The Centre has appointed Lieutenant General N S Raja Subramani (Retd) as the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), who shall also function as Secretary to Government of India, Department of Military Affairs. He will be the third person to assume the post after Gen Bipin Rawat and Gen Anil Chauhan.
Government of India appoints Lt Gen NS Raja Subramani PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM (Retd.) as the next Chief of Defence Staff, who will also serve as Secretary, Department of Military Affairs. He will assume office after Gen Anil Chauhan completes his tenure on 30 May 2026.
A highly… pic.twitter.com/wnbeitcpyX
— Ministry of Defence, Government of India (@SpokespersonMoD) May 9, 2026
The present Chief of Defence Staff, General Anil Chauhan, will complete his tenure on May 30, 2026. Lieutenant General NS Raja Subramani is currently Military Adviser, National Security Council Secretariat since September 1, 2025. Before that, he was the Vice Chief of the Army Staff from 01st Jul 2024 to 31st July 2025 and was General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Central Command from March 2023 till June 2024.
Vice-Admiral Krishna Swaminathan to be next Chief of Navy Staff
Vice-Admiral Krishna Swaminathan has been appointed as the next Chief of Naval Staff. He is presently the Western Naval Commander in Mumbai. He will take charge from current CNS Admiral Dinesh Kumar Tripathi on May 31.
Government appoints Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, PVSM, AVSM, VSM as the next Chief of the Naval Staff. Currently serving as FOC-in-C, @IN_WNC, the Admiral brings nearly four decades of distinguished service, with extensive operational, strategic & personnel management… pic.twitter.com/5tFs4eR2xJ
— Ministry of Defence, Government of India (@SpokespersonMoD) May 9, 2026
Vice-Admiral Swaminathan’s tenure will be up to December 31, 2028.
An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, he joined the Indian Navy on in 1987 and is a specialist in Communication and Electronic Warfare. He also studied at the Joint Services Command and Staff College, Shrivenham, United Kingdom; the College of Naval Warfare, Karanja; and the United States Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island, USA.
