This article needs additional citations for verification .(August 2023) |
Abbreviation | CAPS |
---|---|
Founded | 2001 |
Type | Security think tank |
Location | |
Director General | Air Marshal Anil Chopra PVSM, AVSM, VM, VSM (retd.) |
Website | capsindia |
The Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS) is a think tank analysing issues related to national security, defence, and aerospace issues in the evolving strategic and international security environment. It was established as a research think tank on 15 September 2001, under an independent, non-profit, non-governmental trust registered in New Delhi titled "Forum for National Security Studies", officially registered under the existing regulations in New Delhi U/S 12 A of the IT Act in April 2002 and took over responsibilities for governing as the Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS).
Situated at the Western Air Command, Subroto Park in New Delhi, CAPS is India’s autonomous think tank that concentrates on subjects and disciplines relevant to the air force, especially on national defence, military affairs and strategy, air power and space and technology issues. It also focuses on national and international issues that have security implications for India. The current Director General (DG) of CAPS is Air Vice Marshal Anil Golani (Retd.), who took over the office in February 2021. [1]
CAPS is governed by a Trust, named Forum for National Security Studies, an independent non-profit, non-governmental body. The Board of Trustees which guides the activities of CAPS is headed by Shri MK Rasgotra, former Foreign Secretary as Chairman, Capt. Ajay Singh, Former Sr. Vice President-Regulatory Compliance Jet Airways and Capital Indigo Airlines, managing Trustee and comprises, Shri Sanjaya Baru Editor–in–Chief Business Standard and former Press Advisor to the Prime Minister, Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi, former Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Bharat Kumar, Air Marshal Anil Goalani, Director General of CAPS, Shri. Parthasarathy, IFS; Chancellor, Central University of Jammu; Former High Commissioner to Pakistan, Australia, Air Marshal Sandeep Singh Vice Chief of the Air Staff IAF, Secretary Defence (Finance).[ citation needed ]
As Director, IDSA from 1987 to 2001, it fell upon Jasjit Singh to steer informed opinion-making on India’s security and foreign policy during the turbulent period of the end of the Cold War when both the world and India underwent seminal transformations. On retiring from IDSA he established the Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS), an idea that had taken root in his mind during his tenure at IDSA. He was keen to build scholar warriors by encouraging them to undertake studies on national security, specifically on air power. Higher defence organisation remained a passion for him. He had the ability to identify crucial areas for research. He was DG, CAPS from 2002- 2013. [2]
The main aims and objectives of CAPS are: a) Undertake and promote policy-related research, study and discussion on the trends and developments in air power and space for civil and military purposes. b) Promote research, study and discussion of military history and trends in warfare with a special focus on the nature and methods of air warfare and the application of force through the medium of air and space. c) Study developments in modern technology with a special focus on military aviation and space technologies. d) Undertake research, study, and analyses of the role of air power and space capabilities in India’s defence and security. For the purpose, CAPS also sign off MOU with AICRA which has set up an industry association NADDSO - National Association of Drone Developers & Space Organizations. e) Undertake studies related to the doctrines and strategies for the developments and employment of air power. f) Publish through books, periodical journals, issue briefs and analytical articles, the activities and studies of the Centre and contributions to constructive thought in relevant fields of national security.
The functioning of the CAPS is governed by the Memorandum of Association and rules and regulations approved by the Registrar of Society, New Delhi.
Board of Advisors The Board provides the policies, and guidelines under which CAPS operates.
Executive Committee (EC) The EC of CAPS is appointed by the Board. It provides guidelines to the DG to run the Centre and its activities.
Director General (DG) The DG of CAPS is also the CEO and is responsible for all administrative and professional aspects. The current DG of CAPS is Air Marshal Anil Chopra PVSM AVSM VM VSM (Retd.) since February 2021.
Additional Director General (ADG) ADG supports all the functions of the DG and deputies for him in his absence. The current ADG of the centre is Air Vice Marshal Anil Golani (Retd.). He is also the Vertical head of Aerospace.
Distinguished Fellows (DF) DFs undertake high-quality research work, besides mentoring scholars and handling various projects. Current Distinguished Fellows at the Centre are Dr Manpreet Sethi and Dr Shalini Chawla, who are the vertical heads of the Nuclear Group and Afghanistan-Pakistan Study Group.
Research Scholars CAPS research faculty comprises experienced serving and retired officers of the Defence Services of India as well as Civilian research scholars who are employed according to their academic qualifications and work experience. The following research positions are involved- Senior Fellow (SF), Research Fellow (RF), Associate Fellow (AF), and Research Associate (RA).
