New Delhi. In the midst of the Lok Sabha elections, the government on Sunday took an unusual step and gave a one-month extension to Army Chief General Manoj Pandey and now he will remain in this post till June 30. General Pandey was to retire on May 31.
The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has approved one-month extension to Gen Pandey, the Defence Ministry said in a statement.
The first such example was seen in the early 1970s, nearly five decades before General Pandey’s extension, when the then Indira Gandhi government extended the tenure of (then) Army Chief General GG Bewoor by one year. According to military experts, in view of the extension given to General Bewoor, the then Lieutenant General Prem Bhagat retired without becoming the Army Chief, while he was to be appointed to this top post after him (General Bewoor).
The Defence Ministry said in a statement, “The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet has granted one-month extension to Army Chief General Manoj C Pandey, under Rule 16A (4) of the Army Rules, 1954, beyond his retirement date (31 May) to 30 June.” Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi, currently serving as ‘Vice Chief of Army Staff’, is the senior-most officer after General Pandey.
After Lieutenant General Dwivedi, the most senior officer is Lieutenant General Ajay Kumar Singh, who is the Southern Army Commander.
Both the military officers, Lt Gen Dwivedi and Lt Gen Singh are course classmates. Lt Gen Dwivedi has extensive operational experience on the borders with China and Pakistan. He replaced Lt Gen M V Suchindra Kumar in February and took over as the Deputy Chief of the Army.
General Pandey took over as the 29th Chief of the Army on April 30, 2022, after General MM Naravane retired. Before assuming the top post of the Army, General Pandey was serving as the Deputy Chief. He is the first officer from the ‘Corps of Engineers’ to lead the force.
In his distinguished career, General Pandey has also served as the Commander-in-Chief of the Andaman-Nicobar Command, India’s only tri-service command. He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy. General Pandey joined the ‘Corps of Engineers’ (The Bombay Sappers) in December 1982.