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General Dhiraj Seth on Tuesday took charge as India’s 31st Chief of the Army Staff, succeeding General Upendra Dwivedi, who retired after more than four decades of distinguished military service. The leadership change comes as the army pushes ahead with force modernisation, organisational restructuring and long-term capability development.
Seth has held key appointments in the Army headquarters’ strategic planning and capability development verticals, shaping its modernisation trajectory, capability roadmap and long-term force structuring initiatives, the defence ministry said. “His contributions have been instrumental in aligning operational requirements with emerging technologies and future battlefield imperatives,” it said in a statement.
The son of a former three-star general and governor, Seth has earned recognition for advancing force modernisation.
On his last day in office, Dwivedi laid emphasis on enhanced synergy among the three services to achieve the goal of theraterisation, a long-awaited reform designed to integrate the military’s resources for future conflicts. “In future, wars will be more joint, integrated and theatre-oriented. The direction of the armed forces is clear: to see together, take decisions together and act together,” Dwivedi said.
Seth is the first officer from the Armoured Corps to lead the service in nearly three decades. He will hold office until August 31, 2028. General S Roy Chowdhury was the last Armoured Corps officer to hold the top position between 1994 and 1997.
Seth’s appointment comes at a pivotal moment as the armed forces advance theaterisation. The military is working towards the establishment of joint services commands, a key objective of the theaterisation drive. These commands will integrate military elements, assets, and personnel from the three services under a single commander-in-chief. The model involves raising a China-centric northern theatre command in Lucknow, a Pakistan-centric western theatre command in Jaipur, and a maritime theatre command in Thiruvananthapuram.
An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, and the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, Seth was commissioned into the 2nd Lancers on December 20, 1986. Known for his professionalism and military acumen, he attended the Defence Services Command and General Staff Course at the Military College in Paris, the International Defence Acquisition Management Course at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California, the Higher Command Course at Mhow, and the National Defence College in New Delhi.
Seth has commanded the armoured regiment Skinner’s Horse, an armoured brigade, a counter-insurgency force in Jammu & Kashmir, a strike corps on the western front, South Western Command and Southern Command.
“Over a distinguished military career spanning nearly four decades, he has had extensive experience across the operational, strategic, capability development and institutional domains, contributing significantly to the Indian Army’s combat effectiveness and long-term transformation,” the defence ministry said.
Seth has consistently excelled in professional military education, securing top positions in courses of instruction, it added.
His appointment comes a month after General NS Raja Subramani took over as chief of defence staff (CDS) and Admiral Krishna Swaminathan as the new navy chief.
With new military leadership at the helm, India is preparing to initiate far-reaching military reforms to ensure its armed forces are ready for future battlefield challenges, with the proposed creation of a drone force, a data force and a defence geospatial agency standing out among the raft of goals it seeks to pursue and accomplish by 2047 when the country marks its Independence centenary.
A new roadmap, Defence Forces Vision 2047, also seeks to establish a space command, a cyber-command, a cognitive warfare action force and a national air defence shield under Mission Sudarshan Chakra as the character of war evolves rapidly due to technological advancements.
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