E-Paper
4 things India's next Army chief, Lt Gen Manoj Pande, is likely to focus on
He will take over when India is working on a roadmap for the military’s theaterisation to best utilise the resources of the three services for future wars and operations
NEW DELHI: Lieutenant General Manoj Pande will take over as the next army chief on April 30 after the retirement of General Manoj Mukund Naravane. He will be the first officer from the Corps of Engineers to hold the top position and serve as the army chief for over two years.
The government has gone by seniority in naming Pande as the next chief. He is currently the senior-most officer in the army after Naravane. Pande is expected to focus on the following key areas:
Resolving the Ladakh border row: India and China have been locked in a border standoff in the Ladakh sector for almost two years. Despite three rounds of disengagement at friction points on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) - Galwan, Pangong Tso, and Gogra - the two armies still have 50,000 to 60,000 troops each and advanced weaponry deployed in the Ladakh theatre. The two armies have held 15 rounds of military talks but outstanding problems at a few friction points are yet to be resolved.
Theaterisation: Pande will take over as the army’s 29th chief at a time when India is working on a roadmap for the military’s theaterisation to best utilise the resources of the three services for future wars and operations. The current theaterisation model to enhance tri-service synergy seeks to set up four integrated commands - two land-centric theatres, an air defence command, and a maritime theatre command. The three services are expected to submit comprehensive reports on theaterisation this month.
Indigenisation of military hardware: His appointment also comes at a time when indigenisation of military hardware is the government’s top priority. The government has imposed a phased ban on the import of 310 weapons and platforms over the last two years to promote self-reliance in the defence sector. These include several systems needed by the army.
Staying battle-ready: Military planners are assessing the impact of the Russia-Ukraine war on India’s military preparedness. Two-thirds of the country’s military equipment is of Soviet/Russian-origin. Complications stemming from the wide-ranging sanctions slapped on Russia by the US and its allies on the back of the war in Ukraine have posed new challenges for the India-Russia defence relationship. It has put India’s military preparedness to the test and assigned new urgency to reduce dependence on imported military hardware to stay battle-ready.
