Satish Nambiar
Encyclopedia
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant General is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages where the title of Lieutenant General was held by the second in command on the battlefield, who was normally subordinate to a Captain General....
Chenicheri Satish Nambiar is an Indian general who achieved international recognition as the first Force Commander and Head of Mission of UNPROFOR, the United Nations Protection Force
United Nations Protection Force
The United Nations Protection Force ', was the first United Nations peacekeeping force in Croatia and in Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Yugoslav wars. It existed between the beginning of UN involvement in February 1992, and its restructuring into other forces in March 1995...
in the former Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
, between March 1992 and March 1993. He is the elder brother of UN Under-Secretary-General Vijay Nambiar who has been in the UN since 2006.
Early life
Lt Gen Satish Nambiar was born in Bombay (now Mumbai) on 30 August 1936, to Kunhananthan Nambiar and Chenicheri Devikutty. He did most of his education in PunePune
Pune , is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula ...
and Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
. He is an Alumnus of St Xavier's College Mumbai
Mumbai
Mumbai , formerly known as Bombay in English, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is the most populous city in India, and the fourth most populous city in the world, with a total metropolitan area population of approximately 20.5 million...
during which he was an Under Officer with the National Cadet Corps
National Cadet Corps (India)
The National Cadet Corps is the Indian military cadet corps with its Headquarters at New Delhi. It is open to school and college students on voluntary basis....
. While doing his graduation he joined the 20th regular course of the Indian Military Academy
Indian Military Academy
The Indian Military Academy, Dehradun is the officer training school of the Indian Army. IMA was established in 1932.-Demands for an Indian military training academy:...
He was a keen sportsman and his passion for sports continued during his military life too.
Military career
Nambiar was commissioned from the Indian Military AcademyIndian Military Academy
The Indian Military Academy, Dehradun is the officer training school of the Indian Army. IMA was established in 1932.-Demands for an Indian military training academy:...
, Dehra Dun, into the 20th Battalion of the Maratha Light Infantry
Maratha Light Infantry
The Maratha Light Infantry is a light infantry regiment of the Indian Army. It was formed as the 103rd Maharattas in 1768, making it the most senior light infantry regiment of the Army....
on 15 December 1957 .
He participated in various military operations in India’s North-Western and North-Eastern regions, including counter-insurgency operations in Nagaland, and in the Indo-Pakistan conflicts. Most notable of them being those in 1965 in the Sialkot
Sialkot
Sialkot is a city in Pakistan situated in the north-east of the Punjab province at the foothills of snow-covered peaks of Kashmir near the Chenab river. It is the capital of Sialkot District. The city is about north-west of Lahore and only a few kilometers from Indian-controlled Jammu.The...
Sector; and in 1971 in the Eastern theatre in the Liberation of Bangla Desh. He was awarded the Vir Chakra
Vir Chakra
Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration carried with it the right to use Vr.C. as a postnominal abbreviation Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration...
(for gallantry) during the 1971 war. During the 1962 Indo-China war, he was deployed with the 20th Maratha LI on the then Cease-Fire Line in Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir
Jammu and Kashmir is the northernmost state of India. It is situated mostly in the Himalayan mountains. Jammu and Kashmir shares a border with the states of Himachal Pradesh and Punjab to the south and internationally with the People's Republic of China to the north and east and the...
. A graduate of the Australian Staff College (1968), he commanded two battalions of the Maratha Light Infantry Regiment: the 1st (Jangi Paltan) from April 1972 to November 1973, and the 20th (Mechanised) from November 1973 to July 1975.
He served in the Indian Army Training team in Iraq from July 1977 to January 1979, and on the faculty of the Defence Services Staff College at Wellington (Headquarters of the Madras Regiment) from April 1980 to January 1982. He attended the Higher Command Course at the College of Combat (now re-designated Army War College) in 1979-80.
He raised and commanded the first mechanised brigade group of the Indian Army, and later commanded the Mechanised Division. He also served as the Military Adviser at the High Commission of India in London from December 1983 to November 1987.
The General Officer served on the General Staff Branch at Divisional Headquarters and in the appointments of Additional Director General and Director General of Military Operations at Army Headquarters. In the latter capacity, he led two defence delegations for discussions with Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
i counterparts: in the meetings held in April 1991 at New Delhi, he negotiated an agreement (which still holds) on exchange of information between the two countries on conduct of military exercises and aircraft flights in the proximity of the border, as also communications between naval vessels at sea; and in September 1991 at Islamabad, he negotiated an end to hostile action between the two countries on the Line of Control in the Poonch Sector.
Deputed by the Government of India as the first Force Commander
Force Commander
Force Commander can refer to:* Force commander , a command post in the British Army and several other armed forces or multinational forces* Star Wars: Force Commander...
and Head of Mission
Head of Mission
In diplomatic usage, Head of Mission or Chief of Mission from the French "Chef de Mission Diplomatique" is the generic term used to refer to the head of a diplomatic representation, such as an Ambassador, High Commissioner, Nuncio, Chargé d'affaires, Permanent Representative, and sometimes to a...
of the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
forces UNPROFOR in the former Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
initially in the grade of an Assistant Secretary General and later Under Secretary General, he had the distinction of setting up the Mission under most difficult conditions, and commanding it for a year from 3 March 1992 to 2 March 1993. Declining an offer of extension, he returned to the rolls of the Indian Army, and retired as the Deputy Chief of the Army Staff on 31 August 1994. Had the honour of serving as the Colonel of the Mechanised Infantry Regiment
Mechanised Infantry Regiment
The Mechanised Infantry Regiment is an infantry regiment of the Indian Army. It is one of the youngest regiments in the army, and though it was formed as a result of lessons learned in the 1965 Indo-Pak War, to give infantry battalions greater mobility, it was the mastermind of late Gen K Sundarji...
of the Indian Army
Indian Army
The Indian Army is the land based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. With about 1,100,000 soldiers in active service and about 1,150,000 reserve troops, the Indian Army is the world's largest standing volunteer army...
from June 1988 to till retirement in August 1994.
