Air Marshal Vikram Gaur Appointed Additional Secretary in the Department of Military Affairs

According to a recent report, Air Marshal Vikram Gaur is expected to take the Additional Secretary post in the Department of Military Affairs (DMA). This is stated in a report published by Defence Watch. In case this comes through, the development will mark a first for the Indian Air Force in taking up this appointment. Air Marshal Gaur has earlier worked as Joint Secretary (Air & Staff Duties) in the Department of Military Affairs. This department has an important role to play in enhancing jointness and integration between the three arms.

Who Is Air Marshal Vikram Gaur?

In accordance with the report, Air Marshal Vikram Gaur has worked as Joint Secretary (Air & Staff Duties) in the Department of Military Affairs since October 2024.

He has been made Air Marshal effective July 1, 2026. If he is made Additional Secretary of the department as per the report, he will be upgraded to this new post.

He is said to be the first Indian Air Force officer to be appointed Additional Secretary in the DMA. However, no independent official confirmation of his new appointment could be found in the sources referred.

Department of Military Affairs (DMA)

The Department of Military Affairs is a department under the Ministry of Defence that came into existence with effect from January 1, 2020.

The Secretary of the DMA is the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS). It came up as a result of certain reforms undertaken for better coordination and integration between the three services of India.

Functions of the DMA are,

• Tri-service coordination: To promote the coordination between Indian Army, Indian Navy, and Indian Air Force.
• Joint training and staffing: To integrate requirements and improve coordination among the services.
• Joint procurement: To promote coordination in procurement, through common planning, as assigned to the department.
• Military command reforms: To facilitate restructuring of military commands for better jointness and optimised utilisation of resources.
• Indigenous defence equipment: To promote indigenous defence equipment among the armed forces.

Additional Secretaries Previously Serving in the DMA

According to the report, Lieutenant General Anil Puri and Vice Admiral Atul Anand are some of the other officers who have served as Additional Secretary. It is mentioned that Anand assumed office in July 2023 when Puri retired.

Appointment of an officer from the Air Force would indeed be remarkable in this regard.