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Western Theatre Command (India)

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Western Theatre Command
Country India
Branch Indian Armed Forces
TypeIntegrated tri-services command
HeadquartersJaipur, Rajasthan

Western Theatre Command is a proposed Inegrated Theatre Command of the Indian Armed Forces. The command will be responsible for looking after the India–Pakistan border starting from Siachen Glacier in north to Gujarat in south.[1]

The Commander-in-Chief will be a four-star officer from the Indian Army (General) or the Indian Air Force (Air Chief Marshal) who will report to the Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee headed by the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). The Commander will be appointed in rotation to the Army or the Air Force for a period of 18 months.[2][3]

History

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The concept of Theatre Commands was first proposed by the Kargil Review Committee after the Kargil War, which promoted increasing jointness and integration.[4][5] The plan for establishment of three different commands was first revealed in June 2023. The commands will be — one for managing border with China (Northern Theatre Command), another for managing the border with Pakistan (Western Theatre Command) and the third as the Maritime Theatre Command.[6][7] There are currently 17 single service commands — 7 of the Army, 7 of the Air Force and 3 of the Navy. Each of these commands is located at a separate base.[8][9]

In July 2024, the Defence Ministry identified Jaipur as the base for the Western Theatre Command.[10][11]

On 4 and 5 September 2024, the first Joint Commander's Conference (JCC) was held at Lucknow (current headquarters Army Central Command). Chief of Defence Staff Anil Chauhan inaugurated the first conference.[12][13] The other attendees of the meeting included Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane, the 3 Service Chiefs, the 17 Commander-in-Chiefs of current Commands of the Services, the 2 Commander-in-Chiefs of current Tri-service Commands, DRDO chairman and other senior personalities of the Ministry of Defence. During the conference, Defence Minister received the "detailed modalities" for the creation of Integrated Theatre Commands prepared from the Armed Forces Services. The Armed Forces will rollout the timeline of the introduction of the Theatre Commands. Here, it was also revealed that the Commander-in-Chief of the Theatre Commands and Vice Chief of Defence Staff will be a four-star rank officer like the Chiefs of the Services (General, Air Chief Marshal and Admiral).[1][14][15]

As of September 2024, the formal proposal for setting up three Integrated Theatre Commands (ITC) was submitted. This is expected to be approved by the Ministry of Defence soon. The concept of ITCs were developed under the leadership of Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan for 20 months. He expects the military reform will take 2 years for full implementation.[1]

See also

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Integrated entities
Assets
General concepts

References

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  1. ^ a b c "India set for its biggest military reform as Integrated Theatre Commands await final govt nod". India Today. 2024-09-10. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  2. ^ Peri, Dinakar (2024-09-02). "Rajnath to be presented recommendations on theatre commands at first JCC". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  3. ^ "India set for its biggest military reform as Integrated Theatre Commands await final govt nod". India Today. 2024-09-10. Retrieved 2024-09-12.
  4. ^ Singh, Sushant (2017-05-10). "Joint operations vs integrated command: Understanding a new way to fight wars". The Indian Express. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
  5. ^ Mukherjee, Anit (2019-08-21). "A top post, its promise and peril". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2020-10-24.
  6. ^ "India moves ahead with creation of theatre commands for integrated war-fighting". The Economic Times. 2023-06-18. ISSN 0013-0389. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  7. ^ "Three theatre commands on anvil as tri-services 'concur'". The Times of India. 2023-06-18. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2024-01-21.
  8. ^ Pandit, Rajat (21 October 2020). "Theatre Commands required to synergize combat potential of three services: Army chief". The Times of India. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  9. ^ "Setting up theatre commands next step in military reforms: Army Chief". Business Standard India. PTI. 2020-10-21. Retrieved 2020-10-22.
  10. ^ "Three Theatre Command bases identified, Military Affairs Dept working to integrate forces for future wars". ANI. 3 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  11. ^ "Defence Ministry identifies three locations to set up Theatre Commands". India Today. 4 July 2024. Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  12. ^ "Joint Commanders' Conference to be held at Central Command HQs in Lucknow". Press Information Bureau. 2024-09-03. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  13. ^ "First Joint Commanders' Conference commences in Lucknow". Press Information Bureau. 2024-09-04. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  14. ^ Peri, Dinakar (2024-09-02). "Rajnath to be presented recommendations on theatre commands at first JCC". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  15. ^ Shankar, Dr Ravi (2024-08-31). "Lucknow Commanders' Meet Set To Rollout Timelines For Theatre Command". Bharat Shakti. Retrieved 2024-09-04.
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