Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (India)
Senior role in the Indian Army
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Deputy Chiefs of the Army Staff (DCOAS) are Principal Staff Officers (PSOs) of the Indian Army, and are three-star rank appointments held by Lieutenant Generals. Currently the rank of DCOAS has three divisions:- Capability Development and Sustenance, Information Systems & Training and Strategy.
| Deputy Chief of the Army Staff | |
|---|---|
Flag of a Principal Staff Officer | |
 Indian Army | |
| Type | Principal Staff Officer |
| Abbreviation | DCOAS |
| Reports to | Vice Chief of the Army Staff |
| Seat | Army Headquarters, New Delhi |
| Formation | 27 January 1959 |
| First holder | Mohinder Singh Wadalia |
History
The position of Deputy Chief of Army Staff (DCOAS) was first established on 27 January 1959 as the second-in-command of the Indian Army after the Chief of Army Staff. It was equivalent to an Army Commander (GOC-in-C).[1][2] Lieutenant General Mohinder Singh Wadalia became the first DCOAS.
In January 1965, the position of Vice Chief of the Army Staff replaced the DCOAS in the role of second-in-command, with the DCOAS becoming a Principal Staff Officer (PSO) position,[3] replacing the former position of Chief of the General Staff.[4]
The office of DCOAS was eventually bifurcated into :- Planning and Systems and Training and Coordination. The division of Training and Coordination was later renamed to Information Systems and Training.
In April 2021, the appointment of Deputy Chief (Planning and Systems) was amended to Deputy Chief (Capability Development and Sustenance) and Deputy Chief (Information Systems and Training) to Deputy Chief (Information Systems and Coordination). A third post and new post of DCOAS Strategy was created.[5]
In 2025, the appointment of Deputy Chief (Information Systems and Coordination) was amended to Deputy Chief (Information Systems and Training)
Order of Precedence
The DCOAS rank at No. 24 on the Indian order of precedence, along with Vice-Admirals of the Indian Navy and Air Marshals of the Indian Air Force.[6] Since they should not draw equivalent or more salary than the next higher level, the remuneration is capped at ₹2,24,000.[7][8]
Current organisation
Currently, there are three DCOAS at Army HQ:[9]
- Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Capability Development and Sustenance)
- Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Information Systems and Training)
- Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy)
Appointees
Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (1959-65)
| No. | Rank | Name | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lieutenant General | Mohinder Singh Wadalia | 27 January 1959 | 15 November 1964 | Kumaon Regiment | [10][2] | |
| 2 | Paramasiva Prabhakar Kumaramangalam | DSO, MBE | 16 November 1964 | 15 January 1965 | Regiment of Artillery | [11][12] |
Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (1965-1993)
| No. | Rank | Name | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | Lieutenant General | Moti Sagar | PVSM | 15 January 1965 | 8 May 1965 | 4th Gorkha Rifles | [11][13] |
| 4 | Kunhiraman Palat Candeth | PVSM | 1 October 1965 | 6 June 1966 | Regiment of Artillery | [14][15] | |
| 5 | Jagjit Singh Aurora | PVSM | 6 June 1966 | 27 April 1967 | 2nd Punjab Regiment | [15] | |
| 6 | Gopal Gurunath Bewoor | PVSM, PB | 27 April 1967 | 4 July 1969 | 10th Baluch Regiment | [16] | |
| 7 | Reginald Stephen Noronha | PVSM, MC | 4 July 1969 | 5 September 1973 | Madras Regiment | [17][18] | |
| 8 | S. L. Menezes | PVSM, SC | 5 September 1973 | 20 March 1978 | The Grenadiers | [19] | |
| 9 | K. V. Krishna Rao | PVSM | 20 March 1978 | 25 May 1979 | Mahar Regiment | [20] | |
| 10 | H. C. Dutta | PVSM | 25 May 1979 | 23 August 1981 | 8th Gorkha Rifles | [21] | |
