22 children to be honoured with National Bravery Awards

New Delhi, Nov 14 (UNI) Twenty two children, four of them posthumously, have been selected for the National Bravery Awards for 2007.

The awardees include four girls and 18 boys. The coveted Bharat Award will be conferred on Kabita and Amarjeet of Haryana, who saved several of their schoolmates from drowning when their schoolbus fell into the Yamuna canal.

The Sanjay Chopra Award will be given to six-year-old Yuktarth Shrivastav of Chhattisgarh who saved his sister from stray dogs.

The prestigious Geeta Chopra Award has been conferred posthumously on 14-and-a-half-year old Lalrempuii of Mizoram who fought vehemently against her assailant and lost her life in the process.

Bapu Gayadhani award will go to Raipalli Vamsi, 12, of Andhra Pradesh, Boney Singh of Manipur (16 and half) and late Amol Aghi, aged 15 of Haryana. Vamsi had saved five girls from drowning in the Nagavalli river and Boney Singh saved two girls and Amol lost his life chasing robbers.

The other recipients are Raveendra Halder, Ravi Jhariyam Awadhesh Kumar Jhariya, Manas Nishad, all from Chhattisgarh, VishnuC S , Bijin Babu, both from Kerala, Kavvampalli Rajkumar, Pinjari Chinigi Sab, both from AP, Meher Legha from New Delhi, Ankit Rai, late Abhishek and Suraj--all from Haryana, Subhash Kumar from UP, Congress Kanwar (Rajasthan) and Sunil Kumar P N (Karnataka).

The selection was made by a committee comprising representatives of various ministers, NGOs and senior members of the Indian Council for Child Welfare.

The children will receive the awards on the eve of the Republic Day 2008 from the Prime Minister. They will participate in the parade riding caparisoned elephants.

Deserving awardees will be granted financial assistance until they complete their schooling, under the sponsorship programme of the ICCW, said Ms Gita Sidhartha, President of the Council.

UNI