Lieutenant General Ajai Singh PVSM, AVSM is a retired Indian Army general. He served as the 16th Commander-in-Chief, Andaman and Nicobar Command (CINCAN). He assumed command from Lieutenant-General Manoj Pande, PVSM, AVSM, VSM on 1 June 2021.
Early life and education Singh was born in an army family. He is a fifth-generation soldier, all of them in the cavalry or armoured corps. The family has been in the army for over 162 years. He attended The Lawrence School, Sanawar. He subsequently attended the National Defence Academy as part of the 63rd course. He then was part of the 73rd course of the Indian Military Academy.
He holds four master's degrees: an MBA with ORSA specialisation, an MSc in defence studies, an MPhil in defence and management studies and an MA in International Security and Strategy from King's College London.
Career Singh was commissioned in the 81st Armoured Regiment on 17 December 1983. His father had raised the regiment a decade earlier. As a major, he commanded a rifle company of the Maratha Light Infantry during Operation Meghdoot and the Kargil War, receiving the COAS Commendation for Gallantry. He also served with MONUA in Angola as a United Nations military observer.
Singh has attended a mountaineering course at the High Altitude Warfare School and tank gunnery & technology courses. He was also selected to attend a United Nations Senior Mission Leader Course in Indonesia as well as the Royal College of Defence Studies (RCDS), London.
General officer Promoted to the rank of major general, Singh was appointed general officer commanding of a division. He then held the post of Additional Director General Military Operations (ADGMO) at Army headquarters. As a Lieutenant General he served as Director General Financial Planning and later Director General Military Training (DGMT) at Army HQ. On 30 July 2019, he was appointed the 30th general officer commanding X Corps at Bathinda.
Awards and decorations
Param Vishisht Seva MedalAti Vishisht Seva MedalSpecial Service MedalOperation Vijay StarSiachen Glacier MedalOperation Vijay MedalOperation Parakram MedalSainya Seva MedalHigh Altitude MedalVidesh Seva Medal75th Anniversary of Independence Medal50th Anniversary of Independence Medal30 Years Long Service Medal20 Years Long Service Medal9 Years Long Service MedalMONUA Medal
Dates of rank Insignia Rank Component Date of rank Second Lieutenant Indian Army 17 December 1983 Lieutenant Indian Army 17 December 1985 Captain Indian Army 17 December 1988 Major Indian Army 17 December 1994 Lieutenant-Colonel Indian Army 16 December 2004 Colonel Indian Army 15 March 2006 Brigadier Indian Army 22 October 2010 (acting, substantive 9 December 2010 with seniority from 29 August 2009) Major General Indian Army 1 February 2016 (substantive, seniority from 23 August 2014) Lieutenant-General Indian Army 1 May 2018
References