Bot at 10:33, 23 December 2022

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{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2018}}
{{Infobox military person
| honorific_prefix = [[Lieutenant General]]
| name = D R Soni
| honorific_suffix = [[Param Vishisht Seva Medal|PVSM]], [[Vishisht Seva Medal|VSM]]
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| image = DR Soni GOC.jpg
| image_size = 200px
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| allegiance = {{IND}}
| branch = {{army|India}}
| serviceyears = June 1979 - September 2018
| rank = [[File:Lieutenant General of the Indian Army.svg|22px]] Lieutenant General
| servicenumber = IC-35987P
| unit = [[Central India Horse]]
| commands = [[Southern Command (India)|Southern Command]]<br>[[Army Training Command (India)|Army Training Command]]<br>[[X Corps (India)|X Corps]]<br>[[47th Armoured Regiment (India)|47 Armoured Regiment]]
| battles =
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| awards = [[File:Param Vishisht Seva Medal ribbon.svg|20px]] [[Param Vishisht Seva Medal]] <br> [[File:Vishisht Seva Medal ribbon.svg|20px]] [[Vishisht Seva Medal]]
| spouse = Colonel Suman Soni (retd.)
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}}

[[Lieutenant General]] '''Dewan Rabindranath Soni''', [[Param Vishisht Seva Medal|PVSM]], [[Vishisht Seva Medal|VSM]] is a former [[General officer commanding#Usage in the Indian Army|General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief]] (GOC-in-C), [[Southern Command (India)|Southern Command]] of the Indian Army. He served in office from 1 December 2017 till 30 September 2018. He assumed the post after Lieutenant General [[P M Hariz]] retired and was succeeded by Lt General [[Satinder Kumar Saini]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite news|url=http://indianexpress.com/article/india/lt-gen-dr-soni-takes-over-as-chief-of-southern-command-4964165/|title=Lt Gen Soni takes over as chief of Southern Command|date=2 December 2017|work=The Indian Express|access-date=4 December 2017|language=en-US|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171202032102/http://indianexpress.com/article/india/lt-gen-dr-soni-takes-over-as-chief-of-southern-command-4964165/|archivedate=2 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/lt-gen-saini-takes-charge-as-head-of-southern-command-118100101134_1.html|title=Lt Gen Saini takes charge as head of Southern Command|agency=Press Trust of India|date=2018-10-01|work=Business Standard India|access-date=2018-10-01}}</ref>

==Education and personal life==
Soni is an alumnus of the [[National Defence Academy]], [[Khadakwasla]] and [[Indian Military Academy]], [[Dehradun]]. In addition, he attended the Junior Command, Senior Command and Higher Command Courses at [[Army War College, Mhow|Army War College]], Mhow; the Staff Course at [[Defence Services Staff College]], Wellington; and the Combat Group Commanders Course at Armoured Corps Centre and School, [[Ahmednagar]]. He also has a master's degree in Global Security from [[Cranfield University]] and attended the [[Royal Military College of Science|Defence College of Management and Technology]], [[Shrivenham]] in the [[United Kingdom]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name="Lieutenant General D.R. Soni SP's Mil Year Book">{{cite web|url=http://www.spsmilitaryyearbook.com/profile/lt-general-dr-soni/|title=Lieutenant General D.R. Soni|website=SP's Military Year Book|accessdate=1 December 2017|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171204231829/http://www.spsmilitaryyearbook.com/profile/lt-general-dr-soni/|archivedate=4 December 2017}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite web|url=https://indianarmy.nic.in/Site/FormTemplete/frmTempSimple.aspx?MnId=y5+iSshGzP7XdBD/ft9sXg==&ParentID=pU4RzCzaNYIVUFwil2GEug==|title=Official Website of the Indian Army}}</ref><ref name="Lt Gen Soni is GOC-in-Chief of ARTRAC - Tribune">{{cite web|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/himachal/community/lt-gen-soni-is-goc-in-chief-of-artrac/296728.html|title=Lt Gen Soni is GOC-in-Chief of ARTRAC|date=18 September 2016|website=The Tribune|accessdate=1 December 2017|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20170825021725/http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/himachal/community/lt-gen-soni-is-goc-in-chief-of-artrac/296728.html|archivedate=25 August 2017}}</ref>

