Indian Independence Medal
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=October 2019}}
{{Infobox award
|name= Indian Independence Medal
|caption= Obverse and reverse of the medal
|presenter= the Dominion of India
|type=Commemorative medal
|eligibility=All members of the Indian armed forces serving on 15 August 1947
British service personnel who remained in India after Independence serving on 1 January 1948
|awarded_for= Indian Independence
|campaign=
|status=
|description= Silver disk, 36mm diameter.
|clasps= None
|established= October 1949
|total_awarded=
|image2=110px
Ribbon bar of the Indian Independence Medal
115px
|caption2= Ribbon bar of the Indian Police Independence Medal
|higher=35px Union of South Africa Commemoration Medal (United Kingdom){{London Gazette|issue=56878|page=3353|date=17 March 2003|supp=y}}
35px Territorial Army Medal (India){{cite web|title=Precedence Of Medals|url=http://indianarmy.nic.in/Site/FormTemplete/frmTempSimple.aspx?MnId=zCQHR1MODtMw0EJ0MUc5CA==&ParentID=XRRy6fl/Yj1c0bK0sve+Pg==|work=indianarmy.nic.in/|publisher=Indian Army|access-date=8 May 2012}}
|lower=35px Pakistan Medal (United Kingdom)
35px Indian Police Independence Medal (India)
}}
The Indian Independence Medal was instituted by the Dominion of India and approved by King George VI by way of a Royal Warrant dated 21 July 1948.The Gazette of India, part 1 section 1. 18 September 1948. p. 1148–1189. It was a commemorative medal for service with the Indian armed forces at the time of independence in August 1947. Attached British personnel were eligible.
It was awarded to all those who, on 15 August 1947, were members of the armed forces of India, including the forces of princely states that acceded to Indian rule before 1 January 1948. British military personnel who remained in India after independence and who served with Indian forces up to 1 January 1948 qualified,{{cite web|url=http://medals.org.uk/india/india022.htm |title=ODM of India: Indian Independence Medal|publisher=Medals.org.uk |access-date=2012-05-08}} although those with British units awaiting repatriation did not.Orders & Medals Research Society Journal, Vol 12 No 1, Spring 1973. p. 25.
The medal is circular, {{convert|1.4|in|abbr=on}} in diameter and made of cupronickel. The obverse has the Ashoka Chakra wheel surmounted by a Tudor Crown, surrounded by the inscription GEORGIUS VI D:G: BRITT:OMN: REX: FID DEF. The reverse shows the Ashoka lions, which is the State Emblem of India, with the words INDIAN INDEPENDENCE above and the date 15th AUGUST 1947 below. The {{convert|1.25|in|abbr=on}} ribbon consists of three equal stripes of saffron, white and green, the colours on the flag of India. The medal is worn on the left chest, with the saffron furthest from the left shoulder.{{Cite book|author=Captain H. Taprell Dorling.|title=Ribbons and Medals.|page=143. A.H.Baldwin & Sons, London. 1956}} In most cases, the name and details of the recipient were impressed on the edge of the medal.
A Police Independence Medal was instituted in 1950 for award to all serving members of India's police forces.{{cite web|url=http://medals.org.uk/india/india015.htm |title=ODM of India: Police Independence Medal|publisher=Medals.org.uk |access-date=2019-04-15}} The design is similar to the Indian Independence Medal. The obverse shows the Ashokan Lions above the Indian National motto Truth Alone Prevails in Sanskrit ( सत्यमेव जयते ) with the words INDIAN INDEPENDENCE above and 26th JANUARY 1950 below — the day India became a republic. The reverse shows the chakra wheel with a lotus border above and the word POLICE below. The ribbon is red with a blue-edged orange central stripe.{{Cite book|author=Captain H. Taprell Dorling.|title=Ribbons and Medals.|page=144. A.H.Baldwin & Sons, London. 1956}}