‘Transformation is the need of the hour for India's defence’: Former Indian Army chief Gen Manoj Pande

Defence reforms should not be seen in isolation, they must form part of overall transformation efforts in the defence sector, said former Indian Army chief Gen Manoj Pande on Thursday.

 

Speaking at the ‘THE WEEK Defence Conclave 2025: Force of the Future' in New Delhi, supported by the defence ministry and department of defence production, Gen Pande said if the aim of reforms is to enhance capability building, operational preparedness and efficiency, it should encompass all three services.

 

At the event, partnered by HAL, Airbus, BDL, Innefu, Larson & Toubro and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders, which brought together men in uniform, veterans, think tanks, business professionals, policy makers and people passionate about India's defence growth story, Gen Pande said while reforms are necessary, the prime focus has to be on transformation.

 

He pointed out that while reforms are about making changes within an organisation and have limited scope, and may have to do with specific issues, transformation is more fundamental and has to do with mindset, is broader in scope and has to do with organisational changes.

 

"Transformation, therefore, can achieve better results, for a multi-agency, multidisciplinary organisation like the ministry of defence."

 

While reforms are the parts, transformation is the whole, he added.

 

According to him, any reform must go through five phases – identifying need for change, planning the change, implementing the change, managing transition and sustaining the change – all of which are equally important and must have clearly defined objectives, timelines, deliverables.

 

Reforms, he said, will succeed only if their evolution is participatory, and collaborative.

Defence