Lt-Gen Joginder Jaswant Singh, who heads the western command at Chandimandir,
will take over as chief of Army staff from Gen N C Vij on January 31. He belongs
to the Maratha Light Infantry.
The Lt-Gen will be the first Sikh to lead the 1.13 million-strong Indian Army.
The officer is the 11th Western Command head to take over as army chief — Singh
assumed charge at the Western Command on February 1 this year.
The lieutenant general was commissioned into the 9 Maratha Light Infantry in
August 1964.
He will be the 22nd chief since Independence. There are no surprises in
the government’s announcement as he is the senior-most officer.
An alumni of the National Defence Staff College, Wellington, Gen Singh has
held prestigious positions, including General Officer Commanding-in-Chief,
Army Training Command and Additional Director General of Military Operations.
As ADGMO, Gen Singh became army's public face during the 1999 Kargil conflict.
Singh has seen a variety of first-hand combat during his 12 years in the field.
He has been decorated with the AVSM and VSM while commanding troops and during
his stint at the military operations directorate. He served as additional
director-general and became the army’s public face during the Kargil conflict.
Singh was awarded the Param Vishisht Sewa Medal — India’s highest peacetime
military award — on Republic Day this year.
In his operational role, the new army chief commanded the Mountain Brigade in
Baramulla, a division in the Western Sector and one of the three strike corps of
the army.
Asked about his priorities, he said, "The announcement has just been made and
when the time comes, I will share my views with you. However, as a modernising
and professional Army, we shall prepare for the next war. In my opinion, victory
shall be of that Army which is adept in high-tech warfare and night-fighting
capabilities. We shall strive for this."
This is the first time the race for the top post was between two officers from
the Maratha LI. Besides Singh, Lt-Gen Hari Prasad, head of Northern Army Command,
was in contention.
They are batchmates but Singh is senior. There is also the likelihood of another
officer, Lt-Gen B S Takhar, donning the mantle of Vice-Chief of Army Staff to
replace Lt-Gen Shantanu Chowdhury, who retires on December 31.
Lt-Gen Singh told reporters, "I consider it a great privilege and matter of
justifiable pride to be appointed the next chief of the Army, one which is
considered amongst the most professional and experienced armies in the world.
I shall do my utmost to uphold the trust and the great responsibility given to
me by the government."
His plate will be loaded with work. He will be taking over at a time when
the Army has undertaken a massive modernisation drive to bolster its firepower,
surveillance and communication capabilities. This drive includes Rs 3,500 crore
earmarked for the modernisation of infantry battalions.
The new chief will have to guide this process at a time when the newly-released
Army doctrine holds that India needs to be prepared for battle at short notice,
with sustained operations in high-intensity scenarios against the backdrop of
nuclear weapons and terrorism.
