Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai Becomes First Serving Officer Appointed as NSCS Military Adviser
New Delhi: In a significant shift from tradition, Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai, SYSM, UYSM, AVSM, SM***, has been appointed as the Military Adviser in the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS). This appointment marks a notable change in India's national security advisory framework.
Lt Gen Ghai takes over the role from Lieutenant General N.S. Raja Subramani (Retd), who recently became the Chief of Defence Staff on May 31, 2026. What makes this appointment particularly noteworthy is that Lt Gen Ghai is the first active three-star officer to assume this position since it was reinstated in 2018.
Traditionally, the position has been held by retired senior officers who brought their post-retirement experience to the role. Previous holders like Lieutenant Generals Khandare, Anil Chauhan, N.S. Raja Subramani, and Air Marshal Sandeep Singh had retired before taking on the role. In contrast, Lt Gen Ghai still has over 15 months of active service left, bringing the advantage of up-to-date operational and strategic experience to the NSCS.
This move is seen as significant as India advances with military integration, theatre command reforms, capability modernization, and a more coordinated approach to national security decision-making.
Lt Gen Ghai is recognized as one of the Indian Army's most decorated and experienced officers. His military career began on December 16, 1989, when he was commissioned into the Kumaon Regiment from the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. Over his 36-year career, he has held various command, staff, instructional, and operational positions. He is an alumnus of several prestigious institutions, including the National Defence Academy, Defence Services Staff College, Army War College, and National Defence College.
His extensive field experience includes conventional operations, counter-insurgency efforts in Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast, as well as high-altitude and United Nations peacekeeping missions in Lebanon. He has served in critical military zones such as the Line of Control, northern borders, and the eastern sector along the Line of Actual Control.
Among his notable command roles, Lt Gen Ghai led an infantry battalion in the western sector, an independent brigade group in the northern sector, and the 56th Infantry Division. On June 15, 2023, he became the General Officer Commanding of the XV Corps, also known as the Chinar Corps, based in Srinagar, a crucial unit in counter-terrorism operations and internal security in the Kashmir Valley.
During his tenure as Chinar Corps Commander, security forces focused on maintaining pressure on terrorist networks, countering infiltration, and enhancing coordination among the Army, Jammu and Kashmir Police, paramilitary forces, and intelligence agencies.
Besides command roles, Lt Gen Ghai has held several critical staff positions at Army Headquarters and Northern Command, including roles in the Military Operations Directorate and later as Major General General Staff at Headquarters Northern Command. He has also contributed to military education as an instructor at the Infantry School and the Defence Services Staff College.
Lt Gen Ghai gained national prominence as Director General of Military Operations on October 25, 2024. In this role, he was the public face of India's military response during Operation Sindoor, a significant cross-border counter-terror operation.
Operation Sindoor was launched following the April 22, 2025 terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir, which resulted in the deaths of 26 civilians, mostly tourists. The attack sparked nationwide outrage, leading to a calibrated military response. On May 7, 2025, the Indian Armed Forces conducted precision strikes on nine terrorist infrastructure sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir. India emphasized that no Pakistani military facilities were targeted.
As DGMO, Lt Gen Ghai was instrumental in planning, executing, and communicating the operation, showcasing India's capability for coordinated tri-service action while maintaining escalation control. The operation highlighted the coordination of intelligence, precision targeting, air defense, cyber capabilities, and joint planning.
Operation Sindoor demonstrated India's evolving military doctrine, which combines conventional readiness, counter-terror precision, technological integration, and political-military coordination. Lt Gen Ghai's role during this operation placed him at the forefront of India's military decision-making amid regional tensions.
On the first anniversary of the operation in May 2026, Lt Gen Ghai described Operation Sindoor as a pivotal moment in India's strategic development, emphasizing that it demonstrated India's growing self-reliance in defense. He noted that the operation was a new phase in India's response to terrorism and threats to sovereignty.
For his leadership during Operation Sindoor, Lt Gen Ghai received the Sarvottam Yudh Seva Medal on Independence Day 2025. He had previously been awarded the Uttam Yudh Seva Medal on Republic Day 2025, the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal in 2023, and the Sena Medal with two bars, making him one of the most decorated officers of his generation.
Following his tenure as DGMO, Lt Gen Ghai became the Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy) in June 2025. This role, one of the Indian Army's most strategic appointments, involves long-term operational planning, intelligence, capability development, and future warfare concepts.
In this capacity, Lt Gen Ghai oversaw critical operational and intelligence functions, contributing to the Army's strategic transformation, with a focus on drones, artificial intelligence, surveillance systems, integrated battle networks, and modern warfare technologies.
In March 2026, Lt Gen Ghai also assumed the role of Colonel of the Kumaon Regiment, Kumaon Scouts, and Naga Regiment at the Kumaon Regimental Centre in Ranikhet. In this position, he emphasized soldier welfare, regimental pride, operational readiness, and modern technology adoption for contemporary battlefield requirements.
His appointment as Military Adviser in the NSCS brings his wealth of operational and strategic experience into the national security decision-making framework. The Military Adviser plays a crucial role in providing military insights on strategy, operational assessments, tri-service coordination, and emerging security challenges.
The NSCS assists the National Security Adviser and the government in matters of national security, strategic policy, intelligence assessments, and defense planning. The Military Adviser serves as a vital link between the armed forces and national security policy formulation.
Lt Gen Ghai's appointment comes at a critical juncture. General N.S. Raja Subramani, who previously held the Military Adviser position, now serves as the Chief of Defence Staff, focusing on military integration and theatreisation. With Lt Gen Ghai in the NSCS, the government gains access to a serving officer experienced in operational planning, cross-border response, Army strategy, and high-level military coordination.
This continuity is expected to align military assessments with national security policy, crucial as India navigates complex challenges along its northern and western borders. The security environment includes threats of cross-border terrorism, regional instability, drone usage, cyber threats, and the need for rapid joint military responses.
Lt Gen Ghai's career profile positions him well for this role. He has commanded troops in sensitive operational areas, held senior staff roles in military operations, led a Corps in Kashmir, served as DGMO during a major military response, and worked as Deputy Chief of Army Staff in strategy. Few officers have such comprehensive recent field, operational, and institutional experience.
His appointment as a serving three-star officer suggests a shift in how India might structure military advice within the national security system. Instead of relying solely on retired expertise, the government has placed an active senior commander in the NSCS, potentially enhancing the integration of current military realities into strategic decision-making.
For the armed forces, this development underscores the importance of jointness, operational readiness, and strategic communication. Operation Sindoor highlighted the value of cross-service and agency coordination, while the theatre command process requires sustained civil-military and inter-service alignment. Lt Gen Ghai's new role is expected to contribute to this integration by strengthening the link between military planning and national security policy.
Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai's appointment as Military Adviser in the NSCS goes beyond a routine personnel change. It acknowledges his distinguished service, operational leadership, and strategic acumen. It also highlights an effort to bring current military experience closer to the core of national security decision-making.
From his commissioning into the Kumaon Regiment in 1989 to his leadership during Operation Sindoor and strategic roles at Army Headquarters, Lt Gen Ghai's career reflects the evolution of the Indian Army — from conventional preparedness to counter-terrorism, high-altitude deployment, technological transformation, and integrated national security planning.
As he assumes this influential advisory role, Lt Gen Ghai brings the experience of a field commander, the perspective of a military planner, and the credibility of an officer who has managed some of India's most sensitive operational responsibilities. His tenure as Military Adviser is expected to enhance coordination between the armed forces and the national security establishment during a period of rapid transformation in India's defense posture.
