The Indian Panorama

Tag: Manoj Pande

  • Indian Army Chief, US counterpart reaffirm commitment to deepen military ties

    Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande on Wednesday, Feb 14, held high-level discussions with his American counterpart Gen Randy George on matters of bilateral importance and ways to enhance mutual commitment towards global peace and security. The Indian Army put out a post on X regarding General Pande’s four-day official visit to the US that began on February 13. General Pande visited the US Army Geospatial Centre at Fort Belvoir and also interacted with the vice-president of National Defense University at Fort McNair.
    The visit hold significance amid the two countries deepening military cooperation and strategic partnership. The tour is aimed at exploring avenues for more significant training, co-development and co-production engagements.
    The Indian Army has a global threat perception and it was shared with the US counterparts. The Army Chief also visited the Indian Embassy in Washington DC and interacted with Sripriya Ranganathan, Charge d’Affaires, and discussed important ongoing and prospective initiatives.
    General Pande inspected guard of honour on arrival at Fort Myers. Thereafter, in a solemn ceremony, he laid a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery, the Army said on X. The deliberations are aimed at sharing insights, ideas and best practices between the two armies. Source: TNS

  • LAC situation stable but unpredictable: Army Chief

    Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande on Thursday said the security situation along the northern borders (with China) was stable but remained unpredictable. Addressing a press conference ahead of Army Day (Jan 15), the Army Chief said: “We have resolved five of the seven friction points along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.” The pending friction points are at Depsang and Demchok in eastern Ladakh, sources said. General Pande praised the troops on the ground for being able to maintain a “robust defensive posture” to prevent the adversary from changing the status quo along the LAC, the de facto boundary with China.

    On China’s aggression, the Army Chief said there was a slight increase in the number of troops of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) facing the Eastern Command. “Their (Chinese) troops which came for training have remained,” the General said, adding that “we have adequate deployment and we have the reserves to meet any challenge.” The Army has decided to go in for transformation in five key domains. These include force re-structuring and optimisation; modernisation and technology infusion; manpower management like Agnipath; jointness with other forces; and refining own systems and processes.

    General Pande said 2023 would be the year of transformation and the force had laid out a specific roadmap aiming for certain outcomes that could be achieved. “This process will continue beyond the current year.”

    On modernisation, General Pande said: “As of now, 45 per cent of our equipment is vintage, 41 per cent is of current technology and some 12 to 15 per cent is state-of-the-art. “By 2030, we aim to have 45 per cent equipment in the state-of-the-art category and 35 per cent of current technology.”

  • Nepal’s President confers honorary title to Indian Army chief Gen Manoj Pande

    Kathmandu  (TIP) : Nepal’s President Bidya Devi Bhandari conferred the title of Honorary General of the Nepali Army to Indian Army chief General Manoj Pande at a special ceremony here on September 4, continuing the seven-decade-old tradition reflecting the close ties between the two countries. Gen Pande was also presented a sword and scroll during the ceremony held at the President’s official residence ‘Shital Niwas’ in Kathmandu.

    “The practice follows a seven-decade-old tradition of decorating army chiefs of each other’s country with the honorary title. Commander-in-Chief General KM Cariappa was the first Indian Army chief to be decorated with the title in 1950,” the Indian embassy in Kathmandu said in a statement. In November last year, Chief of Nepali Army, General Prabhu Ram Sharma was also made the Honorary General of the Indian Army by ex-President Ram Nath Kovind at a ceremony in New Delhi. Earlier, in a solemn ceremony, Gen Pande laid a wreath and paid homage at Bir Smarak (Martyr’s Memorial) at Army Pavilion in Tundikhel, Kathmandu. Thereafter, he visited the Nepali Army headquarters where he was accorded a ceremonial Guard of Honour.

    “General Manoj Pande, Chief of the Army Staff, Indian Army handed over various non-lethal military items to General Prabhu Ram Sharma, Chief of the Army Staff, Nepali Army,” the Nepal Army said in a tweet. This was followed by meeting with his Nepali counterpart General Sharma, during which both delegations discussed strengthening longstanding army-army relations. He was also given a comprehensive briefing by senior officers of the Nepali Army, the Indian embassy said in a statement. On behalf of the Government of India, Gen Manoj Pande presented training equipment to Nepali Army along with Light Vehicles which would augment capabilities of Nepali Army personnel. General Manoj Pande, Chief of Army Staff, presented equipment along with light vehicles to the Nepali Army for augmenting their technical capabilities,” Indian embassy in Nepal said in a tweet. The total amount of assistance is equivalent to NRs. 223.8 million (USD 1.7 million). This is a special subsidy provided by the Indian Army, which includes 60 per cent grant assistance, said Nepali Army sources. (PTI)