Amid the rapid infusion of technology into the battlefield, Chief of Defence Staff Gen Anil Chauhan on Friday said India, with its disputed borders, must be prepared for modern-day “smart wars”, while remaining ready for traditional forms of conflict.Meanwhile, Army Chief Gen Upendra Dwivedi said the force was undergoing a transformation through the induction of new technologies, with visible results expected soon.Speaking at the conclusion of the two-day brainstorming session ‘Ran Samwad’, organised by the Ministry of Defence, the CDS said: “We have disputed borders and should be able to fight a ‘smart war’, yet remain prepared for war in the ‘older’ or traditional domains.”He differentiated between the two, explaining that “older domains” — land, air and sea — involve slower, more brutal but relatively predictable warfare, as platforms have existed long enough for established tactics and counter-tactics.In contrast, newer domains such as cyber, electromagnetic spectrum and space are “smarter” and far less predictable.“An asymmetry is easier to build in these newer domains,” he added.Speaking at the event a day earlier, Gen Dwivedi outlined the Army’s transformation as a three-stage process: conceptual clarity, structural implementation and demonstrable outcomes.This “conceptual clarity” has already translated into “structural” action, he said, citing the operationalisation of specialised formations for drones, signals and cyber operations.“The outcomes of this transformation will become more visible and demonstrable in the near future,” he added.The event aimed to fine-tune Multi-Domain Operations (MDO), for which the armed forces are undertaking doctrinal adaptations, training reforms and reimagining operational structures to ensure effective command and control in complex environments.The Army has been conducting dedicated war-gaming exercises since 2024, while a joint MDO doctrine released in August 2025 has, for the first time, provided all three services with a common operational framework.Discussions at ‘Ran Samwad’ focused on assessing the impact of emerging technologies across multiple domains of warfare and evolving an overarching structure to address new-age threats.CDS Gen Chauhan, Navy Chief Admiral DK Tripathi and Army Chief Gen Dwivedi were among the key speakers.The two-day event deliberated on building a roadmap to prepare India’s defence forces for multi-domain conflict spanning land, air, sea, cyber, space and cognitive domains.