Kathmandu, October 20:

The Army is currently undergoing changes whereby it could eventually settle down for a common mess for officers and rank and file, with Chief of Army Staff Gen Rookmangud Katawal and other officers down to the Second Lieutenant joining jawans for lunch every Friday.

A source said that while COAS Gen Katawal has introduced a new system with the consent of jawans who are now not feeling uncomfortable to have food with officers, the phenomenon is likely to be introduced in all barracks across the country. “The eventual idea is to have a common mess,” the source told The Himalayan Times today. Gen Katawal had travelled to barracks outside Kathmandu during the Dashain festival and identified himself with the jawans considered as backbone of the army.