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Journalism of Courage
The list of Governors appointed and reshuffled by President Droupadi Murmu on Sunday had the names of two former Army officers who have been placed in charge of border regions. While Arunachal Pradesh Governor Brigadier (retired) B D Mishra will take charge as the Lieutenant-Governor of the Union Territory of Ladakh, replacing R K Mathur, he will be succeeded by Lt Gen (retired) Kaiwalya Trivikram Parnaik who is a former commander of the Army’s Northern Command.
Brigadier (retd) B D Mishra
Born in Uttar Pradesh, Mishra got commissioned in the Madras Regiment of the infantry in 1961 and served in the force for three decades. He served during the 1962 Sino-Indian War, the 1965 India-Pakistan War, and the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.
A decorated officer, he commanded an Infantry Battalion in Poonch Sector and an Infantry Brigade as a part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Sri Lanka. He fought the LTTE during Operation Pawan on the Jaffna-Palaly axis and in Trincomalee, from 1987 to 1988, after the Jaffna battle.
As the commander of the Counter Hijack Force of the National Security Guard, Mishra led an operation on a hijacked Indian Airlines aircraft at the Raja Sansi Airfield in Amritsar in 1993 and rescued 126 passengers, nine infants and six crew members. He received a commendation from the Prime Minister of India for the operation. He retired from service in 1995 and when the Kargil War broke out he volunteered to fight.
An alumnus of Allahabad University and Madras University, where he obtained his MA and MSc degrees respectively, Mishra also holds a PhD from Gwalior’s Jiwaji University. He taught at the College of Combat at Mhow Cantonment in MP and the Defence Services Staff College in Tamil Nadu’s Wellington Cantonment. He took oath as the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh on October 3, 2017.
Lt. Gen (retd) KT Parnaik
Parnaik is also a decorated officer who served in the Army for more than four decades. During his military career, he held many sensitive appointments, both along the China and Pakistan borders. He commanded the 2 Rajputana Rifles in Udaipur and also an Infantry Brigade during Operation Parakram (the 2001-’02 standoff between India and Pakistan on the Line of Control), and a Mountain Division in Sikkim.
Being an old China hand, Parnaik’s appointment as the Governor of Arunachal Pradesh comes at a time when there is tension at the Line of Actual Control.
The Governor served as the Director-General of Perspective Planning and is well-versed in the issues of Army modernisation and transformation which have gained momentum in the recent past. He has commanded the Indian Military Training Team (IMTRAT) in Bhutan, a corps in the Northeast, and has had instructional appointments at the Indian Military Academy, IMTRAT, and the Army War College, Mhow.
