who is General Gopal Gurnath Bewoor

1.     General GG Bewoor, PVSM was born at Seoni, Madhya Pradesh on 11th Aug 1917. He is an alumini of Royal Indian Military College (RIMC), Dehradun and the Indian Military Academy . He was commissioned in 2 Green Howards Regiment on 15th July 1937 during operations in Waziristan . Later, he was transferred to 5th Baluch and served with them till July 1945. He attended Staff College course at Quetta and was specially selected as Under Secretary (Military) to the Viceroy's Co- ordination Council - the only Indian officer to be given this coveted appointment. He took over command of 2 Dogra in Oct 1947. With a view to imparting basic military training to school and college student, he became the First Director General of NCC in April 1948.

2.     On promotion to the Rank of Brig in July 1951, he was initially appointed as Commander 'Chand Sector' and later as Commander of an Inf Bde located in J&K. This time he commanded of an Inf Bde located at Ambala. He was the  First Chief of Staff , HQ Western Command, Shimla in Feb 1959 and had the unique distinction of becoming the youngest Major  General of the Indian Army at   the  age  of  42  years and  six  months.  He assumed the appointment of   the Colonel of the 11 Gorkha Rifles on 25th May 1960.   3.     After about two year's tenure as Chief of Staff, he was appointed General Officer Commanding of an Inf Div in Feb 1961 at Jalandhar. Later he moved this division to Kalimpong in the wake of Chinese Aggression of 1962. After finishing the command of the Mountain Division in May 1963, he was posted to Army HQ, New Delhi as Director of Military Training and remained there till Nov 1964.   4.     He was   promoted   as General Officer Commanding Corps in Nov 1964. After the command of the Corps, he moved to Army HQ, as Deputy Chief of the Army Staff, Where he was awarded Param Vishist Seva Medal (PVSM) for meritorious services. In July 1969 he assumed the appointment of General Officer Commanding -in- Chief Southern Command. In 1971, he was awarded Padam Bhusan for conducting successful operations in Rajasthan Sector. In Jan 1973, he was appointed Chief of Army Staff.   5.     He retired from the Army in May 1975. In Feb 1976, he was appointed as Ambassador of India to the Royal Court of Denmark where he served till Feb 1978. The General remained a member of the Senate of the University of Pune for two years with effect from Aug 1979. Also, he was on the Board of Directors of Kirloskar Oil Engines & Vickers Sperry of Pune. Besides, he was often invited to give talks on leadership and military matters by various educational societies. He passed away on 24th Oct 1989.

who is Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw

1.     Known to his friends as SAM, Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw, Militry Cross, was born on April 3rd, 1914. He had his early schooling in Amritsar and Sherwood College Nanital. Manekshaw belonged to the first batch of 40 cadets to be selected for the Indian Military Academy and was commissioned into the 12 FF Rifles on 4th Feb 1934. 2.     In the first Burma campaign, he took part in several actions against the Japanese.  On the Sittang river when he came to grips with the Japanese, during the push towards Pegu and Rangoon , Field Marshal (then Capt) Manekshaw led his company with courage and tenacity, despite being wounded. He was awarded the Military Cross (MC) for his gallantry and leadership. Later he was again wounded a second time and evacuated to India . 3.     Later Manekshaw commanded an Infantry Brigade for two years.  The Field Marshal is also a graduate of the Imperial Defence College .  He was later awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1968 for his distinguished service. He commanded a Division in the J&K for a short duration and took over the command of a Corps on the Eastern Frontier in November 1962. On 4th December 1963, then Lt General Manekshaw became the first Indian Commissioned Officer to become an Army Commander and became the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Command before taking over as the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Command in November 1964.  Field Marshal Manekshaw was appointed the Chief of the Army Staff on 8th Jun 1969.

