Who was the first Indian Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army after independence?

• Cariappa. General Kodandera Madappa Cariappa (1899-1993) became the first Indian Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army on 15 January 1949, taking over from General Sir Francis Roy Bucher, the last British Commander-in-Chief.

About the date:

15 January is celebrated every year as "Army Day" in India, to mark this handover.

About K. M. Cariappa:

• He was born on 28 January 1899 in Coorg (Kodagu), Karnataka.
• He was among the first group of Indians to receive the King's Commission (1919).
• He was the first Indian officer to attend the Staff College at Quetta (1933).
• He served in Iraq, Syria, Iran and Burma during the Second World War.
• In 1942, he became the first Indian officer to command a battalion, and in 1948 he directed operations in Jammu and Kashmir as head of the Western Command.
• He was nicknamed "Kipper" by a British officer's wife who found his name difficult to pronounce.
• After retiring in 1953, he served as India's High Commissioner to Australia and New Zealand (1953-1956).
• He was given the rank of Field Marshal on 14 January 1986, becoming the second Indian Army officer, after Sam Manekshaw, to hold the five-star rank.

India's two Field Marshals:

• Sam Manekshaw (1973): Chief of Army Staff during the 1971 war; first Field Marshal.
• M. Cariappa (1986).
• The Indian Air Force's only Marshal of the Air Force is Arjan Singh (2002).

Other army chiefs:

General K. S. Thimayya: Chief of Army Staff (1957-61); also from Coorg.

Lt. Gen. Maharaj Rajendrasinhji Jadeja: second Indian Commander-in-Chief (1953); after 1955, the title was changed to "Chief of the Army Staff".

Why not the other options?

• ✗S. Thimayya was Chief of Army Staff from 1957 to 1961.
• ✗Sam Manekshaw was India's first Field Marshal.
• ✗Rajendrasinhji Jadeja succeeded Cariappa in 1953.