Cyrus Addie Pithawalla

On 1 August 2008, Pithawalla became the first recipient of either the Param Vir Chakra or the Ashoka Chakra to attain the one-star rank of Brigadier. Upon promotion to the rank of Major General on 20 January 2013, he became the first Ashoka Chakra recipient to attain the rank of a general officer in a Two-star rank. As a major general, he was posted as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) Andhra Sub Area.

Major General Cyrus Addie Pithawalla AC, VSM, is a retired General Officer of the Indian Army. He was awarded India's highest peacetime decoration for gallantry, the Ashok Chakra, in 1981, and by virtue of this is one of the most decorated flag officers in the history of the Indian Armed Forces (the Ashoka Chakra ranks above all other Indian decorations excepting the Param Vir Chakra, its wartime equivalent, and the Bharat Ratna).

Major General Lieutenant Pithawalla was awarded the Ashok Chakra in 1981 for a counter-insurgency operation in Manipur, and the Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service. His Ashok Chakra Citation reads as follows:

On 6th July, 1981, 2/Lt Cyrus Addie Pithwalla while in command of a Company Column of 17 JAK Rifles was ordered to cordon and search area Tekcham in Manipur and to capture insurgents reported to be there.

Cyrus Pithawalla was born in Bangalore on 13 January 1957 and was educated at the Air Force School, Delhi. After graduating with degrees in Commerce from Delhi University, he was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant on a short-service commission into the 17th battalion, Jammu and Kashmir Rifles on 1 September 1979. On 1 September 1984, he received a regular commission as a lieutenant.