Shantanu Dayal is an Infantry officer commissioned in 1984. He has served in Kashmir, Punjab, Rajasthan, Assam, Manipur, Sri Lanka, Kuwait and Iraq. The officer commanded an infantry battalion in Kashmir and is currently commanding an infantry brigade in Assam. The officer's experience in all the insurgency/terrorism affected areas and all active borders of the country along with exposure to the planning of military operations at the apex level and cognizable involvement in the transformational exertions of the Indian Army, elevates the author's credentials in conceptualising and articulating a visionary C4I2SR for the Indian Army. He has been a Senior Fellow at the Centre for Land Warfare Studies, New Delhi.