Interns CAPS provides an opportunity to graduate and postgraduate students to intern for short-term periods. Each intern work on a focused subject under a CAPS mentor and has the chance to give a presentation to the CAPS faculty at the end of his/her term.
S.No | Name | Assumed office | Left office |
---|---|---|---|
1 | Air Commodore Jasjit Singh, AVSM, VrC, VM (Retd.) | 2002 | 2013 |
2 | Air Marshal Vinod Patney, SYSM, PVSM, AVSM, VrC (Retd.) | 2013 | 2018 |
3 | Air Marshal KK Nohwar, PVSM, VM (Retd.) | 2018 | 2021 |
4 | Air Marshal Anil Chopra, PVSM, AVSM, VM, VSM (Retd.) | 2021 | Present |
CAPS conduct panel discussions and annual seminars/ webinars on a national and international level. Amongst the prominent flagship seminars of the centre are the Jumbo Mujumdar International Conference; Indian Aerospace Industry seminar in association with the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII) and Indian Air Force (1AF), Subroto Mukerjee International Seminar, National Seminar on Af-Pak, National Seminar on Nuclear Strategy, and National Seminar on Nuclear Power. The Centre has also initiated an annual seminar in honour of its founder Director General, Air Commodore Jasjit Singh. CAPS also hosts guest talks by scholars of national and international repute on a regular basis. Each member of the CAPS Research faculty has an opportunity to present his/her research through a Fellow seminar/webinar to share research findings and receive feedback from the senior and fellow scholars. As part of its effort to build scholar warriors and to raise the national security consciousness of the country. CAPS held the following capsules: a. Nuclear Strategy capsule for senior officers b. Squadron Officers capsule for mid-level IAF officers c. University Students capsule for Master and Doctoral students d. School students capsule for higher secondary students.
CAPS publishes two quarterly journals, Air Power Journal and Defence and Diplomacy, written by scholars from CAPS and outside. CAPS also publishes the fortnightly newsletter Nuclear Security which covers interrelated areas of nuclear power and nuclear strategy. Similar newsletters have also been published on aerospace power and the Indo-Pacific region. CAPS also produces short articles focused on current topics on national security, which are distributed to leading think tanks, academic institutions and governmental departments. CAPS Expert View is an e-publication offering analysis of recent events.
The centre’s website (www.capsindia.org) is regularly updated about functions and publications. CAPS is active on social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube. Periodic Podcasts called are also uploaded on relevant subjects. CAPS Website - https://capsindia.org Twitter: @CAPS_INDIA Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/centreforairpowerstudies/
The Centre has a well-stocked professional library. It has built up a collection of over 10,000 books. It also is a repository of journals through subscriptions, gifts and exchanges. The library has access to the e-resources available on the J-STOR. The library archives various Conferences, Seminars and Reports organised and published by CAPS in CD/DVD form. Facilities for interlibrary loans are also available for research faculty. The Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) is available on the Web and provides bibliographical information about the books.
The Air University (AU) (Urdu: جامعہ فضایہ) is a federally chartered public sector research university in Pakistan. Established in 2002, its main campus is located in the capital city of Islamabad, Pakistan. The university has two other functional campuses, Aerospace and Aviation Campus at Kamra and a campus at Multan.
The National Security Council (NSC) of India is an executive government body tasked with advising the prime Minister of India on matters of national security and foreign policy. It was established by the former Prime Minister of India Atal Bihari Vajpayee on 19 November 1998, with Brajesh Mishra as the first National Security Advisor.
The Aviation Research Centre (ARC) is India's imagery intelligence organisation, a part of the Directorate General of Security, run by the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW). It started functioning in November 1962, in the wake of the Sino-Indian War, as an extension of the Intelligence Bureau, but placed under the Ministry of External Affairs.
The Manohar Parrikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (MP-IDSA) (formerly known as: Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses, New Delhi, is India's foremost think tank for advanced research in international relations, especially defence, strategic and security issues, and providing training to civilian, military and paramilitary officers of the Indian government. It is funded by the Indian Ministry of Defence but operates as a non-partisan and autonomous body. It aims to promote national and international security by carrying out research on defence and security-related issues and disseminating the knowledge among the policy-makers and wider public.
The Strategic and Defence Studies Centre (SDSC) is a university-based institute that is situated in the Coral Bell School of Asia Pacific Affairs at the Australian National University. It is Australia's oldest-established centre for the study of strategic, defence and wider security issues and a leading regional think tank on these topics. The centre was established in 1966 by Professor T.B. Millar, then a senior fellow at the ANU's Department of International Relations, in order to "advance the study of Australian, regional, and global strategic and defence issues". The current head of SDSC is Brendan Taylor. Previous Heads include Emeritus Professor Paul Dibb and Professor Hugh White, who both also served as the Deputy Secretary for Strategy and Intelligence of the Department of Defence.
