General Dalbir Singh Suhag takes over as Indian Army chief
Suhag takes command at a time when the Army faces challenges in modernizing its artillery, infantry and air defence
New Delhi: General Dalbir Singh Suhag, whose appointment as Army chief had kicked up a row, on Thursday took over as the head of the 1.3 million-strong force, succeeding General Bikram Singh.
General Suhag assumed charge after his predecessor handed over to him the Chief of Army Staff baton in his South Block office in the capital. He takes over the Army at a time when the force is facing challenges in modernizing in its artillery, infantry and air defence arms and is also preparing itself for facing a possible multi-front war.
Suhag, 59, a Gurkha officer who had participated in the 1987 Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) operation in Sri Lanka, was till now the Vice-Chief of Army Staff. He will have a tenure of 30 months as the 26th Army Chief.
Suhag was made the Vice-Chief of Army Staff in December last year. Earlier, he had been the Eastern Army Commander from 16 June 2012. He was at the centre of a controversy then Army chief General V.K. Singh imposed a “discipline and vigilance" ban on him in connection with an intelligence operation in Assam earlier.
The ban on Suhag, the then 3 Corps Commander, was lifted soon after General Bikram Singh took over in May 2012. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had questioned the hurry in making the appointment and insisted that the matter be left to the next government.
However, soon after the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) government took over, defence minister Arun Jaitley had said that the new dispensation will continue with the appointment made during the United Progressive Alliance’s rule.
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