Article Posted on : - Jul 31, 2014

Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag, Chief of Indian Army.

NEW DELHI (PTI): Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag took over as the next head of the 1.3 million strong force succeeding Gen Bikram Singh.

Gen Suhag assumed charge after his predecessor handed over to him the Chief of Army Staff baton in his South Block office here.

The new Chief takes over at a time when the force is facing challenges of modernsation in its artillery, infantry and air defence arms and is also preparing itself for facing a possible multi-front war.

59-year-old Lt Gen Suhag, a Gurkha officer who had participated in the 1987 Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) operation in Sri Lanka, is currently the Vice Chief of Army Staff.

He will have a tenure of 30 months as the 26th Chief of the armed forces.

Suhag was made the Vice Chief of Army Staff in December last year. Earlier, he had taken over as the Eastern Army Commander on June 16, 2012.

Suhag was a Company Commander in 'Op Pawan' in Sri Lanka in 1987 and commanded 53 Infantry Brigade engaged in counter insurgency operations in the Kashmir Valley from July, 2003 to March, 2005.

An alumnus of Sainik School, Chittorgarh, he joined NDA in 1970 and was commissioned into 4/5 GR (FF) in June 1974.

The General Officer has attended various career courses in India and abroad which include LDMC at CDM, Secunderabad in 1997-98, NDC Course at New Delhi in 2006, Executive Course in USA in 2005 and Senior Mission Leaders Course (UN) in Kenya in 2007.

He holds the distinction of commanding 8 Mountain Division in Kargil from October 2007 to December 2008.