Grants-in-aid to Soldiers Decorated with Gallantry Awards (Madhya Pradesh)

What is the Madhya Pradesh gallantry award grant?

Grants-in-aid to Soldiers Decorated with Gallantry Awards is a cash recognition scheme of the Home Department, Government of Madhya Pradesh, administered by the Directorate of Sainik Welfare in Bhopal and delivered through the Zila Sainik Welfare Offices in the districts. The state pays a one-time grant to any serving or retired member of the armed forces who is a permanent resident of Madhya Pradesh and has been decorated with a gallantry medal or a distinguished service medal.

The grant sits on top of the central government's own monetary allowance for gallantry awards. A Param Vir Chakra recipient draws the central allowance from the Ministry of Defence and, separately, this state grant from Madhya Pradesh. Neither reduces the other, and the two are sanctioned by different authorities.

Madhya Pradesh revised the rate schedule sharply by an order issued on 30 March 2023. The state's stated reasoning was that its earlier rates had fallen behind those of neighbouring states, and that the grant should be large enough to matter to a family rather than being a token.

How much does Madhya Pradesh pay for each award?

These are the figures carried in reporting on the Madhya Pradesh order of 30 March 2023. The order is described as applying to medals received after the date of issue, so an awardee decorated in an earlier year should confirm with the Zila Sainik Welfare Office which schedule governs their case. Rates for other gallantry decorations such as the Vir Chakra, Shaurya Chakra and Sena Medal for gallantry were not stated in the same reporting and should be checked directly with the directorate rather than assumed.

Payment is a one-time lump sum credited to the awardee's bank account. It is not a monthly allowance and does not have to be renewed.

Who is eligible for the gallantry award grant?

You are eligible if:

• You are a permanent resident of Madhya Pradesh, evidenced by a domicile or mool nivasi certificate.
• You are serving in, or have retired from, the Army, Navy, Air Force or a recognised paramilitary force covered by the state order.
• You have been awarded a gallantry medal or a distinguished service medal notified in the Gazette of India.
• You, or the family in a posthumous case, are enrolled with the Zila Sainik Welfare Office of your home district in Madhya Pradesh.

You are not eligible if:

• You are domiciled in another state, even if you are currently posted in Madhya Pradesh. State grants follow permanent residence, not posting.
• The decoration you hold is a campaign or service star or a general service medal rather than a gallantry or distinguished service award.
• The claim relates to a medal awarded before the enhanced rates took effect and the district finds the earlier schedule applies. That does not bar a claim, it changes the amount.
• You cannot produce the Gazette notification or official citation naming you and the medal.

What documents are required?

How to apply for the Madhya Pradesh gallantry grant

1. Register with the Zila Sainik Welfare Office of your home district in Madhya Pradesh if you or your family are not already on its rolls. This office is the single entry point for all state sainik welfare benefits.
2. Collect the application form for grant-in-aid to gallantry award winners from the district office. There is no fee for the form.
3. Attach the evidence set, the Gazette notification or citation, the domicile certificate, discharge book or unit certificate, Aadhaar, and the bank passbook first page. In a posthumous case add the death certificate and the next-of-kin certificate.
4. Submit the file at the Zila Sainik Welfare Office and take a dated acknowledgement. Keep the acknowledgement number, it is what you quote when you follow up.
5. Let the district verify and forward. The Zila Sainik Welfare Officer checks the citation against service records and confirms domicile, then sends the case to the Directorate of Sainik Welfare, Bhopal.
6. Receive the sanction and payment. The directorate issues the sanction order and the amount is credited by direct transfer to the account named in the file.

How to check the status of your claim

Status is tracked offline. Call or visit the Zila Sainik Welfare Office with your acknowledgement number and ask at which stage the file sits: district verification, forwarded to Bhopal, or sanctioned. If the file has been with the directorate for an unusually long period, a complaint on the CM Helpline 181 against the Home Department creates a tracked ticket that the directorate has to close with a written reply.

Why gallantry grant claims get delayed

• Domicile certificate missing or in an old format — the most frequent hold-up, because service records often carry a home address that no longer matches the current district.
• Citation not attached, only a newspaper report or a photograph of the medal. Districts need the Gazette notification or the official citation.
• Name spelling mismatch between the Gazette notification, the discharge book and the Aadhaar card.
• Bank account inactive or KYC incomplete, which stalls the credit after sanction has already been issued.
• Claim filed in the wrong district, for example where the family has moved. The claim must be filed in the district recorded as the permanent residence.
• Next-of-kin dispute in posthumous cases, where more than one family member claims. The directorate holds payment until the next of kin is settled on record.

Grievance and contact

• Directorate of Sainik Welfare, Madhya Pradesh: sainikkalyan.mp.gov.in, under the Home Department at home.mp.gov.in
• Zila Sainik Welfare Office of your district, the first point for every query
• CM Helpline: 181, for a tracked complaint against any Madhya Pradesh department

No fee is charged at any stage, and no agent is needed. A veteran being asked for money to "process" a gallantry grant file should report it on the CM Helpline immediately.