Govt taking fresh look on appointing Chief of Defence Staff

New Delhi, Oct 30 (PTI) The government is consideringappointing a chief of defence staff (CDS) as head of the tri-services with a sense of urgency,...

New Delhi, Oct 30 (PTI) The government is consideringappointing a chief of defence staff (CDS) as head of the tri-services with a sense of urgency, defence ministry sourcessaid today.

They said government was revisiting the long-pendingissue, indicating that a clear picture may emerge soon.

The defence ministry is attending to it with a sense ofurgency, the sources said.

A high-level committee set up to examine the gaps in thecountry's security system in the wake of the Kargil war in1999 had called for appointment of a Chief of Defence Staff(CDS) as a single-point military adviser to the DefenceMinister.

A group of ministers analysing required reforms in thenational security system had also favoured appointing a chiefof defence staff.

However, successive governments were unable to take acall on the sensitive issue.

"Several steps have to be taken before the appointment(of the CDS)," a source said.

In 2012, the Naresh Chandra Task force had recommendedcreating the post of a permanent chairman of the Chiefs ofStaff Committee.

The CoSC comprises chiefs of the Army, Navy and the AirForce and the senior-most among them acts as its chairman asper existing norm. PTI MPBRT.

This is unedited, unformatted feed from the Press Trust of India wire.

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