Former Army chief S Padmanabhan passes away

CHENNAI: Former Army Chief General S Padmanabhan passed away in Chennai on Monday. He was 83 years old. Padmanabhan, who was commissioned into the Artillery Regiment on December 13, 1959, assumed charge as the 20th Army Chief on 30 September 2000. He remained in office till 2002.

Born in a Tamil Brahmin family in Thiruvananthapuram on December 5, 1940, Padmanabhan joined the Indian Military College after completing his school education. He became part of the force after completing his training at the National Defence Academy in Pune. He also graduated from Wellington Defence Academy and National Defence College, Delhi.

He held several command and staff instructional posts during his 43-year career. He commanded an infantry brigade in Ranchi, Bihar and Punjab from December 1988 to February 1991. From March 1991 to August 1992, he was the General Officer Commanding, Infantry Division, Punjab. He then became the commander of 15 Corps in the Kashmir Valley. He was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal for his services there. In September 1996, he became the Commanding-in-Chief of the Northern Command. Padmanabhan retired on 31 December 2002. He had been living in Chennai following his retirement. The funeral will be held on Tuesday evening.