Dalbir Singh Suhag
| General Dalbir Singh Suhag PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, VSM, ADC | |
|---|---|
 General Dalbir Singh Suhag in October 2014 | |
| Born |
28 December 1954 Jhajjar district, Haryana, India |
| Allegiance |
 India |
| Service/branch |
 Indian Army |
| Years of service | 1974-present |
| Rank |
 General |
| Service number | IC-30351K |
| Unit |
 4/5 Gorkha Rifles |
| Commands held |
Indian Army Eastern Army III Corps 8 Mountain Division Special Frontier Force 53 Infantry Brigade 33 Rashtriya Rifles President of The Gorkha Brigade Colonel of 5 Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force) Honorary Colonel of The Brigade of the Guards Honorary Colonel of Rashtriya Rifles Honorary Colonel of 61st Cavalry Regiment (India) |
| Battles/wars | Operation Pawan |
| Awards |
 Param Vishisht Seva Medal Uttam Yudh Seva Medal Ati Vishisht Seva Medal Vishisht Seva Medal |
| Spouse(s) | Namita Suhag (m. 1984) |
General Dalbir Singh Suhag, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, VSM, ADC (born 28 December 1954) is an Indian Army General and the 26th and current Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) of the Indian Army who assumed office on 31 July 2014,[1][2] following the retirement of General Bikram Singh.[3][4][5] He was previously serving as Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS) before taking charge as Chief of the Army Staff.
Early life and education
General Suhag is a third generation soldier and was born on 28 December 1954 in a Hindu Jat family based in Bishan village of Jhajjar district in north Indian state of Haryana to Smt. Ishari Devi and Havildar Major Ramphal Singh of 18th Cavalry Regiment of Indian Army.[3][5][6][7]
General Suhag has completed his primary education from primary school of his native village. Then he moved to Sainik School, Chittorgarh, Rajasthan for his secondary education in 1965 and later joined the National Defence Academy in 1970. He holds two Masters degree in Management Studies and Strategic studies respectively. Besides this he is also qualified in the 'Executive Course' at Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies, Hawaii, US and 'Senior Mission Leaders Course' from United Nations Peace Keeping Centre, Nairobi.[3][8][9]
Military career
General Suhag was commissioned into the 4th battalion of the 5 Gorkha Rifles on 16 June 1974. He was an instructor at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun and served as a Company commander during Operation Pawan in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. He has commanded 33 Rashtriya Rifles in Nagaland. He then commanded the 53 Infantry Brigade which was involved in counter-insurgency operations in the Kashmir Valley from July 2003 to March 2005, and the 8 Mountain Division in Kargil from October 2007 to December 2008.[3][10] He was also appointed as the Inspector General of the Special Frontier Force.[11][12] He has completed various Indian and foreign courses including LDMC at College of Defence Management in 1997-98, National Defence College in 2006, Executive Course in USA in 2005 and Senior Mission Leaders Course (UN) in Kenya in 2007.[13]
Commander of III Corps
Lt. Gen. Suhag took command of the III Corps, headquartered in Dimapur, in north east Indian state of Assam. In 2012, he was put under a 'Discipline and Vigilance' ban by the then outgoing Army Chief General V. K. Singh. Suhag's unit had allegedly botched up a military intelligence operation in Jorhat, Assam, which happened during Suhag's tenure as the III Corps commander.[14][15] However this 'Discipline and Vigilance' ban was subsequently revoked by the next army chief General Bikram Singh with the concurrence of then Defence minister AK Antony.[14]
Commander of Eastern Command of Indian Army
He was promoted to General Officer Commanding of a Command (GOC-in-C) of Eastern Army based in Kolkata on 16 June 2012.[4][13] His 18 months tenure as commander of Eastern Command of Indian Army ended on 31 December 2013.
