Shimla, July 1 (IANS): Lt Gen Devendra Sharma on Monday took over as the 25th General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Army Training Command (ARTRAC) in Shimla.

An alumnus of the Mayo College in Ajmer, the National Defence Academy (NDA), and the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Lt Gen Sharma is the recipient of the coveted ‘Sword of Honour’. He was also commissioned into ‘The Scinde Horse’ on December 19, 1987.

In an illustrious career spanning almost four decades, the General has tenanted important command appointments in varied sensitive operational sectors, counter-terrorism environments, and high-altitude terrains.

He has commanded ‘The Scinde Horse’, an armoured brigade as part of Strike Corps, an Infantry Division and a Corps on the Western Front. Lt Gen Sharma was also the Chief of Staff, Headquarters, Western Command, before taking over as the GO of ARTRAC.

His staff experience includes challenging assignments both in operational and administrative domains.

Lt Gen Sharma has been an instructor at the prestigious National Defence Academy, a Staff Officer Operations in the Indian Military Training Team, Bhutan, and the Chief Military Personnel Officer of the United Nations Mission in Congo.

ARTRAC has been a strategic location of the Indian Army for almost 150 years, It was the headquarters of the Indian Army during British rule from 1864 to 1939.

After Independence, the headquarters of the Western Command was located in Shimla during the India-Pakistan wars in 1948, 1965 and 1971, as well as during the India-China war of 1962.

The Western Command was shifted to Chandimandir in 1985.