Corporal Akhilesh Kumar Mishra is on the posted strength of a fighter squadron located at Bhuj, Gujarat since 10 Apr 2000.

A devastating earthquake struck Bhuj on 26 Jan 2001. Immediately after the earthquake Cpl Mishra immediately ran to rescue the survivors. For the next four days, he worked day and night and saved 19 lives. He had no rescue equipment but only his will, imagination, bare hands and raw courage. Snaking through tiny crevices, he worked his way in and pulled out one boy and three women from the remains of three different buildings in Shivnagar area on 26 Jan 2001. The same night, human sounds were detected in another mound of rubble. Despite parts of the building still collapsing in fresh tremors, Cpl Mishra continued to tunnel his way through different collapsed floors of the buildings. Fully aware of the risk of being buried alive any moment, he worked through the night to rescue a father and child. On 27 Jan 01, Cpl Mishra again volunteered to enter a small passage created by Army engineers through the top concrete slab of Vaibhav Laxmi Apartment in Shivnagar. He scraped through the rubble and tunneled his way through three different levels of the buildings (almost 30 feet) to save Cpl Shah and his wife. Working almost non-stop for six hours, he finally rescued Mrs. Gita Ben trapped below two pillars, a roof and a wooden frame in the early hours of 28 Jan 01. On 29 Jan 01, Cpl Mishra rescued a teenaged girl named Avni, who had been pinned down by two concrete beams. In the night, while the tremors continued, he entered the most unstable part of the wreckage and emerged after about an hour with the last survivor in that complex.

Corporal AK Mishra displayed conspicuous valour and presence of mind in rescue operations, without caring for the grave risk to his life.

Corporal Mohammed Javed Radio Fitter was on the posted strength of a Squadron located at Bhuj, Gujarat since 25 Nov 1997. A devastating earthquake struck Bhuj on 26 Jan 2001. Immediately after the earthquake Corporal Javed commenced rescue operation within the Air Force Camp. Working with basic implements as hacksaw blades and crowbars, he made a passage through the rubble of one building and pulled out the two surviving members of a family. Quickly moving on to another building, he pulled out wife of Corporal D Singh and wife of Sgt VS Yadav. Thereafter he proceeded outside the Air Force Camp to Vaibhav Lakshmi Apartments at Shivnagar area. Even as after shocks continued, he worked through the mangled steels and concrete of the multi-storey complex to locate survivors. Unmindful of physical exhaustion and personal risk, he kept breaking concrete and cutting through steel rods to extricate the living. On 26 Jan 2001 itself, he pulled out seven survivors from the site. On 27 Jan 2001, he pulled out one more women from beneath of debris of Gayatri Complex in Shivnagar. On 29 Jan 2001, he extricated the last survivor in Kaveri complex, an infant child. He repeatedly put his life at risk to save others. Thus working selflessly, he saved 14 lives.

Corporal Mohammed Javed displayed courage of high order in undertaking rescue operations at great risk to his own life.