The assuming of office by General Manoj Pande as the new Chief of Army Staff (CoAS) marks the beginning of a new era in India's defence scenario as well as internal security. General Manoj Pande has taken over as the 29th Chief of the Indian Army Staff (COAS) following the attainment of superannuation by General Manoj Mukund Naravane, who had held the top post since December 31, 2019. What is most remarkable among other things about the new Chief of Army Staff is that he is the first engineer to occupy the top post. He belongs to the Army's Corps of Engineers. However, the decision of the government to appoint an engineer as the head of the 1.4 million-strong Indian Army – the world's second-largest – has drawn scepticism from some conservative quarters. This is because till now all Indian Army Chiefs have been from the infantry, the armoured corps, and artillery. Analysis has shown that the Infantry has produced maximum CoAS (60.7%), followed by the Armoured corps (21.4%) and the Artillery (17.8%). Gen Pande's assumption of office has happened at a time when India has been facing multiple challenges on its borders, including the persistent stand-off with China. His appointment has also coincided with India's effort to optimize resources and contributions by the three services - Army, Air Force and Navy - to fight future wars and operations. Moreover, it is also a coincidence that the BJP government of Narendra Modi is working on the indigenization of military hardware - a subject that will prove particularly challenging now given the ongoing fallout of Russia's war on Ukraine. India's military preparedness is firmly at the crossroads in this case as two-thirds of the country's military equipment was procured either from the erstwhile Soviet Union or present-day Russia.