The Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) is an organisation responsible for fostering coordination and enabling prioritisation across the different branches of the
Indian Armed Forces
The Indian Armed Forces are the military forces of the Republic of India. It consists of three professional uniformed services: the Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force.—— Additionally, the Indian Armed Forces are supported by ...
. It is composed of representatives from the Indian Army, Indian Navy, Indian Air Force, Ministry of External Affairs, Defence Research and Development Organisation, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Finance. The IDS is headed by Chief of Integrated Defence Staff along with Deputy Chiefs of Integrated Defence Staff. On December 24, 2019, the
Cabinet Committee on Security
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) of the Government of India discusses, debates and is the final decision-making body on senior appointments in the national security apparatus, defence policy and expenditure, and generally all matters of Ind ...
(CCS) established the post of Chief of Defence Staff, a
four-star general
A four-star rank is the rank of any four-star officer described by the NATO OF-9 code. Four-star officers are often the most senior commanders in the armed services, having ranks such as (full) admiral, (full) general, colonel general, army ge ...
, a tri-service Chief, that shall lead the defence forces as well as play the role of head of the Department of Military Affairs.
The body advises and assists the
Chief of Defence Staff.
Role and Responsibilities
Roles of the IDS includes facilitating the efficient functioning of multi-service bodies, providing secretarial and domain expertise to the
Minister of Defence
A defence minister or minister of defence is a Cabinet (government), cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from coun ...
in all proposals of capital defence procurements and providing the building of cooperation through intra-service deliberations for procurements, joint doctrines, joint training and common procedures.
The
Defence Cyber Agency, the
Defence Space Agency,
Armed Forces Special Operations Division
The Armed Forces Special Operations Division (AFSOD) is a tri-service command of the Indian Armed Forces. The division is tasked to carry out special operations. The AFSOD draws personnel from all three special warfare branches of the Armed Fo ...
and the
Armed Force Strategic Missile/Rocket Command,
will function under the IDS.
The colour of jointmanship of the three services is purple, hence, the term 'Purple Fraternity' is applied to their ranks.
History
Post-independence, a military wing was created inside the
Cabinet Secretariat. The wing was later shifted to the
Ministry of Defence. The wing was headed by
Joint Secretary
Joint Secretary to Government of India (often abbreviated as JS, GoI or Union Joint Secretary or Joint Secretary to Union of India) is a post under the Central Staffing Scheme and the third highest non-political executive rank in Government of I ...
(Military), a
major general
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
(or equivalent)-level officer, who was responsible for keeping the
Cabinet Secretary informed through the
Defence Secretary
A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...
about defence-related issues and had various other responsibilities including on coordination-related matters.
The Defence Planning Staff was established under the Ministry of Defence in 1986 to provide assistance to the Chiefs of Staff Committee. Comprising representatives from the
Ministry of External Affairs, the Ministry of Defence (including onescientist from the
Defence Research and Development Organisation
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) (IAST: ''Raksā Anūsandhān Evam Vikās Sangaṭhan'') is the premier agency under the Department of Defence Research and Development in Ministry of Defence of the Government of India, ...
) and the
Ministry of Finance A ministry of finance is a part of the government in most countries that is responsible for matters related to the finance.
Lists of current ministries of finance
Named "Ministry"
* Ministry of Finance (Afghanistan)
* Ministry of Finance and Ec ...
, the organisation was headed by Director General Defence Planning Staff (DG DPS), a
lieutenant general
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
(or equivalent)-level position held in rotation by the threeservices, and had fivedivisions. The DG DPS had the status of a vice chief of staff.
After the Kargil War between India and Pakistan, the
Kargil Review Committee
The Kargil Review Committee (KRC) was set up by the Government of India on 29 July 1999, three days after the end of the Kargil War. The committee was set up "to examine the sequence of events and make recommendations for the future".
Over a hu ...
(KRC) was set up by the
Government of India
The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, c ...
on 29July1999 under the chairpersonship of retired
Indian Administrative Service
The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. Considered the premier civil service of India, the IAS is one of the three arms of the All India Services along with the Indian ...
officer and former
Defence Production Secretary
Defense or defence may refer to:
Tactical, martial, and political acts or groups
* Defense (military), forces primarily intended for warfare
* Civil defense, the organizing of civilians to deal with emergencies or enemy attacks
* Defense indust ...
