Lt Gen Manoj C Pande to be 29th Army Chief
NDA alumnus; was commissioned in Corps of Engineers in December 1982
India has one of the largest armies of the world that guards its 15,000 km long border with seven neighbouring countries; source - Government of India
The Vice-Chief of Army, Lieutenant General Manoj C Pande, has been appointed as the next Army Chief with effect from 30 April 2022, the Defence ministry said in an official statement. However, the Indian Army stated it will be on 1 May 2022.
Lt Gen Pande was born on 6 May 1962. When barely 20 years of age, he was commissioned in the Corps of Engineers (The Bombay Sappers) of the Indian Army on 24 December 1982.
His service of over 39 years includes Command of an Engineer Brigade in the Western Theatre, as part of Strike Corps, and an Infantry Brigade along with Line-of-Control (LoC) in Jammu & Kashmir.
Other key Command appointments include a Mountain Division in the high-altitude area of the Western Ladakh, and Command of a Corps, deployed along the LAC and in Counter Insurgency Operations area of Eastern Command.
He was the Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman & Nicobar Command and the GOC-in-C of the Eastern Command at Kolkata before being appointed as the Vice Chief.
Lt Gen Pande is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA). He has also undergone courses at Staff College, Camberley (UK), Army War College, Mhow, and National Defence College, New Delhi.
Lt Gen Pande has been conferred with Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal so far.
General MM Naravane has congratulated Lt Gen Pande on the appointment.
The Indian Army’s theme for 2022 is “In stride with the future”. It is focusing on re-structuring and inducting modern weapon systems. Perhaps for the first time, the Indian Army is exploring and inducting emerging technologies (Artificial Intelligence or AI, Cyber Warfare, Robotics and Aerospace), which have the potential for military application and a disruptive impact on modern-day warfare with a push to indigenous solutions.
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