Both hail from Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand and were commissioned into 11 Gorkha Rifles of the Indian Army three years apart — 1978 and 1981. They are India’s first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) late Gen. Bipin Rawat and the second CDS Gen. Anil Chauhan, who took over the top military post on September 30.
However, they are contrasting in their demeanour. Gen. Rawat was outspoken, including while speaking at public forums or interactions with the media. Gen. Chauhan is calm and measured, but firm in putting across his views, said a serving officer who had worked with him closely on several occasions. “He likes to keep a low-profile,” the officer said, requesting anonymity.
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It is unprecedented in India’s military history that a retired three-star officer is brought back to Service, 16 months after he ‘hung up the uniform’, elevated as a full General and appointed first among equals, before the three Service Chiefs. As CDS, Gen. Chauhan will also function as the Principal Military Adviser to the Defence Minister on all tri-service matters as well as head the Department of Military Affairs as Secretary. He will also be the Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC). Post-retirement, Gen. Chauhan took charge as the Military Adviser in the National Security Council Secretariat (NSCS), where he was working closely with National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, till the appointment. Gen. Chauhan was the Director-General of Military Operations (DGMO) at the Army Headquarters from January 30, 2018, till August 31, 2019, when Gen. Rawat was the Army Chief. During this time, he was closely involved in India’s response to the Pulwama terror attack, which resulted in the death of 40 security personnel, in the form of Balakot air strike on February 26 and the tensions the next day.
‘Operation Sunrise’
As the DGMO, Gen. Chauhan oversaw ‘Operation Sunrise’, the coordinated operations undertaken by Indian and Myanmar armies on insurgent groups taking shelter across the border, which in a way broke the backbone of northeast insurgencies, said the first officer cited above.. The operations were highly successful and by the time Op Sunrise-III was launched, he was the Army Commander, the officer said adding that he had also contributed to the Naga talks in consultation with the then Nagaland Governor.
Gen. Chauhan commanded an Infantry Division in Baramulla sector in Jammu and Kashmir as a Major General and the Dimapur-based 3 Corps as the Corps Commander. He has a very good understanding of counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism (CI/CT) situation on both sides, the officer stated. As Eastern Army Commander, he ensured that the Army’s focus was shifted from CI to the conventional task along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) as Op Snow Leopard was underway in Eastern Ladakh, he said, referring to the May 2020 stand-off, which is still ongoing. He took over as the Eastern Army Commander in September 2019.
This period also saw significant scaling up of infrastructure development along the LAC and as the Army Commander, he pushed it, the officer added. For instance, in consultation with local administration and the Governor he pushed for road construction in Vijaynagar in Changlang district of Arunachal Pradesh.His understanding of the border issue is quite remarkable and his second book is reflective of that, the officer added. A highly decorated officer, Gen. Chauhan has authored two books — Aftermath of a Nuclear Attack and Military Geography of India's Northern Borders.
While the institution of the CDS is still evolving, the groundwork for it and the tasks ahead had been laid down by Gen. Rawat, before his untimely death in a chopper crash last December. With that, Gen. Chauhan has his tasks cut out and has to pick up the threads from where they were left. Among the several tasks lined up, the top priority would be the roll-out of the process of theatrisation, the reorganisation of the armed forces into theatre commands meant to bring in synergy and optimise resources.
Gen. Chauhan has a good understanding of theatrisation and made positive contributions during the earlier deliberations, said another officer. In fact, he has been focussed on synergy much before, the officer said adding, he had pushed for joint work between Eastern Command and Eastern Air Command which came in handy during ‘Op Snow Leopard’.
With the maximum age limit for the CDS set at 65, Gen. Chauhan, 61, has a long tenure of nearly four years and will likely outlast the next batch of Service Chiefs. The Defence Ministry statement on his appointment had only said “with effect from the date of his assumption of charge and until further orders.” This gives him enough time to build consensus, ensure a smooth roll-out of theatrisation process and see their stabilisation as well.
