Major General Chittoor Venugopal

PVSM Param Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM) (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: , ) is a Military awards and decorations, military award of India. It is the highest peacetime medal of the Indian Armed Forces, and is awarded for "dist ...

, MVC (14 November 1927 – 27 April 2021) was a

General Officer A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...

in the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

. He was decorated with the

Maha Vir Chakra The Maha Vir Chakra (MVC) () is the second highest military decoration in India, after the Param Vir Chakra, and is awarded for acts of conspicuous gallantry in the presence of the enemy, whether on land, at sea or in the air. It replaced the B ...

for his role in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.

Early life

Major General Chittoor Venugopal was born in the holy town of

Tirupati Tirupati () is a city in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Andhra Pradesh and serves as the administrative headquarters of Tirupati district. It is known for its significant religious and cultural heritage, being home to th ...

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

, on 14 November 1927. His father's name was Shri C.Chinna Swami.

Military career

Major General Chittoor Venugopal was commissioned into the Indian Army in the

1st Gorkha Rifles (The Malaun Regiment) 1st Gorkha Rifles (The Malaun Regiment), often referred to as the 1st Gorkha Rifles, or 1 GR in abbreviation, is the most senior Gorkha Infantry regiment of the Indian Army, comprising Gurkha soldiers of Indian Gorkha or Nepalese nationality, pa ...

, on 10 December 1950. At the time of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, he held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and was commanding the 5/1 Gurkha Rifles battalion which was deployed in Jessore area of the Eastern sector. On 4 December 1971, his battalion encountered well fortified Pakistani positions at Uthali and Darsana which had a series of concrete pillboxes interconnected with elaborate communication trenches. Lieutenant Colonel Venugopal laid a plan of attack which he personally led. After capturing the two positions, the 5/1 Gurkha Rifles battalion pursued the withdrawing enemy troops, leading to the capture of Jhenida three days later. For his leadership and aggressive battle planning resulting in large military gains, he was awarded the

, India's second highest gallantry award.

References

1927 births 2021 deaths Indian generals People from Tirupati Indian military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 Recipients of the Maha Vir Chakra Recipients of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal {{India-mil-bio-stub