Lt General B S Raju will take charge as the next Vice Chief of Army on May 1

after incumbent Lt General Manoj Pande assumes the top post at the new Army Chief.  The present chief General M M Naravane retires on April 30.

Incidentally, Raju’s new appointment is a rare instance where an officer who has not served tenure as an Army Commander becomes the Vice Chief.  At present, Raju is the Director General Military Operations(DGMO).

An alumnus of Sainik School, Bijapur and National Defence Academy(NDA), Raju was commissioned in the Jat Regiment in December 1984.  At present, he is chief of the Directorate of Military Operations. During his career, Raju commanded his battalion during Operation  Parakaram in the Western Theatre and in Jammu and Kashmir.

He also holds the distinction of commanding the Uri brigade along the Line of Control(LOC), a counter insurgency force and the Chinar Corps in the Kashmir Valley. He also served as the Commandant, Indian Military Training Team in Bhutan.

During his career spanning 38 years, Raju has tenanted many important regimental, staff and instructional appointments in the Army Head Quarters and in field formations to include, Colonel Military Secretary Legal in Military Secretary branch, Brigadier General Staff of the operationally active White Knight Corps, Deputy Director General Military Operations and Director General Staff Duties. Raju is a qualified helicopter pilot having carried out operational flying in Somalia, as part of UNOSOM II.

He has attended all important career courses in India and has had the privilege of doing his National Defence College(NDC) at Royal College of Defence Studies, United Kingdom. He also holds a distinguished Master's programme degree in counter terrorism at the Naval Postgraduate School, Monterey, United States.

For his illustrious contribution to the service, he has been awarded Uttam Yudh Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and Yudh Seva Medal.