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SHYAM SOOD
RAJOURI/DELHI FEBRUARY 19:–Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi, an alumnus of Sainik School Rewa, National Defence Academy, & the Indian Military Academy, has assumed the appointment of the Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS) on Monday.
Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi took over as the VCOAS from Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar, who now has been appointed as the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command.
Lt Gen MV Suchindra has rich experience in operations, intelligence, operational logistics, force structuring and modernisation initiatives.have
On assumption of appointment, Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi laid wreath at the National War Memorial and was accorded Guard of Honour at the South Block Lawns.
Before assuming the appointment of VCOAS Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi was the appointment of General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command from 2022-2024 in an extremely challenging operational environment.
Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi was commissioned into 18 Jammu & Kashmir Rifles in 1984, a unit he later commanded & he has had a unique distinction of balanced exposure of both Northern and Western Theatres.
During 39 years of an illustrious career, he has held command appointments in challenging operational environments, spanning the length and breadth of the country including commanding his unit in J&K, and in Rajasthan.
He has been Sector Commander and Inspector General Assam Rifles in an intense Counter Terrorism environment in the Northeast.
Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi commanded the Rising Star Corps with an operational role along the Western Borders.
He later commanded the prestigious Northern Army from 2022-24 in an extremely challenging operational environment along both northern and western borders.
During his command, he provided Strategic guidance & Operational oversight for planning and execution of sustained operations along the northern and western borders, besides orchestrating the dynamic Counter-Terrorism operations in J&K.
During this period, he was actively engaged in the ongoing negotiations with China in resolving the vexed border issue.
He was also involved in modernisation and equipping of the largest Army Command of Indian Army, where he steered the induction of indigenous equipment as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat.
Besides the challenging command assignments, Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi has tenanted important staff appointments in Headquarters Armoured Brigade, Mountain Division, Strike Corps, and Integrated HQ (Army).
As Director General Infantry, he had steered and fast-tracked capital procurement of weapons for the three services, leading to significant and visible capability enhancement for our Armed Forces.
As Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Information System & Coordination), the General officer gave impetus to automation and absorption of niche technologies in the Indian Army.
He also worked towards enhancing the technical threshold of all ranks in Northern Command and pushed for ‘Critical and Emerging Technologies’ like Big Data Analytics, AI, Quantum, and Blockchain-based solutions.
The General officer has held instructional appointments to include tenures at Infantry School and Army War College, Mhow.
The General officer’s two overseas tenures include Somalia, as part of HQ UNOSOM II and
Seychelles as Military Advisor to the Govt of Seychelles.
The General officer has attended the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington & Higher Command Course at AWC, Mhow.
The General officer was conferred ‘Distinguished Fellow’ in the coveted NDC equivalent course at USAWC, Carlisle, USA.
He has an M Phil in Defence & Management Studies, in addition to the two master’s degrees in strategic studies and military science including one from USAWC, USA.
The General officer has also authored / presented articles in various professional forums / journals. He has pioneered the first ever compendium on Indo – Myanmar Border Management.
