Bipin Chandra Joshi

General Bipin Chandra Joshi, PVSM, AVSM, ADC (5 December 1935 – 19 November 1994) was the 16th Chief of Army Staff (COAS) of the Indian Army. He is the only Chief of the Indian Army to die in office, and until the 2021 death of General Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash, the only full general and serving Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee to have died in office.

General Bipin Chandra Joshi PVSM, AVSM, ADC
16th Chief of the Army Staff
In office 1 July 1990 – 19 November 1994
President	Ramaswamy Venkataraman Shankar Dayal Sharma
Prime Minister	V. P. Singh Chandra Shekhar P. V. Narasimha Rao
Preceded by	Sunith Francis Rodrigues
Succeeded by	Shankar Roy Chowdhary
Personal details
Born	5 December 1935[1] Pithoragarh, United Provinces, British India (now Uttarakhand, India)
Died	19 November 1994(1994-11-19) (aged 58) New Delhi, India
Awards	Param Vishisht Seva Medal Ati Vishisht Seva Medal
Military service
Allegiance	India
Branch/service	Indian Army
Years of service	1954–1994
Rank	General
Commands	Western Army Southern Army

Early life

Joshi was born in a Hindu Kumaoni Brahmin family. He was the first Army Chief from Uttar Pradesh (Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand was a part of erstwhile Uttar Pradesh).

Career

• Commissioned 4 December 1954 into 2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse), Indian Army Armoured Corps.^[2]
• Commanded an armoured regiment the 64th Cavalry in the Western Sector during the 1971 Indo-Pak operations.^[3] He also commanded an Independent Armoured Brigade and an Infantry Division.
• Military Advisor in Australia from May 1973 to October 1976^[3]
• Staff officer in the UN Force in Gaza^[3]
• Brigadier General Staff in a Corps Headquarters^[3]
• Commanded a Corps in the Eastern Sector^[3]
• General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Southern Command.^[3]
• Additional Director General of Perspective Planning (ADG PP) & Director General Military Operations (DGMO) at the Army Headquarters^[3]
• Three tenures as an instructor in the Armoured Corps Centre and School, Ahmednagar^[3]
• Directed Staff in the College of Combat, Mhow^[3]
• Established the Army Institute of Technology in Pune (Engineering College), Maharashtra in August 1994 for the wards of defence personnel, either in service or retired.

Joshi also became Colonel of the regiment of the 64 Cavalry and 44 Armd Regt.^{[citation needed]}

Medals

Joshi has been a recipient of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal for distinguished service of the most exceptional order.

Death

Joshi died of a cardiac arrest in New Delhi Military Hospital on 18 November 1994.^[4] He was due to retire in 1995. He was the first Chief of Indian Army who died in harness. General Bipin Rawat, former Chief and the serving Chief of Defence Staff, also died in a tragic helicopter crash in December 2021 whilst landing at the Defence Services Staff College in Wellington. General Joshi’s untimely death changed the entire line of succession for the post of Chief of Army Staff, which is typically decided on the basis of seniority. As a result, Lt. Gen. Shankar Roy Chowdhary was promoted to full general and appointed as the 17th Chief of Army Staff.

Legacy

The Gen. B. C. Joshi Army Public School was established in 1993 in Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand in his honour.^[5]

Honours and decorations

Param Vishisht Seva Medal
Ati Vishisht Seva Medal	Samanya Seva Medal	Paschimi Star	Special Service Medal
Raksha Medal	Sangram Medal	Sainya Seva Medal	Videsh Seva Medal
25th Anniversary of Independence Medal	30 Years Long Service Medal	20 Years Long Service Medal	9 Years Long Service Medal

Dates of rank

Insignia	Rank	Component	Date of rank
	Second Lieutenant	Indian Army	4 December 1954[2]
	Lieutenant	Indian Army	4 December 1956[6]
	Captain	Indian Army	4 December 1960[7]
	Major	Indian Army	4 December 1967[8]
	Lieutenant Colonel	Indian Army	1 April 1974[9]
	Colonel	Indian Army	19 October 1979[10]
	Brigadier	Indian Army	1 April 1980[11]
	Major General	Indian Army	1 October 1984[12]
	Lieutenant General	Indian Army	2 June 1987 (seniority from 1 April)[13]
	General (COAS)	Indian Army	1 July 1993[14]