JAMMU:On Republic Day, Lieutenant General Narendra Kotwal (SM, VSM), a native of Pune and the director and commandant of the esteemed Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), was awarded the esteemed Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM). Gen. Kotwal is the first person from the Chenab Valley to become a Lieutenant General; he is from the Doda area of Jammu and Kashmir. The General Officer of AFMC, who graduated from Government Medical College in Jammu, specialised in internal medicine (MD) and earned a Diplomate of the National Board of Examinations (DNB) in medicine. He proceeded with his outstanding academic career by earning a Doctorate of Medicine (DM) in Endocrinology from PGIMER ChandigarhThe General Officer also holds an M.Phil. in Defence and Strategic Studies from the esteemed National Defence College in New Delhi. As evidence of his academic excellence and prominence in the medical community, he was elected President of the Endocrine Society of India and is a Member of the National Academy of Medical Sciences (MNAMS). In addition to his many scientific papers, he has served as an academic mentor to countless postgraduate and super speciality students and serves as a reviewer for multiple national and international academic journals.Over the course of his impeccable nearly forty-year service career, the General Officer has had the honour of treating four Indian Presidents. Additionally, he has held the highly sought-after positions of Member, Standard Treatment Workflows (STWs) by Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), Advisor, UPSC for empanelment of advisors, and Member, Specialist Committee under Ayushman Bharat Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana. In addition, he held the positions of Secretary for the Indian Thyroid Society and Vice President for the Endocrinology Society of India. The General Officer comes from a long tradition of intellectual excellence. His mother, Bimla Baloria, is the director of KNIT Institute and is also an educationist. His father, Prof. JL Kotwal, is a well-known social reformer and educator.
