Indian Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi on Saturday, 31 May 2025, reviewed the Passing Out Parade (POP) of the 150th Course of the National Defence Academy (NDA) at Khadakwasla, Pune, marking the commissioning of 355 cadets into the Indian Armed Forces. The ceremony was held at the iconic Khetarpal Parade Ground, where graduating cadets demonstrated military precision and discipline before proceeding to join the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force.

A Homecoming for the Reviewing Officer

The occasion carried particular resonance as General Dwivedi, himself an alumnus of the NDA's 65th Course and a former cadet of Charlie Squadron, returned to the Academy in the role of Reviewing Officer. Reflecting on the journey from cadet to Army Chief, he addressed the graduating batch with a deeply personal note.

'More than 42 years ago, I passed out through this very court, carrying the pride of what this Academy had made me, ready to have a rendezvous with what lay ahead. Today, as I stand before you at the far end of a life in uniform, preparing to doff mine as you prepare to don yours, I can tell you with certainty that what begins here stays with you forever,' he said.

Operation Sindoor Sets the Benchmark

General Dwivedi urged the newly commissioned officers to prepare for a complex and rapidly evolving security landscape. He invoked Operation Sindoor as a defining example of India's resolve and precision in responding to provocation.

'The boundary between competition and conflict has blurred. Threats today do not always arrive in uniform or on a declared front,' he cautioned. He added that Operation Sindoor 'set the benchmark when national will was expressed with precision and resolve, defining how Bharat responds to provocation. That standard now belongs to you to uphold.'

He further noted that the integrated and responsive outcomes witnessed during Operation Sindoor were rooted in the very principles of jointness that the NDA instils — not merely as an academic concept, but as an instinct developed through years of living and training alongside cadets from all three services.

Three Qualities That Will Define Their Careers

The Army Chief outlined three attributes he said would shape the young officers' trajectories: attitude, adaptability, and ability. He described attitude as an 'inner anchor' that holds firm under pressure, adaptability as the capacity to absorb turbulence without losing course, and ability as going beyond skill to inspire confidence and make sound decisions.

On leadership, General Dwivedi offered a characteristically direct lesson from his own command experience: 'I have commanded in conditions where no plan survived first contact. What held us together in those moments was not firepower. It was character. Lead so that your soldiers choose to follow — not because they must, but because they trust you.'

Recognition for Women Cadets and Foreign Nationals

General Dwivedi specifically acknowledged the female cadets graduating with the 150th Course, stating that they 'stood in every formation and met every standard.' He said: 'On this parade square today, they are indistinguishable from anyone else. That is exactly the point. In the battles ahead, courage and resolve know no gender. Battle is always gender-neutral.'

He also extended greetings to cadets from 12 friendly foreign nations who graduated alongside their Indian counterparts, emphasising the strategic value of bonds forged at the Academy: 'You came from different soils, but you leave shaped by the same ground and the same values. Carry those bonds forward, as it is often such ties, formed long before rank and command, that greatly sustain peace between nations.'

A Charge to Serve

Closing his address, General Dwivedi invoked the Academy's founding ethos — 'Seva Parmo Dharma' (Service Before Self) — as the ultimate answer to every difficult question the profession would pose. He also paid tribute to the families of the graduating cadets, acknowledging their quiet sacrifice across every demanding term. The 355 newly commissioned officers will now proceed to their respective services, carrying with them the training and values of one of Asia's most storied military academies.