Lt Gen Pushpendra Singh Named Incoming Vice Chief of Army Staff

Lieutenant General Pushpendra Singh has been named the forthcoming Vice Chief of the Army Staff (VCOAS), set to replace Lt Gen NS Raja Subramani, who assumed the position on July 1 of the previous year. Lt Gen Singh is scheduled to formally take over from August 1, 2025.

A graduate of the Indian Military Academy, Lt Gen Singh was commissioned into the prestigious 4 Para (Special Forces) unit in December 1987. Throughout his impressive military career, which has extended for more than 35 years, he has been involved in significant operations such as Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka, Operation Meghdoot in Siachen, Operation Rakshak in Jammu and Kashmir, and Operation Orchid in the Northeast.

Lt Gen Singh also possesses considerable international experience, having participated in United Nations Peacekeeping Missions in both Lebanon and Sri Lanka. In April 2022, he was designated as the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Rising Star Corps, a strategically vital unit stationed in the Yol cantonment of Himachal Pradesh.

The Rising Star Corps, formed in 2005, is crucial in securing the western borders and boosting operational readiness in the northern sector.

This appointment is part of a broader series of high-level changes within India's military leadership. Vice Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, who currently serves as the Vice Chief of the Naval Staff, has assumed the role of Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Naval Command. His successor, Vice Admiral Sanjay Vatsayan, is anticipated to take over as the next Vice Chief of the Naval Staff on the same day, August 1.