Lieutenant General Cherish Mathson, PVSM, SM, VSM is a retired officer of the Indian Army who served as General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C), South Western Command. He assumed office on 1 August 2017 taking over from Lt General Abhay Krishna, and was succeeded by Lt General Alok Singh Kler on 1 September 2019.[1][2][3][4]
Cherish Mathson | |
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| Allegiance |  India |
| Service/ |  Indian Army |
| Years of service | June 1980 – 31 August 2019 |
| Rank |  Lieutenant General |
| Service number | IC-38722 |
| Unit | Garhwal Rifles |
| Commands held |  South Western ArmyXXI Corps Special Frontier Force 54th Infantry Division |
| Awards |  Param Vishisht Seva Medal  Sena Medal Vishisht Seva Medal |
Early life and education edit
Mathson is an alumnus of Sainik School, Trivandrum and the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington. He has also attended Senior Command Course at Army War College, Mhow, the Long Defence Management Course at the College of Defence Management, Secunderabad and the National Defence College, New Delhi.[2][5]
Career edit
Mathson was commissioned into Garhwal Rifles in June 1980. He has vast experience in rural and urban insurgencies and has served two tenures in Siachen Glacier, in Operation Blue Star, in Mizoram against the Mizo National Front (MNF) and as a UN observer in Somalia.
He has commanded a battalion on the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir during Operation Parakram, the Trivandrum Brigade in an amphibious Role, the 54th Infantry Division in the Southern Command, Inspector General of the Special Frontier Force and the XXI Corps in Bhopal.
He has also held staff positions including Deputy Assistant Quarter Master General Operations (DAQMG) of an Independent Infantry Brigade, Colonel Administration (Col Adm) of a Mountain Division, Brigadier Administration (Brig Adm) of the XII Corps, Deputy Technical Manager (Land Systems) in Army HQ, Senior Defence Specialist (Military) in the National Security Council Secretariat and in the Defence Acquisition Wing (Ministry of Defence).[2][1][6][7][8][9] He was also the Colonel of the Regiment of Garhwal Rifles.[10]
During his career, he has been awarded the Sena Medal, the Vishist Seva Medal in 2010 [11] and the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2018.[12]
Honours and decorations edit
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Dates of rank edit
| Insignia | Rank | Component | Date of rank |
|---|---|---|---|
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Second Lieutenant | Indian Army | 7 June 1980[13] |
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Lieutenant | Indian Army | 7 June 1982[14] |
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Captain | Indian Army | 7 June 1985[15] |
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Major | Indian Army | 7 June 1991 |
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Lieutenant-Colonel | Indian Army | 31 December 2002[16] |
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Colonel | Indian Army | 1 February 2005[17] |
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Brigadier | Indian Army | 2 May 2008 (seniority from 12 January 2008)[18] |
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Major General | Indian Army | 1 January 2013 (seniority from 6 April 2011)[19] |
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Lieutenant-General | Indian Army | 10 November 2015 (substantive)[20] |
References edit
- ^ a b "Lt Gen Cherish Mathson takes over Army's South Western Command". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
- ^ a b c "Press Information Bureau". Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
- ^ "Sapta Shakti Command chief Cherish Mathson retires". 1 September 2019.
- ^ "Kler is new chief of Sapta Shakti Command". 1 September 2019.
- ^ "New SW Army head is Sainik School alumnus". The Hindu. 1 August 2017. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 28 August 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
- ^ "Patron Cup competition held at Army Golf Course". thehitavada.com. Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
- ^ "cherish-mathson-takes-over-sudarshan-chakras-command". Archived from the original on 5 October 2016.
- ^ "Lt General Ghuman takes command of Sudarshan Chakra Corps". thehitavada.com. Archived from the original on 21 August 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
- ^ "Conservation of coral reef in Lakshadweep | TopNews". www.topnews.in. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
- ^ "Lt Gen Cherish Mathson appointed Colonel of Regiment of Garhwal Rifles". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 11 May 2018.
- ^ "Press Information Bureau". Archived from the original on 7 October 2017. Retrieved 7 October 2017.
- ^ "390 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced".
- ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 16 May 1981. p. 674.
- ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 25 December 1982. p. 1575.
- ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 7 June 1986. p. 924.
- ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 31 July 2004. p. 1053.
- ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 25 March 2006. p. 411.
- ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 3 July 2010. p. 1094.
- ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 22 March 2014. p. 428.
- ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 20 February 2016. p. 478.