Bipin Rawat | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Official portrait, 2020 | |
| 1st Chief of Defence Staff | |
| In office 1 January 2020 – 8 December 2021 | |
| President | Ram Nath Kovind |
| Prime Minister | Narendra Modi |
| Preceded by | Office established |
| Succeeded by | Anil Chauhan (2022) |
| 57th Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee | |
| In office 27 September 2019 – 8 December 2021 (27 September 2019–31 December 2019 as COAS) (1 January 2020 – 8 December 2021 as CDS) | |
| President | Ram Nath Kovind |
| Prime Minister | Narendra Modi |
| Preceded by | Birender Singh Dhanoa |
| Succeeded by | Manoj Mukund Naravane (acting) Anil Chauhan |
| 27th Chief of the Army Staff | |
| In office 31 December 2016 – 31 December 2019 | |
| President | |
| Prime Minister | Narendra Modi |
| Preceded by | Dalbir Singh Suhag |
| Succeeded by | Manoj Mukund Naravane[1] |
| 37th Vice Chief of the Army Staff | |
| In office 1 September 2016 – 31 December 2016 | |
| President | Pranab Mukherjee |
| Prime Minister | Narendra Modi |
| Minister of Defence | Manohar Parrikar |
| Preceded by | Man Mohan Singh Rai |
| Succeeded by | Sarath Chand |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 16 March 1958 Saina, Pauri Garhwal district, Uttar Pradesh, India (now in Uttarakhand, India)[2] |
| Died | 8 December 2021 (aged 63) Bandishola, Nilgiris district, Tamil Nadu, India |
| Cause of death | Helicopter crash |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Parent | Lt. Gen. Lakshman Singh Rawat (father) |
| Alma mater | |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  India |
| Branch/service |  Indian Army |
| Years of service | 16 December 1978 – 8 December 2021 |
| Rank |  General |
| Unit | .svg){kind=small} 5/11 Gorkha Rifles |
| Commands | |
| Service number | IC-35471M[3] |
| Awards | |
General Bipin Rawat PVSM UYSM AVSM YSM SM VSM ADC (16 March 1958 – 8 December 2021) was an Indian military officer who was a four-star general of the Indian Army.[4] He served as the first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Indian Armed Forces from January 2020 until his death in a helicopter crash in December 2021. Prior to taking over as the CDS, he served as the 57th Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (Chairman COSC) of the Indian Armed Forces as well as 27th Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) of the Indian Army.[5][6]
Born in Pauri, Pauri Garhwal district in present-day Uttarakhand to Lieutenant General Lakshman Singh Rawat, he graduated from the National Defence Academy and the Indian Military Academy where he was awarded the Sword of Honour. He was commissioned into his father's unit - 11 Gorkha Rifles. He served during the 1987 Sino-Indian skirmish in the Sumdorong Chu valley. He commanded a company in Uri and his battalion - 5/11 GR along the Line of Actual Control in Arunachal Pradesh. Promoted to the rank of Brigadier, he commanded 5 sector Rashtriya Rifles in Sopore. He subsequently served with the United Nations as the Commander of a Multinational Brigade as part of MONUSCO.
Promoted to general officer, Rawat commanded the 19 Infantry Division at Uri. He then served as the Major General General Staff (MGGS) at Headquarters Eastern Command. In 2014, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General and appointed General officer commanding (GOC) III Corps at Dimapur. During this tenure, the 2015 Indian counter-insurgency operation in Myanmar took place where units under his command executed cross-border strikes against the NSCN-K. In early 2016, Rawat was promoted to Army Commander grade and appointed General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Southern Command. After a short stint, he moved to Army HQ as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff. In December that year, he was appointed the next Chief of the Army Staff superseding two senior generals. As the senior-most chief of staff amongst the three services, he served as the Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee of the Indian Armed Forces from September 2019 to December 2021. He was appointed as the first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Indian Armed Forces in January 2020 and served until his death in December 2021.[7][8][9]
During Rawat's tenure as the COAS, in 2017, a 73-day military border standoff happened at Doklam between the Indian Armed Forces and the People's Liberation Army.
- ^ "Lt Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane to be next Army Chief". LiveMint. 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
- ^ "Gen Bipin Rawat: 'On last visit to his Uttarakhand village, he wanted a road; it is nearly complete now'". The Indian Express. 9 December 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2022.
- ^ "411 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced". 25 January 2019.
- ^ Bhaumik, Subir (8 December 2021). "Bipin Rawat: India's 'inspiring commander' who died in helicopter crash". BBC News. Kolkata. Retrieved 8 December 2021.
- ^ "Gen. Rawat takes over as Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
- ^ "General Bipin Rawat took over as 27th COAS". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 24 May 2024.
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