Army Chief of Staff Gen M M Naravane has been named chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee, which includes the three service chiefs, according to persons familiar with the situation.
After Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat died in an IAF helicopter mishap on December 8, the position became vacant. According to the people indicated above, Gen Naravane has been named head of the committee since he is the most senior of the three service chiefs.
On September 30 and November 30, respectively, IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari and Navy Chief Admiral R Hari Kumar assumed their respective positions.
Prior to the formation of the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), the Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee was the senior-most of the three service chiefs.
On Tuesday, the Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC) convened to mourn the deaths of Gen. Rawat, his wife Madhulika, and 11 armed forces employees.
The lone survivor of the incident, Group Captain Varun Singh, died of his injuries on Wednesday at a military hospital in Bengaluru.
Meanwhile, Lt Gen Fahd bin Abdullah Al-Mutair, the Commander of the Royal Saudi Armed Forces, spoke with Gen Naravane over the phone.
According to the Army, they discussed bilateral defence cooperation concerns.
