General Naravane Takes Charge As New Army Chief

New Delhi: General Manoj Mukund Naravane on Tuesday took charge as the Chief of Army Staff, succeeding General Bipin Rawat.

After receiving a farewell Guard of Honour in the morning, Gen Rawat said: “I am confident he (General Naravane) will take the Army to greater heights”. He then handed over the baton to his successor.

Gen Naravane assumes the new role months after he was appointed as Vice Chief of the Army in September. He was earlier heading the Eastern Command of the Army which takes care of India’s nearly 4,000-km border with China.

The new Army chief 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.

In his 37 years of service, 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 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 of Assam Rifles (North) in Nagaland and the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal for commanding a prestigious strike corps, NDTV reported.