NDA Course Mates as Three Service Chiefs: Lt General Manoj Pande, Admiral Hari Kumar, Air Chief Marshal VR Choudhary
NDA Course Mates as Three Service Chiefs: After 2 years, the Indian Armed Forces will be led by three NDA Course Mates. Lieutenant General Manoj Pande will be appointed as India's Next Chief Of Army Staff. So in the upcoming days, the Indian Army, Navy & Air Force will be led by 3 NDA Batch mates - Lt Gen Manoj Pande, Admiral Hari Kumar & Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Choudhary.
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Lt Gen Manoj Pande to take over as India’s Army Chief on 1st May 2022
Lieutenant General Manoj Pande has become the first engineer to be appointed as India's Army Chief. Lt Gen Pande was the Vice-Chief of the Army, who will now take over the post of COAS from General MM Naravane. Lt Gen Manoj Pande, currently the Vice Chief of the Army, will now take over the post of Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) from General MM Naravane who is going to retire on 30th April 2022. He is the first officer from the Corps of Engineers to become the Chief of Army Staff.
In his long & distinguished 39-year of service in the Indian Military, Lt Gen Pande has commanded the 117 Engineer Regiment along the Line of Control (LOC) in J&K. He further went on to command an engineer regiment during Operation Parakram in the Pallanwala sector along the LOC in J&K. He has also served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman and Nicobar Command before taking charge of the Eastern Command in 2021.
3 NDA Batch Mates Leading Indian Armed Forces - Lt Gen Manoj Pande, Admiral Hari Kumar & Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Choudhary
On 30th April 2022, Lieutenant General Manoj Pande will take over as the new chief (29th Chief of the Indian Army). With this, now the Indian Armed Forces - Indian Army, Indian Navy & Indian Air Force will be led by 3 NDA Batch Mates. Lt Gen Manoj C Pande is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy and has undergone courses at Staff College, Camberley (UK), Army War College, Mhow and National Defence College, New Delhi. Lt Gen Pande was commissioned into the Bombay Sappers, one of the regiments in the Corps of Engineers in December 1982.
Admiral R Hari Kumar took the Charge as the new chief of the Indian Navy in Dec 2021. Admiral R Hari Kumar is an alumnus of J-Squadron, 61 Course National Defence Academy. He was commissioned into the Indian Navy on 01 Jan 1983 and has specialised in Gunnery.
Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari took over as the new Indian Air Force (IAF) Chief in Sep 2021. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy and Defence Services Staff College, Wellington, VR Chaudhari has commanded a frontline fighter squadron and a fighter base during his career.
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Advantage of Jointmanship when NDA Course Mates Lead the Indian Armed Forces
2 years before also 3 NDA Batch Mates - Admiral Karambir Singh, Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria & Army Chief MM Naravane led the Indian Armed Forces. Being an NDA Batch Mate not only reaffirms the eternity of the bonds of camaraderie imbibed in the academy but also signifies the spirit of 'jointmanship' which this tri-service training institution stands for.