Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee
Flag of India
Incumbent General Anil Chauhan PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, SM, VSM since 30 September 2022
Type	Highest ranking military officer
Status	Head of the Chiefs of Staff Committee
Abbreviation	Chairman COSC[1]
Member of	Chiefs of Staff Committee
Reports to	Minister of Defence
Nominator	Defence Minister
Appointer	President of India
Term length	Until retirement
Formation	15 August 1947[2]
First holder	General Rob Lockhart
Deputy	Chief of Integrated Defence Staff

The Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (Chairman COSC)^[1] is a position in the Indian Armed Forces, usually held by a four-star officer serving as the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Indian military. The position holder chairs the Chiefs of Staff Committee, and serves as the principal adviser to the prime minister and Minister of Defence. The position is not a statutory office but rather a title held by the senior most serving military officer of India. Until 2020, the chairmanship of the COSC was held in rotation by the senior-most service chief until his retirement, but this arrangement was found to be unsatisfactory.^[3][4] Thus, when the post of the CDS was established, its holder was also made the permanent Chairman COSC.^[5][6]

In the absence of the CDS, a temporary Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee may be appointed. On 15 December 2021, after the demise of General Bipin Rawat, the then Chief of Defence Staff on 8 December in a plane crash, General Manoj Mukund Naravane was appointed Chairman COSC. He remained in office until his retirement on 30 April 2022, following which the position fell vacant.^[7] After four months, Lieutenant General Anil Chauhan (Retired) was appointed the CDS and permanent Chairman, COSC on 28 September.

History

The Chiefs of Staff Committee was established on 15 August 1947, upon Indian independence, and was conceived as the "supreme professional body" to advise the Minister of Defence and the Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs on all military-related matters. The chairman of the committee was the Commander-in-Chief (Chief of Staff from 1955) of the three armed forces who has been on the committee for the longest. General Sir Robert Lockhart was the first chairman, with General K. M. Cariappa appointed the first Indian chairman on 14 October 1951.^[2] The committee was assisted by several sub-committees dealing with specific problems pertaining to administrative, training and planning matters.

Following the end of the Kargil war, Kargil Review Committee found there was a lack of communication between the service branches, and therefore suggested to create the position of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). This was however rejected by many members of the military, arguing that only great or imperial powers engaging in power projection needed that amount of integration.^[8] A compromise was reached with the office of the COSC.^[9] The chairman was responsible for inter-service synergy.^[3] However, as the Chairman COSC only served as Primus inter pares to the other Chiefs of Staff, he did not wield any power.^[10] The chairman was assisted by the Integrated Defence Staff.^[11][12]

Talks concerning the creation of a Chief of Defence Staff position continued for over a decade,^[10] along with a suggestion the position of chairman be made permanent, with a renewable two-year term.^[10] Both of these suggestions were rejected by the Indian Air Force.^[10] In December 2018, however, the Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee Admiral Sunil Lanba stated the heads of the three services had "finally agreed on a permanent chief of staff committee," and the matter had been sent to the Defence Ministry for consideration.^[13]

On Independence Day 2019, Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced the government's decision to make the Chief of Defence Staff the permanent Chairman COSC, with the CDS being a "first among equals" among the service chiefs, who would deal with India's national security with a comprehensive approach, acting as a single-point military adviser to the prime minister and defence minister.^[14]

Following the death of the late CDS Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash in December 2021, the government reverted to the previous system as a stop-gap arrangement and appointed General Manoj Mukund Naravane as Chairman COSC.^[15][16][17] He remained in office until his retirement on 30 April 2022. The post remained vacant until the appointment of Lieutenant General Anil Chauhan (Retired) as CDS and permanent Chairman, COSC on 28 September.

List of chairmen

† Died in office.

