| Details : | Group Captain Sanjeev Kumar Mittal (17051) Administration was commissioned in the Indian Air Force in the Administrative Branch on 29 Dec 1982. He is on the posted strength of Air Force Station Tezpur with effect from (wef) 08 Feb 06. He performed the duties of Flight Commander Works and Environment Flight upto 09 Oct 07 and has now taken over the duties of Chief Administrative Officer wef 10 Oct 07 as permanent incumbent. At the time of his arrival, there were three fighter squadrons operating from this base. The runway which was over 65 years old had to be maintained to prevent any cases of FOD. This was done despite the constraints of not stopping flying and limited funds. Subsequently, the station underwent a major transformation since it was slated to host the first SU-30 MKI squadron in the North East, works costing over Rs. 500 crores had to be executed which mainly involved complete resurfacing and extension of the runway and building up state of the art infrastructure to house one of the most maintenance intensive aircraft in the IAF's inventory. This involved tremendous foresight, meticulous planning and flawless execution, and all this despite the inherent problems in the North East of terrorism, connectivity, labour, bandhs, insecurity and vagaries of weather. With his leadership, tact and man management skills, he overcome all hurdles to meet the PDC of 31 May 09. The runway was formally inaugurated by the AOC-in-C on 15 Jun 09 and the first SU-30 MKI operated from this base for a week. Further the station also had to look after Dulong Mukh, Air to Ground firing range located over 250 kms away in the heart of Arunachal Pradesh. He ensured the availability of the range continuously for day and night operations; despite the distance, extremely difficult road connectivity, no electricity and hardly any communications. In the year 2006-07, AF Stn Tezpur witnessed a high suicide rate amongst service personnel. Gp Capt Mittal through his concerted efforts brought down this undesirable trend to nil in year 2008 and 2009. He left no stone unturned many a times beyond his purview to improve the quality of life of air warriors and their families in the station. For distinguished service of high order, Hon'ble President is pleased to award 'Vishisht Seva Medal' to Group Captain Sanjeev Kumar Mittal. |
