Miscellaneous
Major General Giri up for promotion to lieutenant general
The recommendation for one of the two vacant posts of Nepal Army lieutenant generals has finally landed in the Cabinet for approval, Geeta Gurung, deputy spokesperson at the Ministry of Defence, confirmed on Tuesday.Binod Ghimire
The recommendation for one of the two vacant posts of Nepal Army lieutenant generals has finally landed in the Cabinet for approval, Geeta Gurung, deputy spokesperson at the Ministry of Defence, confirmed on Tuesday.
Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) Gen Purna Chandra Thapa has nominated Maj Gen Sharad Giri to the post.
Maj Gen Giri was favoured over three officers senior to him, Maj Gen Shekhar Bashnyat, Maj Gen Anuj Basnet and Maj Gen Dev Subedi, as the former two has already retired and the latter is due to retire after two weeks. The position of lieutenant general, the third highest rank in the 92,000-strong national defence force, has been vacant since September 9, the day Gen Thapa took the reins of the NA.
The NA regulation gives the CoAS sole authority to recommend senior officials for promotion, which is then endorsed by the Cabinet.
Though the regulation envisions starting the promotion to the lieutenant general within 15-days of the vacancy, it had taken over three months for Gen Thapa to pick his nominee for the post of lieutenant general.
When Gen Thapa took command of the NA, Maj Gen Basnet was the frontrunner for the job, but his promotion was denied citing ‘dubious’ academic credentials. He retired soon after. Next in the line for the job based on seniority was Maj Gen Subedi, but he, too, failed to make it on the nomination list for unknown reasons.