Shravan Singh, a 10-year-old Class 4 student from Chak Taran Wali village in Punjab’s Ferozepur district just 2 km from the India-Pakistan border received the Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar from President Droupadi Murmu on 26 December 2025 at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi for his selfless delivery of milk, lassi, water, tea, and ice to Indian Army jawans during the high-stakes Operation Sindoor in May 2025.
What started as a daily routine amid cross-border tensions turned into an act of extraordinary courage, earning praise from his farmer family, soldiers who called him their “youngest comrade,” AAP MP Raghav Chadha who hailed his “pure patriotism,” and officials noting his selection from thousands of nominees; Shravan himself said, “I just wanted to help those protecting us,” with no further developments beyond the ceremony that spotlighted 19 child achievers across categories like bravery and social service.
Daily courage under fire
Son of a local farmer, Shravan pedalled his bicycle through sweltering heat and the distant rumble of gunfire to forward army posts, refusing to let border perils disrupt his mission of support sometimes even unlocking his family home for exhausted jawans to rest and cool off with fans.
“When Operation Sindoor began against Pakistan, soldiers came to our village for the first time in such numbers. I thought I should serve them like they serve us,” the soft-spoken boy told ANI after the award, his eyes lighting up with simple pride. His father, Balwinder Singh, beamed, “We are overjoyed and proud.
The soldiers loved him like their own; he brought them strength when they needed it most,” while army personnel recounted how the child’s refreshments boosted morale during relentless duties.
The Pradhan Mantri Rashtriya Bal Puraskar, instituted to honour children under 18 for exceptional courage, innovation, and social impact, selected Shravan from over 20 nominees in conflict zones this year, as per President’s office records, underscoring how ordinary village lives intersect with national defence.
Operation Sindoor context and rising recognition
Operation Sindoor erupted on 7 May 2025 as a decisive Indian response to a deadly terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pahalgam on 22 April, where militants gunned down 26 civilians, including tourists, in a brazen assault linked to Pakistan-based groups like Jaish-e-Mohammed and Lashkar-e-Taiba.
Indian Air Force precision strikes targeted nine terror camps across Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, neutralising threats and drawing international scrutiny to frontier volatility, while ground forces in Punjab held the line amid retaliatory shelling that echoed through villages like Chak Taran Wali.
Shravan’s unpublicised efforts surfaced post-operation via social media reels and posts such as one viral X thread contrasting his dedication with adult apathy, urging a “55-year-old ‘young boy'” to emulate true nationalism which propelled his story nationwide.
By late 2025, his nomination led to this pinnacle honour, with the Ministry of Women and Child Development emphasising tales that “inspire the youth to embody resilience and unity,” bridging border hardships with stories of communal harmony.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
Shravan Singh’s quiet pedal through peril exemplifies how profound patriotism often hides in small gestures a glass of lassi shared amid gunfire, a fan’s breeze for weary guardians reminding us that nationalism thrives not in rhetoric, but in empathy that knits soldiers, villagers, and children into one resilient fabric.
At The Logical Indian, we celebrate such beacons of kindness that echo our ethos of peace, dialogue, coexistence, and positive change, rejecting divisive barbs in favour of stories fostering harmony even on contested frontiers.
