New Delhi: The prime minister, Narendra Modi, Thursday announced that the country would have a chief of defence staff(CDS) who will head the three defence services.
“Our government has decided to have a Chief of Defence Staff- CDS,” said Modi while addressing the nation from the ramparts of the Red Fort on the occasion of 73rd Independence Day.
He said that the CDS will ensure synergy among the three services and provide effective leadership to them..
A Group of Minister (GoM) analysing required reforms in the national security system has favoured CDS system.
The Naresh Chandra Task Force set up in 2012 had recommended creating the post of a permanent chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC). The CoSC will have the chiefs of Army, Navy and Air Forces as members and the senior most among them will act as chairman.
The high-level committee set up in the wake of the Kargil War in 1999 to examine the gaps in the country’s security system had recommended for appointment of a CDS as a single-point military adviser to the defence minister.
