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China is not an enemy, just a competitor: Lt Gen Bikram Singh
KOLKATA: Lt Gen Bikram Singh, GOC-in-C, Eastern Command, who takes over as Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) on Thursday, feels that relations with China have improved and one shouldn't send across a wrong message by talking too much about India's preparations military-wise.
"Minor incidents do occur. Patrols from their sides move to what is their perception about the Line of Actual Control (LAC). Our patrols also move to what is our perception of the LAC. These are tactical issues at best and should not be taken to a strategic level. In today's world, China is not an enemy. China is a competitor," the CoAS designate said in Kolkata before leaving for Delhi. The general also spoke about his priorities.
"My first priority as CoAS will be to ensure operational readiness of the Army to enable it to fulfil its Constitutional obligations and assigned roles effectively. Secondly, I will address the hollowness and ensure that the modernization process proceeds as per stipulated timelines. Thirdly, I will strengthen the Army's work culture and the core values, namely, duty, honour, loyalty, integrity, respect and selfless service," he said.
Singh, who will be the 25th general to lead the world's second largest Army, will also focus on effective human resource management to ensure high standards of motivation and morale among all ranks. The former eastern Army commander is also keen to enhance co-ordination with the other services.
"All commanders must endeavour to create a climate during their command tenures that hinges on our cherished core values, professional ethos and is conducive to growth and cohesion. Everything, including the military, needs to move forward if we want to develop India into a regional leader," the general said.
Singh was commissioned into the Sikh Light Infantry on March 31, 1972. In the Indian Military Academy (IMA), he held the appointment of battalion cadet adjutant. At the IMA, he was awarded the J&K Rifles gold medal for 'tactics and leadership' and the Shriganesh Trophy. Better known as 'Bikki' to his friends, he was awarded the 'Commando Dagger' and the 'Best in Tactics' trophy during his young officer's course at Infantry School. It was during his tenure as instructor at the Commando Wing of the Infantry School in Belgaum that he met Surjeet Kaur and married her. She is better known as Bubbles with the Army-circle.
"Till the Kargil War, the Army used to be a closeted organization and interactions with the media were not entertained. It was after the Kargil War that the perception changed. Even as CoAS, I will ensure that people get to know about what is happening in the Army," Lt Gen Singh, who was assigned to brief the media during the Kargil War, said.
As a brigadier, Singh attended the US Army War College in Pennsylvania. He served in two assignments with the United Nations in Central America and as the deputy force commander and GOC of Eastern Division in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Colleagues remember him as a 'soldier's soldier' for spending time with his troops on the ground.
What was it that prompted the general to join the Army? "I was a student at the Punjab Public School in Nabha during the 1962 and 1965 Wars. We would dig trenches and take shelter when the air raid signals were sounded. This was when I decided to join the Army. I was very good at Zoology and Biology and my teachers felt that I would become a doctor. If I were to be born again, I would join the Indian Army," he said.
China is not an enemy, just a competitor: Lt Gen Bikram Singh - The Times of India