,
K. Subrahmanyam
Krishnaswamy Subrahmanyam (19 January 1929 – 2 February 2011) was a prominent international strategic affairs analyst, journalist and former Indian civil servant. Considered a proponent of ''Realpolitik'', Subrahmanyam was an influential vo ...
. The committee submitted its report to the prime minister,
Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Atal Bihari Vajpayee (; 25 December 1924 – 16 August 2018) was an Indian politician who served three terms as the 10th prime minister of India, first for a term of 13 days in 1996, then for a period of 13 months fr ...
, on 7January2000 and was tabled in the
Parliament of India
The Parliament of India (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ) is the supreme legislative body of the Republic of India. It is a bicameralism, bicameral legislature composed of the president of India and two houses: the R ...
on 23February2000.
Following KRC's report, a
group of ministers (GoM) was set up on 17April2000 to consider the recommendations in the Kargil Review Committee Report, as well as to review national security more thoroughly. The GoM consisted of
L. K. Advani
Lal Krishna Advani (born 8 November 1927) is an Indian politician who served as the 7th Deputy Prime Minister of India from 2002 to 2004. Advani is one of the co-founders and a senior leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party. He is a longtime memb ...
,
George Fernandes
George Mathew Fernandes (3 June 1930 – 29 January 2019) was an Indian trade unionist, statesman, and journalist, who served as the 22nd Defence Minister of India from 1998 until 2004. He was a member of Lok Sabha for over 30 years, starting f ...
,
Jaswant Singh
Major Jaswant Singh (; 3 January 193827 September 2020) was an officer of the Indian Army and an Indian Cabinet Minister. He was one of the founding members of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and was one of India's longest serving parliamen ...
,
Yashwant Sinha
Yashwant Sinha (, born 6 November 1937) is an Indian administrator and politician. He served as the Minister of Finance from 1990 until 1991 under Prime Minister Chandra Shekhar and again from March 1998 to July 2002 under Prime Minister Atal B ...
, the ministers of home affairs, defence, external affairs and finance, respectively.
Brajesh Mishra
Brajesh Chandra Mishra (29 September 1928 – 28 September 2012) was an Indian diplomat from the Indian Foreign Service and politician, best known for serving as Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's principal secretary and National Security ...
,
National Security Advisor A national security advisor serves as the chief advisor to a national government on matters of security. The advisor is not usually a member of the government's cabinet but is usually a member of various military or security councils.
National sec ...
, was assigned as a special guest to the meetings of the GoM and the
Cabinet Secretariat (
National Security Council Secretariat) provided any help required. The GoM came out with its own report, "Reforming the National Security System".
The GoM report was submitted by them to Prime Minister Vajpayee on 26February2001.
Pursuant to the recommendations of the KRC and GoM, as well as prior recommendations by the
Standing Committee on Defence of the Parliament of India,
the Government of India constituted the Integrated Defence Staff under the
Ministry of Defence through a notification on 23November2001. The Defence Planning Staff and the Military Wing inside the Ministry of Defence were merged into IDS.
IDS celebrates its raising day on 1October every year, 2018 being the 18th.
Organisational structure
The body is headed by the
Chief of Integrated Defence Staff who is Vice Chief of Staff rank level officer and is also Vice Chief of Defense Staff. It consists of various branches, divisions and directorates. The CIDS is assisted by designated deputy chiefs of integrated staff, who are
lieutenant general
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
(or equivalent)-level officers and head different branches. An assistant chief of integrated defence staff—major general (or equivalent)-level officer—heads a division whilst a deputy assistant chief of integrated staff heads a directorate. The organisation is staffed by officers and personnel from the threeservices, together with officials from the
Ministry of External Affairs and the Defence Accounts Department and the
Defence Research and Development Organisation
The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) (IAST: ''Raksā Anūsandhān Evam Vikās Sangaṭhan'') is the premier agency under the Department of Defence Research and Development in Ministry of Defence of the Government of India, ...
of the Ministry of Defence.
Headquarters
The Headquarters of the Integrated Defence Staff (HQ IDS) is located in New Delhi. The Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC), its secretariat and certain other components are situated in
South Block
The Secretariat Building or Central Secretariat is where the Cabinet Secretariat is housed, which administers the Government of India. Built in the 1910s, it is home to some of the most important ministries of the Cabinet of India. Situated at ...