Lieutenant-General Talat MasoodHI(M) SBt is a retired three-star rank army general, a political commentator, and a mechanical engineer.
United Service Institution of India (USI) is a national security and defence services think tank based in New Delhi, India. It describes its aim as the "furtherance of interest and knowledge in the art, science and literature of the defence services".
Commodore Chitrapu Uday Bhaskar is a retired military officer who served in the Indian Navy. He is an expert and outspoken critics on security and strategic affairs.
Arvind Gupta is a career civil servant of the Indian Foreign Service cadre and former Indian Deputy National Security Advisor serving from 2014 to 2017. He was the ex officio Secretary, National Security Council Secretariat. He served as the Director General of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses from January 2012 till his appointment to the post of Deputy NSA.
Lt Gen (Retd.) Nirbhay Sharma PVSM, UYSM, AVSM, VSM is the former Governor of Mizoram and former Governor of Arunachal Pradesh.
Air Marshal Anil Khosla, PVSM, AVSM, VM, ADC is a retired Indian air force officer who served as 42nd Vice Chief of the Air Staff (VCAS) of the Indian Air Force. He assumed the office on 1 October 2018 and handed over on 30 April 2019.
General Anil Chauhan is a four-star general of the Indian Army, who is the current and 2nd Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of the Indian Armed Forces, since 30 September 2022.
The National Security Strategy (NSS) of India has not been defined since its Independence in 1947. Framing an NSS has remained a major policy goal and challenge of successive Indian governments.
The Military Institute of Technology (MILIT) is a tri-services training institution of the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of India. Located at Pune, it trains selected officers of the three services of Indian Armed Forces and officers from friendly foreign countries for command and staff appointments. It conducts the Defence Services Technical Staff Course (DSTSC) for officers Indian Army, Indian Navy and Indian Airforce. The institute has a faculty of senior officers from all three services and scientists who provide specialized training on technologies, military warfare, procurement procedures and operational logistics to the student officers. The course trains officers to handle senior commands and staff appointments in the future. On successful completion of the course the officers are awarded with a degree of M.Sc in Military Technology from Pune University. Officers in the service bracket of 9 to 14 years attend this course. Most officers attending this course are of the rank of Lieutenant Colonel or Major and equivalent.
The Defence Cyber Agency (DCyA) is an integrated tri-services agency of the Indian Armed Forces. Headquartered in New Delhi, the agency is tasked with handling cyber security threats. The DCyA draws personnel from all three branches of the Armed Forces. The head of the DCyA is an officer of two-star rank, and reports to the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) through the Integrated Defence Staff (IDS).
The Armed Forces Special Operations Division (AFSOD) is an integrated tri-services division of the Indian Armed Forces. The division is tasked to carry out special operations. The AFSOD draws personnel from all three special warfare branches of the Indian Armed Forces.
The Centre for Aerospace & Security Studies is an independent research think tank founded by the Pakistan Air Force with specializations in the domains of aerospace, emerging technologies, security, and foresight. It was inaugurated by Air Chief Marshal Mujahid Anwar Khan in July 2019, with Air Chief Marshal Kaleem Saadat as its first President. CASS's current president is Air Marshal Javaid Ahmed (Retd). The primary campus of CASS is located in Islamabad, within the National Aerospace Science & Technology Park (NASTP) at the Old Airport Road near PAF Base Nur Khan, while the secondary Lahore campus is located within the Lahore Cantonment.
The Defence Space Agency (DSA) is an integrated tri-services agency of the Indian Armed Forces headquartered in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. The agency is tasked with operating the space-warfare and Satellite Intelligence assets of India. The DSA draws personnel from all three branches of the Armed Forces.
Integrated Theatre Commands of the Indian Armed Forces are varying degrees of synergy and cross–service cooperation between the military wings of the Indian Armed Forces. Following Independence, in 1949 a joint educational framework was set up starting with the first tri-service academy in the world, the National Defence Academy, and over the years this joint educational framework has been expanded to bring officers from the different services together at different stages of their careers.
Air Marshal Diptendu Choudhury, PVSM, AVSM, VM, VSM is a retired officer of the Indian Air Force. He served as the 32nd Commandant, National Defence College. He assumed the office on 16 December 2019 succeeding Vice Admiral Srikant and served till his superannuation on 30 November 2021.