GEN SHANKAR ROYCHOWDHURY (RETD)

GEN SHANKAR ROYCHOWDHURY (RETD)

Gen Shankar Roychowdhury entered the Joint Ser v i ces Wing of the Armed Ser v i ces in 1953 as a Cadet . He was commissioned into the 20th Lancers of the Armoured Corps from the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehra Dun on 09 June 1957. He saw action at the Chamb-Jaurian sector in the 1965 Indo-Pak War and in the Jessore and Khulna during the 1971 Liberation War. He commanded 20 Lancers from 1974-76, an Independent Armoured Brigade from December 1980 to July 1983 and an Armoured Division from May 1988 to May 1990. He subsequently commanded 16 Corps in Jammu and Kashmir from 1991-92. He is a graduate of the Defence Services Staff College (DSSC) and held several staff and instructional appointments, including that of Director General Combat Vehicles dealing with the Arjun MBT. He was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service and valuable contribution. He took over as General Officer Commanding–in-Chief, Army Training Command (ARTRAC) in August 1992. He became the Army Chief upon the untimely death of his predecessor, General B.C. Joshi, on 22 November 1994. He retired from the Indian Army on September 1997, after completing 40 years of distinguished service to the nation. Post retirement, he became a member of the Rajya Sabha and has served in Parliament as an MP from 1999 to 2005 and has highlighted defence related issues with great passion & vigour in Parliament.GEN SHANKAR ROYCHOWDHURY (RETD)