Post Retirement
He has been actively engaged since retirement, in the study and analysis of UN Peacekeeping Operations, national security matters, including defence strategy, and international relations. Invited to speak periodically at various institutions within India and abroad like the National Defence College, the Defence Services Staff College, the Foreign Service Institute, the Jawaharlal Nehru University and other universities, the Army, Navy and Air Force War Colleges, the Royal College of Defence Studies, London and so on, the General Officer is regularly invited to attend, participate and present papers, at various international symposia, seminars, and bilateral and multilateral discussions. Contributes regularly to periodicals and journals on national security, international relations and peace operations. Has authored chapters in international publications on peace operations, international intervention, and just war and genocide.He was the Director of the United Service Institution of India from 1 July 1996 to 31 December 2008. During a twelve and a half year period as Director, besides fulfilling the basic charter of the 138-year old Institution, he initiated three additional areas of activity: a Centre for United Nations Peacekeeping: a Centre for Armed Forces Historical Research: and a Centre for Strategic Studies and Simulation.
During 2002/2003 he was adviser to the Govt of Sri Lanka on certain aspects of the peace process in that country. On the International Advisory Council of the Folke Bernadotte Academy, Sandoverken, Sweden, he is an inaugural member of the International Advisory Board of the Security Council Report a neutral and independent non-profit organisation dedicated to reporting on the United Nations Security Council
United Nations Security Council
The United Nations Security Council is one of the principal organs of the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and security. Its powers, outlined in the United Nations Charter, include the establishment of peacekeeping operations, the establishment of...
; also an inaugural member of the Advisory Council of the International Network to Promote the Rule of Law (INPROL), an initiative based at the United States Institute of Peace in Washington DC. Is on the Advisory Board of the Geneva based ICT for Peace Foundation.
On 4 November 2003 the General Officer was nominated by Kofi Annan
Kofi Annan
Kofi Atta Annan is a Ghanaian diplomat who served as the seventh Secretary-General of the UN from 1 January 1997 to 31 December 2006...
the then Secretary General of the United Nations, to serve on a 16-member High Level Panel on “Threats, Challenges and Change” that produced a report titled “A More Secure World: Our Shared Responsibility”. This report formed the basis of the UN Secretary General’s report to the 2005 World Summit.
Is member of the following national initiatives: a group engaged in a strategic dialogue sponsored by the Confederation of Indian Industry with the US-based Aspen Strategy Group; a trilateral USA-Japan-India dialogue; the Indian delegation at the India-EU Round Table; and the India chapter of the Council for Security Cooperation in the Asia Pacific (CSCAP).
Satish Nambiar was in 2002-2003 asked by Ranil Wikremasinghe, the then Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, to advise them in an honorary capacity, on the resturcturing of the army and dealing with the contentious issue of the high security zone in north and north east Sri Lanka. He submitted a report in April 2003 which was a subject of debate in the Sri Lankan parliament but could not be pursued further as the talks between the Sri Lankan government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) broke down. He has not been associated with any delvelopments in Sri Lanka since April 2003.
In 2009 he released his book 'FOR THE HONOUR OF INDIA' which is an account of the Indian contribution to UN Peace Keeping operations worldwide.
Awards
Awarded the Vir ChakraVir Chakra
Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration carried with it the right to use Vr.C. as a postnominal abbreviation Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration...
for bravery in battle during the Indo-Pak conflict in 1971, the General Officer is also the recipient of the Ati Vishist Seva Medal (AVSM) in 1991 and the Param Vishist Seva Medal (PVSM) in 1994, for distinguished service. In recognition of his sustained efforts in the study and analysis of “National Security Affairs”, the President of India conferred the General Officer with the Padma Bhushan
Padma Bhushan
The Padma Bhushan is the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan, but comes before the Padma Shri. It is awarded by the Government of India.-History:...
, a high civilian honour on the occasion of Republic Day on 26 January 2009.
Award of Vir Chakra
During the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971, Major Satish Nambiar commanded a company of 1st Battalion the Maratha Light InfantryMaratha Light Infantry
The Maratha Light Infantry is a light infantry regiment of the Indian Army. It was formed as the 103rd Maharattas in 1768, making it the most senior light infantry regiment of the Army....
which had established a road block in the Eastern Theatre. The enemy assaulted his roadblock in strength on 10 December 1971, supported by intense artillery
Artillery
Originally applied to any group of infantry primarily armed with projectile weapons, artillery has over time become limited in meaning to refer only to those engines of war that operate by projection of munitions far beyond the range of effect of personal weapons...
, mortar
Mortar (weapon)
A mortar is an indirect fire weapon that fires explosive projectiles known as bombs at low velocities, short ranges, and high-arcing ballistic trajectories. It is typically muzzle-loading and has a barrel length less than 15 times its caliber....
and small arms fire. Major Nambiar, in complete disregard for his safety, moved from trench to trench to encourage his men, beating back the assault barely 40 yards from the forward defended localities. Similar assaults by the enemy on the following day were also repulsed. Throughout, Major Satish Nambiar displayed gallantry, determination and leadership of the highest order, and was subsequently awarded the Vir Chakra
Vir Chakra
Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration carried with it the right to use Vr.C. as a postnominal abbreviation Vir Chakra is an Indian gallantry award presented for acts of bravery in the battlefield. Award of the decoration...
.