Lt Gen Dhiraj Seth | Officer at the helm

Lt Gen Dhiraj Seth will take over as the 31st Chief of Army Staff on 30 June. Illustration by Sreejith R. Kumar

Lt Gen Dhiraj Seth, currently serving as Deputy Chief of Army Staff, will take over as the 31st Chief of Army Staff on June 30, replacing General Upendra Dwivedi upon his retirement.

Lt Gen Seth will be the seventh officer from the Armored Corps to take up the post. Of the previous six armored corps officers to become army chief, two took over after the position unexpectedly became vacant. While the infantry produced most of the chiefs of the Indian Army, five came from the Corps of Artillery and one from the Corps of Engineers.

Lt Gen Seth is to remain in office till 31 August 2028. The last armored corps officer to head the Indian Army was General S. Roy Chowdhury, who served as Army Chief from 1994 to 1997.

A highly-regarded Army officer with nearly four decades of distinguished service, Lt. Gen. Seth brings extensive operational experience, strategic vision and a strong track record in military modernization to the position.

A graduate of the prestigious National Defense Academy, Khadakwasla and the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, Lt Gen Seth was commissioned into the Armored Corps in December 1986. During his career, he has served in various operational environments, from desert warfare formations to counter-insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir.

He commanded an armored regiment in the desert sector, an armored brigade in the Western Theater and counter-insurgency forces in Jammu and Kashmir.

After being promoted to Lieutenant General, he headed the prestigious Sudarshan Chakra Corps, one of the premier strike formations of the Indian Army, and then served as the General Officer Commanding, Delhi Area. He later commanded both South Western Command and Southern Command.

Lt. Gen. Seth also held several key personnel and strategic positions. These include the Brigadier Major of the Independent Armored Brigade in Jammu and Kashmir, the Operations Officer of the United Nations Mission in Angola and the Deputy Military Secretary at Army Headquarters.

Widely regarded as one of the architects of the Indian Army’s modernization drive, Lt Gen Seth played a key role in strategic planning, force structuring and capability development.

Three-serve practice

He also oversaw major operational readiness and training activities, including large-scale joint and tri-part exercises focused on emerging domains such as cyber, information warfare, multi-domain operations, and amphibious capabilities. Among them, Exercise Trishul reflected a growing emphasis on integrated operations and joint warfare concepts. His tenure saw continued emphasis on Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR), reflecting the Indian Army’s commitment to national resilience and supporting civil authorities.

He served as the Colonel for Mechanized Forces Capability Development, Brigadier General Plans and Acquisitions and Additional Director General for Capability Development. In these capacities, he contributed to the Army’s long-term integrated forward planning process and future capability expansion plan.

As Commander-in-Chief of the Southern Command, he championed technology adoption, innovation and civil-military cooperation. A scholar-soldier, Lt Gen Seth is a graduate of the High Command Course and the National Defense College and has attended advanced military courses in France and the US.

He comes from a military family. He is the son of Lieutenant Ge. Krishna Mohan Seth, former Adjutant General of the Indian Army and former Governor of Tripura and Chhattisgarh. The family shares a unique heritage, with both father and son commanding the Sudarshan Chakra Corps. His younger brother, Rear Admiral Ravnish Seth, is a serving flag officer in the Indian Navy.

Lt. Gen. Dhiraj Seth takes command at a pivotal moment marked by rapid technological advances, evolving security challenges and an increasing emphasis on joint military operations. He is tasked with leading the Indian Army through its next phase of transformation and readiness.

Published – 21 Jun 2026 01:06 IST