Govt. extends tenure of Army Chief by one month
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New Delhi: The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet on Sunday granted a one-month extension in service to Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Manoj C. Pande, beyond his normal age of superannuation, which was supposed to be on May 31. His tenure will now end on June 30, 2024. He has been serving as Chief of the Army Staff since April 30, 2022.
It was nearly five decades ago, during Prime Minister Indira Gandhi's tenure, that an Army Chief, General G.G. Bewoor, received a similar extension of one year. Now, General Pande is receiving such an unusual extension. Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi, currently serving as the Vice Chief of Army Staff, is the senior-most official after General Pande.
The next senior-most official after Lieutenant General Dwivedi is Lieutenant General Ajay Kumar Singh, the Southern Army Commander. Both Lieutenant General Dwivedi and Lieutenant General Singh are course mates. General Pande took charge as the 29th Chief of the Army Staff on April 30, 2022, after General M.M. Naravane retired from service.
Before assuming the top post, General Pande served as the Vice Chief. He is the first officer from the Corps of Engineers to lead the force.
