Defence questions appear almost daily in current affairs and regularly in static GK. This guide brings together the chiefs, commands, exercises and missiles you need. For the full list of all past chiefs, see our defence chiefs history page.
Who’s who in defence (as of November 2026)
Post
Name
Since
Supreme Commander
President Droupadi Murmu
2022
Defence Minister
Rajnath Singh
2019
Chief of Defence Staff (CDS)
Gen N.S. Raja Subramani (3rd CDS)
31 May 2026
Chief of the Army Staff
Gen Dhiraj Seth (31st)
30 June 2026
Chief of the Naval Staff
Adm Krishna Swaminathan (27th)
31 May 2026
Chief of the Air Staff
Air Chief Marshal A.P. Singh
30 September 2024
The CDS also heads the Department of Military Affairs (created in 2020). Office-holders can change; check the latest before your exam.
Indian Army commands
Command
Headquarters
Northern Command
Udhampur (J&K)
Western Command
Chandimandir (Haryana)
South Western Command
Jaipur
Southern Command
Pune
Central Command
Lucknow
Eastern Command
Kolkata
Army Training Command (ARTRAC)
Shimla
Indian Navy commands
Command
Headquarters
Western Naval Command
Mumbai
Eastern Naval Command
Visakhapatnam
Southern Naval Command (training)
Kochi
Indian Air Force commands
Command
Headquarters
Western Air Command
New Delhi
Eastern Air Command
Shillong
Central Air Command
Prayagraj
South Western Air Command
Gandhinagar
Southern Air Command
Thiruvananthapuram
Training Command
Bengaluru
Maintenance Command
Nagpur
Tri-service commands
Command
Key fact
Andaman & Nicobar Command
India’s only theatre command (2001), at Sri Vijaya Puram (Port Blair)
Strategic Forces Command
Manages nuclear weapons (2003)
Defence Cyber Agency, Defence Space Agency, Armed Forces Special Operations Division
Set up in 2018–19
Integrated theatre commands have been planned for years; check the latest status in current affairs.
Multilateral exercises:Malabar (Quad navies), RIMPAC (US-led, Hawaii), Pitch Black (Australia, air), Red Flag (USA, air), MILAN (hosted by the Indian Navy at Visakhapatnam), Tarang Shakti (IAF’s first multinational air exercise, 2024).
Indian missiles
Missile
Type
Range (approx)
Prithvi-II
Surface-to-surface, short range
350 km
Agni-I
Ballistic
700–900 km
Agni-II
Ballistic
2,000+ km
Agni-III
Ballistic
3,000+ km
Agni-IV
Ballistic
4,000 km
Agni-V
Intercontinental-range ballistic; MIRV tested (Mission Divyastra, March 2024)
5,000+ km
Agni-Prime
New-generation ballistic; tested from a rail-based launcher (2025)
1,000–2,000 km
K-4 / K-15 (Sagarika)
Submarine-launched ballistic
3,500 / 750 km
BrahMos
Supersonic cruise (India–Russia; Brahmaputra + Moskva)
290 km → 450+ km
Nirbhay
Subsonic cruise
1,000 km
Pralay
Quasi-ballistic, surface-to-surface
150–500 km
Akash
Surface-to-air
25–30 km
Nag
Anti-tank, “fire and forget”
4–7 km
Astra
Beyond-visual-range air-to-air
100+ km
Rudram
Anti-radiation (air-to-surface)
100–250 km
IGMDP (Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme), launched in 1983 under Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, produced Prithvi, Agni, Trishul, Akash and Nag.
Exam-ready one-liners
CDS: Gen N.S. Raja Subramani (3rd CDS, May 2026).
Army chief: Gen Dhiraj Seth; Navy chief: Adm Krishna Swaminathan; Air chief: ACM A.P. Singh.
Andaman & Nicobar Command (2001) is India’s only theatre command.
