New Delhi: The government has extended the tenure of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan until May 30, 2026, when he turns 65, the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet announced on Wednesday.
Gen Chauhan, commissioned into the 11 Gorkha Rifles in 1981, became India’s second CDS in September 2022 after the death of Gen Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash in December 2021. Before his current role, he served as the military advisor to National Security Advisor Ajit Doval.
The extension, expected under service rules allowing a CDS to serve till 65, comes as Gen Chauhan continues to lead the unfinished task of creating integrated theatre commands (ITCs), aimed at unifying India’s Army, Navy, and Air Force for cost-effective warfighting.
The Modi government has prioritized ITC formation, with its 2024 manifesto promising to establish theatre commands after the CDS post was created in 2019. However, despite Gen Chauhan’s efforts to harmonize operations, logistics, and procurement across the services, progress on ITCs has been slow.
Currently, India operates 17 single-service commands — seven each for the Army and Air Force, and three for the Navy — that function independently. The planned restructuring envisions two adversary-specific ITCs: one for the northern border with China (Lucknow) and another for the western front with Pakistan (Jaipur), alongside a Maritime Theatre Command in Thiruvananthapuram for the Indian Ocean Region and wider Indo-Pacific.
The extension underscores the government’s push to accelerate military integration, four months after India carried out precision strikes under Operation Sindoor against Pakistan. (Agencies)
