Hyderabad

Chief of Defence Staff Anil Chauhan has called for a doctrinal shift in military strategy, urging the armed forces to transition from net-centric operations to “intelligent warfare” and move beyond Multi-Domain Operations (MDO) to All Realm All Domain Operations (ARADO).

Delivering the inaugural address at the annual seminar hosted by the College of Defence Management (CDM) on February 24, General Chauhan said modern warfare is no longer confined to the physical battlefield but is expanding into synthetic and cognitive realms.

“As warfare expands from the physical to the synthetic and cognitive realms, the Indian Armed Forces need to transition from net-centric operations toward Intelligent Warfare and move beyond Multi-Domain Operations (MDO) to All Realm All Domain Operations (ARADO),” he said, according to a defence release issued on Wednesday.

The CDS also underlined the importance of establishing non-nuclear strategic deterrence to ensure the capability to prevail at every level of escalation.

Highlighting what he termed the “Third Revolution in Military Affairs,” General Chauhan described a new era characterised by “Convergence Warfare,” which integrates contact and non-contact warfare, kinetic and non-kinetic capabilities, and both traditional and emerging domains across all levels of conflict.

The two-day seminar, themed ‘Multi-Domain Integrated Technologically-Empowered Resilient Armed Forces (MITRA)’, was organised by CDM in collaboration with the Indian School of Business as knowledge partner.

According to the release, the MITRA theme reflects the evolving nature of military strategy in a complex geopolitical and technological environment. The discussions focused on aligning lessons from contemporary conflicts with India’s operational context, with emphasis on self-reliance, structural reform and technological empowerment.

Senior defence officials, scholars and industry representatives participated in the seminar, which aimed to foster strategic foresight and intellectual exchange toward building comprehensive national power.

Established in 1970, the College of Defence Management is a premier tri-service institution dedicated to equipping military leaders with modern management concepts and best practices. Its annual seminars have previously addressed subjects ranging from strategic challenges and self-reliance to shifting geopolitical dynamics and leadership transformation.

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General Chauhan’s remarks signal a continued push within India’s defence establishment to adapt to rapidly evolving forms of warfare shaped by artificial intelligence, cyber capabilities, space assets and information operations.