Pune: Lieutenant General Pankaj P Rao has officially taken over as the Director and Commandant of the Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune. A distinguished alumnus of AFMC, Pune, Lt Gen Rao was commissioned into the Indian Army in 1987 and has since built a remarkable career in military medicine, spanning over 38 years.
Lt Gen Rao’s extensive medical education includes an MS in General Surgery from AFMC, Pune (1995), a Fellowship in GI Surgery from AIIMS, New Delhi (2004), and a Fellowship in Liver Transplantation from Medanta Hospital, New Delhi (2012).
Over the years, he has served in various esteemed academic, clinical, and administrative roles. His tenure includes appointments as a Surgical Specialist at HQ, IMTRAT, Bhutan; Senior Advisor (Surgery) at Army Hospital (Research & Referral), New Delhi, and Command Hospital, Pune; Professor & HoD, Department of Surgery, AFMC, Pune; and Commandant, Military Hospital, Wellington.
Upon his promotion to Major General, he took charge of Command Hospital, Central Command, where his leadership led the hospital to secure the first runners-up position in the prestigious Raksha Mantri Trophy.
Before assuming his current appointment, Lt Gen Rao served as the Senior Consultant (Surgery) at the Office of the Director General Armed Forces Medical Services, New Delhi.
In this role, he played a key part in revising the Combat Casualty Care doctrine, enhancing training frameworks, and optimizing course content. He also spearheaded initiatives to promote organ donation in the Armed Forces and contributed significantly to restructuring the Annual Specialist Returns framework.
A dedicated mentor and researcher, Lt Gen Rao has guided numerous postgraduate and super-specialty students. His research contributions include over 60 publications in leading international and national indexed journals.
He has led multiple projects under the Armed Forces Medical Research Committee (AFMRC) and has been recognized with prestigious awards, including the Chief of Air Staff Best Paper Award (2015) and the Best Research Paper Award at AFMRC (2016).
One of his most notable achievements is leading the liver transplant team at Army Hospital (R&R), New Delhi, during his tenure as Senior Advisor (Surgery). For his outstanding contributions, Lt Gen Rao was awarded the Chief of Army Staff Commendation in 2001.
