Lt Gen Gill sworn in PPSC chairman

Wednesday, 03/09/2014

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Chandigarh : Lieutenant General (retd) Tejwant Singh Gill was on Tuesday sworn in as chairman of the Punjab Public Service Commission (PPSC) by Punjab Governor Shivraj Vishwanath Patil at a brief ceremony held at Punjab Raj Bhavan here.

Patil administered the oath of office, secrecy and allegiance to Constitution of India to the newly-appointed PPSC chairman, who had on Monday superannuated as the Chief of Staff Headquarters Western Command on attaining the age of 60 years. Earlier, Punjab Chief Secretary Sarvesh Kaushal sought the permission of the Governor to start the oath-taking ceremony. Soon after being sworn in, Lt Gen Gill signed the oath, which was countersigned by the Governor. Chief Minister Parkash Singh Badal, several members of Punjab Cabinet and PPSC, besides senior officers of civil and police administration were present on the occasion.

The family members, friends and well-wishers of Lt Gen Gill also attended the swearing-in ceremony.

Lt Gen Gill is a second generation officer, who saw action during Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka in 1988-89, where he was decorated for gallantry with Sena Medal while in command of a Rifle Company in 5 PARA. His other command assignments include command of 5 PARA in Operation Orchid in Nagaland, Commander 2 Sector Rashtriya Rifles in South Kashmir and the Golden Arrow Division.

He is a graduate of Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, after perusing the higher command course at Mhow and the prestigious National Defence College, New Delhi. He was awarded Vashisht Seva Medal for distinguished service when in command of 5 PARA in 1996.

Lt Gen Gill superannuated from service after a distinguished career spanning 38 years and 8 months. During his service, the General has distinguished himself in various counter insurgency areas. The officer is a keen sportsman and has been national skydiving champion. Popular with the rank and file due to his amiable nature and proactive approach on welfare issues, he has provided dynamic leadership backed by exceptional professional and administrative standards.The coveted post of PPSC chairman had fallen vacant on May 2 when Lt Gen (retd) Manjinder Singh Buttar had relinquished the charge following superannuation on attaining the age of 62.

Though several senior bureaucrats, who had recently retired from the state government, had applied for the post, the Chief Minister once again opted for a retired Army officer to head the constitutional assignment.