General Dheeraj Seth took over as the 31st Chief of Army Staff (COAS) on Tuesday. He replaced General Upendra Dwivedi, who retired after more than four decades of service. The change in leadership was accompanied by a ceremonial change of command in the lawns of South Block, where General Dwivedi was given a farewell guard of honour. General Seth was working as Vice Chief of Army Staff (VCOAS) since April 2026. With his appointment, he becomes the first officer from the Armored Corps to head the Army since the retirement of General Shankar Roy Chowdhury in 1997.
General Seth was commissioned in the Armored Corps in December 1986. Army He has brought operational, strategic and administrative experience of almost four decades to the top post.
He is one of the few officers to have commanded two operational Army commands—Jaipur-based South Western Command and Pune-based Southern Command—both responsible for specific sectors of India’s western frontier with Pakistan.
Long association with Armed Forces
During his career, General Seth has commanded an armored regiment in the desert sector, an armored brigade in the western theatre, and a counter-insurgency force engaged in anti-terror operations in Jammu and Kashmir. As a Lieutenant General, he led the Bhopal-based XXI Corps (Sudarshan Chakra Corps), one of the Army’s elite strike formations. Subsequently, he served as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) in the Delhi Area, where he handled important operational and ceremonial responsibilities in the National Capital.
General Seth comes from a family that has a long association with the Armed Forces. He is the son of Lieutenant General Krishna Mohan Seth, who was the first Adjutant General of the Indian Army and later Governor of Tripura, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh. In a rare coincidence, both father and son have commanded the famous Sudarshan Chakra Corps.
An alumnus of the National Defense Academy (NDA), Khadakwasla, General Seth topped the Junior Command Course and was adjudged the Best All-Round Student Officer at the Defense Services Staff College.
His professional military education includes Higher Command Course, National Defense College and Command and Staff Course in Paris. Earlier, he had also worked for India as a United Nations Military Observer in Angola.
Taking forward the transformation of the army
Apart from field commands, General Seth has played a key role in the long-term capability development and force modernization of the Army. He has held several important posts, including Assistant Military Secretary at Army Headquarters, Brigadier General Staff (Operations) at Headquarters South Western Command and Director General Discipline, Ceremonial and Welfare.
He has assumed the post while continuing the Army’s “Decade of Transformation” initiative. As COAS, General Seth is expected to oversee the rollout of the Integrated Theater Command, accelerate the induction of autonomous systems and drone warfare capabilities, and advance the operationalization of Integrated Battle Groups (IBGs) to strengthen joint operations with the Navy and Air Force.
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