Lt Gen Naravane relinquishes charge of Eastern Command, to take over as VCOAS

Vice Chief of Army Staff (VCOAS) designate Lt Gen MM Naravane relinquished the charge of Eastern Command on Saturday after the tenure of nearly 11 months.

He will take charge as the VCOAS on Monday. He will succeed Lt Gen Devraj Anbu, who retired on Saturday.

"Lt Gen MM Naravane #ArmyCdrEC relinquished command of #EasternCommand on 31 Aug after a successful and eventful tenure of 11 months. All ranks of #EasternCommand wish him the very best for his next assignment," Eastern Command said in a tweet.

The General Officer during his final address to all ranks of Eastern Command complimented them for their outstanding efforts in all fields and wished them good luck in all their future endeavours.

The General Officer was designated as VCOAS around a month ago.

Narawane and Northern Army Commander Lt General Ranbir Singh would be the two top officers in the contention for the Chief of Army Staff in December end when the incumbent General Bipin Rawat is due to superannuate after his three years' tenure.

Lt Gen Naravane took over as the Eastern Army Commander on October 1, 2018.

According to the Indian Army website, the General was commissioned into the 7th Battalion, the Sikh Light Infantry, in June 1980. He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy and the Indian Military Academy.

In his 37 years of illustrious service, the General has served in numerous Command and Staff appointments in peace, field and highly active counter-insurgency environments, in the North East, Jammu and Kashmir and as part of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka.

The General has commanded a Rashtriya Rifles Battalion in Jammu and Kashmir and an Infantry Brigade on the Eastern Front. He has also been the Inspector General, Assam Rifles (North) at Nagaland, commanded a prestigious Strike Corps of the Indian Army and was the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Army Training Command.

The General has served as an instructor at the Army War College, Mhow and has also been the Indian Defence attache to Myanmar. The General holds a Masters Degree in Defence Studies from Chennai University, an MPhil in Defence and Management Studies from DAVV, Indore.