New Delhi: India is working on setting up two integrated theatre commands to take on Pakistan and China with the first to come up opposite western borders as well as a maritime theatre command, ThePrint has learnt.
Jaipur, home to the Army’s South Western Command (SWC), will be the headquarters for the theatre command that will look after Pakistan. The other theatre command to take care of the borders with China will come up in Lucknow, which currently is the headquarters of the Central Command.
Incidentally, both the South West and the Central commands had carried out a detailed study on the theatre command structure earlier.
Sources in the defence and security establishment said that the maritime theatre command to look after India’s maritime and coastal interests will come up in Karnataka’s Karwar, which is close to Goa.
While the maritime command will be headed by a Naval officer, they said, the other two will see rotational appointments from the Army and the Air Force.
As reported by ThePrint last month, the Army, Navy and Indian Air Force (IAF) are “99 per cent” on board the broad contours of the theatre commands after months of dithering, multiple plans and objections.
The sources said that Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan has been leading the discussion on theatre command with the service chiefs, while the Department of Military Affairs (DMA) is carrying out multiple meetings with various stakeholders.
The first integrated theatre command in Jaipur will be a test bed and will take into account the shortcomings, fine tuning needed and the challenges that come about, they added.
The Army’s South Western, Western and Southern Commands and elements from the Northern Command will come under the Jaipur-based theatre command, apart from the IAF’s Western and South Western Air Commands and elements from the Central and Southern Commands.
“Eventually, all the operational commands of the Army, the Air Force and the Navy will be amalgamated into the three theatres,” a source said.
All the theatre commanders will report to the CDS, the sources said, adding that there is a likelihood that they will eventually be four-star officers, if not from the beginning.
There will be other joint commands, like those for logistics, training, cyber and space, missiles and intelligence, but will be headed by three-star officers. They will report to the Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC) who come under the CDS.
The service chiefs will be responsible for raise and sustenance issues.
As for the leader of the first theatre commander, the sources said that a decision is yet to be taken by the defence brass.
They said that there are two options — Lt. Gen. B. S. Raju, who currently heads the South Western Command, or Lt. Gen. R. P. Kalita, who is currently the Eastern Army Commander.
Going by the principle of seniority, then Lt. Gen. Kalita makes it even though the two senior officers are from the same batch. However, even if any of them makes it to the new position, the retirement age will be extended to 61 since they are to retire by October and December, the sources said, adding continuity was important to set the ball rolling.
(Edited by Tony Rai)
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