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{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2022}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2013}}
{{Use British English|date=November 2022}}
{{Infobox military person
{{Infobox military person
| honorific_prefix = [[Lieutenant General]]
| honorific_prefix = [[Lieutenant General]]
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|commands= [[File:IA_Northern_Command.jpg|20px]] [[Northern Command (India)|Northern Army]]<br/>[[File:IA_Central_Command.jpg|20px]] [[Central Command (India)|Central Army]]<br/> [[Indian Military Academy]]<br>165 Infantry Brigade
|commands= [[File:IA_Northern_Command.jpg|20px]] [[Northern Command (India)|Northern Army]]<br/>[[File:IA_Central_Command.jpg|20px]] [[Central Command (India)|Central Army]]<br/> [[Indian Military Academy]]<br>165 Infantry Brigade
|battles=[[World War II]]<br />[[Indo-Pakistan War of 1947]]<br />[[Sino-Indian War]]<br />[[Indo-Pakistan War of 1965]]<br />[[Indo-Pakistan War of 1971]]
|battles=[[World War II]]<br />[[Indo-Pakistan War of 1947]]<br />[[Sino-Indian War]]<br />[[Indo-Pakistan War of 1965]]<br />[[Indo-Pakistan War of 1971]]
|awards=[[File:Victoria Cross (UK) ribbon.png|32px]] [[Victoria Cross]]<br>[[File:Param Vishisht Seva Medal ribbon.svg|32px]] [[Param Vishisht Seva Medal]]
|awards=[[File:UK Victoria Cross ribbon bar.svg|32px]] [[Victoria Cross]]<br>[[File:Param Vishisht Seva Medal ribbon.svg|32px]] [[Param Vishisht Seva Medal]]
|relations= [[Mirai Chatterjee]] (niece)
|relations= [[Mirai Chatterjee]] (niece)
|laterwork= Chairman of the [[Damodar Valley Corporation]] (1974-1975)
|laterwork= Chairman of the [[Damodar Valley Corporation]] (1974-1975)
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==Military career==
==Military career==
Bhagat applied himself to his studies in his final year and was commissioned in the [[British Indian Army]] on 15 July 1939 as a [[Second lieutenant]] (2Lt.) in the [[Bombay Engineer Group|Royal Bombay Sappers and Miners]]. He was posted to the 21 Field Company of Engineers at [[Pune]] in September, shortly after war began in Europe.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://sikhli.info/index.php/colonel1 |title=Archived copy |access-date=2009-09-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510120402/http://sikhli.info/index.php/colonel1 |archive-date=10 May 2012}}</ref>
Bhagat applied himself to his studies in his final year and was commissioned in the [[British Indian Army]] on 15 July 1939 as a [[Second lieutenant]] (2Lt.) in the [[Bombay Engineer Group|Royal Bombay Sappers and Miners]]. He was posted to the 21 Field Company of Engineers at [[Pune]] in September, shortly after war began in Europe.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://sikhli.info/index.php/colonel1 |title=1 - Value Domain:バリュードメイン |access-date=2009-09-16 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120510120402/http://sikhli.info/index.php/colonel1 |archive-date=10 May 2022}}</ref>


===World War II===
===World War II===
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At 22, the [[Second Lieutenant]] ([[King's Commissioned Indian Officer]]) in the [[Corps of Indian Engineers]], [[Indian Army]], attd. [[Royal Bombay Sappers and Miners]] during the [[Second World War]] when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross:
At 22, the [[Second Lieutenant]] ([[King's Commissioned Indian Officer]]) in the [[Corps of Indian Engineers]], [[Indian Army]], attd. [[Royal Bombay Sappers and Miners]] during the [[Second World War]] when the following deed took place for which he was awarded the Victoria Cross:


{{Quotation|<center>''War Office, 10th June, 1941''</center>
{{Quotation|{{center|''War Office, 10th June, 1941''}}


