Maj Gen Alok Deb has served in the Indian Army for close to four decades. He has experience of command in diverse operational areas, commencing with an Artillery Regiment in the Kargil War, during which he was decorated for gallantry. He is a M Sc in Defence Studies from the Defence Services Staff College, India, and later earned two M Phil degrees in Defence and Strategic Studies, after qualifying on the Higher Command and National Defence College courses, both in India. In addition to his expertise in handling operations and logistics, he has managed human resources for over 5000 officers during a tenure at Army Headquarters. He has experience of UN peacekeeping, having served as the Force Military Personnel Officer at UNIFIL Lebanon in 2005-6. Gen Deb commanded an Artillery Brigade in a high altitude area on the Northern borders and later an Artillery Division on the Western border. He has been Senior Operational Logistics Staff in the Western Theatre, responsible for planning and provisioning of all types of logistics support for approximately 175000 men. He has also overseen the employment of artillery in India’s Eastern Theatre including the entire North East till Myanmar. He is a former Colonel Commandant ( Senior Mentor) of the Indian Artillery. Post retirement in November 2016, he assumed the appointment of Deputy Director General of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses ( now Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses), New Delhi, India’s most prestigious think tank, a position he held till 30 September 2019. Here he interacted extensively with other think tanks, diplomats, military personnel, government servants and civilians from India and abroad. He has contributed towards producing analyses and strategies for handling security challenges both traditional and non traditional in South Asia and the wider Indo Pacific region, including aspects of security structures governance for developing nations. He has been actively involved in planning and conduct of training programs for Indian civilian and para military personnel on issues pertaining to conflict and its resolution, and enhancing their awareness on strategic security issues in the region. He was a member of the DRDOs System Analysis and Modelling Advisory Council, constituted in 2017. Gen Deb has authored a number of writings on security issues. He has lectured at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication Delhi, Defence Services Staff College Wellington, the Army War College Mhow, Directorate General BSF, New Delhi, Shyama Prasad Mukherjee Research Foundation New Delhi, Spearhead Pune, and the IDSA. He has lectured virtually at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication Delhi and the School of Artillery Devlali. He is a Senior Visiting Fellow at the Peninsula Foundation Chennai and Distinguished Fellow at the USI of India. He was appointed Distinguished Fellow at The Asian Confluence in April 2024.