Lt. Gen. (Retd.) Syed Ata Hasnain in Srinagar. File | Photo credit: Nissar Ahmad
Lt. Gen. (retd) Syed Ata Hasnain was on Thursday (May 5, 2026) appointed as the Governor of Bihar as part of the major gubernatorial appointments made by President Droupadi Murmu.
Mr. Hasnain succeeds Arif Mohammed Khan, who was sworn in as the Governor of Bihar on January 2, 2025.
A decorated former Indian Army officer has been appointed to one of the country’s key constitutional posts, bringing with him decades of military leadership and public service.
Early life
Born into a military family, Mr. Hasnain did his schooling at Sherwood College in Nainital and later attended St Stephen’s College in Delhi. King’s College, University of London. He also studied at the Royal College of Defense Studies, King’s College London and the Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies in Hawaii.
Hasnain’s military career
After graduating from the Indian Military Academy in 1974, Mr. Hasnain was commissioned into the 4th Battalion Garhwal Rifles. During nearly four decades of service, he held several key command and staff positions, many of them in Jammu and Kashmir.
He has served in a number of critical assignments from Sri Lanka to the Siachen Glacier, from the North East to Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and in UN operations from Mozambique to Rwanda.
General Hasnain commanded Srinagar-based 15 Corps, one of the most critical army formations responsible for operations in the Kashmir Valley. He also led the 21st Corps, the main strike formation of the Indian Army.
His last post before retirement was as the Military Secretary of the Indian Army, a key position responsible for overseeing the appointment of senior officers and administrative functions within the force.
Hasnain’s post-retirement role
After retiring from the Indian Army in July 2013 after 40 years of active service, Mr. Hasnain continued to contribute to public life through academic and institutional roles.
He writes on Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan, West Asia and transnational extremist violence and speaks on national security to various military, government and corporate institutions.
In 2015, he was nominated as a member of the Executive Board of the Prime Minister’s Library and Museum, one of the country’s key institutions preserving modern Indian history.
On 13 July 2018, the President of India appointed him as the Chancellor of the Central University of Kashmir.
He has received six awards from the President of India and two from the Army Chief.
He is currently a member of the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA).
Published – March 6, 2026 11:24 AM IST