| 11 | Krishnaswamy Sundarji | PVSM | 23 August 1981 | 1 January 1983 | Mahar Regiment | [22][23] | |
| 12 | Hriday Kaul | PVSM, AVSM | 16 January 1983 | February 1985 | 2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse) | [24][25] | |
| 13 | C.N. Somanna | PVSM | February 1985 | 1 September 1986 | Brigade of the Guards | [26] | |
| 14 | Anand Sarup | PVSM, MVC | 8 September 1986 | 31 March 1987 | 8th Gorkha Rifles | [27][28] | |
| 15 | Kunwar Mahendra Singh | PVSM | 5 April 1987 | 30 November 1987 | Garhwal Rifles | [29] | |
| 16 | Lakshman Singh Rawat | AVSM | 30 November 1987 | 30 November 1988 | 11th Gorkha Rifles | [30] | |
| 17 | R.N. Mahajan | PVSM, VSM | December 1988 | 1 August 1991 | Kumaon Regiment | [31][32] | |
| 18 | R. Sharma | AVSM | 22 August 1991 | September 1993 | 2nd Lancers (Gardner's Horse) | [33] |
Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Capability Development and Sustenance)
This officer takes care of all capital procurement. DG Infantry, DG Armoured, ADG Mechanised Infantry, DG Artillery, DG Air Defence and DG Capability Development report come under this office.[5]
Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Planning and Systems)
| Rank | Name | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant General | Sushil Kumar Pillai | PVSM | May 1988 | Assam Regiment | [34] | |
| Prakash Mani Tripathi | PVSM, AVSM | 1992 | September 1993 | 63rd Cavalry | [35] | |
| D.K. Khanna | September 1993 | 31 August 1994 | Kumaon Regiment | [36] | ||
| S.S. Sethi | AVSM | 1 September 1994 | September 1996 | Regiment of Artillery | [37] | |
| N.S. Malik | PVSM | September 1996 | 28 February 1998 | 4th Horse (Hodson's Horse) | [38] | |
| Shamsher Singh Mehta | PVSM, AVSM**, VSM | March 1998 | 31 March 2001 | 63rd Cavalry | [39] | |
| Arjun Singh Khanna | PVSM, AVSM, VrC | 1 April 2001 | 31 August 2002 | Regiment of Artillery | [40] | |
| Ashok Chaki | PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM | 1 September 2002 | 1 January 2004 | 4th Gorkha Rifles | [41] | |
| P.P.S. Bhandari | PVSM, AVSM | 1 January 2004 | 31 January 2006 | 4th Horse (Hodson's Horse) | [42] | |
| Gurditar Singh | PVSM, AVSM | 1 February 2006 | Armoured Corps | [43] | ||
| Zameer Uddin Shah | PVSM, SM, VSM | 1 October 2006 | 31 August 2008 | Regiment of Artillery | [44] | |
| Manbir Singh Dadwal | PVSM, AVSM**, VSM | August 2008 | Dogra Regiment | [45] | ||
| J.P. Singh | PVSM, AVSM | March 2010 | September 2011 | Armoured Corps | [46] | |
| Narendra Singh | PVSM, AVSM | September 2011 | 2013 | Maratha Light Infantry | [46] | |
| C.A. Krishnan | PVSM, UYSM, AVSM | 2014 | 2015 | 4th Gorkha Rifles | ||
| Subrata Saha | PVSM, UYSM, YSM, VSM* | 31 March 2017 | Assam Regiment | [47] | ||
| Shravan Kumar Patyal | PVSM, UYSM, SM | 31 March 2017 | May 2018 | 4th Gorkha Rifles | [47] | |
| Sudarshan Srikant Hasabnis | PVSM, VSM | June 2018 | December 2020 | Corps of Engineers | [48] |
Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Capability Development and Sustenance)
| Rank | Name | Photo | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant General | Shantanu Dayal | UYSM, AVSM, SM, VSM | 1 January 2021 | 31 October 2022 | Garhwal Rifles | [49] | |
| JB Chaudhari |  |
PVSM, SM, VSM | 1 November 2022 | 31 October 2024 | Brigade of the Guards | [50] | |
| Rahul R Singh |  |
AVSM, VSM | 1 November 2024 | Incumbent | Regiment of Artillery | [51] |
Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Information Systems and Training)
The DG Signals, DG Information Systems, DG Integrated Training and DG Staff Duty report to this office.[5]
Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Training and Coordination)
| Rank | Name | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant General | Satish Nambiar | PVSM, AVSM, VrC | 1993 | 31 August 1994 | Maratha Light Infantry | [52] |
