The war over the role of air power in theatre command has escalated with General Bipin Rawat, Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), telling India Today TV that the India Air Force (IAF) is required to provide air support to ground forces.

"Do not forget the IAF continues to remain a supporting arm just as artillery support or engineers support the combatant arm in the Army. They will be a supporting arm," General Bipin Rawat said.

General Rawat also said that the IAF has an air defence charter and a ground support charter. Northern and Western Theatre Commanders will have an Air Component advisor and the IAF as part of 'one nation, one theatre' will look after the country's entire air defence.

He was responding to a question I posed on the IAF having reservations about the setting up of theatre commands and the splitting of what the IAF has described as its meagre assets.

The meagre resources include not just the fighter aircraft but also the force multipliers like the AWACS and mid-air refuelers.

The General, unimpressed by that argument, shot back to say IAF assets are already split under various commands even now. He asked if the IAF was planning to collapse all commands and operate under a single command.

The IAF, especially post Balakot operations (when IAF Mirage 2000 fighter jets went deep inside Pakistan to strike at the Jaish-e-Mohammed terror training camp in Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa province and returned unscathed), sees its role as a game-changer in conflict. A battle-winning factor.

IAF has been talking about air power playing a decisive role in changing the course of the battle with its firepower, agility and ability to look deep inside enemy territory and not just look over the hill.

It has repeatedly been trying to convey that it is not just artillery in the air in close air support to the advancing Army. The IAF has been advocating the 'one nation, one theatre' concept amidst criticism of air warriors closing ranks to protect their turf and assets.

The Northern Command is not being touched for now. Given the situation along the Line of Control (LoC) and the Line of Actual control (LAC), the CDS told India Today TV that as they move forward on the Maritime Command, an Air Defence Command and the Northern and western theatre commands for better management of both the China and Pakistan borders, the northern command will remain untouched.

The Northern Command is the theatre where both the adversaries, Pakistan to the west and China to the east, can join hands and the possibility of a two-front conflict could become a reality.

There is also the unified command functioning smoothly in Jammu and Kashmir handling counter-terror operations and will not be a part of the current theatre command exercise.

General Rawat also insisted there wasn't a need for an Act of Parliament to give a legal cover to the theatre command. He said the creation of the integrated theatre command was spelt out by the cabinet committee and the charter of the CDS was to ensure integration and jointness among the three services.

The Chief of Defence Staff refuted the allegation of setting impractical deadlines and milestones for creating a theatre command. From the time of the Kargil Review Committee, there has been talk of the office of CDS and it wasn't just to create another 4-star general. There was a specific mandate to bring about integration amongst the armed forces.

General Rawat also said the theatre command was not taking away from the 'one nation, one theatre concept' with the country's entire airspace under one air defence command.

The CDS emphasised that the air force is responsible for the air defence of the entire country but along with it, was also mandated to provide close air support to land forces when they undertook operations. The IAF has been upset with this classification of a support arm like the artillery and the Engineers.