MM; 2nd Lt. Rama Raghoba Rane; Nayak Jadunath Singh; Company Havildar Major Piru Singh; Capt GS Salaria; Lieutenant Colonel (then Major) Dhan Singh Thapa; Subedar Joginder Singh; Major Shaitan Singh; CQMH. Abdul Hamid; Lt Col Ardeshir Burzorji Tarapore; Lance Naik Albert Ekka; Major Hoshiar Singh; 2nd Lt. Arun Khetrapal; Flying Officer Nirmaljit Singh Sekhon; Major Ramaswamy Parameswaran; Naib Subedar Bana Singh; Captain Vikram Batra; Lt Manoj Kumar Pandey; Subedar Major (then RifleMan) Sanjay Kumar; and Subedar Major Retd (Hony Captain) Grenadier Yogendra Singh Yadav.