Wing Commander Cheeren Verghese Thambi was commissioned in the Aeronautical Engineering (Electronics) of the Indian Air Force in August, 1951. At the time of outbreak of Indo-Pak hostilities in December, 1971, he served as the Deputy Director Ground Radar (Tech.) at Air Headquarters. During the recent emergency, Wing Commander Thambi showed initiative and technical ability of a very high order. In the case of radar stations, the rectifier valves were in short supply and could not be imported from abroad. This situation could have prevented the radar stations from functioning within a short period as the consumption of these valves was very high due to continuous operations. Wing Commander Thambi successfully designed and developed a solid state rectifier for replacing these high voltage rectifier valves and arranged to get them indigenously manufactured. This modification proved a great success during the present emergency and, in fact, improved the radar performance due to continued ability to withstand high voltage. By this modification, he not only overcame a critical shortage but also insured lesser reliance on import, thus saving valuable foreign exchange.

Throughout the emergency, Wing Commander Cheeren Verghese Thambi displayed initiative, leadership and devotion to duty, and has rendered distinguished service of a high order. He is awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal.