Chief of Defence Staff and top-level military reforms

The Government is yet to announce a successor to the post of Chief of Defence Staff as it is reassessing the concept of the post as well as the Department of Military Affairs (DMA) and is looking to streamline the setup.

Background

• Centre approved creation of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) and the Department of Military Affairs as the fifth department within the Ministry of Defence with salary and perquisites equivalent to Service Chief.
• Army Chief Gen. Rawat was appointed to the post.
• Its creation was recommended in 2001 by a Group of Ministers (GoM) that was tasked with studying the Kargil Review Committee (1999) report.
• After the GoM recommendations, to prepare the post of CDS, the government created Integrated Defence Staff in 2002, which was to eventually serve as the CDS’s Secretariat.
• In 2012, the Naresh Chandra Committee recommended the appointment of a Permanent Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee as a midway to eliminate apprehensions over the CDS.
• The post of CDS was also recommended by the Lt. General D.B. Shekatkar (retd.) Committee (December 2016).

Role of the Chief of Defence Staff

• It will bring in tri-service synergy and integration.
• CDS is Principal Military Adviser to Defence Minister and Permanent Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC).
• DMA was created as fifth department in Ministry of Defence (MoD) with CDS functioning as its Secretary.
• Mandate: Bringing jointness in operations, logistics, transport, training, support services, communications, repairs and maintenance of the three Services, within three years of the first CDS assuming office.
• He will act as the Principal Military Adviser to Defence Minister on all tri-Services matters.
• Three Chiefs will continue to advise Defence Minister on matters exclusively concerning their respective Services.
• CDS will not exercise any military command.
• It will evaluate plans for ‘Out of Area Contingencies’, as well other contingencies such as Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR).
• Specialised tri-service divisions — special operations, defence cyber and defence space — were brought under CDS.

Why the rethink?

• There are several issues with respect to roles and responsibilities, issues of equivalence among others.
• Dichotomy in the roles and responsibilities as several responsibilities overlap between DMA and DoD.
• There is also a rethink on timelines creation of theatre commands and the number of commands and their envisaged format.

What can be done

• There can be CDS with operational powers who will after due legislative changes have theatre commanders report to him while the Service Chiefs will look after the raise, train and sustain functions of respective Services, an official said.
• Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC) can function as the Secretary DMA reporting directly to the CDS.

Progress on theatre commands

• CDS intended to reorganise Indian armed forces into integrated theatre commands.
• It would be biggest reorganisation of the military in 75 years and fundamentally change the way the three services operate together.
• Extensive studies were carried out by the Vice Chiefs of three Services on the theatre commands — land-based Western and Eastern theatre commands, maritime theatre command and an integrated air defence command.
• Differences remain on certain aspects with Air Force having some reservations with regard to the air defence command and naming and rotation of the theatre commands among others.
• Additional studies are underway but overall process has stalled in absence of CDS and continued differences.

Conclusion

Reform in the Higher Defence Management will enable Armed Forces to implement coordinated defence doctrines and procedures and go a long way in fostering jointmanship among the three Services.

Exam track

Prelims take away

• Cheif of Defence Staff
• Theatre command
• Military reforms