No.	Portrait	Chairman Chiefs of Staff Committee	Took office	Left office	Time in office	Defence branch	Ref.
1		Lockhart, RobGeneral Sir Robert Mcgregor Macdonald Lockhart KCB CIE MC (1893–1981)	15 August 1947	31 December 1947	138 days	Indian Army	[18][19]
2		Elmhirst, ThomasAir Marshal Sir Thomas Elmhirst KBE, CB, AFC, DL (1895–1982)	31 December 1947	26 January 1950	2 years, 26 days	Indian Air Force	[19]
3		Parry, EdwardAdmiral Sir William Edward Parry KCB (1893–1970)	26 January 1950	13 October 1951	1 year, 260 days	Indian Navy	[19]
4		Cariappa, K MGeneral Kodandera Madappa Cariappa OBE (1899–1993)	14 October 1951	14 January 1953	1 year, 92 days	Indian Army	[20][2]
5		Pizey, CharlesAdmiral Sir Charles Thomas Mark Pizey KBE CB DSO* (1899–1993)	14 January 1953	22 July 1955	2 years, 189 days	Indian Navy	.
6		Mukerjee, SubrotoAir Marshal Subroto Mukerjee OBE (1911–1960)	22 July 1955	8 November 1960†	5 years, 109 days	Indian Air Force	[21]
7		Thimayya, K SGeneral Kodandera Subayya Thimayya DSO (1906–1965)	9 November 1960	7 May 1961	179 days	Indian Army	[22]
8		Katari, Ram DassVice Admiral Ram Dass Katari PVSM, AVSM (1911–1983)	7 May 1961	4 June 1962	1 year, 28 days	Indian Navy	[23]
9		Engineer, AspyAir Marshal Aspy Marwan Engineer DFC (1912–2002)	4 June 1962	24 July 1964	2 years, 50 days	Indian Air Force	[24]
10		Soman, Bhaskar SadashivVice Admiral Bhaskar Sadashiv Soman (1913–1995)	24 July 1964	3 March 1966	1 year, 222 days	Indian Navy	[25]
11		Chaudhuri, Jayanto NathGeneral Jayanto Nath Chaudhuri OBE (1908–1983)	3 March 1966	7 June 1966	96 days	Indian Army	[26]
12		Singh, ArjanMarshal of the Indian Air Force Arjan Singh DFC (1919–2017)	7 June 1966	15 July 1969	3 years, 38 days	Indian Air Force	[27]
13		Chatterji, Adhar KumarAdmiral Adhar Kumar Chatterji (1914–2001)	15 July 1969	24 February 1970	224 days	Indian Navy	[19][28]
14		Manekshaw, SamField Marshal Sam Hormusji Framji Jamshedji Manekshaw MC (1914–2008)	24 February 1970	15 January 1973	2 years, 326 days	Indian Army	[29]
15		Bewoor, GopalGeneral Gopal Gurunath Bewoor PVSM (1916–1989)	15 January 1973	1 January 1975	1 year, 351 days	Indian Army	[30]
16		Mehra, Om PrakashAir Chief Marshal Om Prakash Mehra PVSM (1919–2015)	1 January 1975	31 January 1976	1 year, 30 days	Indian Air Force	[31]
17		Kohli, Sourendra NathAdmiral Sourendra Nath Kohli PVSM (1916–2007)	31 January 1976	29 February 1976	2 years, 326 days	Indian Navy	[32]
18		Raina, TapishwarGeneral Tapishwar Narain Raina MVC (1921–1980)	29 February 1976	31 May 1978	2 years, 92 days	Indian Army	[33]
19		Moolgavkar, HrushikeshAir Chief Marshal Hrushikesh Moolgavkar PVSM, MVC (1920–2015)	31 May 1978	30 August 1978	91 days	Indian Air Force	[34]
20		Cursetji, JalAdmiral Jal Cursetji PVSM (1919–1991)	30 August 1978	1 March 1979	183 days	Indian Navy	.
21		Malhotra, Om PrakashGeneral Om Prakash Malhotra PVSM (1922–2015)	1 March 1979	31 May 1981	2 years, 91 days	Indian Army	[35]
22		Latif, IdrisAir Chief Marshal Idris Hasan Latif PVSM (1923–2018)	31 May 1981	30 August 1981	91 days	Indian Air Force	[36]
