Lt Gen Anil Chauhan's village celebrates his appointment as CDS

Srinagar (U'khand): Celebrations began in Lt Gen (retd) Anil Chauhan's ancestral Gawana village in Uttarakhand on Thursday as people learnt of his appointment as the Chief of Defence Staff.

Nestled in the hills about 20 kilometres from here, the sleepy village sprang to life as people gathered in the courtyard of Lt Gen Chauhan's modest home where one of his cousins still lives and offered sweets to each other.

"He is very simple. Meets us with great warmth and prefers talking to us in Garhwali only," his cousin Darshan Singh Chauhan said.

Jayanti, Lt Gen Chauhan's another cousin, who came all the way from Rudraprayag to celebrate the occasion with her family, said, "It is a big moment for us. I am happy about his appointment to the prestigious post." Jayanti, who is seven months older to Lt Gen Chauhan, said she has countless childhood memories of playing with him.

Lt Gen Chauhan last visited his village in 2016 to take part in a family 'puja'. Born on May 18, 1961, he got his early education in Kolkata.

His father Surendra Singh Chauhan, who is 95, lives in Delhi but stays in regular touch with his relatives in the village.

Situated on Dewalgarh motor road, Gawana is a village of 30 families and around 100 people.

Suraj Kaparwan, a village youth, said it was a proud moment for the entire state.

Kaparwan said he hoped that the relaxation in height given to the youths of the hills for recruitment in the Army during the time of Gen Bipin Rawat will be maintained by Lt Gen Chauhan.

Lt Gen Anil Chauhan (retd), a former eastern Army commander and director general of military operations, was on Wednesday appointed as India's new Chief of Defence Staff, more than nine months after the post fell vacant following the death of Gen Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash.

A decorated Army officer and a China expert, 61-year-old Chauhan will also function as Secretary in the Department of Military Affairs with effect from the date of his assumption of charge and until further orders.

Lt Gen Chauhan is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla and Indian Military Academy, Dehradun.

He has also written a book titled 'Aftermath of Nuclear Attack', which was published in 2010.