Chandigarh, Aug 16 (IANS): Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, an ex-soldier in the Indian Army, on Friday hailed Prime Minister Narendra Modi's announcement of a Chief of Defence Staff as a vital step in strengthening and streamlining the command structure for the defence services.

Welcoming the decision as the fulfilment of a long-pending demand, first mooted by the then UPA government in the wake of the Kargil war, the Chief Minister said the move would go a long way in improving the command and control system of the Indian armed forces.

Amarinder recalled that a Chief of Defence Staff was suggested in 2009 by the Naresh Chandra Committee under the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) as the Permanent Chairman of Chiefs of Staff Committee.

The decision, however, then could not be implemented even though it was felt that such a post would bring in more effective coordination and cohesiveness in the armed forces.

With the Chief of Defence Staff to coordinate them, the three defence services, the Army, the Navy and the Air Force, the armed forces would become more integrated, thus enhancing their effectiveness, said the Chief Minister.