Army Chief provides latest update on violence in Manipur.
Army chief Upendra Dwivedi on Wednesday outlined a three-step strategy to strengthen unity in the armed forces. The announcement comes as the Indian Army prepares to showcase its theater-based model to the government. This is seen as an important step towards ensuring better utilization of armed forces resources for future wars.
General Dwivedi, while speaking at the National Defense Academy’s ‘Decade of Transformation: Towards a Future Indian Army and Nation-Building’ program, said that under Joint 1.0, efforts will be made to integrate acquisition planning, training courses and operational logistics between the armed forces of nodes have received attention. Of these, three nodes are fully operational and four more are in progress.
How is the army going?
He said Joint 2.0 has made progress in formulating Army doctrine, SOPs (standard operating procedures) and establishing joint maintenance organizations for major equipment. Meanwhile, under Joint 3.0, the Army aims to expand and advance joint operational planning processes, technology sharing and resources such as drones and ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance).
The Army Chief said that around 180 areas have been identified out of which 30% of the targets have been achieved and the remaining work is being completed at a fast pace. In addition, the integration of the Central Armed Police Force and the armed forces is also being promoted on a large scale.
Theatrical models will be produced here
The theaterization model plans to establish a China-centered Northern Theater Command in Lucknow, a Pakistan-centered Western Theater Command in Jaipur, and a Maritime Theater Command in Thiruvananthapuram. Through this model, better coordination and better utilization of capabilities between the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force will be ensured.
On September 5, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh emphasized at the Joint Commanders Conference held in Lucknow that it is necessary to strengthen jointness, prepare for future wars, and respond quickly and coordinately to any provocation. The Army Chief said recently that the pace in this direction was initially slow but is now accelerating.
