The China Study Group (CSG) of the

Government of India The Government of India ( ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

is an informal official group set up for advising the government on its China policy. It is a confidential body made up of inter-ministerial secretary-level officials. Set up by the

Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs The Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs of the Central Government of India deals with problems related to Centre-State relations, considers economic and political issues that require a broader perspective, and handles foreign affairs that do ...

under the Indira Gandhi government in November 1975, it was first headed by diplomat K.R. Narayanan (later

President of India The president of India ( IAST: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, as well as the commander-in-chief of the Indian Armed Forces. Droupadi Mur ...

). It has been under the charge of civil servants such as

Brajesh Mishra Brajesh Chandra Mishra (29 September 1928 – 28 September 2012) was an Indian diplomat from the Indian Foreign Service and politician, best known for serving as Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's principal secretary and National Security A ...

and

Ajit Doval Ajit Kumar Doval KC (born 20 January 1945) is a bureaucrat & spymaster, serving as the fifth and current National Security Advisor (NSA) to the Prime Minister of India, with the precedence equivalent to Cabinet Minister. He previously served a ...

History

Shivshankar Menon Shivshankar Menon (born 5 July 1949) is an Indian diplomat, who served as National Security Adviser of India under Prime Minister of India Manmohan Singh. He had previously served as the Foreign Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs. P ...

wrote in his book "Choices": China Study Group has a key structural role in the ongoing 2020 China–India skirmishes. Patrolling Points (PPs) for Indian troops along the China–India border were defined by the China Study Group in the 1970s.

Members

In 2020, the CSG was headed by National Security Advisor Ajit Doval. CSG members include: * Cabinet Secretary *

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

Defence Secretary A defence minister or minister of defence is a cabinet official position in charge of a ministry of defense, which regulates the armed forces in sovereign states. The role of a defence minister varies considerably from country to country; in som ...

* Vice Chief of the Army Staff * Vice Chief of the Naval Staff * Vice Chief of the Air Staff *

Director of the Intelligence Bureau The Director of the Intelligence Bureau (DIB) is the chief executive of the Intelligence Bureau, India's premier domestic-intelligence agency. The DIB is the senior-most Indian Police Service officer of India. The current director of Intellige ...

* Director of R&AW

Notes

References

{{India-gov-stub China–India relations 1975 establishments in India Government agencies of India