7 Commands in Indian Army with Subordinate Units, Divisions & Headquarters

Established in 1895, the headquarters of the Indian Army is in New Delhi. The officials are under the control of the Indian Army. It functions and administers as per the command sent by the headquarters. The Supreme Commander of the Indian defence forces is the President of India. However, the overall command rests with the Chief of Army Staff (COAS). 

The Indian Army is categorised into seven commands. It includes six field armies or operational commands and one training command. Read to learn more about the 7 commands in the Indian Army, their headquarters and subordinate units.

The Indian Army command is an organisational unit providing a legal framework for the authority entitled to them. The Indian Army Training Command, referred to as ATRAC, has been effective since 1991. It is the nodal agency responsible for institutional training in the Indian Army. 

The field formation for every Indian Army command is a division under which there are permanent regiments. They are responsible for recruiting and training their own personnel. Each of the 7 numbers of commands in the Indian Army is headed by a General Officer Commanding in Chief or GOC-in-C having the designation or rank of Lieutenant General.

Each Indian Army Command further consists of seven divisions. They are as follows:

• Section – Sections are the smallest units in the Indian Army. Each of the Sections has approximately ten to twelve soldiers.

• Platoon – It is a subdivision of the company of soldiers who form a tactical unit. A Lieutenant or Subaltern commands this division. Four sections of the Indian Army group form a Platoon.

• Company – Each Company has a Company Commander who is the chief of the unit. Four Platoons in the Indian Army group to form a Company.

• Battalion – The colonel is the chief of the Battalion, and each Battalion in the Indian Army consists of four to six companies and about a thousand commandos.

• Brigade – Brigadier is the chief of a Brigade in the Indian Army. A brigade consists of three battalions and supporting troops.

• Division – Divisions consist of three to four Brigades. They have approximately 10,000 and 15,000 soldiers. It is headed by a Major General.

• Corps – Indian Army Corps consists of about 20,000 to 45,000 commandos. There are about two to five Divisions in the Corps.

As of 2023, General Manoj Pande, the Army's vice-chief, is the current Indian Chief of Army Staff. He is the first officer commissioned within the Corps of Engineers to become Chief of Army Staff.

The Indian Army has seven Commands. All commands of the Indian army are further subdivided into Corps and divisions. 

Here are more details about them:

1. Northern Command

Active since 1972, the headquarters of the Northern Command of the Indian Army is in Udhampur, Jammu & Kashmir. Northern Command witnessed the 1971 Indo-Pakistan War. Northern Command covers Siachen glaciers, thickly forested plains, cold deserts, super high altitude areas and mountains.

Subordinate Units:

It has three subordinate units or three Corps, such as:

• XIV Corps with headquarters at Leh

• XVI Corps with headquarters at Nagrota

• XV Corps with headquarters at Srinagar

Divisions:

Furthermore, there are seven divisions and one Brigade (10 artillery Brigades) functioning under the Northern command. They are as follows:

• 8th Mountain Division in Dras, Ladakh

• 3rd Infantry Division in Leh

• 28th Mountain Division in Gurez or Gurais

• 10th Infantry Division in Akhnoor

• 25th Infantry Division in Rajouri

• 39th Infantry Division in Yol

• 19th Infantry Division in Baramulla

2. Southern Command

The Southern Command's headquarters are in Pune, Maharashtra, and the Lieutenant General is the Commanding-in-Chief of the Southern Army. This command has been active since 1908 and has controlled the Armoured Corp. The Southern Army Command has seen the Indo-Pakistan War (1965 and 1971) and the Annexation of Goa. 

This command has six divisions, 3 Brigades (475th Engineering Brigade, 4th Armoured Brigade and 340th Mechanised Brigade) and two Corps.

Southern Command comprises eleven States and four Union Territories covering about 41% of India’s landmass. Its establishments, units and formations are spread over 36 military stations and 19 cantonments.

Subordinate Units:

The subordinate units or Corps functioning under the Southern Army Command are as follows:

• XXI Corps with headquarters in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh

• XII Corps with headquarters in Jodhpur, Rajasthan

Divisions:

The divisions under the Southern Command are as follows:

• 41st Artillery Division in Pune, Maharashtra

• 11th Infantry Division in Ahmedabad, Gujarat

• 12th RAPID in Jodhpur, Rajasthan

• 36th RAPID in Sagar, Madhya Pradesh

• 31st Armoured Division in Jhansi, Uttar Pradesh

• 54th Infantry Division in Hyderabad / Secunderabad, Telangana

3. Central Command

The Central Command of the Indian Army has been active since 1963 and has been a witness to World War II. However, this division of the Indian Army was re-established after the Indo-Sino War. The headquarters of this command is in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.

Also known as Surya Command, this division has played a pivotal role in assisting humanitarian, nation building, and carrying out disaster relief operations within India and in foreign nations.

