General Dwivedi takes over as chief of Army, faces China, J&K tests

NEW DELHI: An aggressive and expansionist China, which continues to forward deploy around 1.4 lakh troops and heavy weapon systems along the frontier from eastern Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh for the fifth year running now, will be the primary operational challenge for new Army chief General Upendra Dwivedi.
Gen Dwivedi, who took over the reins of the over 11-lakh strong force as the 30th chief from Gen Manoj Pande on Sunday, will also have to contend with the spike in militancy in J&K, especially the series of military-style ambushes by well-trained terrorists that have caused setbacks to his force in the densely-forested and hilly Poonch-Rajouri region.
Gen Dwivedi is no stranger to the threats posed by China and Pakistan, which are often collusive. Commissioned into the J&K Rifles in 1984, Gen Dwivedi had a two-year tenure as the GoC-in-C of the crucial Northern Command before becoming the vice-chief in Feb this year. “While China has mastered salami-slicing and grey zone warfare, Pakistan continues with its proxy war,” a top official said.
In a statement announcing Gen Dwivedi’s taking over the top post, the Army said, “The global geo-strategic environment remains dynamic, with the challenges in the security domain becoming more pronounced due to technological advancements and ever-changing character of modern warfare.”
“Operational preparedness to counter security threats to a rising nation, therefore would figure prominently, as a key focus area for the chief. Concurrently, a focused response strategy to myriad non-traditional security challenges, too, shall be a priority towards augmenting the nation’s defence,” it added.
Gen Dwivedi, an alumnus of Sainik School at Rewa like Navy chief Admiral Dinesh Tripathi, will have to push hard to fast-track modernisation and transformation of the Army during his two-year tenure.
Despite emergency procurements, the force is still grappling with major operational voids in several areas, ranging from modern air defence weapons and fourth-generation anti-tank guided missiles to attack and light utility helicopters and night-fighting capabilities.
This is especially critical for the Northern and Eastern Commands along the 3,488-km Line of Actual Control. There are 50,000 to 60,000 Chinese troops with heavy weaponry deployed along the western (Ladakh) and central sectors (Uttarakhand, Himachal) of the LAC. China has upped the ante in the eastern sector (Sikkim, Arunachal) as well, with another 90,000 soldiers deployed there.
Then, there is the entire question of the short-term recruitment of soldiers under the controversial Agnipath scheme rolled out in June 2022. The armed forces want the retention rate of Agniveers to be raised from the existing 25% after their four-year tenures to at least 50%.
The over-stretched Army is already facing a shortage of combat-ready soldiers, which will get further accentuated with each passing year without tweaks in the Agnipath scheme. The force, of course, also certainly needs to slash its non-operational flab.
The government is also yet to formally approve the long-pending restructuring of some Army formations into self-contained `integrated battle groups (IBGs)’ that can mobilize fast and hit hard, as was reported by TOI earlier.