The Param Vir Chakra (PVC) is India's highest military decoration, awarded for displaying distinguished acts of valour during wartime.

[5][6] Param Vir Chakra translates as the "Wheel of the Ultimate Brave", and the award is granted for "most conspicuous bravery in the presence of the enemy".

The history of modern-day Indian gallantry awards can be traced back to the rule of the East India Company.

Gold medals were awarded to Indian officers for the first time in 1795, with the first recipient being Subedar Abdul Kader of the 5th Madras Native Infantry.

The chain of the gold medal awarded to Kader was inscribed with the words "For Conduct and Courage on All Occasions".

[11] A short time later, Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru decided to give gallantry awards for the ongoing conflict in Jammu and Kashmir.

On 1 January 1949, a ceasefire was implemented in Jammu and Kashmir, and as it was becoming too late to honour acts of heroism from the 1947–1948 Indo-Pakistani War, Nehru forwarded the draft warrants to Governor-General Chakravarti Rajagopalachari to "institute the awards as your own".

[12] He instead suggested to Nehru that, as India was to become a republic on 26 January 1950, it would be appropriate to announce the establishment of the awards on that date, but with retroactive effect from 15 August 1947.

Fourth: The Chakra is awarded for most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent act of valour or self sacrifice, in the presence of the enemy, whether on land, at sea, or in the air.

Seventh: The names of those persons upon or on account of whom the decoration may be conferred shall be published in The Gazette of India, and a Register thereof kept under the directions of the President.

Thirteenth: The President may cancel and annul the award of the Chakra to any person together with any pension appertaining thereto not already paid, and thereupon his or her name in the register shall be erased and he or she shall be required to surrender his or her insignia; but it shall be competent for the President to restore the decoration when such cancellation and annulment has subsequently been withdrawn, and with it such pension as may have been forfeited.

On the obverse, or front, the National Emblem of India appears in the centre on a raised circle surrounded by four copies of the vajra, the weapon of Indra, the ancient Vedic king of the gods.

The motif symbolizes the sacrifice of Rishi Dadhichi, who gave his bones to the gods to make the vajra to kill the demon Vritra.

[45] Many Indian states have established individual pension rewards that far exceed the central government's stipend for recipients of the PVC.

[47] On 2 May 2017, at a ceremony conducted in the National Media Center, New Delhi, Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre inaugurated a campaign to build a "wall of valour" in a thousand educational institutions across the country.

The objective is to build a wall of 4.5 by 6 metres (15 by 20 ft) at various educational campuses with the voluntary contributions from the students and the faculty of respective institutions.

[48] In 2019 Bronze Busts of all 21 recipients are installed in the Param Yodha Sthal, which is a part of the National War Memorial.

[53] A graphic novel titled Param Vir Chakra by Amar Chitra Katha, a comic book released in 2015 featuring 21 dedicated and concise stories.

[54] A series of 14 graphic novels titled Param Vir Chakra Name of Awardees by Roli Books written by Ian Cardozo and drawn by Rishi Kumar in 2019.

[56] An upcoming Hindi-language film Ekkis will focus on the life on Arun Khetarpal, who is the youngest recipient of the award.