Who is Lt. Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane, the new Army Chief
New Delhi, Dec 17: Lt. Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane will take over the Army Chief, when the term of General Bipin Rawat ends on December 31.
Lt Gen Naravane was in contention for the top post when he took over as the vice chief of the 1.3 million-strong Army in September.
Before taking charge as vice chief of the Army Staff, Lt Gen Naravane was heading the Eastern Command of the Army which takes care of India's nearly 4,000-km border with China.
Replacing Bipin Rawat, Lt Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane to be next Army Chief
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In his 37 years of service, Lt. Gen Naravane has served in numerous command and staff appointments in peace, field and highly active counter-insurgency environments in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast.
He has also commanded a Rashtriya Rifles Battalion in Jammu and Kashmir and an infantry brigade on the eastern front.
He
was
also
part
of
the
Indian
Peace
Keeping
Force
in
Sri
Lanka
and
had
served
as
India's
defence
attache
at
the
Indian
Embassy
in
Myanmar
for
three
years.
Lt
Gen
Naravane
is
an
alumnus
of
the
National
Defence
Academy
and
the
Indian
Military
Academy.
He
was
commissioned
into
the
7th
battalion,
the
Sikh
Light
Infantry
Regiment
in
June
1980.
Tipped to head Indian Army, Lt Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane takes overas vice chief
"He brings with him an enormous amount of experience in serving in the most challenging areas," the Army said in a release.
The General is a decorated officer who has been awarded the 'Sena Medal' (Distinguished) for effectively commanding his battalion in Jammu and Kashmir.
He is also a recipient of the 'Vishisht Seva Medal' for his services as the Inspector General Assam Rifles (North) in Nagaland and the 'Ati Vishisht Seva Medal' for commanding of a prestigious strike corps.
He was also honoured with 'Param Vishisht Seva Medal' for his distinguished services as the GOC-in-C of the Army Training Command.