The government on Saturday named Lieutenant General NS Raja Subramani (retd) as the country’s next chief of defence staff (CDS), and Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan as the next Navy chief.
Orders announcing both new appointments were issued on May 9 early morning.
Subramani will take over as the CDS on May 30, replacing General Anil Chauhan. Swaminathan will take charge on May 31, succeeding Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi.
Who is Lt Gen Subramani
Subramani, who retired as Vice Chief of Army Staff, is currently service as the Military Adviser to the National Security Council Secretariat. Swaminathan is heading the Mumbai-based Western Naval Command.
Subramani retired as the army’s vice chief on July 31, 2025, after a military career spanning 39 years. He was appointed as Military Adviser in the NSAB last August. An alumnus of National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, and Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, he was commissioned into the Garhwal Rifles in December 1985. Subramani earlier served as Central Army commander in Lucknow.
He has insightful knowledge and a deep understanding of operational dynamics on both the western and northern borders, the army earlier said.
He is also an alumnus of Joint Services Command Staff College, Bracknell, UK, and National Defence College, New Delhi. He holds a Master of Arts Degree from King’s College London and an M Phil in Defence Studies from Madras University.
Subramani will take over the top post at a pivotal moment when key military reforms are underway in the defence ministry, including theaterisation. Last September, the government extended the tenure of General Chauhan by eight months.
About Vice Adm Swaminathan
Swaminathan earlier served as the navy’s vice chief.
He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakvasla; the Joint Services Command and Staff College, Shrivenham, the United Kingdom; the College of Naval Warfare, Karanja; and the United States Naval War College, Newport, Rhode Island.
Commissioned into the Indian Navy on July 1, 1987, the officer is a specialist in communication and electronic warfare and has held several key appointments in his career including the navy’s chief of personnel, controller of personnel services and chief of staff of the Mumbai-based Western Naval Command.
His earlier appointments include command of missile vessels INS Vidyut and INS Vinash, the missile corvette INS Kulish, the guided missile destroyer INS Mysore, and the aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya.
On promotion to rear admiral, he served as the chief staff officer (training) at the Kochi-based Southern Naval Command and played a key role in training across the navy. He was instrumental in raising the Indian Naval Safety Team that oversees operational safety across all verticals of the navy.
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