He is a sportsman and likes golf and tennis. He is married to Colonel Suman Soni (retd.), who served in the Army as a gynecologist for twenty-two years.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="Lt Gen Soni is GOC-in-Chief of ARTRAC - Tribune" />

== Career ==
Soni was commissioned into the [[Central India Horse]], a tank regiment of the Indian Army, in June 1979. Later, he was transferred to the [[47th Armoured Regiment (India)|47 Armoured Regiment]] on its raising in 1983. He has commanded an armoured brigade; an armoured division; 47 armoured Regiment (July 1999 - December 2001), [[X Corps (India)|X Corps]] (Bhatinda) (18 June 2015 – 16 September 2016) and GOC-in-C, [[Army Training Command]] (17 September 2016 – 30 November 2017). He has held various staff appointments including Brigade Major of an armoured brigade; Colonel Administration of a Counter Insurgency Force in Jammu and Kashmir, and Colonel General Staff of a Mountain Division in the Eastern Sector. He was also deputed as a military observer in Iraq and Kuwait after the Gulf War.<ref name=":0" /><ref name="Lieutenant General D.R. Soni SP's Mil Year Book" /><ref name=":1" />{{dead link|date=January 2018}}<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/news/bathinda/lt-gen-soni-takes-command-of-chetak-corps/95614.html|title=Lt Gen Soni takes command of Chetak Corps}}</ref>

During 39 years of his career, he has been awarded the [[Param Vishisht Seva Medal]] (2018), [[Vishisht Seva Medal]] (2015), the [[Chief of the Army Staff (India)|Chief of the Army Staff]]’s Commendation Card and the Commendation Card of the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C), [[Western Command (India)|Western Command]].<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=114924|title=Ashok Chakra Awarded to NK Neeraj Kumar Singh of 13 Rajputana Rifles (Posthumous) 374 Republic Day Gallantry and Other Defence Decorations Announced|website=pib.nic.in|access-date=4 December 2017|url-status=live|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20171204231824/http://pib.nic.in/newsite/PrintRelease.aspx?relid=114924|archivedate=4 December 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.pib.nic.in/PressReleseDetail.aspx?PRID=1517875|title=Press Information Bureau|website=www.pib.nic.in|language=en|access-date=2018-01-26}}</ref>

Lt. Gen. Soni retired on September 30, 2018 and was succeeded as the GOC-in-C of the Southern Command by [[Satinder Kumar Saini|Lt. Gen. S.K. Saini]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Lt. Gen. Saini takes charge of Southern Command |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/pune/lt-gen-saini-takes-overat-southern-command/articleshow/66034856.cms}}</ref>

==References==
{{reflist|colwidth=30em}}{{s-start}}
{{s-mil}}{{Succession box
| title = [[General officer commanding#Usage in the Indian Army|General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief]] [[Southern Command (India)|Southern Command]]
| years = 1 December 2017 - 30 September 2018
| before = [[P M Hariz]]
| after = [[Satinder Kumar Saini]]
}}{{Succession box
| title = [[General officer commanding#Usage in the Indian Army|General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief]] [[Army Training Command (India)|Army Training Command]]
| years = 17 September 2016 – 30 November 2017
| before = [[P M Hariz]]
| after = [[Manoj Mukund Naravane]]
}}
{{succession box
| title = General Officer Commanding [[X Corps (India)|X Corps]]
| years = 18 June 2015 – 16 September 2016
| before = [[P M Hariz]]
| after = P C Thimmaya
}}
{{s-end
}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Soni, Dewan Rabindranath}}
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Indian generals]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Vishisht Seva Medal]]
[[Category:National Defence Academy (India) alumni]]
[[Category:Indian Military Academy alumni]]
[[Category:Alumni of Cranfield University]]
[[Category:Year of birth missing (living people)]]
[[Category:Army War College, Mhow alumni]]

Dewan Rabindranath Soni - Revision history

Bot at 10:33, 23 December 2022