COMBAT LEADERSHIP IN 21
ST
CENTURY
Whatever a great man does, the same is done by others
as well. Whatever standards he sets, the world follows.
Slain, you will obtain heaven;
Victorious, you will enjoy earth;
Therefore, stand up, O son of Kunti,
Resolved to fight
-- The Bhagawad Gita
Introduction
"When the ground in front in raked by machine gun fire, torn by ball splinters, a soldier will not
leap out to attack across it, will not emerge at all, because a man wearing certain badges tell
him to. ---- Those soldiers must feel that the man leading them is the man in whom they can
confidently trust themselves. That requirement fulfilled the obligation of duty, the soldier's
sense of responsibility and the discipline he has been taught - and has accepted - pays its
dividend. But with no confidence in the leader, all your discipline in the world would be of no
avail." Military is the only institution among all walks of life in a society where a leader has to
be prepared to lay down his life. More significant than that, he has to motivate men under
him to be prepared for the supreme sacrifice. Men will neither risk their lives merely because
an officer can flaunt the army on them nor will they do so if promised a “bonus” a “promotion”
or other material inducements. How do we continue to develop such distinguished combat
leaders in the future How do we find such leaders who can inspire men to greatness when the
country calls?
Indian army faces unprecedented changes. It is expected that future military operations will
require increasingly precise coordination of dispersed forces addressing a full spectrum of
missions ranging from high intensity combat to sub-conventional warfare. The effective
development of these leaders is a continuing challenge. Future Army leaders will need to
develop teams more rapidly, to resist stress, and to adapt more quickly and effectively in
complex, volatile, and unstructured environments. They will require not only versatile decision-
making and critical thinking skills, but creativity and the interpersonal skills to inform,
persuade, and inspire confidence. Dispersed units will challenge them where traditional
notions of cohesion and chains of command may be difficult to achieve. This will require the
Army to improve its leader development programs and to accelerate the development process
to provide the necessary training and experiences that young leaders will need in order to face
such challenges earlier in their careers.
History of Indian Army is filled with inspiring stories of combat leadership. As long as we have
combat leaders who can say “Dil Mange More” before laying down their life there is no cause
for undue alarm. However with changing battlefield scenario, involvement of Army in every
conceivable types of operations starting from high intensity operations in nuclear backdrop,
Kargil type war, Proxy War in J&K,CI Ops in North East, Peace Keeping Operations, Counter
Terrorist Operations and Aid to Civil Authorities including Disaster Relief, our complete gamut
of training to meet leadership challenges in future operations covering complete spectrum of
operations need to be reviewed.
