The Indian Armed Forces have undergone a significant leadership reshuffle, with several top-level appointments taking effect as senior officers retire. The changes, effective May 1, span across the Army, Air Force, Navy, and the tri-services Integrated Defence Staff.
Lt Gen Pratik Sharma Takes Charge of Northern Command
In the most crucial development, Lt Gen Pratik Sharma has taken over as the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) of the Northern Command. Headquartered in Udhampur, the Northern Command is the Indian Army’s largest and most strategically sensitive formation. It is responsible for the Line of Control (LoC), Line of Actual Control (LAC), Siachen, Kargil, Drass, and overall security in Jammu & Kashmir, Ladakh, and parts of Himachal Pradesh.
His appointment comes amid heightened tensions along the LoC following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, which claimed the lives of 26 people, mostly tourists. Lt Gen Sharma had recently accompanied Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi to Srinagar in the aftermath of the attack.
An alumnus of UP Sainik School, Lucknow, Lt Gen Sharma previously served as the Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy) and also held the key post of Director General of Military Operations (DGMO). The DCOAS (Strategy) oversees critical directorates, including Operations and Intelligence, making it one of the most influential roles in Army Headquarters.
He succeeds Lt Gen M.V. Suchindra Kumar, who retired on April 30 after four decades of distinguished military career.
Tri-Services Command: New Chief of Integrated Defence Staff
Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit has assumed charge as the Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC), succeeding Lt Gen J.P. Mathew. A seasoned test pilot and qualified flying instructor with over 3,300 flying hours, Air Marshal Dixit previously headed the Central Air Command and served as Air Defence Commander of Southern Air Command, along with key staff roles in Air Headquarters.
He brings extensive operational and planning experience, having commanded a Mirage-equipped fighter squadron, a premier air base in the Western sector, and a fighter training base in the South.
Indian Air Force: New Vice Chief Appointed
The Indian Air Force (IAF) has appointed Air Marshal Narmdeshwar Tiwari as its new Vice Chief following the superannuation of Air Marshal S.P. Dharkar on April 30. Until now, Air Marshal Tiwari was commanding the South Western Air Command in Gandhinagar.
He will be succeeded at SWAC by the present Training Command Chief, while Air Marshal Balakrishnan Manikantan, currently AOC-in-C, Southern Air Command, will move to head the Central Air Command (CAC). His replacement at SAC is yet to be confirmed.
Meanwhile, Air Marshal Nagesh Kapoor, who is currently heading Training Command, will become the new AOC-in-C, South Western Air Command, and Air Marshal Tejinder Singh, currently Deputy Chief of Air Staff, will take over as AOC-in-C, Training Command.
Army and DIA: New Roles
Lt Gen D.S. Rana, Director General of the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA), has been promoted to the rank of Commander-in-Chief and is expected to assume charge as the Commander-in-Chief, Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) from June 1. ANC is India’s only integrated tri-services operational command. Lt Gen S.P. Singh, currently Chief of Staff, Southern Command, is likely to take over as Director General, DIA.
Indian Navy: Top-Level Turnover Expected
The Navy is set to witness a complete overhaul of its top leadership in the coming months:
Vice Admiral S.J. Singh, the FOC-in-C, Western Naval Command, will retire on July 31. Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, the current Vice Chief of Naval Staff, will likely succeed him.
In October, Vice Admiral Rajesh Pendharkar (Eastern Naval Command) and Vice Admiral V. Srinivas (Southern Naval Command) are scheduled to retire.
The Strategic Forces Command will also see a change with Vice Admiral Suraj Berry retiring in September.
Potential successors across naval commands include Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan (Deputy Chief, IDS), Vice Admiral Sameer Saxena (Chief of Staff, ENC), and Vice Admiral Ajay Kochhar (Chief of Staff, WNC).
National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) Revamped
The government has restructured the 15-member National Security Advisory Board (NSAB) and appointed former R&AW Chief Alok Joshi as its Chairman. The board is reconstituted periodically, with appointments typically lasting for two years.
The new board includes prominent former officers from the military and civil services, including:
- Air Marshal P.M. Sinha (former Western Air Commander)
- Lt Gen A.K. Singh (former Southern Army Commander)
- Vice Admiral S.P.S. Cheema and Rear Admiral Monty Khanna
It also features former R&AW officer A.B. Mathur, retired IPS officers Rajiv Ranjan Verma and Manmohan Singh, and diplomats such as B. Venkatesh Varma and Pankaj Saran.
Prof. K. Kamakoti, B.S. Murthy, Prof. Bimal N. Patel, and Devender Sharma are among the academic and technical experts.
The NSAB comprises eminent national security experts drawn from diverse fields, including foreign affairs, defence, internal and external security, technology, and economic policy.
Ravi Shankar
Dr Ravi Shankar has over two decades of experience in communications, print journalism, electronic media, documentary film making and new media.
He makes regular appearances on national television news channels as a commentator and analyst on current and political affairs. Apart from being an acknowledged Journalist, he has been a passionate newsroom manager bringing a wide range of journalistic experience from past associations with India’s leading media conglomerates (Times of India group and India Today group) and had led global news-gathering operations at world’s biggest multimedia news agency- ANI-Reuters. He has covered Parliament extensively over the past several years. Widely traveled, he has covered several summits as part of media delegation accompanying the Indian President, Vice President, Prime Minister, External Affairs Minister and Finance Minister across Asia, Africa and Europe.
