General Bipin Rawat said: “All services will retain niche capabilities”
Calcutta:
There have been setbacks in the integration of the Army, Navy and Air Force, but the folds are being solved, said today the Chief of Defense Staff, General Bipin Rawat. The exercise of integration, the largest reform of the Armed Forces in decades, began this year to lower costs, rationalize the workforce and ensure that the Armed Forces fight as a cohesive unit.
To integrate services, “We have to understand the services of others,” General Rawat said at a program in Kolkata.
“Now that integration is taking place and little by little we are moving in that direction, I think we have been able to overcome some of the issues that were at stake,” he added.
General Rawat assumed the position of Chief of Defense Staff in January this year, with the gigantic task of integrating the forces and improving coordination between them. He was also to head the proposed Department of Military Affairs.
Together, it was a “momentous and comprehensive reform that will help our country meet the ever-changing challenges of modern warfare,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi tweeted.
Launching a stealth guided missile frigate in Kolkata for the Navy today, General Rawat said integration is necessary in the event of a conflict anywhere – on land, air or sea. Only operating synergistically will help the forces optimize the country’s conventional capabilities, he said.
“All services will retain niche capabilities,” said the Chief of Defense Services. “Every service has to understand that we have to complement each other. And we cannot operate in individual silos,” he added.
The Defense Chief of Staff was analyzing proposals that suggested the creation of several command theaters, the exact number of which was not decided.
There will be a Western Theater Command and at least one North Theater Command. An Eastern Theater Command that would likely cover the border areas along the Chinese border and a Peninsula Command. An Air Defense Command and a Space Command and a multi-service Logistics and Training Command were also being considered.
An approximate period of three years was being considered to put the commandos into operation.
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