Ceremony to hand over baton of Chairman of CoSC cancelled

NEW DELHI: A pre-scheduled ceremony to hand over the baton of the Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee by outgoing Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat to Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh was cancelled on Friday, official sources said. The Chiefs of Staff Committee (CoSC) comprises chiefs of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force and the senior-most member is appointed its chairperson.

The ceremony to hand over the baton of the chairman of the CoSC has been cancelled at the last minute on Friday.

There was indication that the ceremony has been cancelled as the government is going to appoint the country's first Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) in the next couple of days. The CDS will also act as the permanent chairman of the CoSC.


The ceremony to hand over the baton of chairman of COSC was scheduled as Gen Rawat is due for retirement from service on December 31. It is widely expected that Gen Rawat will be appointed as India's first CDS once he demits office of the Army Chief.