Lt. Gen. Pande, the next Army Chief, is the first engineer to hold the position

*Paromita Das

After incumbent Gen MM Naravane’s tenure ends on April 30, Lt Gen Manoj Pande will take over as the 29th Chief of the Army Staff.

Lt Gen Pande, who is currently serving as vice chief, will be the first Corps of Engineers commander to command the 1.3-million-strong force, as the position has previously been held by officers from infantry, artillery, and armoured regiments, according to news agency PTI.

Before becoming Vice Chief of Army Staff on February 1, he led the Eastern Army Command, which was tasked with guarding the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in the Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh sectors.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet, chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, approved the appointment of Lt Gen Pande as the next Army chief, according to officials.

Lt Gen Pande was also the Commander-in-Chief of India’s only tri-services command, the Andaman and Nicobar Command.

“General MM Naravane #COAS and all ranks of the #IndianArmy congratulate Lieutenant General Manoj Pande #VCOAS on his appointment as the #IndianArmy’s 29th Chief of the Army Staff #COAS. Lt Gen Manoj Pande will take over as #COAS on May 1, 2022 “The Army issued a tweet.

He was commissioned into the Corps of Engineers (the Bombay Sappers) in December 1982 as an alumnus of the National Defense Academy.
Throughout his distinguished career, he has held a number of prestigious command and staff positions in both conventional and counter-insurgency operations on a variety of terrains.

During Operation Parakram in Jammu and Kashmir, he commanded an engineer regiment along the Line of Control, an engineer brigade in the western sector, an infantry brigade along the LoC, a mountain division in the high-altitude area of western Ladakh, and a corps in the Northeast.

Brigade Major of a Mountain Brigade in the Northeast, Assistant Military Secretary (AMS) in the Military Secretary’s Branch, and Brigadier General Staff (Operations) at the Eastern Command headquarters are among his staff experiences.

He worked as the UN mission’s chief engineer in Ethiopia and Eritrea. He has also served as the additional director general in the military operations directorate at Army headquarters, as well as the chief of staff at Southern Command’s headquarters.

He has received the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Vishisht Seva Medal, Chief of Army Staff Commendation, and GOC-in-C Commendation for his distinguished service.