Race begins for the post of chief of Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses

NEW DELHI: The race has begun for heading India's premier state-run think tank, Institute of Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA), after director-general Arvind Gupta was appointed the Deputy NSA last week.

The Ministry of Defence that runs IDSA has directed the body's executive council to shortlist candidates and make a final choice by the month-end, official sources told ET. Defence Minister Arun Jaitley is taking personal interest in appointing a DG that would enable IDSA to maintain its edge over think-tanks across the globe in its 50th year of existence, sources said.

ET has learnt that lobbying has begun with MoD as well as BJP for occupying the chair of the prestigious institute. IDSA insiders point out that an ideal head for the institute should be a person with a strategic vision keeping in mind India's global ambition. “IDSA's reach has now crossed geographical boundaries and its head should have dynamism to lead the institute,“ an insider pointed out.

The names doing rounds for the post of IDSA DG include retired Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain, India's former ambassador to Russia and distinguished fellow of Vivekanand International Foundation, Prabhat Shukla, former ambassador to USA and Germany Meera Shankar, former envoy to Kyrgyzstan and senior IDSA fellow P Stobdan, and deputy director-general of IDSA, retired Brigadier Rumel Dahiya, sources indicated. Dahiya is also currently the officiating director of the institute. A bureaucrat from MoD is also speculated to be running for the job.

General Hasnain is a reputed military officer who retired as military secretary of the Indian Army and had earlier commanded an Army Corps in Jammu and Kashmir. His father also served as a Major General in the Indian Army.

Hasnain takes lot of interest in international issues and has been writing on them since his retirement, sources pointed out.

Shukla who retired as ambassador to Moscow and joined the Vivekananda Foundation on his return had also advised prime ministers between 1996-2000 on diplomatic issues ­ an aspect which is not widely known. Shankar, who had served as ambassadors in prestigious diplomatic missions ­ Washington and Berlin ­ had served in the Rajiv Gandhi PMO.

Stobdan who handled diplomatic assignments is considered an expert on Central Asia and China. Brig. Dahiya has wide-ranging experience in counter-insurgency operations and previously served as a defence attache to Turkey, Syria and Lebanon, and with the Indian Military Training Team in Bhutan.