| K.L. D'Souza | PVSM, AVSM | 1 September 1994 | Regiment of Artillery | [52] | ||
| M.R. Sharma | PVSM, VSM | 1998 | 1999 | Dogra Regiment | ||
| Surinder Kumar Jetley | PVSM, AVSM, SM | February 1999 | May 2000 | Central India Horse | [53] | |
| R.K. Sawhney | PVSM, AVSM | June 2000 | Jammu and Kashmir Rifles | [54][55] | ||
| R.S. Kadyan | PVSM, AVSM, VSM | 2002 | Rajputana Rifles | |||
| J.B.S. Yadava[56] | PVSM, AVSM, VrC, VSM | 1 September 2002 | 28 February 2005 | 11th Gorkha Rifles | [41][57] |
Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Information Systems and Training)
| Rank | Name | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant General | Mohinder Puri | PVSM, UYSM | 28 February 2005 | 30 April 2006 | 3rd Gorkha Rifles | [58] |
| Susheel Gupta | AVSM, YSM | 1 May 2006 | Jammu and Kashmir Rifles | [58] | ||
| Samer Pal Singh Dhillon | PVSM, AVSM, VSM | 2008 | 2009 | Regiment of Artillery | [59] | |
| Virender Singh Tonk | PVSM, AVSM | 2010 | Rajput Regiment | [60] | ||
| Ramesh Halagali | PVSM, AVSM, SM | February 2012 | January 2013 | Sikh Light Infantry | [61] | |
| DS Thakur | January 2013 | Maratha Light Infantry | [62] | |||
| Jai Prakash Nehra | PVSM, AVSM** | October 2014 | Madras Regiment | [63] | ||
| Gurmit Singh | PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, VSM | October 2014 | January 2016 | Assam Regiment | [64] | |
| Jagbir Singh Cheema | PVSM, AVSM, VSM | 1 February 2017 | November 2017 | Sikh Regiment | [65] | |
| N.P.S. Hira | PVSM, AVSM, SM | 14 March 2016 | Jan 2017 | Sikh Light Infantry | [66] | |
| Ranbir Singh | PVSM, AVSM**, YSM, SM | Dec 2017 | June 2018 | Dogra Regiment | [67] | |
| Iqroop Singh Ghuman | PVSM, AVSM | July 2018 | 30 September 2019 | Brigade of the Guards | [68] | |
| Saranjit Singh | PVSM, UYSM, YSM | 1 October 2019 | 31 August 2020 | Sikh Light Infantry | [69] |
Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Information Systems and Coordination)
| Rank | Name | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant General | Amardeep Singh Bhinder | AVSM, VSM | 1 September 2020 | 31 March 2021 | 9th Deccan Horse | [70][71] |
| Upendra Dwivedi | AVSM | 10 April 2021 | 31 January 2022 | Jammu and Kashmir Rifles | [72] | |
| C.B. Ponnappa | AVSM, VSM | 16 February 2022 | 31 March 2022 | Mahar Regiment | [73] | |
| Ravin Khosla | UYSM, AVSM, SM, VSM | 5 April 2022 | 31 March 2023 | 5th Gorkha Rifles (Frontier Force) | [74] | |
| Rakesh Kapoor | AVSM, VSM | 9 June 2023 | 30 November 2025 | 63rd Cavalry | [75] |
Deputy Chief of the Army Staff (Information Systems and Training)
| Rank | Name | Photo | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant General | Rakesh Kapoor |  |
AVSM, VSM | 9 June 2023 | 30 November 2025 | 63rd Cavalry | [75][76] |
| Vipul Shinghal |  |
AVSM, SM | 1 December 2025 | Incumbent | 51 Armoured Regiment | [77] |
Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy)
The Director General of Military Operations (DGMO), Director General Military Intelligence (DGMI), DG Operation Logistics and DG Information Warfare report to this office.[5]
| Rank | Name | Photo | Decorations | Appointment date | Left office | Regiment of Commission | References |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lieutenant General | Paramjit Singh Sangha[nb 1] | UYSM, AVSM, SM | February 2021 | 30 June 2021 | Parachute Regiment | [78] | |
| Sanjeev Kumar Sharma |  |
AVSM, YSM | 1 July 2021 | 30 June 2022 | Rajputana Rifles | [79][80] | |
| M. V. Suchindra Kumar |  |
AVSM, YSM**, VSM | 1 July 2022 | 28 February 2023 | Assam Regiment | [81] | |
| Tarun Kumar Aich | .jpg) |
PVSM, AVSM | 15 March 2023 | 31 October 2024 | Madras Regiment | [82] | |
| Pratik Sharma |  |
PVSM, AVSM, SM | 1 November 2024 | 30 April 2025 | Madras Regiment | [83] | |
| Rajiv Ghai |  |
SYSM, UYSM, AVSM, SM*** | 9 June 2025 | Incumbent | Kumaon Regiment | [84] |