As Vice Chief of the Army staff
Suhag then replaced Lt. Gen. S. K. Singh as the Vice Chief of Army staff (VCOAS) on 31 December 2013. He worked at this assignment till 30 July 2014.[5][10]
As Chief of the Army staff
On 14 May 2014, Government of India announces its decision to appoint Lt. Gen. Suhag as next Chief of the Army staff. His name was recommended by the Defence Ministry of India to the Appointments Committee of Cabinet (ACC) which was headed by then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. He assumed charge as Chief of the Army staff on 31 July 2014 He will serve as the army chief for a tenure of two years and five months until 31 December 2016. He is the third officer from the Gorkha Rifles to become the Army chief, after the late Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw and General Gopal Gurunath Bewoor.[3][5][14]
Row over appointment
On 7 July 2014, Supreme Court of India, the country's apex court, refused to stay or stall Lt. Gen. Suhag's appointment as next Army Chief,[16] in response to a petition filed by Lt. Gen. Ravi Dastane challenging his appointment as Eastern Army Commander.[17] The Bench observed that there is no reason & urgency to stay the appointment [18] & that the petition pertained to Lt. Gen. Suhag's appointment as army commander and hence issues relating to appointment of army chief did not have to be dealt with at this stage.[16] Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi representing NDA led central government, also justified the appointment, saying there is nothing in the allegations levelled and Lt. Gen. Suhag fulfills all the criteria for the post including being senior-most in the seniority list. He also said that the ban imposed on Lt. Gen. Suhag in 2012 was lifted and he was discharged from all charges.[18] Earlier on 10 June 2014, the central government had told the Supreme Court that the alleged lapses which were made as grounds to impose disciplinary ban on Army Vice Chief Dalbir Singh Suhag by then Army Chief V. K. Singh, were "premeditated", "vague" and "illegal".[19]
Honours and decorations
Military awards
|
|
|
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
General Suhag in his career spanning more than 40 years, won following Medals and decorations by Military:
- Param Vishisht Seva Medal for services of exceptionally high order to the nation.
- Uttam Yudh Seva Medal for counter-insurgency operations in the North-Eastern states in addition to the conventional operational role along the Indo-China border.
- Ati Vishisht Seva Medal for commanding Mountain Division in the Kargil-Dras sector at high altitude near Line of Control.
- Vishisht Seva Medal for intense counter-insurgency operations in the Kashmir valley.[3]
Personal life
General Suhag is married to Namita Suhag. His wife Namita is a graduate from Delhi University with a degree in political science. The couple have three children, i.e. two daughters and a son.[9] General is known as a sportsperson and takes special interest in physical activities like riding and swimming. His personal hobbies include daily run of ten kilometers, horse-riding and playing golf.[3]
See also
- List of Chiefs of Army Staff
References
- ↑ "Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Will be the Next Chief of Army Staff". Press Information Bureau. 14 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ "Lt General Dalbir Singh Suhag takes over as new Army chief". www.rediff.com. Rediff.com. Retrieved 31 July 2014.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 "A Profile of India’s 26th Army Chief". Press Information Bureau. 31 July 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2014.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Pandit, Rajat (12 May 2014). "Govt set to announce Lt Gen Suhag as next Army chief despite BJP objections". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 12 May 2014.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 "Lt Gen Suhag appointed as next Army chief". The Hindu. 14 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ "Lt. Gen. Dalbir Singh Suhag likely to take over as new Army Chief". Zee News. 28 April 2014. Retrieved 28 May 2014.
- ↑ "Dalbir Singh Suhag is the new Army chief". Moneylife. 14 May 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
- ↑ "GENERAL DALBIR SINGH, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, VSM, ADC". Indian Army. Retrieved 2 April 2015.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 "Lt-Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag to be next Army Chief". The Statesman. 14 May 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 "Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag will be next vice chief of army". DNA. 12 December 2013. Archived from the original on 12 May 2014.
- ↑ "Lt-Gen Dalbir Singh appointed next Army chief". India Today. 14 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ "CBI turns down Army Chief's request to investigate serving general". NDTV. 30 March 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag named India's new Army chief". The Economic Times. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 "Lieutenant General Dalbir Singh Suhag named new Army chief". The Times of India. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 15 May 2014.
- ↑ Yadav, Nilesh (26 May 2012). "Army Chief V K Singh clarifies row about his Show Cause Notice". Bihar Prabha (Biharprabha News). Archived from the original on 3 May 2014.
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 "SC refuses to stall appointment of Lt Gen Suhag as next Army chief". Indian Express. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
- ↑ "Supreme Court refuses to stay Lt Gen Dalbir Suhag's appointment as Army Chief". ZeeNews. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Supreme Court refuses to stay appointment of Dalbir Singh Suhag as next Army Chief". TheHindu. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
- ↑ "Grounds for imposing ban on Lt Gen Suhag was 'premeditated': Centre to Supreme Court". TheEconomicTimes. 10 June 2014. Retrieved 7 July 2014.
External links
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dalbir Singh Suhag. |
- General Dalbir Singh, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, VSM in the Indian Army official website.
- Ascent of a General: A Profile of India’s 26th Army Chief in Press Information Bureau official website.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Bikram Singh |
Chief of Army Staff 2014 - present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| ||||||||||||||||||
