New Delhi: Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi on Friday reaffirmed that theaterisation – the integration of the Army, Navy, and Air Force under unified theatre commands – is inevitable and will take place sooner or later. Speaking after the launch of the book Operation Sindoor: The Untold Story of India’s Deep Strikes Inside Pakistan at the Manekshaw Centre in New Delhi, he said, “Theaterisation will come, today or tomorrow. We just have to see how long it will take. Several steps such as jointness and integration have to be completed first, and a lot of discussion is still required.”
Explaining why theaterisation is essential, General Dwivedi said that wars today involve multiple agencies, including the Border Security Force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, cyber and space defence agencies, ISRO, civil defence, civil aviation, railways, and state and central administrations. “When we fight a battle, the Army does not fight alone. If one has to coordinate with so many agencies, theaterisation is the answer. Unity of command is crucial, and you need one commander to achieve proper coordination in execution,” he stressed. His comments come shortly after Air Chief Marshal A P Singh and Navy Chief Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi expressed divergent views on the creation of theatre commands at the tri-services seminar Ran Samwad in Mhow. Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan has assured that the differences will be resolved keeping national interest in mind.
The Army chief also reflected on Operation Sindoor, launched on May 7 to retaliate against the Pahalgam terror attack and dismantle terror infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. “You may think the war finished on May 10 – no, it continued for a long time as many decisions had to be taken,” he said. He praised the book’s author, Lt Gen KJS Dhillon (retd), for capturing the political clarity and operational freedom given to the armed forces during the mission, adding that such insights are rarely shared publicly. He also cautioned that it is too soon to measure the impact of the operation along the Line of Control (LoC), noting that infiltration attempts from across the border have not stopped.
Dwivedi also welcomed the government’s move to reduce GST rates on military equipment, calling it a major boost for defence corridors, MSMEs, and start-ups. “This will facilitate modernisation and upgradation work. The cut on UAVs will also give a major push, as drones and counter-drone technologies will play a big role in future wars,” he said, adding that the Army’s focus on research and development, training, and modernisation will all benefit from the rate cuts.
Meanwhile, Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan, speaking at an event in Gorakhpur, identified the unresolved border dispute with China as India’s biggest national security challenge, followed by Pakistan’s proxy war strategy of “bleeding India by a thousand cuts.” He also highlighted regional instability, the changing nature of future warfare involving space and cyber domains, the challenge of dealing with two nuclear-armed adversaries simultaneously, and the need to rapidly adapt to technological change. Sharing details of Operation Sindoor, he said the armed forces were given full operational freedom, and credited National Security Advisor Ajit Doval with guiding target selection, troop deployment, de-escalation strategy, and diplomatic outreach. He described the operation as a “multi-domain” success that showcased complete tri-services synergy and joint mobilisation of resources.
