India, June 1 -- India's long-discussed theatre command reform is finally inching towards a decisive moment, but the path ahead is as political and bureaucratic as it is military.

At the heart of the debate are competing institutional interests, an entrenched colonial-era mindset and a race to align India's war-fighting structures with a rapidly modernising military and an increasingly hostile strategic environment. HT Executive Editor Shishir Gupta explains this in 'Point Blank'.

According to the conversation, outgoing Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) General Anil Chauhan submitted a comprehensive theatre command blueprint to Defence Minister Rajnath Singh before demitting office. The report lays out how the new commands will be structured...