2020 – Posted in: Press Information Bureau

Chief of Defence Staff

Prime Minister’s Office

WHAT

General Bipin Rawat takes charge as India’s first Chief of Defence Staff.

HIGHLIGHTS

As the CDS, General Rawat will be the Principal Military Advisor to the Raksha Mantri on all Tri-Services matters.
The CDS will have a key role in ensuring optimum utilisation of allocated budget, usher in more synergy in procurement, training &operations of the Services through joint planning and integration.
General Rawat will also head Department of Military Affairs (DMA).
The CDS will facilitate indigenisation of weapons and equipment to the maximum extent possible while formulating the overall defence acquisition plan for the three Services.

CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF

The CDS is a high military office that oversees and coordinates the working of the three Services, and offers seamless tri-service views and single-point advice to the Executive (in India’s case, to the Prime Minister) on long-term defence planning and management, including manpower, equipment and strategy, and above all, “jointsmanship” in operations.
The CDS is seen as being above inter-Service rivalries and the immediate operational preoccupations of the individual military chiefs.
India is a nuclear weapons state, the CDS will also act as the military advisor to the Prime Minister on nuclear issues.
The tenure of the CDS will be upto 65 years of age and the rank of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) will be higher than the three army chiefs.

FUNCTIONS OF CDS

He will serve as the Principal Military Advisor to the Defense Minister on all tri-Services matters.
He will act as the military advisor to the Atomic Command Authority.
CDS will not exercise any military command.
CDS will be a member of the Defense Acquisition Council headed by the Minister of Defense.
He will be the permanent chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee.
CDS Will also act as the head of the Department of Military Affairs.

BACKGROUND

The first proposal for a CDS came from the 2000 Kargil Review Committee (KRC), which called for a reorganisation of the “entire gamut of national security management and apex decision-making and structure and interface between the Ministry of Defence and the Armed Forces Headquarters”.

The Group of Ministers Task Force that studied the KRC Report and recommendations, proposed to the Cabinet Committee on Security that a CDS, who would be five-star officer, be created.

In preparation for the post, the government created the Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) in late 2002, which was to eventually serve as the CDS’s Secretariat.

Source: PIB