NEW DELHI: Air Chief Marshal A P Singh on Tuesday cautioned against rushing the rollout of theatre commands, stressing that India must adopt its own model instead of copying others. He suggested setting up a joint planning and coordination centre in Delhi, under the Chiefs of Staff Committee, to prepare for "future wars."
Speaking at the Army War College, the Chief of Air Staff, cautioned against rushing into the creation of new theatre commands, warning that creating a new structure while disrupting everything is not a very good idea at this point of time.
Instead, he proposed setting up a joint planning and coordination centre in Delhi, placed under the Chiefs of Staff Committee, to issue directions jointly saying, "I personally feel that having a joint planning and coordination centre in Delhi is what is required."
Responding to questions on the proposed theatre commands, Singh said, "yes, we can start with this first, implement it and see how it pans out. If we need any more structure, we can think about it. But disrupting everything and making one structure now at this time, I do not think it is a very good idea."
The Air Chief Marshal's remarks came three-and-a-half months after Operation Sindoor, which showcased strong coordination among the Army, Navy and Air Force.
Citing the recent Operation Sindoor, a tri-service simulation held from May 7 to 10 against Pakistan, Singh underlined how the three service chiefs worked closely in planning and execution.
The exercise, he said, reinforced both the primacy of air power and the value of coordination. He further noted that "centrally planned" decisions could still be executed in a decentralised framework, which in his view "will work out the best."
He also cautioned against blindly following international models saying India should not be inspired by any other country, like the US, in rolling out theatre commands, stressing that the nation must design a framework suited to its own requirements.
"Everybody has their own requirements. We need to think about what we need there, and then only we should go about it. Otherwise, we will go wrong," he said.
"We should not just come under any pressure and say we have to implement it now. Somehow, we have to do it. It should not be done this way. I think we can stand our ground and discuss things," he added.
The Air Force chief also underlined the need to focus on preparing for tomorrow's wars, where clarity in the chain of command will be critical.
"You cannot have a theatre commander sitting somewhere... now whom they talk to, where do they get directions from. Phones are available but generally that does not work like that," he said.
"I feel having joint planning and coordination at the apex level is what is required. If directions go from it, things will work out. We don't actually need another structure at the lower level," Singh added.
The government’s proposed theaterisation model aims to bring the three services under unified commands to better integrate capabilities and use resources more effectively.
Under the plan, each theatre command would combine units of the Army, Navy and Air Force to handle security challenges in a specific region. Currently, the three services operate under separate commands.
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