Educating the professional military : civil–military relations and professional military education in India

• Main Author: Mukherjee, Anit
• Other Authors: S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: 2019
• Subjects: DRNTU::Social sciences::Military and naval science; Civil–military Relations; Military Effectiveness
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/91449; http://hdl.handle.net/10220/48510
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

This article analyzes the ways in which civil–military relations shape professional military education (PME). Its main argument is that military education benefits from a civil–military partnership. In doing so, the article examines the role of civil–military relations in shaping PME in India. While describing the evolution of military education in India, it analyzes its weaknesses and argues that this is primarily due to its model of civil–military relations, with a limited role for civilians. Theoretically, this argument challenges Samuel Huntington’s notion of “objective control”—which envisaged a strict separation between the civil and military domains. Conceptually, this article argues for a greater dialogue on military education among civilians, both policy makers and academics, and military officers and not to leave it to the military’s domain—as is currently the practice in most countries.