Top three-star officers from the army, navy and air force carried out deliberations in Mumbai over two days on setting up the integrated maritime theatre command as part of India’s theaterisation drive to best utilise the military’s resources for future wars and operations, a navy spokesperson said on Friday.
Integration of the armed forces to enhance their effectiveness and reshape the conduct of future operations is a top priority for the government.
The nine officers who attended the meeting on February 24-25 were of the rank of commander-in-chief. The meeting was chaired by Western Naval Command chief Vice Admiral Ajendra Bahadur Singh, who is the lead commander-in-chief for the study on setting up the maritime theatre command.
“Tri-services discussions on the modalities and structural framework for the creation of integrated theatre commands for the Indian armed forces were held under the aegis of Western Naval Command at Mumbai. This is yet another milestone towards building jointness and enhancing organisational synergy among the three services,” said Captain Mehul Karnik, the navy’s spokesperson in Mumbai.
Apart from the commanders-in-chief, close to 50 senior officers from various commands of the three services, Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff and the department of military affairs also attended the two-day meeting and provided their inputs on taking theaterisation forward.
{{/usCountry}}Apart from the commanders-in-chief, close to 50 senior officers from various commands of the three services, Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff and the department of military affairs also attended the two-day meeting and provided their inputs on taking theaterisation forward.
{{/usCountry}}Maritime affairs expert Rear Admiral Sudarshan Shrikhande (retd) said it was critical to have a joint theatre responsible for keeping a watch, for deterrence, and when necessary, for war-fighting in a predominantly maritime environment. “What now becomes necessary is to create the joint framework that can, among other things, counter China’s growing multi-dimensional sea power,” Shrikhande added.
On Thursday, Indian Air Force chief Air Chief Marshal Vivek Ram Chaudhari said that no single service can win wars on its own, and integration should focus on tapping into the strength of each service to maximise the country’s combat capability.
While Chaudhari backed tri-service integration, he stressed “the primacy of who will do what cannot be determined by a pro rata system of who has a larger mass of forces or equipment.”
“The thought process must change and it would be important to appreciate the capabilities of each service to make two plus two equal five,” Chaudhari said. The IAF chief was driving home the point that the synergised effort should not be the sum of the whole but much more.
India’s first chief of defence staff (CDS) General Bipin Rawat, who was killed in a helicopter crash last December, was spearheading the theaterisation drive. The government is yet to appoint his successor. The CDS’s demise was seen as a setback to the ongoing military reforms, including theaterisation.
The current theaterisation model to enhance tri-service synergy seeks to set up four integrated commands --- two land-centric theatres, an air defence command and a maritime theatre command.
In November 2021, Rawat asked the three services to expedite their ongoing studies on the creation of theatre commands and submit comprehensive reports within six months. The deadline for submitting the reports was advanced from September 2022 to April 2022.
All eyes are now on who will be appointed as Rawat’s successor at a time when the theaterisation plan is at a critical juncture and needs a man with a vision to carry it forward.
The armed forces currently have 17 single-service commands spread across the country. The army and air force have seven commands each, while the Indian navy has three.
The government expected Rawat, who took charge as India’s first CDS on January 1, 2020, to bring about jointness among the three services in a three-year time frame (by January 2023). Previous timelines may now have to be revised, officials said.