61 year old Lieutant General Alok Singh Kler , PVSM, VSM, ADC, a retired General Officer in the Indian Army, who last served as The Army Commander of the South Western Command, is a cycling afficionado, He made news when he cycled 270 km from Delhi to Jaipur to take command of the South Western Command. As an Army Commander, he was entitled to fly down to his headquarters or drive down in a cavalcade of military vehicles.
Drawn to the 2,500 km Atulya Ganga cyclothon due to his passion for cycling, and physical fitness General Alok led from the front on all the 28 days and was difficult to rein in. He could reach the night halt hours ahead of the rest, but always a team man, held himself in check.
So taken up was General Alok with the mission Atulya Ganga and its effort to create public awareness for the need of public pariticipation (Jan Bhagedari), he delivered many inspiring, impassioned talks to NCC cadets and young students all along the way. The General said that by the time the cyclothon finished, he had become Ganga.
General Alok hails from a military family which originated in Kakrala Kalan near Ludhiana, Punjab, India. The family has over 300 years of service in the Indian Armed Forces. His father, Gen Gurdev Singh Kler was Mentioned in dispatches (MiD) in Sialkot in Indo-Pakistani War of 1965 fighting with 18th Cavalry. Commanding 56 Brigade, he was awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) for capturing the largest group of armed insurgents in Nagaland in the 1970s. His elder brother, Jasjit Singh Kler was in the Indian Air Force. He served as the Commandant of the National Defence Academy before retiring as an Air Marshal. His Uncle, Gen Hardev Singh Kler was awarded the Mahavir Chakra in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 for commanding 95 Brigade. His formation was among the first to enter Dhaka. Alok’s father-in-law, Brigadier Narinder Singh Sandhu saw action in both the wars of 1965 and 1971 and was awarded the Mahavir Chakra.
Alok attended Mayo College, Ajmer before graduating from the National Defence Academy and the Indian Military Academy. He commanded an Armoured regiment, an Armoured Brigade in the western sector and the same Armoured Division which was commanded by his father. He later commanded the Strike Corps (II Corps) in the Western theatre.
He also carried out a para jump, after taking over the South Western Command. He had earlier, as the Director General Military Training, carried out a para jump Nasik by service aircraft from 10,000-12,000 feet.