General Upendra Dwivedi takes charge as 30th Army Chief

General Upendra Dwivedi took charge as the 30th Indian Army Chief, on June 30.

The 30th Chief of the Indian Army belongs to the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles and was Vice Chief of Army Staff from February, 2024.

Meanwhile, outgoing Chief General Manoj Pande was presented a Ceremonial Guard of Honour at the South Block Lawns, New Delhi, on the occasion of relinquishing the appointment of Chief of the Army Staff. His career spans over four decades and stands testimony to his dedication and leadership on the Indian Army.

Dwivedi is an alumnus of Sainik School, Rewa. He was commissioned into the 18 Jammu and Kashmir Rifles in 1984. He hails from Madhya Pradesh.

With a military career spanning over 39 years, Lt Gen Dwivedi served in both the Northern and Western theatres of India and was appointed as deputy chief at Army Headquarters. He headed the 9th Corps in Himachal Pradesh and was also Director-General of Infantry.

He has commanded his battalion in active counter-terrorism operations in the Kashmir Valley and in the Rajasthan Desert. He has been Inspector General Assam Rifles as Major General and Sector commander as Brigadieri. Assam Rifles participated in intense counterterrorism operations and held various other staff command appointments in the North East, where he pioneered the first ever compendium on Indo-Myanmar border management.

Dwivedi has also commanded the Rising Star Corps along the Western Front and the prestigious Northern Army from 2022-2024 in an extremely challenging operational environment. He was also involved in modernising and equipping of the largest Command of the Indian Army, where he steered the induction of Indigenous equipment as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat. 

Later, as the DG Infantry, he steered and fast-tracked capital procurement cases of weapons for all three services, and as Deputy Chief, he gave impetus to automation and the absorption of niche technology in the Indian Army. 

The officer's two overseas tenures include Somalia, as part of HQ UNOSOM II and Seychelles, as Military Advisor to the Government of Seychelles. Besides, attending the Staff College, Wellington & Higher Command Course at AWC, Mhow, the officer was conferred 'Distinguished Fellow' in the coveted NDC equivalent course at USAWC, Carlisle, USA.