What are the duties of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) as Head of the

What are the duties of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) as Head of the Department of Military Affairs?

1. Permanent Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee.
2. Exercise military command over the three Service Chiefs
3. Principal Military Advisor to Defence Minister on all tri-service matters

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

[amp_mcq option1=”1, 2 and 3″ option2=”1 and 2 only” option3=”2 and 3 only” option4=”1 and 3 only” correct=”option4″]

This question was previously asked in

UPSC IAS – 2024

Statement 1 is correct because the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) is the Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee. Statement 3 is correct as the CDS serves as the Principal Military Advisor to the Defence Minister on all tri-service matters. Statement 2 is incorrect as the CDS does not exercise military command over the three Service Chiefs; the operational control remains with the respective Service Chiefs. Therefore, only statements 1 and 3 are correct.

– The CDS post was created to provide single-point military advice to the government and coordinate among the three services.
– The CDS is the head of the newly created Department of Military Affairs (DMA) within the Ministry of Defence.
– The CDS functions include administering the tri-service organizations, promoting jointness in procurement, training, and staffing, and implementing five-year Defence Capital Acquisition Plans and two-year roll-on Annual Acquisition Plans.

The role of CDS was first recommended by the Kargil Review Committee in 1999. It was formally announced in 2019 and the first CDS, General Bipin Rawat, took office in January 2020. The creation of the post aims to improve synergy and integration between the Army, Navy, and Air Force.

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