Lieutenant General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) 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 ...

Kashmir Singh Katoch, MC (15 July 1915 – 25 April 2007) was an

Indian Army The Indian Army is the land-based branch and the largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head is the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), who is a four- ...

General and military adviser to the Maharaja

Hari Singh Maharaja Sir Hari Singh (September 1895 – 26 April 1961) was the last ruling Maharaja of the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir (princely state), Jammu and Kashmir. Hari Singh was the son of Amar Singh and Bhotiali Chib. In 1923, followi ...

Jammu and Kashmir Jammu and Kashmir may refer to: * Kashmir, the northernmost geographical region of the Indian subcontinent * Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), a region administered by India as a union territory * Jammu and Kashmir (state), a region administered ...

, officiating as the Chief of Staff of the State Forces during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1947. He later served as the Vice Chief of Army Staff of the

Life and career

Katoch was born in 1915 in

Srinagar Srinagar (English: , ) is the largest city and the summer capital of Jammu and Kashmir, India. It lies in the Kashmir Valley on the banks of the Jhelum River, a tributary of the Indus, and Dal and Anchar lakes. The city is known for its natu ...

Janak Singh Major General Janak Singh (surname Katoch) CIE, OBI, (7 August 1872 – 15 March 1972) was an officer of the Jammu and Kashmir State Forces in the princely state of Jammu and Kashmir. After retirement, he briefly served as the prime minister ...

, an officer of the

Jammu and Kashmir State Forces Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi, the city of Jammu, with an area of , ...

, later a prime minister of Jammu and Kashmir. He did his military training at the

Indian Military Academy The Indian Military Academy (IMA) is one of the oldest military academies in India, and trains officers for the Indian Army. Located in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, it was established in 1932 following a recommendation by a military committee set up ...

Dehradun Dehradun () is the capital and the most populous city of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the administrative headquarters of the eponymous district and is governed by the Dehradun Municipal Corporation, with the Uttarakhand Legislative As ...

, completing the course in 1936. After commissioning he was attached to the 1st battalion,

East Surrey Regiment The East Surrey Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1959. The regiment was formed in 1881 under the Childers Reforms by the amalgamation of the 31st (Huntingdonshire) Regiment of Foot, the 70th ...

for a year. He was posted to the 6th battalion Frontier Force Rifles (FFR, now the first

Frontier Force Regiment The Frontier Force Regiment is one of the six infantry regiments of the Pakistan Army. They are popularly known as the ''Piffers'' in reference to their military history as the PIF ( Punjab Irregular Force) of the British Indian Army, or as th ...

of Pakistan) on 10 August 1937. On 19 April 1942 he was attached to the 10th (training) battalion Frontier Force Rifles and by October 1942 held the rank of Lieutenant, war substantive Captain and temporary Major. He fought in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, commanding the Dogra Company of 6th battalion Frontier Force Rifles. The battalion served in Italy and fought in the

Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome and the Battle for Cassino, was a series of four assaults made by the Allies against German forces in Italy during the Italian Campaign of World War II. The ultimate objective was ...

. When the Pathan company got severely mauled, the Dogra company cleared many of the machine gun nests. Katoch was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

.London Gazette 28 October 1944 Katoch became a

Lieutenant Colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...

in the

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...

at the age of 31.

Jammu and Kashmir State Forces

After General Henry Lawrence Scott, the Chief of Staff of Kashmir State Forces, decided to relinquish his post in September 1947, the Maharaja requested the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...

to second an officer to head the State Forces. Kashmir Singh Katoch, then a Colonel, was chosen for the job. However, Katoch felt that he was too junior to serve as the Chief of Staff and advised the Maharaja to appoint a senior officer such as Brigadier Rajinder Singh. Katoch was then appointed as a 'military adviser' to the Maharaja. However, Brigadier Rajinder Singh was killed in action within the first few days of the Pakistani tribal invasion, With the accession of the State to the Indian Union on 26–27 October 1947, the State Forces came under the command of the Indian Army. Colonel Katoch officiated as the commanding officer of the State Forces.

Indian Army

On 18 November 1950, still only 35 years old, Katoch was promoted to acting brigadier and given command of a brigade. He was promoted to colonel on 1 September 1955, and to brigadier on 1 September 1958. He was promoted to major-general on 1 September 1960, and was appointed chairman, Permanent Joint Planning Committee on 4 February 1963. He was promoted to acting lieutenant-general on 1 May 1963 and appointed the

Adjutant General An adjutant general is a military chief administrative officer. France In Revolutionary France, the was a senior staff officer, effectively an assistant to a general officer. It was a special position for lieutenant-colonels and colonels in staf ...

of the Indian Army, with promotion to the substantive rank on 23 November. He subsequently commanded the

XV Corps 15th Corps, Fifteenth Corps, or XV Corps may refer to: *XV Corps (British India) * XV Corps (German Empire), a unit of the Imperial German Army prior to and during World War I * 15th Army Corps (Russian Empire), a unit in World War I *XV Royal Bav ...

in the

Kashmir Valley The Kashmir Valley, also known as the ''Vale of Kashmir'', is an intermontane valley concentrated in the Kashmir Division of the Indian- union territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The valley is bounded on the southwest by the Pir Panjal Range and ...

. It was the main force that fought against Pakistan's

Operation Gibraltar Operation Gibraltar was the codename of a military operation planned and executed by the Pakistan Army in the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir in August 1965. The operation's strategy was to covertly cross the Line of Control (LoC) a ...

during the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 or the Second Kashmir War was a culmination of skirmishes that took place between April 1965 and September 1965 between Pakistan and India. The conflict began following Pakistan's Operation Gibraltar, which was d ...

Later life

On 8 June 1966, Katoch was appointed Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS). He retired in 1970, and died on 25 April 2007.

Honours

The Government of India awarded Gen Katoch the third highest civilian honour, the

Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...

, in 1965,

References

Bibliography

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Katoch, Kashmir Singh 1915 births 2007 deaths British Army personnel of World War II British Indian Army officers Indian Army personnel of World War II Indian civil servants Indian Military Academy alumni People from Jammu and Kashmir People from Srinagar Indian recipients of the Military Cross Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in civil service Generals of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 Vice Chiefs of Army Staff (India)