General K. V Krishna Rao, the former Chief of Army Staff, has been the Governor of Jammu & Kashmir, for the first time,  from July 11, 1989 to January 19, 1990 and the second time, from March 13, 1993 till May 02, 1998. Gen. Rao was commissioned into the Indian Army in 1942 and saw action soon after, displaying even then a gift for leadership and coolness under fire. The high point came during the 1971 war, when in a series of brilliant manoeuvres, his division captured the Sylhet area and liberated north-east Bangladesh. General Rao retired as Chief of the Army Staff and Chairman Chiefs of Staff in 1983 and was appointed Governor of Nagaland, Manipur and Tripura in June 1984. He helped restore order to what was fast becoming a chaotic situation, with rising insurgency and political disarray.