Former Army Chief Gen VN Sharma cremated with full military honours in New Delhi
By Aroonim Bhuyan
New Delhi. Former Chief of the Army Staff General Vishwa Nath Sharma (Retired), who passed away in New Delhi on July 31 at the age of 97, was cremated with full military honours at the Brar Square Crematorium in the national capital on August 1.
Chief of the Army Staff General Dhiraj Seth laid a wreath on behalf of all ranks of the Indian Army and conveyed condolences to the bereaved family. Mizoram Governor and former Army Chief General VK Singh (Retired) also paid floral tributes and attended the funeral.
The last rites were attended by former Chief of Defence Staff, former Chiefs of the Army Staff, Chief of the Air Staff, Chief of the Naval Staff, serving and retired senior military officers, veterans and family members, who gathered to pay their final respects to the former Army Chief.
Born in London on June 4, 1930, General Sharma hailed from a distinguished military family. He was the younger brother of Major Somnath Sharma, India’s first Param Vir Chakra awardee, and Lieutenant General Surendra Nath Sharma, who served as Engineer-in-Chief of the Indian Army.
General Sharma joined the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, as part of the 5th Regular Course and was commissioned into the 16 Light Cavalry on June 4, 1950. He later became one of the founding officers of the 66 Armoured Regiment, serving first as its Second-in-Command during its raising in 1966 before taking over as its second Commandant in 1968.
During a career spanning four decades, General Sharma held several key operational, command and staff appointments. These included Colonel General Staff of an Armoured Division, Brigadier General Staff of a Corps, Director General of Military Operations at Army Headquarters and Commandant of the College of Combat, now known as the Army War College, Mhow.
His command assignments included a Mountain Brigade in Mizoram, an Armoured Brigade in Jaipur, a Mountain Division in Sikkim, a Corps in Mizoram and the Eastern Command headquartered in Kolkata. He went on to serve as the Chief of the Army Staff from April 30, 1988, to June 30, 1990, and was decorated with several distinguished military honours during his career.
Following his retirement, General Sharma devoted nearly four decades to humanitarian work, running a free tuberculosis clinic in Himachal Pradesh. Continuing a family tradition of public service, he travelled to remote villages in an ambulance and often trekked to high-altitude settlements with medical teams to provide healthcare to underserved communities. His commitment to social service has since been carried forward by his son and other members of the family.
Paying tribute to the former Army Chief, the Indian Army said General Sharma’s life of exemplary military leadership, courage and selfless service to the nation would remain an enduring source of inspiration for generations of soldiers.
