Digital Desk: Lt. Gen Manoj Pande has been appointed as the next Army Vice Chief as per sources. He will be the successor to Lt Gen CP Mohanty, who is scheduled to superannuate on January 31, 2022.
The announcement of the new Army Vice Chief comes as the selection of the next Chief of Defence Staff is still pending. After General Bipin Rawat died in a chopper crash on December 8, 2021, the position of Chief Defence Staff (CDS) became vacant.
In December 1982, General Manoj Pande was commissioned into the Corps of Engineers (The Bombay Sappers).Pande is a Camberley Staff College graduate (United Kingdom). He also attended the Army War College in Mhow and the National Defence College in Delhi for the Higher Command Course. During his 37 years of distinguished service, Pande has taken an active part in Operation Parakram and Operation Vijay.
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Lt. Gen Manoj Pande's Responsibilities and Duties
Lt. Gen Manoj Pande commanded an Engineer Regiment along the Line of Control in Jammu & Kashmir, a Mountain Division in Western Ladakh's high-altitude area, an Engineer Brigade as part of the Strike Corps, and a Corps deployed along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as well as in the Northeast's Counter-Insurgency Operations area.
He has also held major staff positions, including Chief Engineer at the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea. Pande was the Director-General of Army Headquarters' ceremonial, discipline, and welfare divisions.
What does the Vice Chief of Army Staff do?
The Vice Chief of Army Staff is the Indian Army's second-highest-ranking official and serves as the Deputy Chief of Army Staff. At Army Headquarters in Delhi, VCOAS is a Principal Staff Officer.
A senior officer of the level of Lieutenant General of the Commander-in-Chief (Army Commander) grade holds the position of VCOAS. Notably, ten of the 40 Vice Chiefs have gone on to become the Chief of the Army Staff of the Indian Army.
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