CDS General Anil Chauhan, an ex-Eastern Army Leader, assumed responsibility as the nation’s top military commander nine months following General Bipin Rawat, the first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), deceased in a helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu.
“I will try to fulfil the expectations of the three services. We will tackle all challenges and difficulties together,”
General Chauhan
He has been assigned with carrying out the ambitious theaterisation plan aimed at ensuring tri-service coordination and preparing the military for upcoming security problems
According to the concept, each theatre command will contain Army, Navy, and Air Force units that will function as a unified body to address security concerns in a specific geographical zone under the authority of an operational commander.
CDS Chauhan resigned from the Army on May 31, 2018, while serving as the Eastern Army Commander. After retiring, he became the military adviser to the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS), which is led by National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval.
General Chauhan pays respect to India’s dead troops at the National War Memorial at the India Gate complex before taking over as CDS.
On the lawns of the South Block in the Raisina Hills, he was also granted a tri-service guard of honour.
General Chauhan was born on May 18, 1961, and joined the Indian Army’s 11 Gorkha Rifles in 1981. His nomination to the top office comes amid a persistent border dispute between Indian and Chinese forces in eastern Ladakh.
He was the Army’s Director General of Military Operations (DGMO) during the 2019 Balakot air strikes, in which Indian jets bombed a Jaish-e-Mohammed terrorist training centre deep within Pakistan.
General Chauhan is the first retired three-star officer to be promoted to four-star status.
