New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi Saturday called upon the three services to stay ready to deal with new and emerging threats as he carried out a comprehensive review of the national security challenges with the country’s top military brass at the Combined Commanders Conference in Bhopal.
The defence ministry said Prime Minister Modi emphasised that all steps are being taken to equip the armed forces with necessary weapons and technologies.
It is learnt that India’s security challenges along the frontier with China, cross-border terrorism from Pakistan, the ambitious plan to create integrated theatre commands, the implementation of the Agnipath scheme and ways to bolster the country’s maritime prowess were among the key issues discussed at the three-day conference.
Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar could not attend the valedictory session of the conference as he tested positive for Covid-19, people familiar with the matter said, adding he is asymptomatic.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi reviewed the security situation and operational readiness of the armed forces during the valedictory session of Combined Commanders’ Conference 2023 in Bhopal on April 1.
“The prime minister was briefed by Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan about the various discussions conducted during this year’s conference,” it said.
The ministry said Modi called upon the three services to stay ready to deal with the new and emerging threats, emphasising that all steps are being taken to equip the armed forces with necessary weapons and technologies.
It said Modi complimented the Armed Forces for their role in nation-building and providing humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) assistance to friendly countries.
During the final day of the session, various topics including aspects of digitisation, cyber security, challenges of social media, Aatmanirbharta, absorption of Agniveers and jointness were discussed.
“In a significant development from the past, the scope of the conference was expanded this year, wherein, a few multi-layered and interactive sessions were conducted with the participation of soldiers from every command of the Indian Army, Indian Navy and Indian Air Force, including the Tri-Services Andaman and Nicobar Command,” the defence ministry said.
This three-day conference of the combined apex-level military leadership of the country commenced on March 30. The theme was ‘Ready, Resurgent, Relevant’.
At the conference, deliberations over a varied spectrum of issues were held, including national security and evolving a joint military vision for the future.
On Friday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh interacted with the top military brass and reviewed the defence preparedness. He lauded the armed forces for their valuable contribution in protecting national interests and providing support to the government in realising its vision of ‘Aatmanirbhar Bharat’, the ministry said.
This year’s conference was special as inputs from the field units were sought on contemporary issues including the way forward for greater integration among the three services.
“These inputs were deliberated in detail by the military commanders.
“The conference also provided an opportunity for the Commanders to review the modernisation of the armed forces and the ongoing and concluded military operations, while also discussing ways to improve the country’s defence capabilities,” the ministry said.
Officials said challenges from China including the situation in eastern Ladakh were discussed at the conference. There was extensive deliberation on ways to implement the plan to roll out theatre commands.
As per the theaterisation plan, each of the theatre commands will have units of the army, navy and air force and all of them will work as a single entity looking after security challenges in a specified geographical territory under an operational commander.
At present, the three services have separate commands.
Initially, a plan was firmed up for the creation of an Air Defence Command and Maritime Theatre Command. The theatre commands are being planned to integrate the capabilities of the three services and to ensure optimal utilisation of their resources.
PTI
