Vishwa Nath Sharma

General Vishwa Nath Sharma, PVSM, AVSM, ADC (born 4 June 1930) was the 15th Chief of the Army Staff of the Indian Army, serving between 1988–1990.[2] He was the first Indian COAS to have begun his career in the post-Independence Indian Army.[3]

General

Vishwa Nath Sharma

PVSM, AVSM, ADC
Nickname(s)Tich
Sunny
Born (1930-06-04) 4 June 1930
London, United Kingdom
Allegiance India
Service/branch Indian Army
Years of service1950 - 1990
Rank General
Service numberIC-4769[1]
Unit16th Light Cavalry
66th Armoured Regiment
Commands held Eastern Army
66th Armoured Regiment
Battles/warsNagaland Insurgency of 1956
Indo-Pakistani War of 1965
Indo-Pakistani War of 1971
Mizoram Insurgency of 1973
IPKF Operation of 1987
AwardsParam Vishisht Seva Medal
Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
Other workBoard of directors, Local Advisory Board of India, ABN AMRO, 1991-97
Board of directors, Diamond & Gem Development Corporation, 1993-97
Board of directors, Hawkins Cookers Limited, 2001-present
Member, Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, 1990-present
Member, United Services Institute of India, 1955-present
Member, National Security Advisory Board, 2006-09
Free Tuberculosis & Medical Center, Dadh, Himachal Pradesh, 1992-present

Early life

His father, Major General Amar Nath Sharma, was also a military officer. He is the younger brother of the late Major Som Nath Sharma, recipient of Independent India's first posthumous Param Vir Chakra, and also Lieutenant General Surendra Nath Sharma, formerly Engineer in Chief of the Indian Army.[4] Both brothers were educated at the Prince of Wales' Royal Indian Military College, Dehradun.

Military career

Sharma went on to join the fifth Regular Course at the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun and he was commissioned on 4 June 1950 into the 16th Light Cavalry. He fought in the 1965 War against Pakistan in the Lahore Sector. He commanded the 66th Armoured Regiment and later a Mountain Brigade in an insurgency affected area. Awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service, General Sharma took over as GOC-in-C of the Eastern Command, on 1 June 1987 and was appointed Honorary Army ADC to the President on 25 July 1987. He took over as the Chief of Army Staff on 1 May 1988.[5] He retired on 30 June 1990.

Honours and awards
Param Vishisht Seva Medal
Ati Vishist Seva Medal
Samar Seva Star
Paschimi Star
Raksha Medal
Sangram Medal
Sainya Seva Medal
High Altitude Service Medal
25th Anniversary of Independence Medal
30 Years Long Service Medal
20 Years Long Service Medal
9 Years Long Service Medal

Dates of rank
InsigniaRankComponentDate of rank
Second LieutenantIndian Army4 June 1950[6]
LieutenantIndian Army4 June 1952[7]
CaptainIndian Army4 June 1956[8]
MajorIndian Army4 June 1963[9]
Lieutenant-ColonelIndian Army14 June 1968[1]
ColonelIndian Army3 April 1974[10]
BrigadierIndian Army2 February 1975[11]
Major GeneralIndian Army1 July 1980[12]
Lieutenant-GeneralIndian Army1984[2]
General
(COAS)		Indian Army1 May 1988

References
  1. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 15 August 1970. p. 1003.
  2. "General Vishwa Nath Sharma". Archived from the original on 21 March 2012. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
  3. Abidi, S. Sartaj Alam; Sharma, Satinder (2007). Services Chiefs of India. New Delhi: Northern Book Centre. pp. 76–77. ISBN 81-7211-162-2.
  4. "Major Somnath Sharma: A hero for generations of soldiers - ADU News". www.aviation-defence-universe.com. Retrieved 23 June 2020.
  5. Page 50, Where Gallantry is Tradition: Saga of Rashtriya Indian Military College, By Bikram Singh, Sidharth Mishra, Contributor Rashtriya Indian Military College, Published 1997, Allied Publishers, ISBN 81-7023-649-5
  6. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 5 May 1951. p. 82.
  7. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 2 August 1952. p. 165.
  8. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 26 January 1957. p. 17.
  9. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 10 August 1963. p. 267.
  10. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 26 July 1975. p. 979.
  11. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 10 April 1976. p. 500.
  12. "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 20 March 1982. p. 396.
Military offices
Preceded by
Krishnaswamy Sundarji		 Chief of Army Staff
1988–1990		 Succeeded by
Sunith Francis Rodrigues
Preceded by
J K Puri		 General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Eastern Command
1987 - 1988		 Succeeded by
Raj Mohan Vohra
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.