Visakhapatnam: Never stop learning because life never stops teaching. Lieutenant General NS Raja Subramani (retired), who will take over as the country’s next Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) on May 30, seems to be following the motto to a tee.
Lt Gen Subramani, who retired as Vice Chief of the Indian Army and is currently the military adviser to the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS), has been simultaneously continuing his academic quest as a PhD scholar at Andhra University in Visakhapatnam. While AU officials did not reveal the details, sources said he is pursuing research on HR practices in the department of management studies.
The 'scholar-soldier', as he is famously known in military circles, holds a Master’s degree from King’s College, London, and an MPhil in defence studies from Madras University. He enrolled in the PhD programme at AU in 2023 and has visited the campus a few times, though the ‘low-key visits’ were kept a secret.
“We were expecting him to complete his PhD pre-talk (pre-submission seminar/colloquium) and thesis submission in the next few months, but now we are not sure whether his busy schedule will permit it. Even at the time of admission, he came in unannounced and completed the formalities like a common man,” the source, who is a member of the AU faculty, said. Lt Gen Subramani attended reviews and other academic proceedings as part of his research work at AU over the last three years. “Whenever he visited the university, he stayed for two to three days in Visakhapatnam and quietly carried out his work. His deep academic interests and quest for lifelong learning are exceptional. It is indeed a proud moment for the Andhra University fraternity and Visakhapatnam that the next CDS is one of our PhD alumini,” the source added.
Lt Gen Subramani has vast operational experience along India’s most sensitive borders, including Pakistan and China, and has led multiple counter-insurgency operations in the Northeast. A seasoned strategist, he has commanded strike corps formations, mountain divisions, and counter-insurgency missions during his military career spanning over four decades. As a military adviser at NSCS, he currently reports to national security advisor Ajit Doval.
After graduating from the National Defence Academy, Pune, and the Indian Military Academy, Dehradun, he was commissioned into the 8th Battalion of Garhwal Rifles on Dec 14, 1985. He is also an alumnus of the Joint Services Command Staff College, Bracknell (UK), and the National Defence College, New Delhi.
Before Lt Gen Subramani’s enrolment, Andhra University had admitted nearly 40 officers from the Army, Navy, and Air Force into its PhD programmes in domains such as military psychology, defence technology, strategic studies, international relations, and strategic management through its Defence Studies Centre, which is now largely inactive. These serving and retired officers, holding ranks such as Air Marshal, Air Vice Marshal, Air Commodore, Rear Admiral, Group Captain and Colonel, among others, pursued advanced research at the university while continuing to serve in various wings of the Indian armed forces.
To strengthen the programme, AU also drew upon the expertise of distinguished defence and strategic affairs professionals. On one occasion, it appointed a former deputy national security adviser as a research guide. Similarly, a former air force officer and a DRDO scientist were enlisted to mentor scholars specialising in aviation psychology and allied research areas.
A former university official said the PhD programme designed for armed forces personnel posed a unique academic challenge for conventional faculty members. While it significantly enhanced the university’s academic stature and fostered a rich exchange of knowledge through reverse mentoring, the scholars themselves brought extensive field experience from critical operational and national security assignments. At the same time, the formulation of research problems, methodological rigour, and academic structuring required institutional guidance and scholarly supervision from the institution.