23		Pereira, RonaldAdmiral Ronald Lynsdale Pereira PVSM, AVSM (1923–1993)	30 August 1981	26 February 1982	180 days	Indian Navy	[37][38]
24		Rao, KrishnaGeneral Kotikalapudi Venkata Krishna Rao PVSM (1923–2016)	1 March 1982	31 July 1983	1 year, 152 days	Indian Army	[39]
25		Singh, DilbaghAir Chief Marshal Dilbagh Singh PVSM, AVSM, VM (1926–2001)	31 July 1983	3 September 1984	1 year, 34 days	Indian Air Force	[40]
26		Dawson, OscarAdmiral Oscar Stanley Dawson PVSM, AVSM (1923–2011)	5 September 1984	30 November 1984	86 days	Indian Navy	[41]
27		Vaidya, ArunGeneral Arun Shridhar Vaidya PVSM, MVC & Bar, AVSM (1926–1986)	1 December 1984	31 January 1986	1 year, 61 days	Indian Army	[42][43]
28		Tahiliani, RadhakrishnaAdmiral Radhakrishna Hariram Tahiliani PVSM, AVSM (1930–2015)	1 February 1986	30 November 1987	1 year, 302 days	Indian Navy	[44][45]
29		La Fontaine, DenisAir Chief Marshal Denis La Fontaine PVSM, AVSM, VSM (1929–2011)	1 December 1987	31 July 1988	182 days	Indian Air Force	[46]
30		Nadkarni, JayantAdmiral Jayant Ganpat Nadkarni PVSM, AVSM, NM, VSM (1931–2018)	1 July 1988	30 November 1990	2 years, 152 days	Indian Navy	[47][48]
31		Mehra, SurinderAir Chief Marshal Surinder Mehra PVSM, AVSM, VM (1932–2003)	1 December 1990	31 July 1991	242 days	Indian Air Force	[49][50]
32		Rodrigues, SunithGeneral Sunith Francis Rodrigues PVSM, VSM (1933–2022)	1 August 1991	30 June 1993	1 year, 333 days	Indian Army	[51]
33		Ramdas, LaxminarayanAdmiral Laxminarayan Ramdas PVSM, AVSM, VrC, VSM (born 1933)	1 July 1993	30 September 1993	91 days	Indian Navy	[52][53]
34		Joshi, BipinGeneral Bipin Chandra Joshi PVSM, AVSM (1935–1994)	1 October 1993	19 November 1994†	1 year, 49 days	Indian Army	.
35		Kaul, SwaroopAir Chief Marshal Swaroop Krishna Kaul PVSM, MVC (born 1935)	20 November 1994	31 December 1995	1 year, 41 days	Indian Air Force	[54]
36		Shekhawat, Vijai SinghAdmiral Vijai Singh Shekhawat PVSM, AVSM, VrC (born 1933)	31 December 1995	30 September 1996	274 days	Indian Navy	[55]
37		Roychowdhury, ShankarGeneral Shankar Roychowdhury PVSM (born 1937)	1 October 1996	30 September 1997	364 days	Indian Army	[56]
38		Sareen, SatishAir Chief Marshal Satish Sareen PVSM, AVSM, VM (born 1939)	1 October 1997	31 December 1998	1 year, 91 days	Indian Air Force	[56][57]
39		Malik, VedGeneral Ved Prakash Malik PVSM, AVSM (born 1939)	1 January 1999	30 September 2000	1 year, 273 days	Indian Army	[58][59]
40		Kumar, SushilAdmiral Sushil Kumar PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, NM (1940–2019)	1 October 2000	29 December 2001	1 year, 89 days	Indian Navy	[59]
41		Padmanabhan, SundararajanGeneral Sundararajan Padmanabhan PVSM, AVSM, VSM (born 1940)	30 December 2001	31 December 2002	1 year, 1 day	Indian Army	[60]
42		Singh, MadhvendraAdmiral Madhvendra Singh PVSM, AVSM	31 December 2002	31 July 2004	1 year, 213 days	Indian Navy	[60]
43		Krishnaswamy, SrinivasapuramAir Chief Marshal Srinivasapuram Krishnaswamy PVSM, AVSM, VM & bar (born 1943)	31 July 2004	29 December 2004	151 days	Indian Air Force	[61]
