Indian govt appoints Lt Gen Manoj Mukund Naravane as next army chieft

The Indian government on Monday approved the appointment of Lieutenant General Manoj Mukund Naravane as the next chief of army staff (COAS), reported the The Hindu.

Lt Gen Naravane, who is currently the vice chief of Indian army, will take over as India’s 28th COAS from incumbent General Bipin Rawat whose term ends on December 31.

Army officials, told The Hindu that Lt Gen Naravane is the senior most officer and the government had went with the “seniority principle” in the appointment. The incoming Indian army chief’s tenure will last till April 2022 till his superannuation.

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Lt Gen Naravane, who belongs to India’s Sikh Light Infantry, has also commanded a Rashtriya Rifles battalion in Indian occupied Kashmir (IoK). According to Economic Times, the battalion is Indian army’s “elite counter insurgency unit” and mostly operates in the occupied valley.

The general has also served as the New Delhi’s defence attache to Myanmar.

The next big appointment to be made by the Indian government is of its first chief of defence staff (CDS). The Hindu claimed that the incumbent army chief General Rawat is the front runner for the post.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day address this year had announced the appointment of a CDS who will be above the three chiefs.

The CDS will act as the single-point military adviser to the government on military and strategic issues and will also oversee common service issues like procurement, training and logistics.