4.     Manekshaw was appointed the Colonel of the Regiment 8 Gorkha Rifles and 61 Cavalry on 24th May 1953 and continues to be the Honorary Colonel of the Regiment of the 8 Gorkha Rifles and 61 Cavalry till his death. 5.     As Chief of the Army Staff, he rendered yeoman service to the Nation by forging the Indian Army into an efficient instrument of War.  In his capacity as the Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, he welded the Army, Navy and Air Force into a well knit team working in perfect harmony which resulted in the capitulation of the Pakistani Army in the Eastern Front.  The decisive results achieved by the Indian Army during the 1971 conflict with Pakistan under the able military leadership of Manekshaw gave the nation a new sense of confidence and his services were recognized by the President of India when in January 1973, he was elevated to the rank of Field Marshal. 6.     The Field Marshal passed away on 27 Jun 2008 after a long illness at age of 94.  The knight shall be missed forever.

who is General Paramasiva Prabhakar Kumramangalam

1.     Born on 1st Jul 1913, he was commissioned into the Regiment of Artillery on 29th Aug 1933.  He was the second Indian Officer to be commissioned into the Regiment of Artillery.  During World War II, as a Major, he took part in the operations in the Middle East and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO) for an outstanding action in Libya on 27th May 1942. 2.     General Kumaramangalam took over as General Officer Commanding-in - Chief, Eastern Command in May 1963.  In Nov 1964 he was appointed  Deputy Chief of the Army Staff and on 15th Jan 1965 he became Vice Chief of the Army Staff.  General Kumaramangalam took over as the Chief of the Army Staff on June 8th 1966, the first Indian gunner officer to reach this coveted appointment. The tenure of General Kumaramangalam as Chief of the Army Staff was marked by an unpublicised but exhaustive re-organisation of the service, up gradation of weapons, training and tactics based on the lessons learned from the 1965 war.

3.     General Kumaramangalam was a keen cricketer, horseman, show jumper and an avid polo player.  He was a member of the MCC, a Fellow of the Royal Horticultural Society, President of Indian Polo Association and Equestrian Federation of India. He was Senior Colonel Commandant of Regiment of Artillery from 5th Jul 1959 to 4th Jul 1969 and Honorary Colonel Commandant from 5th Jul 1969 to 30th Jun 1975. He passed away on 13th  Mar 2000.

who is General Satyawant Mallana Srinagesh

1.     Commissioned as an officer in 19 Hyderabad Regiment  (now Kumaon Regiment) on 30th Aug 1923, he commanded 6/19 Hyderabad Regiment from 17th Dec 1942 to 28th Aug 1945. He was the first Indian Commandant of The Kumaon Regiment Centre from 2nd Oct 1946 to 12th Dec 1946. 2.     Later, he was Commander of 268 Infantry Brigade British Commonwealth Occupation Force (BCOF) in JAPAN in 1946-47.  He was also Brigade Commander of the famous Lushai Brigade in Burma in 1947.  In Dec 1947 he was appointed General Officer Commanding Madras Area and was Adjutant General at Army Headquarters from Jan 1948 to Aug 1948.  Later he commanded 5 Corps. He was Chief of the Army Staff from 14th May 1955 to 7th May 1957.

3.     He was Governor of Assam from 1959 to 1962, Governor of Andhra Pradesh from 1962 to 1964 and Governor of Mysore (now Karnataka) from 1964 to 1965.  He passed away on 27th Dec 1977.

who is General Jayanto Nath Chaudhuri

1.     General JN Chaudhuri, was born on 10th Jun 1908 and received his early education in Calcutta and the High Gate School, London.  He obtained a nomination to the Royal Military College, Sandhurst and was commissioned in February 1928 into the 7 Light Cavalry. 2.     During World War II he went overseas with the famous 5 Indian Division and saw active service in Sudan, Eritrea, Abyssinia and the Western Desert and was awarded the OBE and Mentioned in Dispatches thrice.  In August 1944, he took over command of the 16 Light Cavalry, to become the first Indian Commanding Officer to lead an armoured Regiment into battle and won great renown for fighting in Central Burma.  At the end of the Burma campaign, he saw service in French Indo-China with his regiment in Java.

