Lt Gen Manoj Pande named new Army chief, first from Corps of Engineers

The Vice Chief of Army Staff, Lt General Pande will be the first officer from the Corps of Engineers to become the COAS.

In a Twitter post, the Indian Army said: “General MM Naravane #COAS & All Ranks of #IndianArmy congratulate Lieutenant General Manoj Pande #VCOAS on being appointed as the 29th Chief of the Army Staff #COAS of the #IndianArmy. Lt Gen Manoj Pande will assume the appointment of #COAS on 01 May 2022.”

He has been Vice Chief of Army Staff since February 1 this year.

An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, he was commissioned in the Corps of Engineers (Bombay Sappers) in December 1982.

General MM Naravane #COAS & All Ranks of #IndianArmy congratulate Lieutenant General Manoj Pande #VCOAS on being appointed as the 29th Chief of the Army Staff #COAS of the #IndianArmy. Lt Gen Manoj Pande will assume the appointment of #COAS on 01 May 2022.#InStrideWithTheFuture pic.twitter.com/fiUpc29U2A

— ADG PI – INDIAN ARMY (@adgpi) April 18, 2022

According to the Army, he was part of Operation Parakram, the 2001-02 India-Pakistan standoff in the wake of the Parliament attack. The standoff saw massing of thousands of troops on either side of the border and along the Line of Control in J&K.

“The General Officer has commanded 117 Engineer Regiment during Operation Parakram in the sensitive Pallanwala Sector of Jammu and Kashmir, along the Line of Control,” the Army said.

Pandey is a graduate of Staff College, Camberley (United Kingdom) and attended the Higher Command (HC) and National Defence College (NDC) courses.

In his 39 years of military service, he has held important and challenging command and staff appointments in different operational environments which include command of an engineers brigade in the western theatre, as part of a strike corps, an infantry brigade along the LoC in J&K, a mountain division in the high altitude area of western Ladakh and command of a corps, deployed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and in counter insurgency operations area of Eastern Command.

“His staff exposures include Brigade Major of a Mountain Brigade in the North East, Assistant Military Secretary (AMS) in Military Secretary’s Branch, Colonel Q of a Mountain Division in High Altitude Area and Brigadier General Staff (Operations) at Headquarters Eastern Command. The General Officer has served as Chief Engineer in the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea. He has also tenanted the appointments of Additional Director General in the Military Operations Directorate at Army Headquarters, Chief of Staff Headquarters Southern Command and Director General Discipline Ceremonial & Welfare at the Army Headquarters,” the Army said.

Pande was Commander-in-Chief, Andaman & Nicobar Command (CINCAN), from June 2020 to May 2021 and General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Eastern Command from June 2021 to January 2022.

“For his illustrious service, he has been conferred with the award of Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Vishisht Seva Medal, the Chief of Army Staff Commendation and twice with GOC-in-C Commendation. The General Officer is the Colonel Commandant, The Bombay Sappers,” the Army said.