His Majesty The KING has been graciously pleased to approve of the award of the Victoria Cross to the undermentioned officer: —
His Majesty The KING has been graciously pleased to approve of the award of the Victoria Cross to the undermentioned officer: —
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His coolness, persistence over a period of 96 hours, and gallantry, not only in battle, but throughout the long period when the safety of the Column and the speed at which it could advance were dependent on his personal efforts, were of the highest order. — London Gazette: 10 June 1941<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=35186 |supp=y |page=3307 |date= 10 June 1941 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.remuseum.org.uk/rem_his_vc.htm#1b Royal Engineers Museum] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061218200907/http://www.remuseum.org.uk/rem_his_vc.htm |date=18 December 2006 }} Sappers VCs</ref>}}
His coolness, persistence over a period of 96 hours, and gallantry, not only in battle, but throughout the long period when the safety of the Column and the speed at which it could advance were dependent on his personal efforts, were of the highest order. — London Gazette: 10 June 1941<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=35186 |supp=y |page=3307 |date= 10 June 1941 }}</ref><ref>[http://www.remuseum.org.uk/rem_his_vc.htm#1b Royal Engineers Museum] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061218200907/http://www.remuseum.org.uk/rem_his_vc.htm |date=18 December 2006 }} Sappers VCs</ref>}}
   
   
On 24 February 1942 in [[Pune]], Bhagat married Mohini Bhandari (b. 1923), the daughter of a colonel in the [[Indian Army Medical Corps]]. He spent the remainder of the war away from the front, first as a successful recruiting officer for the Bombay Sappers and then as the commanding officer of 484 Field Company. In mid-1943, the unit was posted to [[Chhindwara]] in the [[Central Provinces]] for training in jungle warfare for the war in Burma. In January 1945, Bhagat was nominated to attend a course at [[Staff College, Camberley|Camberley Staff College]] and became one of the first two Indian officers to attend Staff College in the United Kingdom. At the end of the war in August 1945, Bhagat returned to India and attended a course at the School of Military Engineering at Roorkee. He then returned to England in June 1946 to complete a further engineering course and was promoted to substantive captain on 1 July 1946,<ref name="Indian_Army_List_47">{{cite book|pages=249A|title=Indian Army List (Special Edition) 1947|publisher=Government of India Press|year=1947}}</ref> returning to India in June 1947.<ref name="12 Soldiers"/> Bhagat was the highest decorated officer in the Indian Army at Indian independence.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Verma|first1=Shiv Kunal|title=1962: The War That Wasn't|date=2016|publisher=Aleph Book Company|location=Chapter: Introduction|isbn=9382277978|language=en}}</ref>
On 24 February 1942 in [[Pune]], Bhagat married Mohini Bhandari (b. 1923), the daughter of a colonel in the [[Indian Army Medical Corps]]. He spent the remainder of the war away from the front, first as a successful recruiting officer for the Bombay Sappers and then as the commanding officer of 484 Field Company. In mid-1943, the unit was posted to [[Chhindwara]] in the [[Central Provinces]] for training in jungle warfare for the war in Burma. In January 1945, Bhagat was nominated to attend a course at [[Staff College, Camberley|Camberley Staff College]] and became one of the first two Indian officers to attend Staff College in the United Kingdom. At the end of the war in August 1945, Bhagat returned to India and attended a course at the School of Military Engineering at Roorkee. He then returned to England in June 1946 to complete a further engineering course and was promoted to substantive captain on 1 July 1946,<ref name="Indian_Army_List_47">{{cite book|pages=249A|title=Indian Army List (Special Edition) 1947|publisher=Government of India Press|year=1947}}</ref> returning to India in June 1947.<ref name="12 Soldiers"/> Bhagat was the highest decorated officer in the Indian Army at Indian independence.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Verma|first1=Shiv Kunal|title=1962: The War That Wasn't|date=2016|publisher=Aleph Book Company|location=Chapter: Introduction|isbn=978-9382277972|language=en}}</ref>


