Army Chief Receives IOC's Hydrogen-Powered Fuel Cell Bus For Trials

Army Chief General Manoj Pande on Monday received Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.'s Hydrogen-powered fuel cell bus for trials in the adoption of fuel cell technology for public transportation.

The bus offers a seating capacity of 37 passengers and mileage of 250-300 km on a full 30 kg tank of Hydrogen fuel.

Speaking on the occasion, General Pande recalled the partnership between IOC and the Indian Army which is almost six to seven decades old.

"This relationship, I think is based on an unbroken bond of trust between both of us and is also based on a very solid foundation which has endured difficult, adverse conditions," he said.

"I am glad that we're now taking this to the next level wherein based on the government's new Green Hydrogen Mission of 2023, the IOC has developed the technology for the production of green hydrogen with the help of Tata Motors we are now going to be testing one of the first 15 buses...," he added.

On Sunday, the government extended Army Chief General Manoj Pande's tenure by one month. He was to retire from service on May 31.

The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved one-month extension in service of General Pande, the defence ministry said.

General Pande took charge as the 29th Chief of the Army Staff on April 30, 2022 after General MM Naravane retired from service.