To honor General Bipin Rawat’s contribution to the Indian Armed Forces, the Indian Army has dedicated a ‘Chair of Excellence’ in the memory of India’s first Chief of Defence Staff on the eve of his 65th birth anniversary, at the United Service Institution of India (USI).
In a Twitter post, the Indian Army mentioned,“ To honor General Bipin Rawat’s contributions to the Armed Forces, especially in the field of Jointness & Integration, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Gen MM Naravane, & officiating Chairman COSC formally instituted “General Bipin Rawat Memorial Annual Chair of Excellence” at USI.”
The official announcement for the formal institution of “General Bipin Rawat Memorial Annual Chair of Excellence” was made by Gen MM Naravane at a solemn ceremony organized at the South Block in New Delhi today.
On the occasion, the Indian Amry Chief recounted that General Rawat was passionate about strategic thoughts and invested considerable time and energy in the activities of various ‘Think Tanks’ and therefore, his 65th birthday provided an opportune moment to reinforce the Services’ bond with their intellectual institutions.
The Chair will be open to Veterans of three Services and civilians having expertise in the field of National Security.
The solemn ceremony also witnessed the participation of Lieutenant General Manoj Pande, the VCOAS, Air Marshal Sandeep Singh, VCAS, Vice Admiral SN Ghormade, VCNS, Air Marshal BR Krishna, Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC) and Lt Gen SK Sharma, DCOAS (Strat) along with other officers of the defence forces.
Further, a cheque of Rs 5 lakhs was handed over to Major General BK Sharma (Retd), Director, USI, which was paid as an honorarium to the nominated Chair of Excellence.
General Rawat: An outstanding Soldier
Late General Bipin Rawat served as India’s first CDS as well as the 27th Chief of the Indian Army. He was an outstanding professional and spearheaded one of the most radical transformations of the Indian military in the domain of Jointness & Integration.
‘General Bipin Rawat Memorial Chair of Excellence’ will also focus on the field of Jointness and Integration. The Chair of Excellence is a befitting tribute to the astute leadership and professionalism of the General.
In a tragic turn of events that followed on December 8, 2021, India lost one of its gems, General Bipin Rawat, in a helicopter crash. General was on his way to Defence Services Staff College, Wellington (Nilgiri Hills) to address the faculty and student officers of the Staff Course.
The IAF Mi 17 V5 helicopter was flying with a crew of 4 members carrying the CDS and 9 other passengers when his helicopter met with the tragic accident near Coonoor, Tamil Nadu.
Around 6 in the evening on that day, the Indian Airforce issued a statement confirming the sudden, sad demise of Gen Bipin Rawat, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). “With deep regret, it has now been ascertained that Gen Bipin Rawat, Mrs. Madhulika Rawat, and 11 other persons on board have died in the unfortunate accident,” it shared in a tweet.
