Retd. Major Gaurav Arya is a Senior Consulting Editor of Strategic Affairs at Republic Media Network. He is also a writer and a famous public speaker. He talks about defence, leadership, motivation, team building, strategic affairs, national security and capability building. He briefly served in the Indian army for 6 six years before his career was cut short due to medical reasons in 1999. He came in the public eye after his “Open Letter to Burhan Wani” went viral in 2016.
Wiki/Biography
Gaurav Arya was born on Monday, 25 September 1972 (age 48 years; as of 2020), in Delhi, India.
A childhood picture of Gaurav Arya when he was a three-year-old kid
He graduated with an honours degree in history from St. Stephens College, Delhi in 1992. Thereafter, in 1993, he cracked the SSB exam and joined in the Indian Army Short Service Commission as a second lieutenant in 1993. He voluntarily retired from the Indian Army in 1999, due to medical reasons. After leaving the armed forces, he did an MBA in Marketing & Sales from IITC, Lucknow, and therefore, embarked on his corporate career.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx): 5′ 9″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family
Gaurav Arya was born into a well-reputed family. His father was an IPS officer of 1960 batch. There is not much information available about his family.
Career
In the Armed Forces
In April 1993, Gaurav joined the Officer’s Training Academy (OTA) Chennai and was enrolled in the Jessami Company of the academy.
First from left, Gentleman Cadet Gaurav Arya at Officer’s Training Academy in Chennai
First from left, Gaurav Arya during his training days in 1993
After he completed his training, he got commissioned as a second lieutenant in the 17th battalion of Kumaon Regiment in the Indian Army.
Second Lieutenant Gaurav Arya’s picture from 1994
Until 2006, the Indian Army used to offer the option to join the service as a Commissioned Officer for a period of five years, further extendable to five plus four years (5+5+4). [1]The Print After completing five years in the Indian armed forces, Gaurav took an extension for another five years. Despite that, he could only continue his service for one more year, as he had to take early retirement from his service in 1999 due to medical reasons.
In the Corporate Sector
After retiring as a Major from the Indian Army, Gaurav Arya completed his MBA and transitioned into the corporate world. He worked in various administrative positions at HCL, Hutch (now Vodafone), Wipro, Ernst & Young, Spice Retail Ltd, Sterea Infratech Ltd, and Smart Group, prior to joining Republic TV Network as a Senior Consulting Editor of Strategic Affairs in March 2017.
Open letter to Burhan Wani & Media debut
In July 2016, Gaurav Arya wrote an article for Swarajya, “Open letter to Burhan Wani,” criticising the people who were protesting against the encounter of a Hizbul terrorist, Burhan Wani. He also wrote in the letter about the situation in Kashmir and how the separatism movements have bought nothing for the Kashmiri people. He said that the Separatists in Kashmir feed on the blood of men and send young Kashmiris like Burhan Wani to face the army.
He concluded the letter by saying,
You were a terrorist. You chose to wage war against India. Like for all other such perpetrators in the past, it didn’t go too well for you. When you choose to fight against the Indian Army, know this; THEY WILL KILL YOU. Your supporters now want blood. So be it. Cheers!”
The letter received an overwhelming response, both online and in the mainstream media across India. He even got a call of appreciation from the then serving Army General of India. The next day, he was was invited by a News channel to join the panel for a debate on Burhan Wani’s encounter. Consequently, he started receiving invitations from various News channels to join debates in their shows.
Facts/Trivia
- In 1996, he was stationed in the Lahaul Spiti area when he slid off a cliff and ended up being buried under heaps of snow. He stayed under the snow for a couple of hours until he was rescued by the battalion. It was after this incident; he developed a lung infection which forced him to take early retirement.
- As a public speaker, he has given speeches at various prominent institutions and corporates across the world, including Oxford University, Indian Military Academy in Dehradun, IIT Roorkee, Dell Computers, Samsung India Ltd, etc. In 2017, he was invited in the UK Parliament to speak on the situation of Jammu & Kashmir.
- He hosts a show, “Patriot,” on Republic TV. The TV show presents to the public, the life of Indian Army soldiers on duty and the hardships faces by them.
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