BSEH SS Defence Studies flashcards

32 cards. Read the term and the definition here. The deck at the top of this page is optional.

Defence Studies

An interdisciplinary field analysing war, peace, military power and national security using political science, history, economics, technology and psychology; it prepares analysts for policy and strategic roles.

Clausewitz's trinity

Clausewitz described war as shaped by three interacting forces: the government (reason and policy), the army (chance and creativity), and the people (passion and hostility).

Levels of strategy

Strategic analysis is organised as grand or national strategy, military strategy, operational art and tactics; each level translates political aims into progressively narrower military actions.

Comprehensive national power

A state's total capability measured across economic, military, technological, demographic, diplomatic and soft-power assets; it indicates capacity to pursue national interests and deter threats.

National Security Council

India's apex security body, created in 1998 and chaired by the Prime Minister; it includes the NSA, Strategic Policy Group and National Security Advisory Board and advises on security strategy.

Non-traditional security threats

Risks beyond military attack such as cyberattacks, pandemics, climate change, energy shortages, financial crises and disinformation; they require whole-of-government responses and international cooperation.

Chief of Defence Staff

India's senior-most uniformed officer, created in 2019, who serves as Principal Military Adviser to the Defence Minister and heads the Department of Military Affairs.

Andaman and Nicobar Command

India's first and only tri-service operational command, established in 2001 at Port Blair; it integrates Army, Navy and Air Force assets for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.

Strategic Forces Command

A tri-service command created in 2003 to manage India's nuclear weapons and delivery systems; it reports to the Nuclear Command Authority chaired by the Prime Minister.

Indian Coast Guard

A maritime armed force under the Ministry of Defence, headed by a Director General, responsible for EEZ surveillance, search and rescue, anti-smuggling and pollution response in Indian waters.

Operation Meghdoot

India's 1984 military operation that pre-emptively occupied the Siachen Glacier and its key passes, establishing control over the highest battlefield on Earth.

Operation Cactus

India's 1988 intervention in the Maldives that thwarted a coup attempt by PLOTE mercenaries and restored the government, demonstrating rapid regional power projection.

Kargil Operation Vijay

The 1999 Indian military operation to evict Pakistani intruders from heights in the Kargil sector of Jammu and Kashmir; it ended with the withdrawal of Pakistani forces.

Instrument of Surrender 1971

The document signed at Dhaka on 16 December 1971 by Pakistan's Eastern Command, ending the India-Pakistan war and creating Bangladesh.

DRDO

India's Defence Research and Development Organisation, founded in 1958, develops missiles, radars, aircraft, armour and electronics for the armed forces through a network of laboratories.

BrahMos missile

A supersonic cruise missile developed by an India-Russia joint venture; it can be launched from land, sea, air and submarines and has a range initially capped at 290 km.

Defence Acquisition Procedure

India's procurement rulebook, revised as DAP 2020, which sets categories such as Buy Indian-IDDM, Make and Buy Global, and governs offsets, trials and contract management.

No First Use doctrine

India's declared nuclear policy of not being the first to use nuclear weapons against nuclear-weapon states, while retaining massive retaliation capability; caveats cover attacks with biological or chemical weapons.

Hybrid warfare

The integrated use of regular forces, irregular proxies, cyber operations, disinformation, economic pressure and political subversion below the threshold of open war to achieve strategic objectives.

Asymmetric warfare

Conflict in which a weaker actor avoids the opponent's strengths and uses guerrilla tactics, terrorism, terrain or technology to impose disproportionate costs on a stronger adversary.

NPT

The 1968 Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, with 191 states parties, which recognises five nuclear-weapon states and commits others to non-proliferation and disarmament; India is not a member.

G4 nations

A group of four countries, Brazil, Germany, India and Japan, that mutually support each other's bids for permanent seats on a reformed United Nations Security Council.

MTCR

The Missile Technology Control Regime, a voluntary export-control arrangement restricting transfers of missiles and unmanned systems capable of delivering weapons of mass destruction; India joined in 2016.

Defence offset

A contractual obligation requiring a foreign defence supplier to invest or source a portion of a contract's value in the buyer's domestic defence industry, usually to build capability.

Civilian supremacy

The principle that elected civilian authorities, not the armed forces, decide national security policy and oversee the military; in India the Ministry of Defence exercises this control.

Guns versus butter

The trade-off in public spending between military capability and civilian welfare; higher defence outlays can reduce resources available for health, education and infrastructure.

CAPFs

India's Central Armed Police Forces, CRPF, BSF, CISF, ITBP and SSB, are paramilitary forces under the Ministry of Home Affairs used for internal security and border guarding.

AFSPA

The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act, 1958, gives special powers to armed forces in notified 'disturbed areas', including search, arrest and use of force, and legal protection for actions.

NDRF

The National Disaster Response Force, a specialised force under the NDMA created in 2006, provides rapid response to disasters such as earthquakes, floods and cyclones across India.

NCC

The National Cadet Corps, founded in 1948, is a youth organisation under the Ministry of Defence that trains school and college cadets in discipline, leadership and basic military skills.

Agnipath scheme

India's 2022 recruitment scheme for the armed forces under which Agniveers serve four years, with up to 25 percent retained in regular service and others receiving a Seva Nidhi package.

NDA

The National Defence Academy at Khadakwasla, Pune, established in 1954, trains cadets of the Army, Navy and Air Force together for three years before service-specific training.