Lt. General Manoj Pande The Next Indian army Chief

Lieutenant General Manoj Pande will succeed General Manoj Mukund Naravane as the Indian Army’s 29th chief of staff, taking over from him on December 31, 2019. Lieutenant General Manoj Pande will become the first engineer to be named Chief of Army Staff (COAS) on May 1.

Lieutenant General Pande replaced Lieutenant General CP Mohanty as vice army chief on February 1.

Who is Lt. General Pande

He attended the National Defence Academy (NDA) in Khadakwasla and the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun. After graduating from the IMA in December 1982, he was commissioned into the Bombay Sappers.

Lt General Pande served in important command and staff positions in conventional and counter-insurgency operations in all types of terrain during the course of his 39-year military career.

In the western theatre, he commanded an engineer brigade, an infantry brigade along the Line of Control (LoC), a mountain division in the Ladakh sector, and a corps in the north-east. Before becoming the army’s vice head, Lieutenant General Pande served as the Eastern Army Commander.

From June 2020 until May 2021, he served as the commander-in-chief of the Andaman and Nicobar Command (CINCAN). When General Naravane retires, he will be the most senior officer.

Lieutenant General Manoj Pande has received the Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, and Vishisht Seva Medal, as well as the Chief of Army Staff Commendation and GOC-in-C Commendations on two occasions.