List of Chief of Army Staff: The Chief of the Indian Army Staff serves as the highest-ranking officer within the Indian Army and holds a prestigious position of leadership. The role has been occupied by several distinguished officers over the years, forming a long and esteemed list of Indian Chiefs of Army Staff. This appointment is reserved for officers who hold the four-star rank. In this article, we will go through the complete list of chiefs of Army staff.
Responsibilities of Chief of Army Staff include guiding the Army staff and presiding over various Army Staff meetings. Chief of Army Staff was established in 1955, replacing the title of Commander-in-Chief through the Change in Designation Act passed by the Indian Parliament. This article provides you a comprehensive list of Indian Chiefs of Army Staff, including their dates of assuming and leaving office, along with other related information. Stay tuned for a detailed account of this distinguished role.
The "List of Chiefs of Army Staff" is like a big history book that tells us about all the top rank officers who have led the Indian Army. It shows who these leaders were, how long they were in charge, and which unit they were the part of. This list covers the time from when this important position came into picture until today, telling us about all the different leaders who have guided the Indian Army.
Each of these leaders had their own way of doing things and made important contributions to make the army strong and keep the country safe. It's like a special record of these important people and what they achieved during their time as the head of the Indian Army.
Name | Date of Assuming office | Date of Retirement | Serving Duration | Unit of Commission |
General Sir Robert Mcgregor Macdonald Lockhart, KCB, CIE, MC | 15-Aug-47 | 31-Dec-47 | 108 days | 51st Sikhs |
General Sir Francis Robert Roy Bucher, KBE, CB, MC | 1-Jan-48 | 15-Jan-49 | 208 days | 4th Cameronians |
General Kodandera Madappa Cariappa, OBE | 15-Jan-49 | 14-Jan-53 | 3 years, 365 days | Rajput Regiment |
General Maharaj Shri Rajendrasinhji Jadeja, DSO | 14-Jan-53 | 1-Apr-55 | 2 years, 77 days | 2nd Lancers (Gardner’s Horse) |
General Satyawant Mallana Srinagesh | 15-May-55 | 7-May-57 | 1 year, 357 days | 19th Hyderabad Regiment |
General Kodandera Subayya Thimayya, DSO | 8-May-57 | 7-May-61 | 4 years, 0 days | 19th Hyderabad Regiment |
General Pran Nath Thapar | 8-May-61 | 19-Nov-62 | 1 year, 195 days | 1st Punjab Regiment |
General Jayanto Nath Chaudhuri, OBE | 20-Nov-62 | 7-Jun-66 | 3 years, 199 days | 16th Light Cavalry |
General Paramasiva Prabhakar Kumaramangalam, DSO, MBE | 8-Jun-66 | 7-Jun-69 | 2 years, 364 days | Regiment of Artillery |
Field Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw, MC | 8-Jun-69 | 15-Jan-73 | 3 years, 221 days | 12th Frontier Force Regiment |
General Gopal Gurunath Bewoor, PVSM | 16-Jan-73 | 31-May-75 | 2 years, 135 days | Dogra Regiment |
General Tapishwar Narain Raina, MVC | 1-Jun-75 | 31-May-78 | 2 years, 364 days | Kumaon Regiment |
General Om Prakash Malhotra, PVSM | 1-Jun-78 | 31-May-81 | 2 years, 364 days | Regiment of Artillery |
General Kotikalapudi Venkata Krishna Rao, PVSM | 1-Jun-81 | 31-Jul-83 | 1 year, 364 days | Mahar Regiment |
General Arunkumar Shridhar Vaidya, PVSM, MVC, AVSM | 1-Aug-83 | 31-Jan-86 | 2 years, 244 days | 9th Deccan Horse |
General Krishnaswamy Sundarji, PVSM | 1-Feb-86 | 31-May-88 | 2 years, 120 days | Mahar Regiment |
General Vishwa Nath Sharma, PVSM, AVSM, ADC | 1-Jun-88 | 30-Jun-90 | 2 years, 29 days | 16th Light Cavalry |
General Sunith Francis Rodrigues, PVSM, VSM | 1-Jul-90 | 30-Jun-93 | 2 years, 364 days | Regiment of Artillery |
General Bipin Chandra Joshi, PVSM, AVSM, ADC | 1-Jul-93 | 19-Nov-94 | 1 year, 141 days | 64th Cavalry |
General Shankar Roy Chowdhary, PVSM, ADC | 20-Nov-94 | 30-Sep-97 | 2 years, 314 days | 20th Lancers |
General Ved Prakash Malik, PVSM, AVSM | 1-Oct-97 | 30-Sep-00 | 2 years, 365 days | Sikh Light Infantry |
General Sundararajan Padmanabhan, PVSM, AVSM, VSM | 1-Oct-00 | 31-Dec-02 | 2 years, 91 days | Regiment of Artillery |
General Nirmal Chander Vij PVSM, UYSM, AVSM | 1-Jan-03 | 31-Jan-05 | 2 years, 30 days | Dogra Regiment |
General Joginder Jaswant Singh, PVSM, AVSM, VSM, ADC | 1-Feb-05 | 30-Sep-07 | 2 years, 241 days | Maratha Light Infantry |
General Deepak Kapoor, PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM, ADC | 1-Oct-07 | 31-Mar-10 | 2 years, 181 days | Regiment of Artillery |
General Vijay Kumar Singh, PVSM, AVSM, YSM, ADC | 1-Apr-10 | 31-May-12 | 2 years, 60 days | Rajput Regiment |
General Bikram Singh PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, SM, VSM, ADC | 1-Jun-12 | 31-Jul-14 | 2 years, 60 days | Sikh Light Infantry |
General Dalbir Singh Suhag, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, VSM, ADC | 1-Aug-14 | 31-Dec-16 | 2 years, 152 days | 5 Gorkha Rifles |
General Bipin Rawat, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, YSM, SM, VSM, ADC | 31-Dec-16 | 31-Dec-19 | 3 years, 0 days | 11 Gorkha Rifles |
General Manoj Mukund Naravane, PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM, ADC | 31-Dec-19 | 30-Apr-22 | 2 years, 120 days. | Sikh Light |
General Manoj Pande, PVSM AVSM VSM ADC | 30-Apr-22 | Incumbent | To be continued | Corps of Engineers |
General Manoj Pande is the current chief of Army Staff , born on May 6, 1962, holds the prestigious position of the 29th and current Chief of the Army Staff in the Indian Army. Prior to his role as the Chief, he held significant positions including Vice Chief of the Army Staff, General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief of the Eastern Command, and Commander-in-Chief (CINCAN) of the Andaman and Nicobar Command. Interestingly, he is the first officer from the Corps of Engineers and also the first from a non-infantry/armored corps to take the role of Army Chief.
Upon assuming the position of Chief of the Army Staff, General Pande was appointed as the Honorary Colonel of the Sikh Light Infantry Regiment on May 11, 2022, and as the Colonel of the Regiment of the 61st Cavalry on May 17, 2022. His appointment as the Colonel of the Regiment of the 61st Cavalry marked his distinction as the 23rd Chief of Army Staff to take on the colonelcy of a mounted Cavalry Regiment.