CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF

CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF

 

Introduction:

Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat and his wife Madhulika Rawat have been confirmed to be among the 13 people who died in the IAF Mi-17V5 helicopter crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu.

General Bipin Rawat was India's first Chief of Defence Staff. He was appointed for the topmost position in December 2019.

 

Background:

The proposal for setting up a Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) post has been contemplated around 20 years ago after the Kargil war of 1999 by the K. Subrahmanyam committee but it never moved forward due to the absence of political consensus and apprehensions among services.

Later in 2012, the Naresh Chandra Committee recommended the appointment of a Permanent Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC), but it too never moved.

On 15 August 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his Independence Day speech from the ramparts of Red Fort announced the creation of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) post. 

On 31 December 2021, a day before his retirement as the Indian Army Chief, General Bipin Rawat was elevated to the post of CDS. He served as the first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of India until his demise in a tragic chopper crash on December 8. 

 

Chief of Defence Staff post: Key Details 

Term:

The tenure of the Chief of Defence Staff will be maximum up to the age of 65 years. 

The defence ministry amended the army, air force and navy rules to bring in the new clause that relaxes the age limit.  

As per the existing rules, the maximum term of the Army Chief is three years or the retirement age of 62 years, whichever is earlier. 

General Bipin Rawat, who is yet to reach 62 years of age, is retiring as he has completed his three years as Army Chief.

 

Eligibility:

Any commanding officer of the three services - Indian Army, Indian Air Force (IAF) and Indian Navy - is eligible for the post of the CDS. The government has to take a decision on the basis of merit-cum-seniority of the military officer. The person holding the post of CDS should not be older than 65.

 

Role:

The Chief of Defence Staff will be responsible for the administration of all three armed services including the army, navy and the air force. 

The main command of the services will be, however, with the respective Chief of the service. 

The CDS will be the principal military adviser to the Union Defence Minister but the chiefs of all three services will also continue to advise the minister on matters exclusively concerning their services. 

The Chief of Defence Staff will be senior to the three services’ chiefs but he will not have the authority to exercise any military command, including over the three service chiefs. 

The key role of the CDS will be to ensure optimum utilisation of allocated budget, synergy in the procurement of weapons, training and operation of the three services through joint planning. 

The CDS will form the overall defence acquisition plan for the tri-services.

The Chief of Defence Staff will also serve as the head of the newly formed cyber and space agencies and the tri-service agency of Special Forces. 

The deployment of the Special Forces will, however, be decided by the ground commanders.

The CDS will also head the headquarters of the Integrated Defence Staff, which comprises representatives from the three services. 

The Chief of the Integrated Defence Staff, who currently heads the tri-services organization, will now be known as Deputy CDS and come under the authority of the CDS.

All tri-services institutions will also come under the authority of the Chief of Defence Staff. 

The main role of the CDS will be to ensure coordination in joint operations. He will not have any operational role and military command.

Further, the Chief of Defence Staff will also hold the post of permanent chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. 

The CDS will also not be eligible to hold a government office after retiring from the post. 

 

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