Six Mumbai Fire Brigade officers, including chief fire officer (CFO) P.S. Rahangdale, will be conferred with the President’s Medal for Gallantry for their services in the July 2019 fire at the MTNL building in Bandra. Eighty-six civilians were rescued in one of the biggest fire operations the city has witnessed.
The fire, which broke out on July 23, had escalated to a Level IV emergency. The heavy smoke, debris and trees around the building hampered access, and made the operation a very challenging one.
The fire brigade had rescued the employees from the terrace of the building using ladders and cranes. The entire operation lasted around 22 hours, at the end of which no civilian casualty was reported and one fireman sustained minor injuries.
The President’s Medals, which are awarded to police and fire officers on Republic Day, will be awarded to Mr. Rahangdale, deputy chief officer (technical) Rajendra Chaudhary, divisional fire officer Ravindra Ambulgekar, assistant divisional fire officer Milind Donde, station officer Abhijeet Sawant and operator Sudhir Vartak.
“It was one of the biggest fires ever reported and our officers excelled in their performance while rescuing those trapped inside,” Mr. Rahangdale said.
Three others, deputy CFO Vithalrao Hiwrale, deputy CFO Vijaykumar Panigrahi and deputy CFO Yeshwant Jadhav, will be receive the President’s Medal for Meritorious Service, which is awarded to those with the best track record and takes their entire career’s service into account.
Meanwhile, 19 Maharashtra Police personnel will also be awarded the President’s Medal for Meritorious Service. The list includes Deputy Commissioner of Police Dhananjay Kulkarni, who is currently in Singapore on deputation to Interpol as coordinator, counterterrorism. Mr. Kulkarni has previously worked with the Mumbai Police Crime Branch and the Maharashtra Anti Terrorism Squad.
Those honoured from the Mumbai Police commissionerate include Additional Commissioner of Police (Motor Transport) Atul Patil, senior police inspector Mukund Pawar with the Special Branch and senior police inspector Gajanan Kabdule, Khar police station.
“Receiving the medal is a great honour as well as a humbling experience. We owe this to the support we have received from our seniors and our juniors,” Mr. Kabdule said.
