Lieutenant General Pratik Sharma on Thursday took over as the general officer commanding-in-chief (GOC-in-C) of the Indian Army’s Northern Command amid heightened tensions with Pakistan after the Pahalgam terror attack and the ongoing border standoff with China.
The Udhampur-based Northern Command is in charge of guarding the frontiers with Pakistan and China, especially in the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh sectors, besides handling counter-infiltration and counter-terrorism operations.
He succeeded Lt. Gen. M.V. Suchindra Kumar, who retired on April 30.
“Lt Gen. Sharma assumed the appointment of GOC-in-C, Northern Command, today. The general officer has rich operational experience. He commanded an infantry battalion, brigade and division along the Line of Control, and has commanded a strike corps in the Western Sector,” the defence ministry said in a statement.
He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA), Khadakwasla; Indian Military Academy, Dehradun; and Defence Services Staff College, Wellington.
He had in the past served as the director-general of military operations (DGMO), the crucial wing of the Indian Army that oversees the operational requirements and strategies.
