General V P Malik (Retd)
General VP Malik was Chief of the Army Staff of the Indian Army from 01 Oct 1997 to 30 September 2000. Concurrently, he was Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee of India from 01 Jan 1999 to 30 Sep 2000.
Commissioned into the India Army on 07 June 1959, he participated in India-China 1962 war in Ladakh sector, 1971 war in Eastern Sector, commanded a battalion in Nagaland (1974-77), brigade in J & K (1983-85), a division in Nagaland and J & K (1989-91), and a Corps in Punjab during anti-militancy operations (1992-94).
As a senior staff officer, he dealt with/participated in Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka, Operation Cactus in Maldives and military diplomacy with several countries including Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Bangla Desh, Sri Lanka and Maldives.
He was Commandant of the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington in 1994-95 and held the appointments of GOC-in C, Southern Command and Vice Chief of the Army Staff before taking over as Chief of the Indian Army.
In 1999, as Chief of the Army Staff and Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee, General Malik coordinated and oversaw planning and execution of Operation Vijay to successfully defeat Pakistan’s attempted intrusion in Kargil Sector.
A graduate from Defence Services Staff College and MSc in Defence and Strategic Studies from Madras University, General Malik is an alumnus of National Defence College, New Delhi.
General Malik was awarded the Ati Vishishta Seva Medal in 1986 and Param Vishishta Seva Medal for distinguished military services in India in 1996. From civil organizations, he has received ‘Excellence in Leadership’ award by Atur Foundation, Pune, ‘Distinguished Fellowship’ of the Institute of Directors, New Delhi in 1999, ‘Pride of the Nation’ award by Doon Citizens’ Council in July 2000, and ‘Punjab Rattan’ award in 2018.
Post retirement, he was nominated as a member of the National Security Advisory Board for two terms (2001-2003). He founded Institute of Security Studies in Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi.
Apart from writing opinion columns in newspapers and professional magazines, he has written several papers on defence planning and security issues. He has authored two books; “Kargil: From Surprise to Victory” and “India’s Military Conflicts and Diplomacy: An Inside View of Decision Making”.
He has been a regular speaker/participant in discussions on strategic and security affairs within India and abroad. Currently, he is also engaged as an Independent Director/Advisor in some well-known multinational companies and NGOs.