However, no units or Corps of the Central Command are presently functioning. All of it has been deployed to the South Western Command in the Indian Army.

4. Eastern Command

Active since 1920, the headquarters of Eastern Command is in Fort William in Kolkata, West Bengal. It witnessed the Indo-Pakistan War of 1971. A general command-in-chief with three stars is in the Command (GOC-in-C). There are presently four Corps and twelve Divisions functioning under the Indian Army Eastern Command. 

The Eastern Command comprises the jungle-clad hills of Nagaland Manipur, snow-capped peaks of Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh towards the North, Mizoram, Tripura and Meghalaya in the North-East and the fertile plains of Assam and Bengal.

Subordinate Units:

However, the four Corps under the Eastern Command are as follows:

• III Corps with headquarters in Dimapur, Nagaland

• XVII Corps with headquarters in Panagarh, West Bengal

• IV Corps with headquarters in Tezpur, Assam

• XXXIII Corps with headquarters in Siliguri, West Bengal

Divisions:

Furthermore, there are twelve divisions under Eastern Command, such as:

• 2nd Mountain Division in Dibrugarh, Assam

• 5th Mountain Division in Bomdila, Arunachal Pradesh

• 17th Mountain Division Gangtok, Sikkim

• 20th Mountain Division in Binnaguri, West Bengal

• 21st Mountain Division in Rangia, Assam

• 23rd Infantry Division in Ranchi, Jharkhand

• 27th Mountain Division in Kalimpong, West Bengal

• 56th Mountain Division in Zakhama, Nagaland

• 57th Mountain Division in Leimakhong, Manipur

• 59th Infantry Division in Panagarh, West Bengal

• 71st Mountain Division in Missamari, Assam

• 72 Infantry Division in Pathankot, Punjab

5. Western Command

Another in the list of 7 commands of the Indian Army, the Western Command has its headquarters in Chandi Mandir, Haryana. This command has been active since 1947 and has witnessed the Indo-Pakistan Wars in 1947, 1965 and 1971. The Western Command of the Indian Army has three Corps, six Brigades and nine Divisions operating under its territory.

Subordinate Units:

The subordinate units or Corps functioning under the Western Command of the Indian Army are as follows:

• IX Corps with headquarters in Yol, Himachal Pradesh

• II Corps with headquarters in Ambala, Haryana

• XI Corps with headquarters in Jalandhar, Punjab

Divisions:

Further divisions under the Western Command are as follows:

• 22nd Infantry Division in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh

• 9th Infantry Division in Meerut, Uttar Pradesh

• 29th Infantry Division in Pathankot, Punjab

• 1st Armoured Division in Patiala, Punjab

• 15th Infantry Division in Amritsar, Punjab

• 7th Infantry Division in Firozpur, Punjab

• 26th Infantry Division in Jammu

• 14th RAPID in Dehradun, Uttarakhand

• 40th Artillery Division in Ambala, Haryana

6. South-Western Command

Another in the list of commands in the Indian Army is the South-Western Command. Its headquarter is in Jaipur, Rajasthan. This command has been active since 2005. The Southern Command of the Indian Army has two Corps, three Brigades and seven Divisions. 

The Brigades include the 615th Independent Air Defence Brigade, 6th Independent Armoured Brigade, and 471st Engineering. 

Subordinate Units:

The two Corps or subordinate units functioning under the South Western Command are as follows:

• 42nd Artillery Division with headquarters in Jaipur

• XXI Corps with headquarters in Bhatinda, Punjab

• I Corps with headquarters in Mathura, Uttar Pradesh

Divisions:

Furthermore, the list of divisions under the Indian Army South Western Command is as follows:

• 42nd Artillery Division in Jaipur, Rajasthan

• 4th Infantry Division in Allahabad (Prayagraj), Uttar Pradesh

• 18th RAPID in Kota, Rajasthan

• 24th RAPID in Bikaner, Rajasthan

• 16th Infantry Division in Sri Ganganagar, Rajasthan

• 6th Mountain Division in Bareilly, Uttar Pradesh

• 33rd Armoured Division in Hisar, Haryana

7. Indian Army Training Command (ATRAC)

The headquarters of the Indian Army Training Command, or ATRAC, is in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh. The ATRAC, or Army Training Command, has been active since 1991. It performs several roles, which are as follows:

• ATRAC serves as the nodal agency for all institutional training in the Army

• It evolves combined doctrines with other services

• This command helps to formulate doctrines of warfare and concepts in the strategic field. It looks after the tactics, logistics, and operational art while training human resources for development so they can handle real-life challenges.

• It helps to prepare training manuals, special training reports and directives, and audits training establishments.

• ATRAC supervises and monitors training in all other training establishments.

• Additionally, it helps to plan, coordinate and implement training policies. It also conducts training courses at training establishments of the Indian Army.

• They continuously interact with training commands of other services at the conceptual level.