Lt Gen Sandeep Jain. (Photo: Indian Army)
New Delhi: Lieutenant General Sandeep Jain on Wednesday took over as the vice-chief of the Army staff (VCOAS), succeeding General Dhiraj Seth, who was elevated as the chief of the Army staff (COAS) a day earlier. Jain’s appointment completes a leadership transition at Army Headquarters that began on Tuesday, when Gen Seth took over as the 31st chief of the Army staff from General Upendra Dwivedi, who retired after over four decades in uniform.
An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, Jain was commissioned into the Mahar Regiment in June 1988.
Over a career spanning nearly 38 years, he has held command and staff appointments across a range of operational environments, from conventional and counter-insurgency theatres to high-altitude terrain and United Nations peacekeeping missions.
He has commanded an infantry battalion in the semi-desert sector and with the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), an infantry brigade in a strike corps, a counter-insurgency force, and a pivot corps in Northern Command.
He also commanded a sector within UNMISS. His operational record includes a tour during Operation Pawan and a posting as a military observer with the United Nations Mission in Ethiopia, besides multiple tenures in counter-insurgency and high-altitude postings along the line of control (LoC) and in the northeast.
On promotion to lieutenant general, Jain commanded the Nagrota-based XVI Corps in Jammu & Kashmir and later the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun. He went on to serve as chief of staff at headquarters Southern Command before being elevated to Army commander rank as general officer commanding in chief (GOC-in-C) of Southern Command on April 1, 2026, a post he held until his move to army headquarters on June 30.
He has been colonel of the Mahar Regiment since August 1, 2024.
Jain is a graduate of the higher command course at the Army War College, Mhow, and the National Defence College course in Kenya. He has been awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal and the Sena Medal for distinguished service.
His elevation is part of a broader reshuffle triggered by the change of Army chief. Lieutenant General Rajesh Pushkar, who was commanding the II Strike Corps at Ambala, has taken over as GOC-in-C, Southern Command, while Lieutenant General Mohit Malhotra has moved from chief of staff, Eastern Command, to head the South Western Command in Jaipur.
Gen Seth, the new Army chief, is the first officer from the Armoured Corps to lead the force since General Shankar Roy Chowdhury retired in 1997. He takes over with force modernization, vigilance along the line of actual control (LAC) and continued restructuring of the Army’s operational commands high on the agenda – priorities that Jain, as his new deputy, will now help steer from Army Headquarters.
Follow us on social media for quick updates, new photos, videos, and more.
X: https://x.com/indiasentinels
Facebook: https://facebook.com/indiasentinels
Instagram: https://instagram.com/indiasentinels
YouTube: https://youtube.com/indiasentinels
© India Sentinels 2026-27
