India's Integrated Theatre Commands will not be named like US and China do

India's Integrated Theatre Command, set to be announced on August 15, will be organized based on numbers rather than geographical boundaries. The commands are being worked out as per the concept of ‘One Border One Force’.

Anish Kumar

First Published Jul 18, 2023, 11:47 AM IST | Last Updated Jul 18, 2023, 6:02 PM IST

The Integrated Theatre Command, which is expected to be announced on August 15, will not be based on the geographical boundaries as several countries have. It will be based on numbers, Asianet Newsable has learnt. Sources in the defence and security establishment said: "The Jaipur-based South Western Command will be the first test-bed integrated theatre command and to be named as ITC 1, followed by Lucknow-based theatre command as ITC 2. Similarly, the maritime theatre command, which will come up at Karwar in Karnataka, will be known as ITC 3."

First Integrated Theatre Command may be announced in August

Countries like the United States and China named their theatre commands after the region’s area of operation. The United States, which was the first one to enforce a theatre command system, has six geographical and four functional commands in place. While China has five such commands.

Hawaii-headquartered United States Indo-Pacific Command (USINDOPACOM) looks after the region that also includes India. China’s Western Theatre Command covers the 3,488-km long Line of Actual Control with India, right from Eastern Ladakh to Arunachal Pradesh. It is headquartered at Chengdu.

India's commands are being worked out as per the concept of ‘One Border One Force’. The Jaipur-based ITC 1 will oversee the military operation along the western borders with Pakistan. The ITC 2 which will be set up at Lucknow would be wholly responsible for the safety and security of northern borders with China.

Currently, discussions are underway on who would be the first theatre commander among other issues. At present, the three services have 17 independent commands with the Indian Army and the Indian Air Force having seven commands each and the Indian Navy has three commands.

India also has two unified commands -- the Andaman and Nicobar Command and the Strategic Forces Command.

The process of theaterisation got delayed due to the untimely demise of India’s first chief of defence staff, General Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash on December 8, 2020. The CDS has been mandated to formulate the Theatre Command along with the integration and synergy of the armed forces.

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