==Post-Independence==
==Post-Independence==
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Promoted acting [[major-general]] on 14 May 1963, he was appointed Chief of Staff (COS) for Eastern Command.<ref name="COS_EHQ">{{cite news |title=Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch) |page=306  |date=14 September 1963 |publisher=The Gazette of India}}</ref> He was appointed GOC of a mountain division on 18 September 1964,<ref>{{cite news |title=Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch) |page=440  |date=31 October 1964 |publisher=The Gazette of India}}</ref> and promoted to major-general in 1965. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general op on 19 May 1967,<ref name="lt_gen">{{cite news |title=Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch) |page=558 |date=22 July 1967 |publisher=The Gazette of India}}</ref> and subsequently took over as the [[General Officer Commanding|General Officer Commanding-in-Chief]] (GOC-in-C) of the [[Central Command (India)|Central Command]] on 4 August 1970.<ref>{{cite news |title=Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch) |page=1556  |date=26 December 1970 |publisher=The Gazette of India}}</ref> In June 1972, he became the first GOC-in-C of the re-established [[Northern Command (India)|Northern Command]], in [[Udhampur]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]].<ref name="12 Soldiers"/>{{rp|286}} He was also awarded the [[Param Vishisht Seva Medal]] (PVSM).
Promoted acting [[major-general]] on 14 May 1963, he was appointed Chief of Staff (COS) for Eastern Command.<ref name="COS_EHQ">{{cite news |title=Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch) |page=306  |date=14 September 1963 |publisher=The Gazette of India}}</ref> He was appointed GOC of a mountain division on 18 September 1964,<ref>{{cite news |title=Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch) |page=440  |date=31 October 1964 |publisher=The Gazette of India}}</ref> and promoted to major-general in 1965. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant general op on 19 May 1967,<ref name="lt_gen">{{cite news |title=Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch) |page=558 |date=22 July 1967 |publisher=The Gazette of India}}</ref> and subsequently took over as the [[General Officer Commanding|General Officer Commanding-in-Chief]] (GOC-in-C) of the [[Central Command (India)|Central Command]] on 4 August 1970.<ref>{{cite news |title=Part I-Section 4: Ministry of Defence (Army Branch) |page=1556  |date=26 December 1970 |publisher=The Gazette of India}}</ref> In June 1972, he became the first GOC-in-C of the re-established [[Northern Command (India)|Northern Command]], in [[Udhampur]], [[Jammu and Kashmir (state)|Jammu and Kashmir]].<ref name="12 Soldiers"/>{{rp|286}} He was also awarded the [[Param Vishisht Seva Medal]] (PVSM).


In January 1973, the [[Chief of the Army Staff (India)|Chief of the Army Staff]], [[Field Marshal (India)|Field Marshal]] [[Sam Manekshaw]] was to relinquish office. Although Manekshaw's choice of successor was Lieutenant General Bhagat, [[Indira Gandhi|Prime Minister Gandhi]] was under tremendous pressure from the former [[Minister of Defence (India)|Minister of Defence]], [[Yashwantrao Chavan]], to appoint Lieutenant General [[Gopal Gurunath Bewoor]] as the next COAS. A possible reason for this is that Chavvan and Bewoor both had connections to Maharashtra, which would essentially be considered nepotism.  However, Bewoor was senior to Bhagat, but Bhagat could still conceivably become army chief when Bewoor was to retire on his 58th birthday.  But, the Government extended Bewoor's tenure by nine months to give him a full two years on the job.  By many that was construed as a deliberate manipulation to deny Bhagat the position of COAS.  That decision resulted effectively to end Bhagat's army career, as he retired naturally a few months later.  Bhagat was a strong General who was also very popular in the army.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Depinder, Lt. Gen.|title=Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw Soldiering with Dignity|publisher=Natraj Publishers|isbn=978-81-8501-902-4|pages=203}}</ref>
In January 1973, the [[Chief of the Army Staff (India)|Chief of the Army Staff]], [[Field Marshal (India)|Field Marshal]] [[Sam Manekshaw]] was to relinquish office. Although Manekshaw's choice of successor was Lieutenant General Bhagat, however, Lt General Bewoor was senior to Bhagat, but Bhagat could still conceivably become army chief when Bewoor was to retire on his 58th birthday.  But, the Government extended Bewoor's tenure by nine months to give him a full two years on the job.  By many that was construed as a deliberate manipulation to deny Bhagat the position of COAS.  That decision resulted effectively to end Bhagat's army career, as he retired naturally a few months later.  Bhagat was a strong General who was also very popular in the army.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Singh|first1=Depinder, Lt. Gen.|title=Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw Soldiering with Dignity|year=2002 |publisher=Natraj Publishers|isbn=978-81-8501-902-4|pages=203}}</ref>


