O P Mehra | |
|---|---|
 Air Chief Marshal Om Prakash Mehra | |
| 8th Chief of Air Staff | |
| In office 16 January 1973 – 31 January 1976 | |
| President | V. V. Giri[1] |
| Prime Minister | Indira Gandhi[2] |
| Preceded by | Pratap Chandra Lal |
| Succeeded by | Hrushikesh Moolgavkar |
| 11thGovernor of Maharashtra | |
| In office 3 November 1980 – 5 March 1982 | |
| Chief Minister | |
| Preceded by | Sri Sadiq Ali |
| Succeeded by | Air Chief Marshal I H Latif |
| 6thGovernor of Rajasthan | |
| In office 6 March 1982 – 4 January 1985 | |
| Preceded by | K. D. Sharma |
| Succeeded by | Vasantrao Patil |
| 5thPresident of Indian Olympic Association | |
| In office 1975–1980 | |
| Preceded by | Bhalindra Singh |
| Succeeded by | Bhalindra Singh |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1919-01-19)19 January 1919 |
| Died | 8 November 2015(2015-11-08) (aged 96) New Delhi, India |
| Alma mater | Sacred Heart Convent Central Model School Government College University Punjab University |
| Awards | |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  British India (1940–1947) India (from 1947) |
| Branch/service |  Royal Indian Air Force Indian Air Force |
| Years of service | 1940-1976 |
| Rank | Air Chief Marshal |
| Commands | Maintenance Command No. 3 Squadron IAF |
| Battles/wars | World War II Indo-Pakistani War (1965) |
Air Chief MarshalOm Prakash Mehra,PVSM (19 January 1919 – 8 November 2015) was a former air officer in theIndian Air Force. He served as theChief of the Air Staff from 1973 to 1976. He receivedParam Vishisht Seva Medal (PVSM), the highest military award for peace-time service, in 1968. He was awardedPadma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian honour, in 1977. He later becameGovernor of Maharashtra from 1980 to 1982, andGovernor of Rajasthan from 1985 to 1987. He married Satya Mehra and has four children with her Sunil, Parveen, Rahul, and Amitava and numerous grand children.
Mehra was born on 19 January 1918 atLahore. His basic education was at the Sacred Heart Convent. He finished school at the Central Model School in 1933 and joinedGovernment College University, Lahore and completed a master's degree in history from thePunjab University in 1940.[3][4]
After a short spell of flying at the Northern India Flying Club,Lahore, he was selected for the Indian Air Force and joined the services as aPilot Officer on 30 November 1940.[3] On completion of his training, he was posted toNo.1 Squadron in August 1941. In March 1946 Mehra was selected to serve as theIndian Air force representative at the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Australia, an organization set up to provide administrative and logistics support to theBritish Commonwealth Occupation Forces located inJapan. In view of the nationalization of the armed forces, he was recalled and posted in February 1947 as the Chief Ground Instructor at the No.1 Advanced Flying SchoolAmbala, to replace the RAF officer who was returning home.
In August 1947, he was promoted to the rank of Wing Commander and posted as Commandant of the Elementary Flying Training School atJodhpur. On promotion to the rank ofAir Vice Marshal in August 1963, he took over asAir Officer Commanding-in-ChiefMaintenance Command, in which capacity he served during the 1965 War. On 26 January 1968, he was awarded theParam Vishisht Seva Medal,[5] and promoted toAir Marshal in March 1968. Soon thereafter he was posted as Deputy Chief of Air Staff, Air Headquarters. In early 1971, he was deputed as Chairman ofHindustan Aeronautics Limited,Bangalore. On 15 January 1973, he returned to Air Headquarters, designated as the new Chief of Air Staff, succeeding Air Chief MarshalPC Lal.[6] He credited his success toSathya Sai Baba and became his avowed devotee. (http://www.vedamu.org/features/FMrOPMehra.aspx)
Mehra relinquished the post to Air Chief MarshalHrushikesh Moolgavkar on 31 January 1976, on completion of his tenure.[7]
After his retirement, he represented India at aUNESCO meeting inParis as deputy leader of India's team. He was the recipient ofPadma Vibhushan in January 1977.[8] He went on to serve as the governor of Maharashtra from 3 November 1980 to 5 March 1982.[3] This was followed by his posting as Governor of Rajasthan from 6 March 1982 to 4 November 1985.[9][10]
Air Chief Marshal Mehra was elected president of theIndian Olympic Association in 1975, and was responsible for the hosting by India of the1982 Asian Games. From 1978 to 1980 he was President of the Asian Games Federation, currently known as theOlympic Council of Asia, and continued to be the Honorary Life President of theOlympic Council of Asia.[3] He was an honorary life member of the Durand Football Tournament Society, which organizes theDurand Cup.[11]
In January, 2010, his autobiography,Memories: Sweet and Sour, was released by M. Hamid Ansari, Vice President of India in New Delhi.[12] He was chairman, Board of Advisors ofCentre for Air Power Studies.[13]
In 2012, he was living in Delhi, and was the oldest living student ofPanjab University, Chandigarh.[4][14] He died on 8 November 2015 at the age of 96.[15]
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Air Officer Commanding-in-ChiefMaintenance Command 1963–1967 | Succeeded by H. N. Chatterjee |
| Preceded by | Deputy Chief of the Air Staff (India) 1969–1971 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chief of the Air Staff 1973–1976 | Succeeded by |
| Civic offices | ||
| Preceded by | President of the Indian Olympic Association 1975–1980 | Succeeded by |
| Government offices | ||
| Preceded by | Governor of Maharashtra 1980–1982 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by K. D. Sharma (acting) | Governor of Rajasthan 1982–1985 | Succeeded by |
| Air Marshal Commanding, Royal Indian Air Force (1947–1948) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Chief of the Air Staff and Commander-in-Chief, Royal Indian Air Force (1948–1950) | ||
| Chief of the Air Staff and Commander-in-Chief, Indian Air Force (1950–1955) | ||
| Chief of the Air Staff (1955–present) |
| |
(**Seconded from theRoyal Air Force) | ||
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