Padmanabhan succeeds Malik as new Army chief

He will take over on October 1, a Defence Ministry announcement said.

Padmanabhan is the seniormost General after the vice chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen Chandrashekar who is retiring on September 30, the same date as the present Army Chief.

Born in Thiruvanthapuram, Lt Gen Padmanabhan, an alumnus of the Indian Military Academy from where he joined the National Defence Academy in 1956, was commissioned in the regiment of Artillery in 1959.

During a career spanning over four decades, Padmanabhan has held a number of prestigious command, staff and instructional assignments.

A graduate from the Defence Services Staff College and National Defence College, his first command appointment was that of the famous Gazala mountain regiment.

Gen Padmanabhan has the rare distinction of having commanded an artillery brigade and two infantry brigades in vastly diverse areas and terrain between July 1985 and February 1991.

On promotion to the rank of Major General, he took over command of a frontline infantry division in the western sector and as Lieutenant General, he commanded the Srinagar corps during the worst militancy phase from 1993 to 1995.

He has also been a brigade major of an Infantry Brigade on its raising and colonel General staff of a mountain division, instructor in gunnery school of artillery and chief of staff of a corps in eastern sector.

Gen Padmanabhan after serving as a corps commander later took over as Director General Military Intelligence at Army Headquarters here.

He took over as General Officer Commanding in Chief of Northern Command on September 1, 1996 and was shifted as Southern Army Commander on January 3, 1999, four months before the Kargil intrusion came to light.

Padmanabhan was widely consulted by his successor Lt Gen H M Khanna, the present Northern Army Commander, during the Kargil crises.

He is a recipient of Param Vishist Seva Medal (PVSM), Vishist Seva Medal (VSM) and is also Honorary ADC to the President of India.