Lt Gen Surinder takes over as Western Command GOC-in-C

Chandigarh: Finally, after six weeks of ad hoc arrangements Army's prestigious Western Command has got its General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) Lieutenant General Surinder Singh. Lt Gen Singh took over the reins of the command on Saturday.
Though the Union defence ministry (MoD), in the first week of August had cleared the name of Lt Gen Singh, previously posted as GOC of 33 Corps at Sukna in West Bengal, as the next army commander of Western Command, on account of some hierarchical problem in view of pending promotion of other Lt Gen-rank officers, he could not assume the charge.
The post of the Western Command GOC-in-C was lying vacant since July 31, after the superannuation of Lt Gen K J Singh.
Since the defence ministry had failed to finalize the name of his replacement, Lt Gen J S Cheema, the then General Officer Commanding (GOC) of Jalandhar-based Vajra corps, was appointed officiating Army commander immediately after Lt Gen K J Singh.
Again on September 2, Lt Gen Ashok Ambre, GOC of Army's 9 Corps (Rising Star Corps) was appointed as second officiating commander of the Western Command after Lt Gen Cheema was transferred to Delhi.
After reaching Chandimandir from Delhi on Saturday morning to take the charge, Lt Gen Surinder laid a wreath and paid homage to the martyrs of the Western Command and inspected a Guard of Honour at the Chandimandir cantonment. He also met the senior staff of the headquarters and took stock of the operational situation.
Lt Gen Surinder Singh was commissioned in 1979 into the second battalion of the Brigade of the Guards, an elite infantry regiment. Experienced through several prestigious assignments, Lt Gen Surinder is a graduate of the British Army Command Staff College, Army War College and the National Defence College. He rose in the ranks to command his battalion and thereafter an armoured brigade, an infantry division and a mountain corps.
One of the most advanced and strikes command of the Indian Army, Chandimandir-based western command was raised in September 1947, and is larger than the combined armies of 150 nations of the world.
Lt Gen Soni is new ARTRAC chief
Chandigarh: Lieutenant General D R Soni took charge as the Army Commander, Army Training Command (ARTRAC), Shimla on Saturday. He was previously posted as GOC of Bathinda-based 10 Corps. Lt Gen Soni has taken over command of ARTRAC in place of Lt Gen P M Hariz, who has taken over as Army Commander, Southern Command.
Commissioned in the Central India Horse in June 1979, Lt Gen Soni is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Pune and the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. In his prolonged military career, he has commanded an armoured brigade, an armoured division and the Bhatinda Corps. He has attended the Defence College of Management and Technology at Shrivenham, UK, and has the distinction of holding a master degree in Global Security from Cranfield University, UK. He is married to Colonel Suman Soni, who is a gynaecologist and has served in the Army for 22 years.