,
Secretariat Building, New Delhi
The Secretariat Building or Central Secretariat is where the Cabinet Secretariat of India, Cabinet Secretariat is housed, which administers the Government of India. Built in the 1910s, it is home to some of the most important ministries of the ...
. The major portion of the HQ IDS is located in
Kashmir House
Kashmir House is the former residence of the Maharajah of Kashmir in Delhi, India. It is located on Rajaji Marg in Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India conta ...
, New Delhi. The HQ IDS functions as the secretariat to the chairman of COSC.
[Controller Of Defence Accounts (Integrated Defence Staff). ]
Defence Accounts Department Office Manual 2014 Edition
Chapter 1''. The Controller General Of Defence Accounts. National Informatics Center
The National Informatics Centre (NIC) is an Indian government department under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). The NIC provides infrastructure, IT Consultancy, IT Services including but not limited to architecti ...
.
The new HQ Integrated Defence Staff building complex is at
Mehram Nagar,
Delhi Cantonment.
See also
; Integrated entities
*
Defence Planning Committee, tri-services command at policy level with NSA as its chief
*
Defence Cyber Agency
The Defence Cyber Agency (DCyA) is a tri-service command of the Indian Armed Forces. Headquartered in New Delhi, the agency is tasked with handling cyber security threats. The DCyA draws personnel from all three branches of the Armed Forces. The ...
, tri-services command
*
Defence Space Agency, draws staff from all 3 services of Indian Armed Forces
*
Armed Force Strategic Missile/Rocket Command,
upcoming tri-services missile/rocket command
*
Armed Forces Special Operations Division
The Armed Forces Special Operations Division (AFSOD) is a tri-service command of the Indian Armed Forces. The division is tasked to carry out special operations. The AFSOD draws personnel from all three special warfare branches of the Armed Fo ...
, tri-services command at operational level under Integrated Defense Staff
*
Indian Nuclear Command Authority
**
Strategic Forces Command, nuclear command of India
*
Andaman and Nicobar Command
The Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) is the first and only tri-service theater command of the Indian Armed Forces, based at Port Blair in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, a Union Territory of India. It was created in 2001 to safeguard India ...
, first operational tri-services command
; Assets
*
List of Indian Air Force stations
The Indian Air Force currently operates seven Air Commands. Each command is headed by an Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the rank of Air Marshal.
The Air Force currently has over 60 air stations all over India. These are grouped into seve ...
*
List of Indian Navy bases
The Indian Navy currently operates three commands — Western Naval Command located at Mumbai, Southern Naval Command located at Kochi and Eastern Naval Command located at Visakhapatnam. The Andaman and Nicobar Command, a unified Indian Navy, ...
*
List of active Indian Navy ships
List of active Indian Navy ships is a list of ships in active service with the Indian Navy. In service ships are taken from the official Indian Navy website.
*
India's overseas military bases
; Other nations
*
Special Operations Forces Command (KSSO) - Russian equivalent command
*
Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC) - U.S. equivalent command
; General concepts
*
Joint warfare
Joint warfare is a military doctrine which places priority on the integration of the various service branches of a state's armed forces into one unified command. Joint warfare is in essence a form of combined arms warfare on a larger, national ...
, general concept
*
Minimum Credible Deterrence
Credible minimum deterrence is the principle on which India's nuclear strategy is based.
It underlines no first use (NFU) with an assured second strike capability and falls under minimal deterrence, as opposed to mutually assured destruction. I ...
*
List of cyber warfare forces
Many countries around the world maintain military units that are specifically trained to operate in a cyberwarfare environment. In several cases this units acts also as the national computer emergency response team for civilian cybersecurity threa ...
of other nations
References
Bibliography
*
*
Controller of Defence Accounts (Integrated Defence Staff).
Defence Accounts Department Office Manual 2014 EditionChapter 1''. The Controller General of Defence Accounts.
National Informatics Centre
The National Informatics Centre (NIC) is an Indian government department under the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY). The NIC provides infrastructure, IT Consultancy, IT Services including but not limited to architecti ...
.
{{Military of India
2001 establishments in India
Government agencies established in 2001
Military units and formations of India
Military units and formations established in 2001
Joint military units and formations of India