Om Prakash Malhotra

General
General Om Prakash Malhotra
PVSM
Born (1922-08-06)6 August 1922
Srinagar, Jammu and Kashmir, British India
Died 29 December 2015(2015-12-29) (aged 93)
Gurgaon, Haryana, India
Allegiance  British India
 India
Service/branch  British Indian Army
 Indian Army
Years of service 1941–1981
Rank General
Unit
Commands held
Battles/wars
Awards
Spouse(s) Saroj Malhotra
Other work

General Om Prakash "OP" Malhotra, PVSM (August 6, 1922 – December 29, 2015) was an Indian Army General. He was the 13th Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army from 1978 – 1981. He also served as the Ambassador of India to Indonesia from 1981 – 1984, and Governor of Punjab and Administrator of Chandigarh from 1990 – 1991.

Early life

He was born in Srinagar, Kashmir, on August 6, 1922 and received his schooling first at Model High School, Srinagar, and then at Sri Pratap College, Srinagar.[1] He then attended Government College, Lahore, before being selected to join the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun.

Military career

He was commissioned in the Regiment of Artillery as a Second Lieutenant in November 1941. His first assignment was with 26 (Jacobs) Mountain Battery in Razmak, North West Frontier Province. He was later assigned to 15 (Jhelum) Mountain Battery which, as part of the 50th Parachute Brigade, fought against the Japanese during the Second World War on the Burmese front. He distinguished himself as a young officer in The Battle of Sangshak where he was wounded in action.[2][3] He later became Second-in-Command of 13 (Dardoni) Mountain Battery.

He was made an Instructor at the School of Artillery in Deolali, and in 1946 attended the Long Gunnery Staff Course at the Royal School of Artillery in Larkhill, United Kingdom. He commanded artillery regiments across India between November 1950 and July 1961 including 37 Coorg Anti Tank Regiment, 20 Locating Regiment[4] and 42 Field Regiment. In between he served at Army HQ, New Delhi, did the Defense Services Staff College course at Wellington and was later an Instructor at the Defense Services Staff College, Wellington. He was then posted from 1962-1965 as the Military and Naval Attaché of India to the USSR, concurrently accredited to Poland and Hungary.

Upon return from Moscow in August 1965, he commanded 1 Artillery Brigade, part of 1 Armoured Division and fought in Sialkot Sector during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.[5] After the ceasefire with Pakistan he commanded 167 Mountain Brigade at Sela Pass, Tawang District, North-East Frontier Agency. He was promoted to Major General in September 1967 and commanded 36 Infantry Division in Saugor for two years. From September 1969 till May 1972 he was Chief of Staff, IV Corps, in Tezpur during the Bangladesh Liberation War. Subsequently, he commanded XI Corps in Jalandhar for two years and was later the GOC-in-C Southern Command located at Pune.

In 1976, General Malhotra was awarded the Param Vishist Seva Medal for "service of the most exceptional order". He was Vice Chief of Army Staff before taking over as Chief of Army Staff of the Indian Army on 31 May 1978 and serving in that post for three years. He is an Honorary Senior Colonel Commandant of the Regiment of Artillery of the Indian Army and also an Honorary General of the Nepalese Army.

Ambassador to Indonesia and Governor of Punjab

After retiring from the Indian Army on 31 May 1981 after 40 years of distinguished military service, General Malhotra served as the Ambassador of India to Indonesia from 1981-1984. During 1990-1991, General Malhotra was the Governor of the Indian State of Punjab and Administrator of Chandigarh[6] when militancy in that state was at its height. General Malhotra resigned from his post in protest when planned elections in the state were deferred by the national election commission without notice.[7] Upon the postponement of the elections he said that "I have been through three Wars, I have been a General in the Wars, but I have never felt as defeated as I feel today after this announcement by the Election Commission that the Elections have been postponed."[8]

Post-retirement

A keen sportsman, General Malhotra was for many years the President of the Equestrian Federation of India and the Founder President of the Asian Equestrian Federation. He was also the President of the Delhi Golf Club, New Delhi from 1979 - 1980.[9] General Malhotra was one of the Founder Trustee's of the Nehru Trust for the Indian Collections at the Victoria & Albert Museum,[10] and served as the President of India's largest NGO, the "National Association for the Blind" in New Delhi. He was the Chairperson of the National Association for the Blind Centre For Blind Women & Disability Studies.[11] He was an active member of Kiwanis Club of New Delhi, patron of the All India Federation of The Deaf,[12] and a Trustee of the Delhi Cheshire Homes.[13]

General Malhotra was also the Founder and Chairman Emeritus of two charitable organisations Shiksha and Chikitsa.[14][15][16]

Personal life

Married to Late Mrs. Saroj Malhotra, he has two children. His son, Ajai Malhotra, was Ambassador of India to the Russian Federation from 2011 - 2013.[17]

Honours and Awards

References

  1. ↑
  2. ↑ Seaman, Harry (1989). The Battle At Sangshak: Prelude to Kohim. Leo Cooper. pp. 130, 132.
  3. ↑ Graham, Brigadier General C. A. L. (1957). The History of the Indian Mountain Artillery. Gale & Polden. pp. 352, 353.
  4. ↑ "20 Surveillance and Target Acquisition". Sainik Samachar.
  5. ↑ Praval, Major KC (2013). Indian Army After Independence. Lancer. p. 548.
  6. ↑ Crossette, Barbara; Special To The New York Times (19 December 1990). "Punjabis, Caught Between Sikh Rebels and New Delhi, Fear a Showdown". The New York Times. p. 3. Retrieved 24 September 2011. Cite uses deprecated parameter |coauthors= (help)
  7. ↑ (2008) Grewal, J.S. The Cambridge History of India: The Sikhs of Punjab, pg. 287,Cambridge University Press, http://www.vidhia.com/Historical%20and%20Political/The_Sikhs_of_Punjab.pdf
  8. ↑ http://parliamentofindia.nic.in/ls/lsdeb/ls10/ses1/0712079101.htm
  9. ↑ http://www.delhigolfclub.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=28
  10. ↑ http://www.nticva.org/trustees.html
  11. ↑ http://nabcentreforwomen.org/our-profile/about-us/committees/
  12. ↑ http://www.aifdeaf.in/committee.htm
  13. ↑ http://www.cheshirehomesindiadelhiunit.com/members.html
  14. ↑ "Trustees of the NTICVA General Om Prakash Malhotra PVSM". Nehru Trust for the Indian Collections at the Victoria and Albert Mission. Nehru Trust. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  15. ↑ "Org Summary". Guide Star India. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  16. ↑ "Board of Trustees". Chikitsa. Retrieved 2015-12-29.
  17. ↑ List of Ambassadors of India to Russia
Military offices
Preceded by
Tapishwar Narain Raina		 Chief of Army Staff
1978–1981 		Succeeded by
Kotikalapudi Venkata Krishna Rao
Government offices
Preceded by
Virendra Verma		 Governor of Punjab
1990–1991 		Succeeded by
Surendra Nath
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