General Bipin Rawat has assumed the newly created office of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). As the CDS, he will be the principal military advisor to the defence minister on all tri-services matters.

General Rawat will also head the Department of Military Affairs (DMA). The CDS will have a key role in ensuring optimum utilisation of allocated budget, usher in more synergy in procurement, training & operations of the services through joint planning and integration. The CDS will facilitate indigenisation of weapons and equipment to the maximum extent possible while formulating the overall defence acquisition plan for the three services.

Interacting with media persons after assuming the office on Wednesday, General Rawat vowed to work to create more synergy among the three services. “The CDS is mandated to facilitate integration, ensure best economical use of resources allocated to the armed forces and bring uniformity in the procurement procedure. I want to assure you that the army, navy and air force will work as a team and the CDS will ensure integration among these,” he said.

Earlier, he inspected the Tri-Service Guard of Honour at the South Block Lawns. Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh, Chief of the Air Staff Air Chief Marshal R K S Bhadauria and Chief of the Army Staff General Manoj Mukund Naravane were also present on the occasion. General Rawat also laid wreath and paid homage to the martyrs at the National War Memorial.

General Rawat, who served as Chief of the Army Staff till Tuesday, is an alumnus of National Defence Academy, Defence Services Staff College, Wellington; Higher Command, National Defence College. He also attended the Command and General Staff Course at Fort Leavenworth in the United States.

During his distinguished career in the Army, General Rawat commanded an Infantry battalion along the Line of Actual Control in the Eastern Sector, a Rashtriya Rifles Sector, an Infantry Division in the Kashmir Valley and a Corps in the North East. General Rawat had also commanded a Multinational Brigade in the Democratic Republic of Congo. As an Army Commander, he commanded a theatre of operations along the Western Front and was appointed the Vice Chief of the Army Staff before assuming office of Chief of the Army Staff.

During the span of over 41 years in the Army, General Rawat has been awarded several gallantry and distinguished service awards.