44		Vij, Nirmal ChanderGeneral Nirmal Chander Vij PVSM, UYSM, AVSM (born 1943)	30 December 2004	30 January 2005	31 days	Indian Army	[61]
45		Prakash, ArunAdmiral Arun Prakash PVSM, AVSM, VrC, VSM (born 1944)	31 January 2005	31 October 2006	1 year, 273 days	Indian Navy	[61]
46		Tyagi, Shashindra PalAir Chief Marshal Shashindra Pal Tyagi PVSM, AVSM, VM (born 1945)	31 October 2006	31 March 2007	151 days	Indian Air Force	.
47		Singh, Joginder JaswantGeneral Joginder Jaswant Singh PVSM, AVSM, VSM (born 1945)	31 March 2007	30 September 2007	183 days	Indian Army	.
48		Mehta, SureeshAdmiral Sureesh Mehta PVSM, AVSM (born 1947)	30 September 2007	31 August 2009	1 year, 335 days	Indian Navy	.
49		Kapoor, DeepakGeneral Deepak Kapoor PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM (born 1948)	31 August 2009	31 March 2010	212 days	Indian Army	.
50		Naik, PradeepAir Chief Marshal Pradeep Vasant Naik PVSM, VSM (born 1949)	31 March 2010	30 July 2011	1 year, 121 days	Indian Air Force	[62]
51		Naik, PradeepAdmiral Nirmal Kumar Verma PVSM, AVSM (born 1949)	30 July 2011	31 August 2012	1 year, 32 days	Indian Navy	[63]
52		Browne, NormanAir Chief Marshal Norman Anil Kumar Browne PVSM, AVSM, VM (born 1951)	31 August 2012	31 December 2013	1 year, 122 days	Indian Air Force	.
53		Singh, BikramGeneral Bikram Singh PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, SM, VSM (born 1951)	31 December 2013	31 July 2014	212 days	Indian Army	[3]
54		Raha, ArupAir Chief Marshal Arup Raha PVSM, AVSM, VM (born 1954)	31 July 2014	31 December 2016	2 years, 153 days	Indian Air Force	.
55		Raha, ArupAdmiral Sunil Lanba PVSM, AVSM (born 1957)	31 December 2016	31 May 2019	2 years, 151 days	Indian Navy	[64]
56		Dhanoa, Birender SinghAir Chief Marshal Birender Singh Dhanoa PVSM, AVSM, YSM, VM (born 1957)	31 May 2019	27 September 2019	119 days	Indian Air Force	[65]
57		Rawat, BipinGeneral Bipin Rawat PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, YSM, SM, VSM (1958–2021)	27 September 2019[a]	8 December 2021†	2 years, 72 days	Indian Army	[66]
Vacant 8–15 December 2021
–		Naravane, Manoj MukundGeneral Manoj Mukund Naravane PVSM, AVSM, SM, VSM, ADC (born 1960) Acting	15 December 2021	30 April 2022	136 days	Indian Army	[7]
Vacant 30 April 2022 – 30 September 2022
58		Chauhan, AnilGeneral Anil Chauhan PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, SM, VSM (born 1961)	30 September 2022	30 September 2025	3 years	Indian Army

Gallery

• 
  Adm Sureesh Mehta handing over the Baton of Chairman COSC to Gen Deepak Kapoor
• 
  Gen Deepak Kapoor handing over the Baton of Chairman COSC to ACM P V Naik
• 
  ACM P V Naik handing over the Baton of Chairman COSC to Adm Nirmal Verma
• 
  ACM NAK Browne handing over the Baton of Chairman COSC to Gen Bikram Singh
• 
  ACM Arup Raha handing over the Baton of Chairman COSC to Adm Sunil Lanba
• 
  ACM Birender Singh Dhanoa handing over the baton of Chairman COSC to Gen Bipin Rawat