Who is Lt General Dhiraj Seth? Officer chosen to lead the Indian Army

Lieutenant General Dhiraj Seth has been appointed as the next Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) and will assume office on June 30, succeeding General Upendra Dwivedi, the government announced on Saturday (June 13). In a statement, the Ministry of Defence said the President had approved the appointment of Lt General Seth, who is currently serving as the Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS).

“I am directed to convey the approval of the President to the appointment of Lt General Dhiraj Seth, PVSM, UYSM, AVSM as the next Chief of the Army Staff in the substantive rank of General, with effect from 30th June, 2026 vice General Upendra Dwivedi, PVSM, AVSM, with a tenure upto 31st August, 2028,” the ministry said. Lt General Seth will take over as Army chief as General Dwivedi retires from service on June 30. He assumed the post of Vice Chief of the Army Staff in April this year.

An alumnus of the National Defence Academy (NDA), Khadakwasla, Lt General Seth was commissioned into the Armoured Corps in December 1986. Over a military career spanning nearly four decades, he has held a range of operational, strategic and institutional appointments.

According to the government statement, his command assignments have included an Armoured Regiment in the desert sector, an Armoured Brigade in the Western Theatre, and a Counter-Insurgency Force in Jammu and Kashmir.

He has also commanded the Sudarshan Chakra Corps, one of the Army’s premier strike formations, besides serving as General Officer Commanding, Delhi Area. He later led both the South Western Command and the Southern Command. The government noted that Lt General Seth holds the rare distinction of commanding two operational Army Commands, providing strategic oversight across critical theatres for more than two and a half years.