==Post-retirement==
==Post-retirement==
In July 1974, he became Chairman of the [[Damodar Valley Corporation]], a major electric utility company. He arranged to remain in army service while he headed DVC. During his tenure, DVC increased its power production from 45 MW to 700 MW, and its morale and productivity improved greatly.
In July 1974, he became Chairman of the [[Damodar Valley Corporation]], a major electric utility company. He arranged to remain in army service while he headed DVC. During his tenure, DVC increased its power production from 45 MW to 700 MW, and its morale and productivity improved greatly.
<ref>[http://veekay-militaryhistory.blogspot.com/2012/10/biography-lieut-general-ps-bhagat-pvsm.html Biography -Lieut. General P.S. Bhagat, PVSM, VC] veekay's history book [sic] Retrieved 12 November 2014</ref><ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/hindi/multimedia/2014/10/141017_vivechana_general_ps_bhagat_sdp General Bhagat: Officer and Gentleman] BBC News Hindi</ref> However, after only ten months at DVC, Bhagat died on 23 May 1975 of [[anaphylactic shock]] after an injection of [[penicillin]], to which he was allergic, by a careless military doctor.<ref name="12 Soldiers"/> His wife, Mohini Bhagat, presented Bhagat's medals, including his Victoria Cross, to the museum of the Bombay Sappers in Pune on 1 February 1976, where they remain on display.<ref name="VC_love_story">{{cite book |title=The Victoria Cross: a love story |last=Varma |first=Ashali |year=2013 |publisher=Pearson |isbn=8131774597 }}</ref>
<ref>[http://veekay-militaryhistory.blogspot.com/2012/10/biography-lieut-general-ps-bhagat-pvsm.html Biography -Lieut. General P.S. Bhagat, PVSM, VC] veekay's history book [sic] Retrieved 12 November 2014</ref><ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/hindi/multimedia/2014/10/141017_vivechana_general_ps_bhagat_sdp General Bhagat: Officer and Gentleman] BBC News Hindi</ref> However, after only ten months at DVC, Bhagat died on 23 May 1975 of [[anaphylactic shock]] after an injection of [[penicillin]], to which he was allergic, by a careless military doctor.<ref name="12 Soldiers"/> His wife, Mohini Bhagat, presented Bhagat's medals, including his Victoria Cross, to the museum of the Bombay Sappers in Pune on 1 February 1976, where they remain on display.<ref name="VC_love_story">{{cite book |title=The Victoria Cross: a love story |last=Varma |first=Ashali |year=2013 |publisher=Pearson |isbn=978-8131774595 }}</ref>


==Dates of rank==
==Dates of rank==
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|align="center" |[[File:British_Army_(1920-1953)_OF-4.svg|35px]] || [[Lieutenant colonel (United Kingdom)|Lieutenant-Colonel]] ||Indian Army || 1 September 1947 (acting)<br>July 1948 (temporary)<ref name="insignia" group="note"/>
|align="center" |[[File:British_Army_(1920-1953)_OF-4.svg|35px]] || [[Lieutenant colonel (United Kingdom)|Lieutenant-Colonel]] ||Indian Army || 1 September 1947 (acting)<br>July 1948 (temporary)<ref name="insignia" group="note"/>
|-
|-
|align="center" |[[File:Captain_of_the_Indian_Army.svg|35px]] || Captain || Indian Army || 26 January 1950 (recommissioning and change in insignia)<ref name="insignia_designs">{{cite web|title=New Designs of Crests and Badges in the Services|url=http://pib.nic.in/archive/docs/DVD_38/ACC%20NO%20807-BR/HOM-1950-01-06_484.pdf|website=Press Information Bureau of India - Archive|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808193914/http://pib.nic.in/archive/docs/DVD_38/ACC%20NO%20807-BR/HOM-1950-01-06_484.pdf|archive-date=8 August 2017}}</ref>
|align="center" |[[File:Captain_of_the_Indian_Army.svg|35px]] || Captain || Indian Army || 26 January 1950 (recommissioning and change in insignia)<ref name="insignia_designs">{{cite web|title=New Designs of Crests and Badges in the Services|url=http://pib.nic.in/archive/docs/DVD_38/ACC%20NO%20807-BR/HOM-1950-01-06_484.pdf|website=Press Information Bureau of India - Archive|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170808193914/http://pib.nic.in/archive/docs/DVD_38/ACC%20NO%20807-BR/HOM-1950-01-06_484.pdf|archive-date=8 August 2022}}</ref>
|-
|-
|align="center" |[[File:Major_of_the_Indian_Army.svg|35px]] || Major || Indian Army || 28 August 1951 (substantive)<ref name="major"/>
|align="center" |[[File:Major_of_the_Indian_Army.svg|35px]] || Major || Indian Army || 28 August 1951 (substantive)<ref name="major"/>
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[[Category:People from Gorakhpur]]
[[Category:People from Gorakhpur]]
[[Category:Indian military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]
[[Category:Indian military personnel of the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971]]
[[Category:Respiratory disease deaths in India]]
[[Category:Deaths from anaphylaxis]]
[[Category:Deaths from anaphylaxis]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Param Vishisht Seva Medal]]
[[Category:Indian Military Academy alumni]]
[[Category:Indian Military Academy alumni]]
[[Category:Commandants of Indian Military Academy]]
[[Category:Commandants of Indian Military Academy]]
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