The Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM) (IAST: Parama Viśiṣṭa Sēvā, lit. 'supreme distinguished service medal') is the highest peacetime medal of the Indian Armed Forces,[1] and is awarded for "distinguished service of the most exceptional order."[2] [3] The medal was instituted on Republic Day 1960 as the highest class of the Vishisht Seva Medal ("Distinguished Service Medal") intended to recognise "distinguished service rendered by personnel of the Armed Forces."[3] All ranks of the Armed Forces are eligible for the medal, which may be awarded multiple times as well as posthumously.[2]
At its creation, it was designated the Vishisht Seva Medal (Class I).[3] On 27 January 1967, it received its present name.[2] Post-nominals for recipients were approved on 19 August 1967.[4]
| align=center style="width:50px;background-color:#e3d9ff;" | † | Indicates posthumous honour |
| No. | Rank | Name | Branch | Service Number (Unit) | Date of Award |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brij Mohan Kaul | AI-162 | 26 January 1961[5] | ||
| 2 | Rear Admiral | 26 January 1961 | |||
| 3 | Air Vice Marshal | Harjinder Singh | 1963 ENG | 26 January 1962[6] | |
| 4 | Major General | Kunhiraman Palat Candeth | IC-162 | 26 January 1963[7] | |
| 5 | Brigadier | Kottimukkla Alagaraja Singapparaja Raja | IC-801 | 26 January 1963 | |
| 6 | Brigadier | Kalyan Singh | IC-403 | 26 January 1963 | |
| 7 | Major General | Mahindra Singh Pathania | IC-104 | 26 January 1963[8] | |
| 8 | Air Vice Marshal | Kanwar Jaswant Singh | 1587 GD(P) | 26 January 1963 | |
| 9 | Major General | Rawind Singh Garewal | IC-127 | 26 January 1963 | |
| 10 | Major General | Diwan Prem Chand | IC-161 | 6 April 1963[9] | |
| 11 | Brigadier | Reginald Stephen Noronha | IC-531 | 6 April 1963 | |
| 12 | Lieutenant General | Daulet Singh | 977-IA | 26 January 1964[10] | |
| 13 | Lieutenant General | Bikram Singh | AI-112 | 26 January 1964 | |
| 14 | Lieutenant General | Prem Singh Gyani | IA-1281 | 26 January 1964 | |
| 15 | Air Vice Marshal | Erlic Wilmot Pinto | 1593 GD(P) | 26 January 1964 | |
| 16 | Air Vice Marshal | 1614 GD(P) | 26 January 1964 | ||
| 17 | Lieutenant General | Thomas Bryan Henderson Brooks | AI-824 | 5 March 1964[11] | |
| 18 | Major General | Kartar Nath Dubey | IC-603 (Engineers) | 26 January 1965[12] | |
| 19 | Brigadier | Shavak Naswaranji Antia | IC-2130 (Signals) | 26 January 1965 | |
| 20 | Brigadier | Syed Baquar Raza | IC-806 (Artillery) | 26 January 1965 | |
| 21 | Brigadier | Badri Nath Upadhyay | IC-2958 (9 Gorkha Rifles) | 26 January 1965 | |
| 22 | Brigadier | Vijay Kumar Ghai | IC-1672 (Artillery) | 30 June 1965[13] | |
| 23 | Major General | Joginder Singh | IC-203 | 10 November 1965[14] | |
| 24 | Group Captain | George Kanisht Kumar John | 2132 GD(P) | 10 November 1965 | |
| 25 | Group Captain | Walter Vernon Alexander Lloyd | 2623 GD(P) | 10 November 1965 | |
| 26 | Lieutenant General | Moti Sagar | IC-25 | 26 January 1966[15] | |
| 27 | Major General | Amrik Singh | IC-133 | 26 January 1966 | |
| 28 | Major General | Rajinder Nath Batra | IC-446 | 26 January 1966 | |
| 29 | Rear Admiral | Benjamin Abraham Samson | 26 January 1966 | ||
| 30 | Rear Admiral | Sardarilal Mathradas Nanda | 26 January 1966 | ||
| 31 | Brigadier | Iorwerth George Jenkins | IC-1389 | 26 January 1966 | |
| 32 | Brigadier | Zora Singh | IC-3287 | 26 January 1966 | |
| 33 | Brigadier | Onkar Singh Kalkat | IC-810 | 26 January 1966 | |
| 34 | Air Commodore | Krishna Mahesh Agerwala | 1648 GD(N) | 26 January 1966 | |
| 35 | Brigadier | Bhumi Chand Chauhan | IC-660 | 30 September 1966[16] | |
| 36 | Lieutenant General | Tirath Ram Pahwa | MR-158 (Medical) | 26 January 1967[17] | |
| 37 | Major General | Sailendra Mohan Basu | MR-145 (Medical) | 26 January 1967 | |
| 38 | Rear Admiral | Pabitra Kumar Mukherjee | 26 January 1967 | ||
| 39 | Air Vice Marshal | Yeshwant Vinayak Malse | 1616 GD(P) | 26 January 1967 | |
| 40 | Air Vice Marshal | Kanianthra Alexander Joseph | 2960 SIGS | 26 January 1967 | |
| 41 | Air Commodore | Gurbachan Singh | 1779 EQPT | 26 January 1967 | |
| 42 | Lieutenant General | Amarendra Krishna Dey | MR-135 (Medical) | 26 January 1968[18] | |
| 43 | Major General | Satya Paul Vohra | IC-609 (EME) | 26 January 1968 | |
| 44 | Rear Admiral | Sourendra Nath Kohli | 26 January 1968 | ||
| 45 | Air Vice Marshal | Shivdev Singh | 1595 GD(P) | 26 January 1968 | |
| 46 | Air Vice Marshal | Om Prakash Mehra | 1639 GD(P) | 26 January 1968 | |
| 47 | Lieutenant General | Apparanda Chengappa Iyappa (Ret'd) | IC-89 (Signals) | 26 January 1969[19] | |
| 48 | Lieutenant General | Bidyapati Bhattacharjya | MR-147 (Medical) | 26 January 1969 | |
| 49 | Lieutenant General | Gopal Gurunath Bewoor | IC-129 (Infantry) | 26 January 1969 | |
| 50 | Lieutenant General | Rajinder Singh Paintal | IC-125 (Infantry) | 26 January 1969 | |
| 51 | Major General | Panavelil Thomas Joseph | MR-150 (Medical) | 26 January 1969 | |
| 52 | Major General | IC-1641 (Infantry) | 26 January 1969 | ||
| 53 | Rear Admiral | Kesavapillai Ramakrishnan Nair | 26 January 1969 | ||
| 54 | Air Vice Marshal | Hari Chand Dewan | 1598 GD(P) | 26 January 1969 | |
| 55 | Air Vice Marshal | Teja Singh Virk | 1621 GD(N) | 26 January 1969 | |