PM Narendra Modi.
Combined Commanders’ Conference 2025: New Delhi, 08 September 2025 – The stage is set for the Combined Commanders’ Conference (CCC) 2025, a key strategic event that will bring together India’s top military and civil leadership to deliberate on the future of the country’s Armed Forces. Scheduled to take place in Kolkata, West Bengal, from September 15 to 17, this year’s conference carries the theme, ‘Year of Reforms – Transforming for the Future’, underlining the Armed Forces’ commitment to modernization, operational preparedness, and adapting to the evolving geo-strategic landscape.
The conference will be inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is expected to highlight the government’s unwavering commitment to defense reforms and national security. The event will also be graced by a host of senior leaders, including Raksha Mantri (Defence Minister), National Security Advisor (NSA), Raksha Rajya Mantri (Minister of State for Defence), Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), and the Defence Secretary. Key officials from other ministries are also anticipated to attend, alongside top military officers and personnel from the three Armed Services and the Integrated Defence Staff.
The Focus Areas: Reforms, Transformation, and Operational Preparedness
The CCC 2025 will focus on three critical themes: Reforms, Transformation & Change, and Operational Preparedness. These pillars are central to India’s vision of creating a modern, resilient, and future-ready military force.
Reforms and Technological Modernization
A major component of the discussions will revolve around institutional reforms aimed at transforming India’s Armed Forces into a leaner, more integrated, and technologically advanced force. With rapid advancements in technology and shifting global security dynamics, the need for continuous reforms in defense structures has become imperative. This year’s conference will delve into the modernization of equipment, procurement processes, and organizational structures to enhance operational efficiency.
In recent years, India has focused heavily on embracing cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence, cyber warfare capabilities, unmanned systems, and advanced missile defense systems. The deliberations at CCC 2025 are expected to include discussions on the role of these technologies in strengthening India’s defense capabilities, particularly in the face of an increasingly volatile and competitive global security environment.
Transformation for the Future
Transformation is another critical aspect of the conference, focusing on evolving the Armed Forces to meet the challenges of the future. As global security threats become increasingly complex—ranging from cyber-attacks to hybrid warfare—India’s military is aiming to adapt to a multi-domain, interconnected battlefield.
The armed forces’ vision for transformation includes a shift towards greater interoperability among the Army, Navy, and Air Force, ensuring that the country’s defense forces can act as a unified whole in times of crisis. This transformation also involves enhancing the integration of the Indian Armed Forces with other nations through joint exercises, collaborations, and intelligence sharing, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region, where geopolitical tensions are rising.
India’s leadership has placed a strong emphasis on enhancing the capabilities of specialized forces, such as Cyber Command and Space Command, recognizing the need to stay ahead in new-age warfare domains. The focus will be on training personnel to operate in these cutting-edge fields and enhancing command-and-control systems to support quicker, more effective decision-making in critical situations.
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Operational Preparedness
Operational readiness remains at the heart of India’s defense strategy. At the CCC 2025, discussions will likely focus on improving the combat readiness of the Armed Forces and ensuring they are equipped to deal with any security threat at a moment’s notice. The need to maintain a high level of preparedness across multiple domains—land, sea, air, and cyber—will take center stage.
In particular, the conference will focus on multi-domain operations, which integrate all elements of warfare, including traditional and cyber elements, as well as the newer space domain. As potential adversaries enhance their technological and operational capabilities, India’s military is striving to maintain an edge through more agile and adaptive strategies, which will be a key topic during the deliberations.
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Inclusive Engagement and Field-Level Perspectives
One of the unique features of the CCC is its commitment to fostering inclusive engagement with personnel from all ranks across the three Services. The conference is designed to be an interactive forum where officers and personnel at various levels will have the opportunity to share their field-level insights and challenges. This will ensure that strategic discussions are enriched by the practical experiences and perspectives of those directly involved in operations and missions.
By involving officers and soldiers in these high-level discussions, the government and military leadership aim to create a more holistic and inclusive decision-making process, reflecting a bottom-up approach to policy-making and reform. This participatory format also ensures that the reforms and changes discussed are aligned with the practical realities faced on the ground.
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The Significance of the CCC in India’s Defence Landscape
The Combined Commanders’ Conference is the highest-level brainstorming forum for the Indian Armed Forces, where top civil and military leadership come together to discuss and exchange views on a wide array of issues. It provides a unique platform for strategic, conceptual discussions that influence the future direction of India’s defense policies.
The event has historically been an important venue for aligning defense priorities with the broader national security strategy. Over the years, the CCC has played a pivotal role in shaping key defense reforms, boosting inter-service cooperation, and ensuring that India’s military remains ready and capable in the face of evolving threats.
By focusing on reforms and modernization, the CCC 2025 will provide a critical opportunity for the Armed Forces to refine their approach to national security in an increasingly multipolar world. As regional security dynamics in the Indo-Pacific and surrounding areas continue to change, the role of the Indian military as a decisive force in regional stability becomes even more significant.
A Turning Point for India’s Armed Forces
As India continues to rise as a global power, maintaining a strong and effective military is key to safeguarding its interests both at home and abroad. The Combined Commanders’ Conference 2025 represents a crucial moment for India’s Armed Forces to reflect on the past, reassess current strategies, and chart a course for a more agile, integrated, and technologically advanced future.
With the Prime Minister inaugurating the event, it signals the political will behind these transformative reforms, ensuring that India’s defense establishment is equipped to meet the challenges of the 21st century. The theme of ‘Year of Reforms’ reflects a renewed commitment to not just modernizing the military, but also ensuring its alignment with the nation’s broader strategic objectives in a rapidly changing world.
As discussions unfold over the course of the three-day event, all eyes will be on how India’s military leadership plans to harness new technologies, strengthen inter-service cooperation, and build an operationally ready force capable of facing the evolving challenges of the future.
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