The Government has appointed Lieutenant General Anil Chauhan (Retired) as the next Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). Lieutenant General Chauhan will also function as Secretary, Department of Military Affairs with effect from the date of his assumption of charge.
In a career spanning over nearly 40 years, Lieutenant General Anil Chauhan held several command, staff and instrumental appointments and had extensive experience in counter-insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir and North-East India.
The post of Chief of Defence Staff has been lying vacant since death of General Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash on 8th December last year.
Born on 18th May 1961, Lt Gen Anil Chauhan was commissioned into the 11 Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army in 1981. He is an alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla and Indian Military Academy, Dehradun.