F. N. Billimoria

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Lieutenant General

F N Billimoria

PVSM
Nickname(s)Billy
Born1933
India
Died2005
AllegianceBritish Indian Empire
 India
Service/branchBritish Indian Army
 Indian Army
Years of service1955-1993
RankLieutenant General of the Indian Army.svg Lieutenant General
Unit2/5 Gorkha Rifles and 27th Mountain Division
Commands heldX Corps
2/5 Gorkha Rifles
Battles/warsIndo-Pakistani War of 1971
AwardsParam Vishisht Seva Medal ribbon.svg Param Vishisht Seva Medal
RelationsKaran Bilimoria, Baron Bilimoria (son)

Lieutenant General Faridoon Noshir 'Billy' Billimoria, PVSM (1933–2005) was an Indian Army officer who was the 15th General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Command. He commanded a battalion in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.[1] He was also the commandant of the Defence Services Staff College in 1986.[2]

Early life and education[]

Bilimoria attended The Doon School and then joined the 2nd course of the Joint Services Wing (JSW), a forerunner of the National Defence Academy (NDA).[3][4]

Career[]

Bilimoria served as aide-de-camp to the first Indian President, Dr Rajendra Prasad.[5] He commanded 2/5 Gorkha Rifles during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.

Bilimoria, while he was the Central Army Commander, was also sent by the Government of India to Sri Lanka in 1990 to review the work of the Indian Peace Keeping Force which had been deployed during the Sri Lankan Civil War under the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord, and it was on his recommendations that the force was recalled in 1990, ending India's military engagement with the LTTE.[6]

Legacy[]

The Lieutenant General F N Billimoria trophy, named after him, is awarded to the best officer in the graduating class of Army Medical Corps Centre & School in the Lucknow Cantonment.[7]

Personal life[]

He married his wife Yasmin in January 1960 at Secunderabad. They have two sons. Karan Bilimoria, Baron Bilimoria, the British Indian entreprenuer who founded Cobra Beer is his son. [8]

References[]

  1. ^ "Ft-Lt Raina adjudged best". The Times of India. 24 February 2004. Archived from the original on 1 July 2012. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
  2. ^ http://www.dssc.gov.in/history/DSSC,%20Wellington%20-%20TIMELINE.pdf[bare URL]
  3. ^ Indian Defence Review 1990, pg. 133 "Lieutenant, General Billimoria F.N., G.O.C-in-command....Education:The Doon School"
  4. ^ "Lt Gen FN Bilimoria: A Soldier's General". thecitizen.in.
  5. ^ kanwar, raj. "Lt Gen FN Bilimoria: A Soldier". The Citizen. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
  6. ^ "Lieutenant-General Faridoon Bilimoria".
  7. ^ "Indian Navy | Best Officer [www.bharat-rakshak.com]". Bharat-rakshak.com. Retrieved 28 March 2012.
  8. ^ kanwar, raj. "Lt Gen FN Bilimoria: A Soldier". The Citizen. Retrieved 26 June 2020.
Military offices
Preceded by
Mahipat Sinhji
 Commandant of the Defence Services Staff College
1986 - 1987 		Succeeded by
Gurinder Singh
Preceded by General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Command
1989 - 1991 		Succeeded by
Vijai Singh
Retrieved from ""