Wikipedia

Udey Chand Dubey

Major-General Udey Chand Dubey (26 March 1909 – 21 April 2009) was an Indian Army general and centenarian.[1]

Major-General

Udey Chand Dubey
Born(1909-03-26)26 March 1909
Sujanpur, Gurdaspur district, Punjab Province, British Raj
(now Punjab, India)
Died21 April 2009(2009-04-21) (aged 100)
Delhi, India
Allegiance British India
 India
Service/branch British Indian Army
 Indian Army
Years of service1930–1960
Rank Major General
Service numberIA-562
Unit1st Punjab Regiment
Dogra Regiment
Commands heldGOC, UP Area
GOC, Delhi Area
GOC, 25th Infantry Division
GOC, Bombay Area
5th Infantry Brigade
GOC, Rajasthan Area
2nd Dogra Regiment
Battles/wars

Early career edit

Among the first cadets selected to attend the Prince of Wales Royal Indian Military College (now the Rashtriya Indian Military College) in 1922, Dubey was one of three graduates selected for a King's Commission as a King's Commissioned Indian Officer (KCIO) in 1928.[1] He passed out from the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst on 30 January 1930.[2] As was customary, he was posted to a British Army regiment, the Norfolk Regiment,[3] for a period of one year. On 30 March 1931,[4] he was posted to the 2nd Battalion of the 1st Punjab Regiment.[5] Other KCIOs in the battalion at the same time were Kalwant Singh, later also a major-general, and the battalion adjutant Pran Nath Thapar, the future Chief of the Army Staff.[6]

Dubey was promoted lieutenant on 30 April 1932,[7] and was appointed battalion quartermaster on 1 June 1936.[8] He was promoted captain on 1 August 1938,[9][10] and in April 1939 qualified as a second-class interpreter in Urdu.[11] On 26 March 1940, he was appointed battalion adjutant.[12] In 1941, now an acting major, Dubey was selected to attend the 4th War Course at the Staff College, Quetta, which ran from 21 July to 13 December 1941; among his fellow students was Squadron Leader Subroto Mukerjee.[13]

Post-war and post-Independence edit

Dubey was promoted substantive major (temporary lieutenant-colonel) on 30 January 1947.[14] As the 1st Punjab was assigned to the new Pakistan Army following Independence and partition, Dubey was transferred to the Dogra Regiment. During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947–1948, he commanded the regiment's second battalion in the Kashmir Valley, notably at the battle of Uri for which the unit received battle and theatre honours.[1] On 17 December 1949, he was appointed GOC, Rajasthan Union States Forces, with the local rank of major-general.[15] He was promoted substantive colonel on 1 January 1950 and to substantive brigadier on 30 January 1951.[16][17] Relinquishing his local rank of major-general on 19 May 1951,[18] he was given command of the 5th Infantry Brigade on 1 September.[19]

On 7 October 1952, Dubey was appointed officiating GOC, Bombay Area, with the acting rank of major-general,[20] and was assigned to command the 25th Infantry Division on 31 October 1953.[21] He was promoted substantive major-general on 30 January 1955,[22] and was appointed GOC Delhi Area on 25 July.[23] As GOC Delhi Area, Dubey was principal organiser of the annual Army Day and Republic Day Parades, also staging the Western Command's torchlight tattoo in 1958.[24] On 15 March 1959, he took charge in his final appointment as GOC, U.P. Area,[24] serving in this capacity until his retirement from the Army on 1 June 1960.[25]

Dubey settled in Delhi, where he died on 21 April 2009, nearly a month after his 100th birthday.[1]

Dates of rank edit

Insignia Rank Component Date of rank
  Second Lieutenant British Indian Army 30 January 1930[2]
  Lieutenant British Indian Army 30 April 1932[7]
  Captain British Indian Army 1 August 1938[9]
  Major British Indian Army 1941 (acting)[26]
16 August 1942 (temporary)[27]
30 January 1947 (substantive)[14]
  Lieutenant-Colonel British Indian Army 30 January 1947 (temporary)[14]
  Major Indian Army 15 August 1947[note 1][28]
  Brigadier Indian Army 30 January 1948 (acting)[16]
  Major General Indian Army 17 December 1949 (local)[15]
  Colonel Indian Army 1 January 1950 (seniority from 30 January 1948)[16]
  Colonel Indian Army 26 January 1950 (recommissioning and change in insignia)[28][29]
  Brigadier Indian Army 30 January 1951 (substantive)[17]
  Major General Indian Army 7 October 1952 (acting)[20]
30 January 1955 (substantive)[22]

Notes edit

  1. ^ Upon independence in 1947, India became a Dominion within the British Commonwealth of Nations. As a result, the rank insignia of the British Army, incorporating the Tudor Crown and four-pointed Bath Star ("pip"), was retained, as George VI remained Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Armed Forces. After 26 January 1950, when India became a republic, the President of India became Commander-in-Chief, and the Ashoka Lion replaced the crown, with a five-pointed star being substituted for the "pip."

References edit

  1. ^ a b c d "Centenarian general passes away". India Today. 21 April 2009. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
  2. ^ a b "No. 33575". The London Gazette. 31 January 1930. p. 652.
  3. ^ Indian Army List for October 1930. Government of India Press. 1930. pp. 270a.
  4. ^ "No. 33740". The London Gazette. 31 July 1931. p. 5028.
  5. ^ Indian Army List for October 1933. Government of India Press. 1933. p. 216.
  6. ^ Indian Army List for October 1933. Government of India Press. 1933. p. 455.
  7. ^ a b "No. 33832". The London Gazette. 3 June 1932. p. 3591.
  8. ^ Indian Army List for October 1936. Government of India Press. 1930. p. 455.
  9. ^ a b "No. 34608". The London Gazette. 17 March 1939. p. 1851.
  10. ^ Indian Army List for April 1938. Government of India Press. 1938. p. 506.
  11. ^ Indian Army List for October 1939. Government of India Press. 1939. pp. 753a.
  12. ^ Indian Army List for July 1940. Government of India Press. 1939. p. 723.
  13. ^ Indian Army List for October 1941. Government of India Press. 1941. pp. 1252–53.
  14. ^ a b c "No. 37956". The London Gazette. 16 May 1947. p. 2194.
  15. ^ a b "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 25 February 1950. p. 286.
  16. ^ a b c "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 24 June 1950. p. 70.
  17. ^ a b "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 24 March 1951. p. 57.
  18. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 3 November 1951. p. 209.
  19. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 13 October 1951. p. 195.
  20. ^ a b "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 25 October 1952. p. 235.
  21. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 5 December 1953. p. 261.
  22. ^ a b "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 25 February 1956. p. 37.
  23. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 20 August 1955. p. 159.
  24. ^ a b "Maj-Gen. Bikram Singh Appointed GOC Delhi and Rajasthan Area, Maj-Gen. U. C. Dubey Becomes GOC UP Area" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India - Archive. 11 March 1959. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
  25. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 23 July 1960. p. 181.
  26. ^ Indian Army List for October 1941. Government of India Press. 1941. p. 233.
  27. ^ The Quarterly Army List: July 1944 (Part II). HM Stationery Office. 1942. pp. 2513a.
  28. ^ a b "New Designs of Crests and Badges in the Services" (PDF). Press Information Bureau of India – Archive. Archived (PDF) from the original on 8 August 2017.
  29. ^ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)". The Gazette of India. 11 February 1950. p. 227.
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