# MacGregor Medal

The MacGregor Medal (also referred to as the MacGregor Memorial Medal) is awarded for valuable military intelligence through reconnaissance, exploration, survey or other similar activities of national importance. Awardees have included Survey of India personnel, military attaches, consuls, political officers and Indian Army, Navy and Air Force personnel (including British officers before Independence). Post 1947 the medal has only been awarded to military personnel. A few medals have been awarded for escapes from enemy-occupied territory while some medals were awarded for successful operations inside enemy territory. Sometimes the awardee would be conferred the medal years after the journey had been made. Currently the domains incorporated are land, sea and air. Over the years the necessity and opportunities related to exploration have declined and this in turn has been coupled with a decline in recommendations. In this light the eligibility has been expanded to adventure activities mountain and desert expeditions, rafting, world circumnavigation, polar expedition and flights.

## History

The medal was instituted in May 1887 to honour the memory of United Service Institution of India founder, Major General Sir Charles MacGregor. The original criteria for award of the medal were enunciated out on 3 July 1888 at Shimla at a meeting in the presence of Commander-in-Chief General Sir FS Roberts and the Viceroy of India. After the partition of British India into India and Pakistan, the award was adopted by India and continues to this day. 122 medals have been awarded: 7 gold medals to officers, 67 standard size silver medals to officers (including 5 VCOs and JCOs), and 48 reduced size silver medals to other ranks/soldiers. One British officer has been awarded the medal twice, A. S. Lancaster, as a major in 1938, and again as a colonel in 1946; and one British Indian, Shahzad Mir, first as Daffadar, in 1897, then again as Risaldar in 1906. For reconnaissance in 1891, Havildar Ramzan Khan, Punjab Frontier Force, was the first Indian to be awarded the medal.

## Specifications

There are three versions of the medal. The standard silver medal 2+3⁄4 inches (70 mm) without any attachments, the reduced gold medal 1+1⁄4 inches (32 mm) without any attachments and the reduced silver medal 1+1⁄4 inches (32 mm) with attachments to suspend around neck. The obverse side contains an effigy of Major General Sir Charles MacGregor. Inscribed on the upper periphery is "Major General Sir Charles MacGregor KCB CSI CIE". Inscribed on the lower periphery is "In Memoriam 1887". The reserve side contains various figures of army personnel. Details of the awardee are inscribed on the outer rim. The colours of the ribbon are (from left to right) — Red, Green, Red, Green, Black, White, Black, Green, Red, Green, Red. The colours are based on the 'MacGregor tartan'.

## Recent winners

* Kumar, 2020: For accomplishments in long distance running
* Tomy, 2013: first Indian to complete a solo, non-stop circumnavigation of the globe under sail.
* Donde, 2010: first Indian to complete a solo, unassisted circumnavigation of the globe under sail
* Monga & Kumar, 2007: world trip in a microlight aircraft

## Pre-1947 recipients

Key
* No. – Award number
* Rank – Rank at the time of the award
* Year – Year in which the exploration for which the award was given took place
Only recipients with articles have been listed
| No. | Name | Rank | Year |
| 1 | MS Bell | Colonel | 1889 |
| 2 | F Younghusband | Captain | 1890 |
| 8 | H Bower | Captain | 1893 |
| 12 | HR Davies | Captain | 1895 |
| 14 | GK Cockerill | Lieutenant | 1896 |
| 16 | EJE Swayne | Captain | 1897 |
| 18 | HB Walker | Captain | 1898 |
| 41 | KBS Jang | Subedar | 1910 |
| 44 | G Leachman | Captain | 1911 |
| 52 | FM Bailey | Captain | 1914 |
| 53 | HT Morshead | Captain | 1914 |
| 60 | EWC Noel | Captain | 1918 |
| 61 | EH Keeling | Lieutenant Colonel | 1919 |
| 63 | LVS Blacker | Captain | 1920 |
| 65 | AL Holt | Major | 1921 |
| 69 | JG Bruce | Captain | 1923 |
| 76 | CHGH Harvey–Kelly | Major | 1926 |
| 99 | OC Wingate | Major General | 1943 |

## Post-1947 recipients

Awards were accompanied with entries in the Register for MacGregor Medal. The entry for Captain S.L. Tugnait, awarded for 1958, reads:
   "Captain S.L. Tugnait... Air OP Squadron, Regiment of Artillery. Valuable Military Recce in Northern Ladakh. Covered the route from Leh over the 21,000 ft Chang La (Sic. 17,590 ft) into the Shyok River Valley to Ponyvang Lake (Sic. Pangong Tso). From there to Quazi-Haji Langer-Quaratag Pass, and back by the Karakuram Pass to Daulat Beg Oldi - Sasar Kangri over the Sasar La into the Nubra Valley and back to Leh over the 19,600 ft Kharding La"
| No. | Service | Name | Awardee details | Awardee details | Year | Notes |
| No. | Service | Name | Rank | Other details | Year | Notes |
| 104. | | ZC Bakshi | Major | VrC, 2nd Bn, 5th Gorkha Rifles (F.F) | 1949 | |
| 105. | | IC Katoch | Colonel | MBE, 6th Bn, 5th Gorkha Rifles (F.F) | 1951 | |
| 106. | | MS Jarg | Captain | 3rd Bn, Jat Regiment | 1956 | |
| 107. | | IB Goel | 2nd Lieutenant | Bengal Engineers Group | 1956 | |
| 108. | | Vinod Badhwar | Captain | 5th Bn, 5th Gorkha Rifles (F.F) | 1957 | |
| 109. | | SL Tugnait | Captain | Air Op Squadron, Regiment of Artillery | 1958 | |
| 110. | | ML Whig | Brigadier | MVC FRGS, 2nd Bn, 5th Gorkhas Rifles (F.F) | 1969 | |
| 111. | | Prem Chand | Major | VSM, 13th Bn, Dogra Regiment | 1970 | |
| 112. | | CS Nugyal | Colonel | 6th Bn, Sikh Regiment | 1971 | |
| 113. | | Ravindra Misra | Captain | 4th Bn, 3rd Gorkha Rifles | 1972 | |
| 114. | | Bel Bahadur Pun | Subedar | 4th Bn, 3rd Gorkha Rifles | 1972 | |
| 115. | | Narender Kumar | Colonel | PVSM, KC, AVSM (Retd) Kumaon Regiment | 1978 to 1981 | |
| 116. | | Ram Karan Makkar | Squadron Leader | 127 HU, Indian Air Force | 1986 | |
| 117. | | Rana TS Chhina | Flight Lieutenant | 127 HU, Indian Air Force | 1986 | |
| 118. | | NJ Korgaokar | Lieutenant Colonel | SM, Garhwal Regiment | 1997 | |
| 119. | | Rahul Monga | Wing Commander | SC, Indian Air Force | 2007 | |
| 120. | | Soumik Ghosh | Flight Lieutenant | SC, Indian Air Force | 2010 | |
| 121. | | Dilip Donde | Commander | Indian Navy | 2010 | |
| 122. | | Abhilash Tomy | Lieutenant Commander | Indian Navy, KC, NM | 2013 | |
| 123. | | Sanjay Kumar | Electrical Artificer (P) 3 | Indian Navy | 2020 | |