3.     In January 1946 he was appointed as Brigadier-in-Charge, Administration, Malaya Command, and was the third Indian to become a Brigadier in the Indian Army.  A year later, he went to England to attend a course at the Imperial Defence College and on his return to India he became Brigadier (Plans) and later Director of Military Operations and Intelligence at Army HQ.  In February 1948, he was promoted Major General and became officiating Chief of the General Staff. In May 1948, Gen Chaudhuri took over command of the 1 Armoured Division which played a major role in the Hyderabad Operations, and then   was appointed Military Governor of the Hyderabad State for over a year. In January 1952, he became Adjutant General, Army HQ and in January 1953, he again took over as Chief of the General Staff.   4.     Gen Chaudhuri served as the Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army from 20th Nov 1962 to 7th Jun 1966 with great distinction. He passed away on 6th Apr 1983.

who is General Pran Nath Thapar

1.     General Thapar was born on 8th May 1906 and was educated at Government College, Lahore .  He was commissioned into the 1st Punjab Regiment from Sandhurst in 1926.  As a regimental officer, he spent nearly ten years with the 1st Punjab Regiment and later attended and qualified on staff courses at Quetta and Minlay-Manor in England. 2.     During the Second World War in 1941, he saw service in Burma , followed by a tenure in 1943-44 in the Middle East and Italy. In 1945 he was appointed as the Assistant Military Secretary, General Headquarters in India .  Later on he was selected to serve on the Army Reorganization Committee.

3.     In 1946, after victory over Japan , he commanded the 1st Battalion of his parent Regiment in Indonesia during the national trouble in that country.  Later he commanded the 161 Indian Infantry Brigade in East Bengal .  On the advent of partition and during its first turbulent months, General Thapar was Director of Military Operations and Intelligence at Army Headquarters, India from August to December 1947.  In November 1947, he was promoted to Maj General and officiated for a few months as Chief of the General Staff and later appointed as Military Secretary which post he held till Aug 1949.  This was followed by his appointment as Master General of Ordnance from Aug 1949 to Apr 1950.  He served as the Colonel of The Rajputana Rifles from 18th Jul 49 to 20th Jul 63. 4.     He commanded an Infantry Division for about four years and was promoted to the rank of Lt Gen in 1954 as Commander of a Corps.  He held this appointment till Dec 1955 when he was selected to attend the Imperial Defence College , London , from Jan to Dec 1956.  On successful completion of the course he was appointed as General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Southern Command, and later took over Western Command on 25th May 1959.  General PN Thapar took over as Chief of the Army Staff on 8th May 1961 and served till 19th Nov 62. 5. General Thapar who hails from a distinguished family brought to his high office a wealth of experience and knowledge gained on various fronts during his thirty five years service.  A keen tennis and golf player, General Thapar was at one time services tennis Champion.  After retirement he was appointed as Indian Ambassador to Afghanistan from Aug 64 to 1st Jan 69.  He passed away on 23rd Jan 75 at the age of 69 yrs and 01 month.

who is General Kodandera Subayya Thimayya

1.     Commissioned as an officer in 19 Hyderabad Regiment (now Kumaon Regiment) on 4th Feb 1926, he took over Command of 8/19 Hyderabad Regiment during World War II in Arakan (Burma) from 19th  May 44 to 24th  Mar 1945. 2.     He was Brigade Commander in World War II in Burma Campaign and awarded the Distinguished Service Order (DSO). He was also Commander of 268 Infantry Brigade in Japan (The British Commonwealth Force) in 1945.  He was Commander of Indian Force Jammu & Kashmir in 1948.  He earned international fame as Chairman of the Neutral Nations Repatriation Commission in Korea in 1953, and for his services there the government conferred on him Padma Bhushan in 1953. He had the privilege of being the General Officer Commanding in Chief (over separate tenures) of all the three Commands that existed at the time i.e. Southern, Eastern and Western.  He was the first Indian Colonel of the Kumaon Regiment from 1st Jan 49 to 8th May 1961.

3.     He was Chief of Army Staff from 7th May 1957 to 7th May 1961. During his tenure as Chief of the Army Staff, the Military Academy was set up with Indian aid in Ethiopia . In appreciation of which, the Emperor of Ethiopia conferred upon him the Grand Cordon of Menelik II in Feb 1961.  He retired from Army on 8th May 1961.  He was Commander of UN Peace Keeping Force in Cyprus from Jun 62 to Dec 1965 and died in Cyprus while on active duty on 18th Dec 1965.