Admiral Madhvendra Singh, Chief of the Naval Staff awarded the prestigious and coveted gallantry and distinguished service medals to 36 Naval personnel at the Naval investiture ceremony held at Visakhapatnam. Vice Admiral Raman Puri, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Naval Command received the Chief of the Naval Staff at the Parade Ground. Other Flag Officers in station were also present on the occasion. The parade was also witnessed by civil dignitaries including the Municipal Commissioner, Commissioner of Police and CMD of Hindustan Shipyard Limited, Rear Admiral (Retd) Bhatia. A large number of relatives of the award winners, service personnel and their families were also present on the occasion.

The Nao Sena Medals (gallantry) in recognition of individual acts of exceptional courage in naval operations were awarded to nine officers and sailors. Capt. Rajesh Sarin of the Western Naval Command was the topper in the recipients list. He was awarded the coveted medal for his exceptional bravery in the face of danger during his tenure as the Commanding Officer of the submarine, INS Sindhushastra, in the closest vicinity of the adversary's sea frontier in December 2001. Cdr M Ramachandran, a Sea King 42C helicopter pilot, rescued 16 personnel, both foreign and Indian nationals, from a drifting oil rig off Mumbai in July 2001. He was also awarded Nao Sena Medal (gallantry). Lt Cdr Mukul Chaturvedi was awarded Nao Sena Medal (gallantry) for displaying exceptional courage in apprehending 15 Myanmarese poachers and infiltrators in the Andaman sea in November 2000. Lt Venkat Vinay Ram and four sailors Abdul Wahab, RC Yadav, B Anil Kumar and Ranvir Singh (all Leading Seamen) who displayed exceptional courage in counter-insurgency operations in Jammu & Kashmir during 2001-02 were among the other Nao Sena Medal winners.

The Nao Sena Medals (devotion to duty) in recognition of individual acts of devotion which have a special significance to the Indian Navy were awarded to eight officers and sailors including Cmde AD Marker, Cmde VS Chaudhari and Capt SL Deshmukh. Among 16 recipients of Vishisht Seva Medals for distinguished service of high order over a period of time, were Rear Admiral Sanjeev Bhasin, Assistant Chief of Personnel (HRD), Cmde KK Rohatgi, Director Naval Education, Cmde GN Sasidharan, Director of Naval Signals. The Jeevan Raksha Padak for a rare act of courage in rescue operations was awarded to Suresh Behra, Master Chief Petty Officer. The Captain Dhir Memorial Gold Medal for a contribution towards flight safety and prevention of accidents to Naval aircraft was awarded to Surg Cdr SS Khanuja while Lt VK Jain Memorial Gold Medal was presented to Lt Cdr Ankur Sharma for innovative research projects.

Complimenting the award winners, Admiral Madhvendra Singh, in his address, said that the awards were given in recognition of their exemplary dedication to the Naval service. He also congratulated the family members of the award winners for their constant support. The Chief of the Naval Staff called upon the Naval personnel on this occasion to uphold and pursue vigorously the core values of the Indian Navy.