# N. S. Raja Subramani

N. S. Raja Subramani is a serving general officer of the Indian Army. He currently serves as the 47th Vice Chief of the Army Staff. He was previously tenanting the appointment of General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Command. He earlier served as the Chief of Staff of the Northern Command, prior to that he was General Officer Commanding II corps and also as General Officer Commanding Uttar Bharat Area.

## Early life and education

The general officer is an alumnus of the 67th course of the National Defence Academy and the 77th course of the Indian Military Academy. The General Officer also attended the Joint Services Command Staff College, Bracknell (UK) and National Defence College, New Delhi. He also holds a Master of Arts Degree from King's College, London and an M Phil in Defence Studies from Madras University.

## Military career

He was commissioned into the 8th battalion of the Garhwal Rifles (8 Garh RIF) in December 1985. Early in his career, he served as a Divisional officer at his alma-mater, the National Defence Academy. He attended the Joint Services Command and Staff College in Bracknell, United Kingdom. After completing the course, he returned to India and was appointed Brigade major of a mountain brigade. He commanded the 16th battalion, the Garhwal Rifles (16 Garh RIF) in Assam. The battalion was deployed in a counter-insurgency role as part of Operation Rhino. For his command of 16 Garh Rif, he was awarded the Sena Medal for devotion to duty. He was subsequently appointed as the Defence attaché at the Embassy of India in Astana, Kazakhstan. In the rank of Colonel, he also served as the Assistant Military Secretary in the MS branch at Army headquarters. He later served as the Colonel General Staff (Operations) at Headquarters Eastern Command. In Jammu and Kashmir, he served as the Deputy Commander of a Rashtriya Rifles sector.
On promotion to the rank of Brigadier, he commanded the 168 Infantry Brigade in Samba. On 26 January 2015, he was awarded the Vishisht Seva Medal. He was then selected to attend the National Defence College in New Delhi, as part of the 55th course. After the course, he was appointed Deputy Director General Military Intelligence (DDGMI) at Army HQ. He subsequently served as the Brigadier General Staff (Operations) in the Eastern Command.

### General officer

He was promoted to the rank of Major General and appointed General officer commanding 17th Mountain Division in Sikkim. He then moved to the Defence Services Staff College, Wellington as the Chief Instructor (Army). On 26 January 2020, he was awarded the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal for the command of 17th Mountain Division. On 3 February 2020, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant General and appointed General officer commanding Uttar Bharat Area. On 12 February 2021, Lieutenant General Raja Subramani took over as the General Officer Commanding II Corps succeeding Lieutenant General Surinder Singh Mahal. After a year-long tenure, he moved to the Northern Command in Udhampur as the Chief of Staff, taking over in May 2022.
On 1 March 2023, Lieutenant General N. S. Raja Subramani took over as General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Central Command succeeding Lieutenant General Yogendra Dimri who superannuated on 28 February 2023.
On 1 July 2024, Lieutenant General N. S. Raja Subramani took over as the 47th Vice Chief of the Army Staff. He assumed the post from General Upendra Dwivedi upon his elevation as the Chief of Army Staff.

## Awards and decorations

For his exemplary dedication, the General officer has been awarded Param Vishisht Seva Medal, Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Sena Medal and Vishisht Seva Medal.
| Param Vishisht Seva Medal | Ati Vishisht Seva Medal | Sena Medal | Vishisht Seva Medal |
| Special Service Medal | Siachen Glacier Medal | Operation Vijay Medal | Operation Parakram Medal |
| Sainya Seva Medal | High Altitude Medal | Videsh Seva Medal | 75th Independence Anniversary Medal |
| 50th Independence Anniversary Medal | 30 Years Long Service Medal | 20 Years Long Service Medal | 9 Years Long Service Medal |

## Dates of rank

| Rank | Component | Date of rank |
| Second Lieutenant | Indian Army | 14 December 1985 |
| Lieutenant | Indian Army | 14 December 1987 |
| Captain | Indian Army | 14 December 1990 |
| Major | Indian Army | 14 December 1996 |
| Lieutenant Colonel | Indian Army | 16 December 2004 |
| Colonel | Indian Army | 15 August 2006 |
| Brigadier | Indian Army | 27 April 2012 (acting) 13 August 2012 (substantive, with seniority from 28 October 2010) |
| Major General | Indian Army | 2 January 2018 (seniority from 1 June 2015) |
| Lieutenant General | Indian Army | 3 February 2020 |