In rare move, Govt extends Army chief General Manoj Pande’s tenure by a month

He was appointed as the COAS on April 30, 2022. He was commissioned in December 1982 in the Corps of Engineers (The Bombay Sappers). He held the appointment of Vice Chief of the Army Staff before taking over as the COAS.

The extension in tenure indicates that a decision on the selection of the next Army chief will be open for the next government.

This rarely happens. In the 1970s, the term of Army chief General G G Bewoor was extended. Many believe this denied Lt General P S Bhagat to become the new Army chief. General Bewoor was succeeded by General T N Raina.

As per the norm, the most senior Army commander or the Army vice chief is made the Army chief when the serving COAS retires. But it remains the government’s discretion to appoint a service chief.

Currently, Vice Chief of Army Staff Lt General Upendra Dwivedi and Southern Army Commander Lt General A K Singh are the most senior officers in the Army. Both are course mates (1984 batch), but Lt Gen Dwivedi, the former Northern Army Commander, is senior of the two.

The Army chief retires on completion of three years in the appointment or on attaining the age of 62, whichever is earlier. The current Army chief, General Pande, attained the age of 62 on May 6 and was due to retire on May 31. He has been the Army chief for over two years.