Chief of defence staff releases joint doctrine for cyberspace operations
The defence ministry describing the development as a boost to the ongoing drive for jointness and integration of the three services
Chief of defence staff General Anil Chauhan on Tuesday released the joint doctrine for cyberspace operations, with the defence ministry describing the development as a boost to the ongoing drive for jointness and integration of the three services.
It was released during a meeting of the chiefs of staff committee of which CDS is the permanent chairman.
The defence ministry described the joint doctrine as “a keystone publication” that will guide commanders in conducting cyberspace operations in a complex military operating environment.
“Development of joint doctrines is an important aspect of jointness and integration, a step which is being actively pursued by the Indian armed forces. The joint doctrine for cyberspace operations is a significant step to give impetus to the ongoing process,” the ministry said in a statement.
In May, Chauhan said jointness and integration among the three services were pre-requisite to the creation of functional integrated theatre commands, a long-standing and crucial reform for the best use of the military’s resources to fight future wars.
Also in May, the government notified the Inter-Services Organisations (Command, Control and Discipline) Act, with the law aimed at pushing jointness among the three services.
The Act will empower the government to notify the setting up of inter-services organisations (ISOs), including joint services commands, and bestow powers on heads of such organisations to act against personnel from any of the three services to ensure discipline and effective discharge of duties.
The new joint doctrine lays emphasis on understanding military aspects of cyberspace operations and provides conceptual guidance to commanders, staff and practitioners in the planning, and conduct of operations in cyberspace, as well as raising awareness among war fighters at all levels, the statement said.
“In addition to the traditional domains of warfare including land, sea, and air; cyberspace has emerged as a crucial and challenging domain in modern warfare. Unlike territorial limits in the domains of land, sea, and air, cyberspace is a global common...Hostile actions in cyberspace can impact the nation’s economy, cohesion, political decision making, and its ability to defend itself,” it said.
Operations in cyberspace need to be dovetailed into the national security fabric to evolve the “ends, ways and means” to create advantage and influence events in all operational environments, it added.
Theatre Commands will not be an end state but the beginning of the next set of reforms, Chauhan earlier said. These, he said, included single to multi-domain operations, fusing space and cyberspace into traditional domains, and digitisation of battlefield information and visualisation.