New Delhi: India will have two to five theatre commands to deal with future security challenges along the western and northern borders and the first one is expected to be operational by 2022, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat said Monday. He also announced plans for big ticket military reforms.
The COD said the Western and the Eastern commands of the Indian Navy will be merged into the proposed Peninsular Command and it will take care of security challenges in the entire Indian Ocean region. The proposed peninsular command is likely to take shape by end of 2021 and that its area of the command will range from Sir Creek in western sector to Sunderbans in eastern region.
Rawat said security challenges in Jammu and Kashmir will be handled by a dedicated theatre command in a major revamp of existing structures. He disclosed these plans while talking to a group of journalists on his plans for military modernisation.
The government appointed General Rawat as CDS, December 31 to bring in convergence among the three services and restructure military commands to effectively deal with future security challenges.
The CDS also said a new approach of staggered procurement of major military platforms like 114 fighter jets is being firmed up to address the problem of obsolescence.
Rawat informed that the proposed Air Defence Command is likely to be rolled out by middle of next year and certain air assets like missiles of the Indian Army and the Navy will be part of it.
The CDS also informed that the government plans to have a separate training and doctrinal command modelled on similar structure in the US, while a separate command will be set up to take care of logistical requirements of the three services. He said a team headed by Vice-Chief of the Indian Air Force (IAF) is conducting a study to set up the air defence command unit and it has been told to complete the study by March 31.
“Then orders will be issued for implementation of the study. We should have the shape of the air defence command by first half of next year,” Gen Rawat said.
About the theatre commands each of which will have responsibility specific areas of operation, Gen Rawat stated the aim is to make India’s first theatre command by 2022.
“We are planning to have a separate theatre command for Jammu and Kashmir including the IB (International Boundary) portion,” said Gen Rawat.
Each of the theatre commands will have units of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force and all of them will work as a single entity looking after security challenges in a specified geographical territory under an operational commander. At present, the Army, Navy and the Air Force have separate commands.
PTI