Indian Army Hosts Strategic Communication Conclave in Lucknow | 10 Mar 2026

Why in News? 

The Indian Army’s Central Command conducted its inaugural Strategic Communication Conclave in Lucknow on Saturday, 7 March 2026.  

Key Points: 

• Venue: The one-day event, held at the Surya Auditorium in Lucknow Cantonment, brought together nearly 500 participants, including senior military officers, diplomats, and media professionals.  
• Theme: The conclave included an expert policy-level session on institutional and national security dimensions on the theme ‘Institutionalising Strategic Communication as a Capability for Future Preparedness in the Emerging Information Space’. 
  • A special interactive session was organised on the theme ‘Strategic Communication in Emerging Multi-Domain Operations: Strategies, Structures, Processes and Preparedness’ which integrated policy and operational perspectives.  
• Core Objective: To examine strategic communication as a vital institutional capability within India’s national security architecture. 
• Key Address: Lt Gen Anindya Sengupta, GOC-in-C of Central Command, emphasized that the "battlespace now includes information and cognitive domains," where perception management is crucial because "perception shapes legitimacy, legitimacy shapes influence, and influence shapes outcomes". 
  • India’s first female Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Ruchira Kamboj (Retd), Ambassador Yashvardhan Sinha (Retd) and Lt Gen Raj Shukla (Retd) addressed the session. 
• Strategic Importance: The conclave addressed the weaponisation of narratives and the growing threat of conflicts that exist below the threshold of traditional war.  
  • Future Preparedness: Experts argued that strategic communication must move beyond being reactive or episodic to becoming a doctrine-backed and institutionalised capability for future military preparedness.