Lieutenant General
M. V. Suchindra Kumar
AVSM, YSM**, VSM
45th Vice Chief of the Army Staff
Assumed office
1 March 2023
PresidentDroupadi Murmu
Preceded byB. S. Raju
Personal details
SpouseAsha Suchindra
Awards Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
Bar to Yudh Seva Medal
Yudh Seva Medal
Vishisht Seva Medal
Military service
Allegiance India
Branch/service Indian Army
Years of serviceJune 1985 – present
Rank Lieutenant General
Unit1 Assam Regiment
Commands XVI Corps
120 Infantry Brigade
59 Rashtriya Rifles (Assam)

Lieutenant General M. V. Suchindra Kumar AVSM, YSM & bar, VSM is a serving general officer of the Indian Army. He is the current Vice Chief of the Army Staff. He earlier served as the Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Strategy).

Early life and education

Kumar completed his schooling from the Sainik School, Bijapur. He then attended the National Defence Academy and the Indian Military Academy.[1][2]

Military career

Kumar was commissioned into the 1st battalion, The Assam Regiment (1 ASSAM) in June 1985. He attended the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington. He served as an instructor at the Infantry School, Mhow. As part of the United Nations, he served as the Sector Senior Operations Officer in the Transitional Authority in Cambodia and in the Indian Army Training team in Lesotho.[3] At Army headquarters, he served in the Military Secretary Branch. He commanded the 59 battalion, The Rashtriya Rifles (Assam). The RR battalions are deployed in a counter-insurgency role in Jammu and Kashmir. He subsequently attended the Higher Command Course at the Army War College, Mhow.[4][5]

Promoted to the rank of Brigadier, he commanded the 120 Infantry Brigade. For this stint, he was awarded the Yudh Seva Medal on 26 January 2014.[6] He was then selected to attend the National Defence College in New Delhi, as part of the 54th course. After completing the course, he was appointed Brigadier General Staff (BGS) of a corps in the Eastern theatre. On 26 January 2018, he was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal.[7]

General officer

Kumar was promoted to the rank of Major General and appointed General officer commanding of an infantry division on the line of control. In the 2019 Republic Day honours, he was awarded a bar to the Yudh Seva Medal.[8] He subsequently served in the Military Intelligence directorate as the Additional Director General Military Intelligence (ADGMI). On 14 October 2020, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General and appointed General officer commanding XVI Corps. He took over from Lieutenant General Harsha Gupta at Nagrota.[9][10] On 1 March 2021, he took over as the Colonel of the Regiment of the Assam Regiment and the Arunachal Scouts. For his tenure as GOC XVI Corps, he was awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal on 26 January 2022.[11] After a year-long stint, he moved to Army HQ as the Director General Military Intelligence (DGMI).[12]

On 1 July 2022, Kumar was appointed Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Strategy). In March 2023, Kumar succeeded Lieutenant General B. S. Raju as Vice Chief of the Army Staff, who took over as the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief South Western Command.[13][14]

Personal life

Kumar is married to Asha Suchindra, an educationalist. The couple has two children. Kumar is an amateur half marathon runner, golf enthusiast and yoga practitioner.[4]

Awards and decorations

Kumar was awarded the Yudh Seva Medal in 2014, the Vishisht Seva Medal in 2018, a bar to the Yudh Seva Medal in 2019 and the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2022.

Ati Vishisht Seva Medal Yudh Seva Medal (Bar)
Vishisht Seva Medal Samanya Seva Medal Special Service Medal
Sainya Seva Medal Videsh Seva Medal 75th Independence Anniversary Medal 50th Independence Anniversary Medal
30 Years Long Service Medal 20 Years Long Service Medal 9 Years Long Service Medal UNTAC Medal

Dates of rank

InsigniaRankComponentDate of rank
Second LieutenantIndian Army8 June 1985
LieutenantIndian Army8 June 1987[15]
CaptainIndian Army8 June 1990[16]
MajorIndian Army8 June 1996[17]
Lieutenant ColonelIndian Army16 December 2004[18]
ColonelIndian Army15 August 2006[19]
BrigadierIndian Army25 February 2012 (acting)
28 April 2012 (substantive, with seniority from 9 October 2010)[20]
Major GeneralIndian Army1 September 2017 (seniority from 1 June 2015)[21]
Lieutenant GeneralIndian Army28 January 2020[22]

References

  1. ↑ "Lt. Gen Suchindra Kumar visits Chinar Corps to enhance Army's coordination in Jammu & Kashmir". The Economic Times. 17 December 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  2. ↑ "Lt Gen Suchindra Kumar visits Chinar Corps to enhance Army's coordination in J-K". ANI News. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  3. ↑ "Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar to be new Vice Chief of Army". ThePrint. 16 February 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  4. 1 2 "The Official Home Page of the Indian Army". www.indianarmy.nic.in. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  5. ↑ Developer, Web. "Lieutenant General MV Suchindra Kumar appointed as new Vice Chief of Army". Mid-day. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  6. ↑ "368 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced". archive.pib.gov.in. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  7. ↑ "390 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  8. ↑ "411 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  9. ↑ "Lieutenant General M V Suchindra Kumar assumes command of Jammu-based 16 Corps". The Economic Times. 13 October 2020. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  10. ↑ "Lt Gen M V Suchindra Kumar takes command of Jammu-based 16 Corps". ANI News. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  11. ↑ "President approves 384 Gallantry Awards and other defence decorations to Armed Forces personnel on Republic Day". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  12. ↑ "Who Is Lt General MV Suchindra Kumar, Indian Army's New Vice Chief? All You Need To Know". outlookindia.com. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  13. ↑ "Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar to be new Vice Chief of Army". The Economic Times. 16 February 2023. Retrieved 17 February 2023.
  14. ↑ Luthra, Swati (1 March 2023). "Lt General MV Suchindra Kumar takes over as Vice Chief of Army Staff". mint. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
  15. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 22 July 1989. p. 1000.
  16. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 12 October 1991. p. 1502.
  17. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 21 September 1996. p. 1339.
  18. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 16 July 2005. p. 1121.
  19. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 15 August 2009. p. 1381.
  20. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 27 September 2014. p. 1711.
  21. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 25 December 2021. p. 2960.
  22. ↑ "Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch)" (PDF). The Gazette of India. 16 April 2022. p. 736.
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