The headquarters of India’s Army and Navy leadership are set for a significant administrative relocation, with the two service chiefs and their senior staff expected to move out of South Block in New Delhi by the end of November 2026. The shift is part of a wider reorganisation of defence establishments and will place the Army’s senior command structure in the newly built Shaurya Bhavan in Delhi Cantonment.
According to India Today, Army Chief General Dhiraj Seth, the Vice Chief of the Army Staff and seven Principal Staff Officers are expected to relocate to the new complex. The move will end the long-standing arrangement under which the Army chief, Navy chief and senior officers worked from the historic South Block government offices.
Operational Army offices included in the move
The relocation is not limited to senior appointments. The Army War Room and the office of the Director General of Military Operations are also among the establishments scheduled to leave South Block. These offices form part of the Army’s operational and senior decision-making structure, although the report does not provide further details on their future accommodation or the timetable for each individual facility.
The Navy’s senior leadership is also included in the planned move. Navy Chief Admiral Krishna Swaminathan, the Vice Chief and the Navy’s Principal Staff Officers are expected to shift from South Block. The Navy had already moved into Nausena Bhavan in Delhi Cantonment in 2024, but the latest plan concerns the relocation of its senior leadership offices as well.
| Establishment | Reported relocation position |
|---|---|
| Army Chief and senior staff | Expected to move to Shaurya Bhavan by the end of November 2026 |
| Navy Chief and senior staff | Included in the relocation from South Block |
| Army War Room and DGMO office | Scheduled to move out of South Block |
| Navy War Room | Future location remains unclear |
Part of a broader government complex plan
The service headquarters changes are being undertaken alongside the movement of Defence Ministry offices into newly developed government complexes. The Defence Ministry has temporarily shifted to Kartavya Bhavan II, where the Chief of Defence Staff is currently the only senior military leadership position based, according to the report.
Once the next buildings are completed, the Defence Ministry is expected to move to Kartavya Bhavan 6 and 7. These complexes are also intended to accommodate additional offices of the service chiefs. General Seth’s relocation to Shaurya Bhavan will mean that meetings with the Defence Minister and senior government officials at Kartavya Bhavan II will require travel between the two locations.
Different infrastructure demands for the Navy
The location of the Navy War Room has not yet been settled. Its relocation is described as more complicated because the facility requires extensive infrastructure, secure communications systems and advanced technology. The unresolved position of the Navy War Room indicates that the movement of senior offices and the movement of operational command facilities are being handled as separate requirements.
The changes will therefore affect several layers of India’s military administration: the offices of the service chiefs, their senior staff, the Army’s operational headquarters and the Defence Ministry’s new government-office complexes. The immediate timetable concerns the relocation of the Army leadership to Shaurya Bhavan and the parallel movement of the Navy’s senior officers from South Block.
