India's Defence Minister, Rajnath Singh, recently unveiled a statue of India's first Chief of Defence Staff, the late Bipin Rawat. The statue is located at Tonbridge School in Dehradun, Uttarakhand.

Unfortunately, Gen Rawat, his wife Madhulika Rawat, and 12 other military personnel lost their lives in a helicopter crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on December 8, 2021.

About Bipin Rawat

Born in Pauri, Uttarakhand, on March 16, 1958, he was An alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA) and the Indian Military Academy (IMA).
Rawat was commissioned into the Indian Army in December 1978 in the fifth battalion of 11 Gorkha Rifles.
He held various post:
- Brigade Commander,
- General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-C) Southern Command,
- General Staff Officer Grade 2 at the Military Operations Directorate,
- Colonel Military Secretary and
- Deputy Military Secretary in the Military Secretary’s Branch, and
- Senior Instructor in the Junior Command Wing.
He was also a part of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force and had commanded a multinational brigade in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
He played an instrumental role in reducing the militancy in the Northeast. Through his supervision he conducted a 2015 cross-border operation into Myanmar in which the Indian Army successfully responded to an ambush by NSCN-K militants.
He was a crucial planner for the 2016 surgical strikes, in which the Indian Army went across the Line of Control into Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
He was awarded with the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Vishisht Seva Medal, Yudh Seva Medal, Uttam Yudh Seva Medal, and Sena Medal.
General Bipin Rawat as the 27th Chief of Army Staff (COAS) had taken over the reins of the Indian Army from General Dalbir Singh Suhag on December 17, 2016.

About Chief of Defence Staff

The Chief of Defence Staff is the head of the Indian Armed Forces (CDS) and permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC) of the Indian Armed Forces.
CDS is the highest-ranking uniformed officer on active duty in the Indian military and also chief military adviser to the Minister of Defence and principal military advisor to the Government.
Head of the Department of Military Affairs is CDS.
CDS is assisted by a vice-chief of defence staff (the Chief of Integrated Defence Staff).
The first Chief of Defence Staff was General Bipin Rawat appointed on 1 January 2020. The main aim is to improve coordination, tri-service effectiveness and overall integration of the combat capabilities of the Indian armed forces.
For appointment of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), the government amended Service Rules of the Army, Navy and Air Force, which allowed retired Service Chiefs and three-star officers eligible for consideration for the country's top military post.

Incumbent CDS is General Anil Chauhan.