“MDO, is not about six domains operating in parallel, but in constant and dynamic interaction, where the weight shifts and the lead changes” -COAS

“We are firmly on course towards being a 200-plus ship Navy by 2035 with each new induction increasingly focused on modularity and technological evolution” – CNS

April 9, 2026

The second edition of Ran Samwad, a tri-service strategic seminar, under the aegis of Headquarters Integrated Defence Staff (IDS) commenced in Bengaluru on April 9, 2026. The two-day seminar, being organised by the Air Force Training Command,  was inaugurated by Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan. The seminar is anchored around the theme “Multi-Domain Operations (MDO): An Imperative for Addressing Conventional and Irregular Threats.”  The MDO doctrine is intended to enable stakeholders across military and non-military entities to foster India’s joint warfighting capabilities across all six domains, i.e., land, sea, air, space, cyber and cognitive.

The Chief of Integrated Defence Staff to the Chairman, Chiefs of Staff Committee (CISC) Air Marshal Ashutosh Dixit, in his keynote address, outlined a transformative vision for India’s military future centred on Multi-Domain Operations (MDO). He said that the character of war has undergone a fundamental shift and noted that modern conflict is no longer sequential but unfolds simultaneously across space, cyberspace, the electromagnetic spectrum and the cognitive domain. For India, Multi-Domain Operations is not a future idea but a present necessity, he added.

 Characterizing the modern era as a “dispersed, undeclared world war,” the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Upendra Dwivedi emphasized that the battlefield is no longer a map, but a layered, complex adaptive system. He highlighted the reality of a “permanent conflict” world, how a land force commander must read the battle across domains, how different domains interact in operations and how the Army is transforming MDO from a concept into capability. He said that MDO is not of six domains operating in parallel, but in constant dynamic interaction where the weight shifts and the lead changes. He further emphasised that the Army is accelerating Integration, Informatisation and Intelligentisation to ensure that the force moves beyond “Domain Purity” toward total Domain Fusion.

Talking on operational milestones, General Dwivedi shared that the Indian Army has operationalized Integrated Battle Groups (IBGs), Divyastra Drone Batteries,  Command Cyber Operations Wings, among others. He called for a new command culture where leaders “command technology rather than merely operate it” to ensure decision advantage. He further noted that while Operation Sindoor proved India’s jointness, the ultimate goal remains a seamless “Whole of Nation” architecture where the seams between domains disappear entirely.

Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi presented a comprehensive maritime visualization of Multi-Domain Operations grounding modern naval strategy in both technological convergence and Kautilya’s wisdom. He defined the modern maritime domain as an interconnected grid extending from the seabed to space.  He elaborated on how the maritime battlespace has changed into a dense, transparent, deeply interconnected grid shaped by speed, scale and simultaneity.

The CNS said that the Indian Navy firmly on course towards being a 200-plus ship Navy by 2035 with each new induction increasingly focused on modularity and technological evolution. At the same time, the Navy is pursuing augmentation of fleet capabilities with uncrewed and autonomous solutions across the domains, in accordance with the Indian Navy Vision for Unmanned Systems 2022-30, he added.

The flagship two-day national level seminar is conducted annually on rotational basis between the three services. It brings together senior officers from the three services, academicians, think-tank scholars, industry experts and Foreign Service Attaches from friendly foreign nations, to engage in brainstorming sessions on wide array of topics. The seminar will culminate on 10 April 2026 with a collaborative roadmap to prepare the Indian Defence Forces for Multi Domain Conflict.