General Deepak Kapoor PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM, ADC (b. 1948) served as the 22nd[1] Chief of the Army Staff of the Indian Army, appointed on 30 September 2007 and Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee appointed on 31 August 2009.[2]

Deepak Kapoor
22nd Chief of the Army Staff
In office
1 October 2007 – 31 March 2010
PresidentPratibha Patil
Prime MinisterManmohan Singh
Preceded byJ.J. Singh
Succeeded byV.K. Singh
Personal details
Born1948
Awards Param Vishisht Seva Medal
Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
Vishisht Seva Medal
Sena Medal
Military service
Allegiance India
Branch/service Indian Army
Years of service11 June 1967 – 31 March 2010
Rank General
Commands Northern Army
ARTRAC
XXXIII Corps
22 Mountain Division
161 Infantry Brigade
Independent Artillery Brigade, 2 Corps
74 Medium Regiment
Battles/warsIndo-Pakistani War of 1971
United Nations Operation in Somalia II

Biography

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General Kapoor with Bangladeshi Chief of Army Staff General Abdul Mubeen at New Delhi on 15 March 2010.

Kapoor was commissioned into the Regiment of Artillery on 11 June 1967. He is an alumnus of Sainik School, Kunjpura;[3][4] National Defence Academy Khadakwasla (30th Course) and Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. His career in the Indian Army spans four decades, during which he has held varied command and as well as staff appointments. A veteran of the 1971 Indo-Pak War in the eastern theatre (Bangladesh), he is an alumnus of the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington and has completed the Higher Command Course at Army War College, Mhow and the National Defence College course at the National Defence College in New Delhi. He served as the Chief Operations Officer for UNOSOM II (United Nations Operation in Somalia II) during 1994-95 and was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal in January 1996.

Kapoor commanded the 161 Infantry Brigade in Uri, Jammu & Kashmir which was actively involved in operations along the Line of Control. For his performance he was awarded the Sena Medal in January 1998. He commanded the 22nd Mountain Division as part of a Strike Corps during Operation Parakram in 2001–02. He was thereafter deeply involved in counter insurgency operations combating the insurgency in Assam, as Chief of Staff of 4 Corps in Tezpur. On promotion to Lieutenant General, he commanded 33 Corps at Siliguri, West Bengal. For his service as a Corps Commander, he was awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in January 2006. On elevation to the appointment of Army Commander, he commanded the Army Training Command (ARTRAC) in Shimla. Thereafter he moved to spearhead the Northern Command (India), the largest operational command in the Indian Army, deployed over varied terrain and was once again actively involved in COIN operations. For his performance, he was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in January 2007.

Kapoor was appointed as the Honorary Aide-De-Camp to the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, the President of India. He was also the senior Colonel Commandant of the Regiment of Artillery. Kapoor was Vice-Chief of the Army before taking over as the Chief of Army Staff.

Personal life

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Kapoor holds master's degrees in Political Science, Military Science and Business Administration, the latter which he completed at the Indira Gandhi National Open University in New Delhi. He also holds a diploma in Business Management. He is married to Kirti Kapoor and they have two children - a daughter and a son, both of whom are married.

Major Decorations and Badges

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Awards

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Param Vishisht Seva Medal Ati Vishisht Seva Medal Sena Medal Vishisht Seva Medal
Poorvi Star Special Service Medal Sangram Medal Operation Parakram Medal
Sainya Seva Medal Videsh Seva Medal 50th Anniversary of Independence Medal 25th Anniversary of Independence Medal
30 Years Long Service Medal 20 Years Long Service Medal 9 Years Long Service Medal UNOSOM II

Dates of rank

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Insignia Rank Component Date of rank
  Second Lieutenant Indian Army 11 June 1967[5]
  Lieutenant Indian Army 11 June 1969[6]
  Captain Indian Army 11 June 1973[7]
  Major Indian Army 11 June 1980[8]
  Lieutenant-Colonel Indian Army 3 May 1988[9]
  Colonel Indian Army 1 November 1991[10]
  Brigadier Indian Army 18 January 1996[11]
  Major General Indian Army 3 June 2001[12]
  Lieutenant-General Indian Army 29 June 2004 (seniority from 1 March)[13]
  General
(COAS)
Indian Army 1 October 2007[14]

References

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  1. ^ "Press Information Bureau".
  2. ^ "Press Information Bureau".
  3. ^ Gen Kapoor, Hooda come together at their alma mater Archived 4 November 2012 at the Wayback Machine The Hindu, 25 July 2008.
  4. ^ Public Information Bureau release on Kunjpara Sainik School
  5. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 6 April 1968. p. 282.
  6. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 20 September 1969. p. 960.
  7. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 8 December 1973. p. 1370.
  8. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 6 December 1980. p. 1382.
  9. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 30 March 1991. p. 494.
  10. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 5 September 1992. p. 1564.
  11. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 27 December 1997. p. 1961.
  12. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 10 May 2003. p. 632.
  13. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 29 April 2006. p. 607.
  14. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 1 December 2007. p. 1868.
Military offices
Preceded by Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee
2009 - 2010
Succeeded by
Preceded by Chief of Army Staff
2007 – 2010
Succeeded by
Preceded by
Hari Prasad
General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief Northern Command
2005 – 2006
Succeeded by