INDIA. Mumbai: General Anil Chauhan assumed office as the new Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) in the presence of senior officers of the Armed Forces at a function organised at the South Block Lawns in New Delhi on Friday.
An official statement read, “General Chauhan paid homage to the fallen heroes by laying a wreath at the National War Memorial and inspecting the Tri-Service Guard of Honour.”
He will be the Principal Military Advisor to the Defence Minister on all Tri-Service matters as well as the head of the Department of Military Affairs as Secretary and will also be Permanent Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC).
In a brief interaction with the media before taking charge, General Chauhan said that it was a matter of pride for him to be nominated as Chief of Defence Staff. There are hopes and expectations among the three services, the government, and citizens of the new Chief of Defence Staff, which, he said, he would fulfil to the best of his abilities. He also stated that the services will work together to address the nation’s security challenges.
The Chief of the Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal VR Chaudhari, the Chief of the Army Staff, General Manoj Pande, the Vice Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral SN Ghormade, and other senior officers were present.
Gen Anil Chauhan becomes the country’s second Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). The post had been vacant for over nine months since the death of the first CDS, Gen. Bipin Rawat, in a helicopter crash in December 2021. Gen Chauhan too hails from Uttarakhand, like his predecessor, Gen Bipin Rawat.
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