Lt Gen Dhiraj Seth, the country's next Chief of the Army Staff, Navy Chief Adm Krishna Swaminathan as well as Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai and Air Marshal Awadhesh Kumar Bharti, who both played key roles during the Operation Sindoor last year, were on Monday honoured with prestigious military decorations for their distinguished service of exceptional order.

President Droupadi Murmu conferred 105 distinguished service decorations to the personnel of the defence forces and the Indian Coast Guard during the Defence Investiture Ceremony 2026 (Phase-II) hosted at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.

"These decorations – seven Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medals, 30 Param Vishisht Seva Medals, 12 Uttam Yudh Seva Medals and 56 Ati Vishisht Seva Medals – have been given to the personnel for their distinguished service of exceptional order," the Defence Ministry said.

It also shared the names of the awardees in a list, mentioning different categories of military decorations.

Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal recognises the distinguished service of the most exceptional order during war, conflict or hostilities.

Lt Gen Pratik Sharma, Commander, Army's Northern Command; Lt Gen Ghai, who served as the Army's Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) during Operation Sindoor; Deputy Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Bharti, who served as the IAF's Director General of Air Operations during the operation in May 2025, IAF's Vice Chief Air Marshal Nagesh Kapoor, and former Vice Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari (retd) have been conferred the Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal.

Both Lt Gen Ghai and Air Marshal Bharti were also the Army's and IAF's faces during the Tri-Service briefing conducted in New Delhi on Operation Sindoor last year.

Lt Gen Ghai was recently appointed as the Military Adviser to the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS).

Operation Sindoor was conducted to avenge the deadly Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 last year.

India launched Operation Sindoor early on May 7 last year and decimated multiple terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK).

Pakistan also launched offensives against India, and all subsequent counter-offensives by India were also carried out under Operation Sindoor.

The military conflict between the two nuclear-armed neighbours halted after they reached an understanding on the evening of May 10.

Murmu on Monday also conferred Param Vishisht Seva Medals to Navy Chief Admiral Swaminathan; Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command, Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan; and Chief of Integrated Defence Staff (CISC), Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, among other officers, serving and retired.

Admiral Swaminathan assumed charge as the 27th Chief of the Naval Staff of the Indian Navy on May 31.

In the Uttam Yudh Seva Medal category, the awardees include Lt Gen Seth and Vice Admiral Tarun Sobti, among others.

The government on June 13 had announced the appointment of Lt Gen Seth, presently serving as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff, as the next Chief of the Army Staff with effect from the afternoon of June 30. He will succeed Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi.