Chief of Army Staff: Lieutenant General Manoj Pande is all set to become the Chief of the Indian Army Staff as incumbent Army Chief General MM Naravane is due to retire by the end of April 2022. MM Naravane is also seen as the frontrunner for the post of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) which became vacant because of the untimely demise of Gen. Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash in December 2021.
Lt. Gen Manoj Pande will take over the reins as he is the senior-most in the force after General MM Naravane who has been serving as the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) since December 31, 2019. Earlier in January 2022, Pande was appointed as the Vice Chief of Army Staff.
Who is Lt. Gen Manoj Pande; India’s next Army Chief
Lt. Gen Manoj Pande was commissioned into the Corps of Engineers in December 1982. He is a graduate of Staff College, Camberley (UK), and also had also attended the Higher Command Course at Army War College, Mhow, and the National Defence College at Delhi.
In his 37 years of service, Lt. General Manoj Pande has taken an active part in Operation Vijay and Operation Parakram.
Lt. Gen Manoj Pande becomes senior-most in the Indian Army
Lt. Gen Manoj Pande who is all set to become the Chief of the Indian Army has become the senior-most after a few top officers retired in the last three months. The incumbent Lieutenant General Raj Shukla who was commanding the Indian Army’s training command (ARTRAC) retired on March 31, 2022.
A few other senior-most leaders of the Indian Army had also retired by January end. Lt. Gen. Y.K. Joshi and Lt. General C.P. Mohanty had retired on January 31, 2022.
What is the role of Chief of Indian Army Staff?
The Chief of the Indian Army Staff who is unofficially known as the Army Chief is the head of the Indian Army Headquarters and is the highest-ranking officer of the Indian Army.
The Chief of Army Staff is also the principal advisor to the Defence Ministry on matters pertaining exclusively to the Indian Army. COAS is also the significant military advisor to the President of India, the Supreme Commander.
Chief of Army Staff List
S.No. |
Name of COAS |
Serving Period |
1 |
General Sir Robert Lockhart |
15 Aug 1947 – 31 Dec 1947 |
2 |
General Sir Roy Bucher |
01 Jan 1948 – 14 Jan 1949 |
3 |
Field Marshal KM Cariappa |
15 Jan 1949 – 14 Jan 1953 |
4 |
General KS Rajendra Sinhji |
15 Jan 1953 – 14 May 1955 |
5 |
General S.M. Srinagesh |
15 May 1955 – 7 May 1957 |
6 |
General K.S. Thimayya |
8 May 1957 – 7 May 1961 |
7 |
General P.N. Thapar |
8 May 1961 – 19 November 1962 |
8 |
General J.N. Choudhuri |
20 November 1962 – 7 June 1966 |
9 |
General P.P. Kumaramangalam |
8 June 1966 – 7 June 1969 |
10 |
General S.H.F.J. Manekshaw |
8 June 1969 – 14 January 1973 |
11 |
General G.G. Bewoor |
15 January 1973 – 31 May 1975 |
12 |
General T.N. Raina |
1 June 1975 – 31 May 1978 |
13 |
General O.P. Malhotra |
1 June 1978 – 31 May 1981 |
14 |
General K.V. Krishna Rao |
1 June 1981 – 31 July 1983 |
15 |
General A.S. Vaidya |
1 August 1983 – 31 January 1986 |
16 |
General K. Sunderji |
1 February 1986 – 30 April 1988 |
17 |
General V.N. Sharma |
1 May 1988 – 30 June 1990 |
18 |
General S.F. Rodrigues |
1 July 1990 – 30 June 1993 |
19 |
General B.C. Joshi |
1 July 1993 – 18 November 1994 |
20 |
General S. Roychowdhury |
22 November 1994 – 30 September 1997 |
21 |
General V.P.Malik |
1 October 1997 – 30 September 2000 |
22 |
General S. Padmanabhan |
1 October 2000 – 31 December 2002 |
23 |
General N.C.Vij |
1 January 2003 – 31 January 2005 |
24 |
General J.J. Singh |
01 February 2005 – 30 September 2007 |
25 |
General Deepak Kapoor |
30 September 2007 – 30 March 2010 |
26 |
General V.K. Singh |
31 March 2010 – 31 May 2012 |
27 |
General Bikram Singh |
01 June 2012 – 31 July 2014 |
28. |
General Dalbir Singh Suhag |
31 July 2014 – 31 December 2016 |
29. |
General Bipin Rawat |
31 December 2016 – 31 December 2019 |
30. |
General Manoj Mukund Naravane |
31 December 2019 – incumbent |
Lt Gen Manoj Pande appointed as next Vice Chief of Army Staff
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