Chief of Army Staff Archives - Lokmarg

Lt Gen Upendra Takes Over As New Army Vice Chief

By LokMarg 19th February 2024

Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi on Monday took over as the new Vice Chief of Army Staff.

After assuming the appointment of Vice Chief of Army Staff, the General laid a wreath at the National War Memorial in Delhi.

Lt Gen Dwivedi is an alumnus of Sainik School, Rewa (MP) and was commissioned into the 18 JAK RIF on December 15, 1984, which he later commanded in the Kashmir valley and the deserts of Rajasthan. He has had the unique distinction of having balanced exposure of both Northern and Western theatre.

He has also held the important appointments of Inspector General Assam Rifles (North) and Sector Commander Assam Rifles in intense counter terrorist operations and held various other staff and command appointments in the North East.

After commanding the Rising Star Corps, the General was given the command of the most prestigious Northern Army from 2022-2024 in an extremely challenging operational environment.

During his command, he provided guidance and operational oversight for the planning and execution of sustained operations along the northern borders with China and the Western Front with Pakistan, besides orchestrating the dynamic counterterrorism operations in Jammu and Kashmir.

He was also involved in the modernization and equipping of the largest Army Command of the Indian Army, where he steered the induction of indigenous equipment as part of Atmanirbhar Bharat.

He has also worked towards creating sysnergy with the people of Jammu, Kashmir, and Ladakh for convergent nation-building outcomes and infrastructure development.

The General officer, during his illustrious career spanning across 39 years, has held various staff appointments in the headquarters of the Armoured Brigade, Mountain Division, Strike Corps and Integrated HQ (Army). As an instructor at the Indian Military Academy and the Army War College (Higher Command), he shaped the future generations of tri-services and Friendly Foreign Countries. The appointment of DG Infantry empowered him to steer and fast-track capital procurement cases of weapons for all three services, leading to significant and visible capability enhancement for our Armed Forces.

As Dy Chief (IS&C), the officer gave impetus towards automation and the absorption of niche tech in the Indian Army. Being a tech enthusiast, he worked towards enhancing the tech threshold of all ranks in Northern Command and pushed for Critical and Emerging Techs like Big Data Analytics, AI, Quantum and blockchain-based solutions.

The Genral officer’s two overseas tenures include Somalia, as pw1art of HQ United Nations Operation in Somalia (UNOSOM) II and Seychelles, as Military Advisor to the Government of Seychelles.

Besides attending Staff College, Wellington and the Higher Command Course at Army War College (AWC), Mhow, the officer was conferred ‘Distinguished Fellow’ in the coveted NDC equivalent course at USAWC, Carlisle, USA. Complementing his illustrious military career, are an M Phil in Defence & Management Studies, in addition to two Master’s degrees in Strategic Studies and Military Science, including one from USAWC, USA. The officer has also authored / presented articles in various professional forums / Journals. He has pioneered the first ever compendium on Indo – Myanmar Border Management. The General officer is a skilled Yoga practitioner. (ANI)

He is married to Sunita Dwivedi, a science graduate, who is a homemaker. Sunita Dwivedi has been associated with Aarushi, an institute for special-ability children at Bhopal. The couple is blessed with two daughters. (ANI)

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Situation On Northern Border Is Stable But Sensitive: General Pande

By LokMarg 11th January 2024

The Chief of Army Staff, General Manoj Pande, said on Thursday that the security situation on the northern border is stable but sensitive. The Army Chief was speaking at the Annual Press conference ahead of Army Day on January 15.

“The situation on the northern border is stable but sensitive. We continue to talk to find a solution to address and balance issues between the two sides. Operational preparedness is very high, and deployment is both- robust, and balanced…” Chief of Army Staff, Manoj Pande said.

“As far as the situation in JK is concerned, the ceasefire understanding along the LoC continues to hold. Even though we see infiltration attempts, which we have been able to thwart… We have a strong anti-drone mechanism in place to stop the use of drones to smuggle weapons and narcotics…. The area of Rajouri Poonch has seen increased terrorist activities. Support infrastructure for proxy tandems in the Rajouri Poonch sector from across the border continues…” General Manoj Pande added.

General Manoj Pande also highlighted that disruptive technologies have become the new arena of strategic competition.

“National interests remain paramount and the relevance of hard powers has been established… Disruptive technologies have become the new arena of strategic competition.” said General Manoj Pande.

He also affirmed that security forces are fully aligned to ensure a stable and secure environment for nation.

“…Our nation is on the rise firmly on the path of progress in the economic sphere. We are fully aligned to ensure a stable and secure environment, both internal and external, to help our country progress…”

Speaking about the security situation in North-East India, the chief of Army Staff said,”…The Northeast has witnessed positive developments in the last year because of the proactive policies of the government. The violence parameters have overall come down. Manipur witnessed violence in May last year, but with the combined efforts by the state administration, Army and Assam Rifles, they have been able to stabilise the situation. We are working to normalise the situation and ensure stability…”

General Manoj Pande also said that the Army has inducted better vehicles, drones and counter-drone systems.

“As part of emergency provisions, we have been able to induct some new technologies and address domains of warfare. We have inducted better vehicles, drones and counter-drone systems. We have terrain-specific electronic warfare systems.,” General Manoj Pande said.

“We have restructured our artillery unit. We also have restructured units of electronic warfare and electronic intelligence. We have started the process of reducing animals in our animal transport units and they are being replaced by drones…We have made a plan and optimise our strength by significant numbers and by 2027 we will achieve an optimisation of 1 lakh numbers. We have given the proposal to the government,” he added.

Speaking about Agniveers recruitment General Manoj Pande said, “The first two batches of Agniveers are now fully deployed in field units and the feedback is very exciting and positive… 120 women officers who have been given permanent commission and are in command roles are deployed in field areas, and they are doing a good job there.”

“…We also have moved from the current conduct of our competitive and promotion exams to fully online mode and by the end of this year, all our promotion exams will be held entirely online…” CoAS General Manoj Pande concluded. (ANI)

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