Lucknow: Air Marshal Sandeep Thareja, a Meerut native and former commandant of Command Hospital, Lucknow, has taken over as the 47th director general armed forces medical services (DGAFMS), heading the tri-services Armed Forces Medical Services. He succeeds Vice Admiral Arti Sarin, who retired after 41 years of service and was the first woman to lead AFMS.An alumnus of Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune, Thareja was commissioned into Army in Dec 1986. He completed an MD in Medicine in 1997 and later earned a DM in gastroenterology from AIIMS, New Delhi, in 2005, where he received the best DM student award. He has also studied at National Defence College and secured ‘A’ grading across military courses.Thareja served as commandant of Command Hospital, Lucknow, for 15 months from June 5, 2021, to Sept 3, 2022. During this period, he prepared the detailed project report for the proposed new Command Hospital in Lucknow cantonment.His previous key appointments include senior consultant (medicine) at DGAFMS office, commandant of Military Hospital, Pathankot, director and commandant of AFMC, Pune, and director general medical services (Air).Ministry of defence, in a post on X, praised Sarin’s tenure, saying she strengthened AFMS through modernisation, jointness, research, digital transformation, international collaboration and renewed focus on operational healthcare.