Rajnath Singh okays Army HQ revamp

New Delhi: Defence minister Rajnath Singh has approved reorganisation of Army headquarters under which a special human rights section headed by a major general will be set up.

The section will be reporting directly to Vice  Chief of Army Staff (VCOAS). It will be the nodal point to examine any human rights violation reports. A police officer of the rank of SSP or SP will be taken on deputation to help the cell in investigation of the cases.

In past security forces have been accused of human rights violations in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) and Northeast where they have been fighting militants. However, security forces have denied most of these allegations.

Defence minister has also approved setting up of a separate vigilance cell under Army chief, which will also have representation from Navy and Indian Air Force.

Currently, the vigilance function for the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) is through multiple agencies and there is no single point interface.

As per the decision, Additional Director General  (Vigilance) will be placed directly under the COAS for this purpose. It will have three Colonel-level officers (one each from Indian Army, Indian Air Force and Indian Navy). This will be done within the existing posts at Army Headquarters.

The restructuring of the Headquarters which will result in shifting of 20 per cent (206 officers) of the young officers posted in the national capital back to units and field formations.

The officers to be relocated include three major generals, eight brigadiers, nine colonel and 186 Lt Colonel/Major.

A study on re-organisation of the Army HQ was one of the four army studies ordered by the Army chief General Bipin Rawat in June last year in consultation with the defence ministry. While the studies are driven by an inherent operational need, they remain focused on enhancing capability by restructuring for future wars and finding a right balance between revenue spending and modernisation.  

The study had aligned old legacy branches of Army HQ under functional requirements of the future battlefield.