Upendra Dwivedi

General Upendra Dwivedi, PVSM, AVSM (born 1 July 1964) is a serving four star general officer of the Indian Army. He is the current and 30th Chief of the Army Staff. He took over as the 30th COAS succeeding General Manoj Pande on 30 June 2024. He was previously serving as the 46th Vice Chief of Army Staff. Earlier he was tenanting the appointment of General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Northern Command, prior to that he served as the Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Information Systems and Coordination) and as the General Officer Commanding IX Corps.

Early life and education
Gen Dwivedi is an alumnus of Sainik School, Rewa. He joined Sainik School, Rewa where he was classmates with the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Dinesh K. Tripathi. He joined the school in July 1973 where his roll no. was 931. and passed out from school in 1981. He attended the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla and then the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. He was an outstanding sportsman and excelled in both NDA and IMA, where he was awarded the Blue in Physical Training. He continued to excel post commissioning and was awarded the gold medal in the Physical Training Course. He also attended Defence Services Staff College, Wellington & Higher Command Course at Army War College, Mhow. He was conferred Distinguished Fellow in the coveted NDC equivalent course at the United States Army War College in Carlisle, USA. He has a M. Phil. degree in Defence & Management Studies, in addition to the two Masters Degrees in Strategic Studies and Military Science, including one from United States Army War College. He has authored / presented articles in various professional forums / Journals.

Military career
Gen Dwivedi was commissioned into the 18th battalion of the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles on 15 December 1984 from Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. He has commanded a battalion at Chowkibal in Kashmir Valley during Operation Rakshak and the deserts of Rajasthan, a sector of the Assam Rifles in Manipur during Operation Rhino, served in Assam as Inspector General, Assam Rifles and held various other Staff & Command appointments in the North East. He has had a unique distinction of balanced exposure of both Northern and Western Theatres.

During his illustrious career spanning over 39 years, has tenanted various staff appointments in Headquarter Armoured Brigade, Mountain Division, Strike Corps and Integrated HQ, MoD (Army). Among his previous appointments were as an instructor at the Indian Military Academy, Directing Staff at the Higher Command Wing in the Army War College, he shaped the future generations of the three services and Friendly Foreign Countries. The general officer's two overseas tenures include Somalia, as part of HQ UNOSOM II and Military attaché to the Government of Seychelles. He has been IGAR (East) and Sector Cdr Assam Rifles in intense CT Ops and held various other Staff & Command appointments in the North East where he pioneered the first ever compendium on Indo - Myanmar Border Management. Later as Director General Infantry he steered and fast-tracked Capital procurement cases of weapons for all the three services, leading to significant & visible capability enhancement for our Armed Forces.

In February 2020, Gen Dwivedi was appointed commander of IX Corps. A year later in April 2021, he took over as the Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Information Systems and Coordination). As DCOAS (IS&C), the officer gave impetus to automation and absorption of niche tech in the Indian Army.

On 1 February 2022, Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi took over as the General Officer Commanding in Chief, Northern Command, he assumed the post upon superannuation of Lieutenant General Yogesh Kumar Joshi. Gen Dwivedi being a technology enthusiast, he worked towards enhancing the tech-threshold of all ranks in Northern Command and pushed for critical & emerging Technologies like big data analytics, artificial Intelligence, quantum and blockchain based solutions. He was also involved in modernisation and equipping of the largest Army Command of Indian Army, where he steered the induction of Indigenous equipment as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat. He synergised with people of Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh for convergent nation building outcomes and infrastructure development.

On 19 February 2024, Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi took over as the 46th Vice Chief of Army Staff from Lieutenant General M. V. Suchindra Kumar, who was appointed as the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command.

Chief of the Army Staff
On 11 June 2024, the Government of India appointed Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi as the next Chief of Army Staff. On 30 June 2024, General Upendra Dwivedi took over as the 30th Chief of the Army Staff succeeding General Manoj Pande, who superannuated after more than four decades of service to the nation.

Personal life
The General Officer is married to Mrs. Sunita Dwivedi, a science graduate, who is a homemaker. Mrs. Sunita Dwivedi has been associated with Aarushi, an Institute for specially abled children, at Bhopal. The couple are blessed with two daughters who are working with NGOs. General officer is a skilled Yoga practitioner.

Awards and decorations
The general officer was awarded the Param Vishisht Seva Medal in 2024 and the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2021. Gen Dwivedi has been awarded with three GOC-in-C Commendation cards.