Article Posted on : - Oct 06, 2014

The Chairman, COSC & Chief of Air Staff, Air Chief Marshal Arup Raha laying wreath at War Memorial, in New Delhi on 22 Sept 2014. A file photo by PIB.

NEW DELHI (PTI): The government should take a quick decision on the appointment of a permanent chairman for the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC) as all the three service chiefs have approved the proposal regarding the same, Indian Air Force chief Arup Raha said on Friday.

"There is confluence in our thinking and in our approach for the appointment of the permanent chairman of COSC. I am sure the government will take a quick decision because there are no contradictory views as far as the armed forces are concerned," Raha told reporters here.

"Despite the differences, all the three services have approved the proposal," he said.

Raha's comments assume significance in light of the fact that any consensus on the proposal, based on the recommendation of the Naresh Chandra panel, had for long proven elusive.

A panel on security reforms had suggested that till the time a Chief of Defence Staff was appointed, the government should name a four-star officer as the permanent chairman of the COSC for a fixed two-year period.

"From what I understood previously, for the permanent chairman, it will be one of the three service chiefs and the senior-most person would be considered for appointment to the post," Raha said.

"We are hopeful that something will come out soon," he added.