Hyderabad: June 2 is always a day layered with deep emotion across Telangana. It is a day of vibrant celebration, marking the state’s journey of progress. Yet, amid the unfurling of the Tricolour and the grand parades at the Secunderabad Parade Grounds, it is also a time when the state pauses to look inward, offering its highest gratitude to the men and women who keep its citizens safe.
During the statehood celebrations, Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, alongside Chief Secretary K Ramakrishna Rao and DGP CV Anand, presented the state’s prestigious Gallantry and Jeevan Raksha medals to exemplary police personnel.
The ceremony was a stark reminder of what it truly means to serve.
The Elite Shield: Greyhounds Honored for Valor
The state’s anti-Naxal elite force, the Greyhounds, dominated the gallantry awards this year. These are individuals who routinely step into dangerous terrains so the rest of the state can sleep in peace. Among those recognized for their exceptional courage were:
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Shaik Nagul Meera (Assistant Assault Commander/SI, Khammam, Greyhounds)
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T Mahesh (Deputy Assault Commander/RI, Greyhounds)
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K Adinarayana (Senior Commando, Head Constable 596, Greyhounds)
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K Ashok (Assistant Assault Commander, ARSI-82, Greyhounds)
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R Sunil Kumar (Junior Commando, PC-848, Greyhounds)
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H Sukumar (PC-848, 3rd Battalion Telangana State Police, Ibrahimpatnam)
A Heartbreaking Legacy of Sacrifice
While the parade grounds echoed with applause for the living, the atmosphere turned profoundly poignant when the name of Junior Commando B Sushil (JC-8647) was called.
Sushil laid down his life on March 2, 2018, during a fierce encounter with Naxalites at Pujari Kanker in the Bijapur district of Chhattisgarh. He was a hero who made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty.
Stepping up to the podium to receive the posthumous Gallantry Medal was his wife, B Sushma. For everyone watching, it was a heavy, silent reminder of the hidden cost of peace—paid not just by the soldiers on the frontlines, but by the families they leave behind.
Everyday Heroes: Saving Lives on the Streets
Heroism isn’t reserved exclusively for the deep jungles; it thrives on our city streets as well.
Bandikindi Shravan Kumar (PC-4487), a police constable attached to the Panjagutta Traffic Police Station right here in Hyderabad City, was awarded the Jeevan Raksha Padak. Shravan’s quick thinking, alertness, and raw courage in a life-or-death situation earned him the state’s premier life-saving decoration, proving that our traffic police are keeping us safe in more ways than managing the city’s chaotic gridlock.
The True Spirit of Telangana
As Telangana marches forward into another year of statehood, stories like these anchor us. The glittering medals and the crisp uniforms on display at the Parade Grounds are symbols of a deeper truth: a society thrives only when protected by those willing to give everything for it.
To the awardees, the martyrs, and their families—Hyderabad, and the entire state of Telangana, owes you a debt of gratitude.
