Overview
- General Dhiraj Seth took charge as India’s 31st Chief of the Army Staff and unveiled the VIJAY priorities on July 1 as his guiding roadmap for the service.
- VIJAY stands for Vigilance, Innovation and Transformation, Jointness and Integration, Atmanirbharta, and Yodha First, with each letter spelling out a concrete focus such as border readiness, doctrinal and tech innovation, inter-service cooperation, self-reliance in kit, and prioritising soldiers’ training and welfare.
- Seth met Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to outline the plan and stressed turning new technologies like drones, AI and electronic warfare into integral capabilities rather than niche tools.
- Coverage notes that many core procurement programmes for armoured vehicles, artillery, air-defence and other systems remain delayed, a practical constraint the new chief inherits and has signalled intent to confront.
- The appointment comes as the Army manages large deployments on the India‑China and India‑Pakistan frontiers and recent selective buys of drones and loitering munitions; observers say Seth’s experience in capability planning could push stalled decisions and boost India’s defence industry if procurement bottlenecks are addressed.