Episodic brouhaha on the selection of the Chief of the Army Staff

POSTED IN THE QUINT(OPINION ) 24 DEC 16

LITTLE KNOWN FACTS OF HRD IN THE ARMED FORCES

The selection of the Army Chief Gen Rawat  has predictably generated much heat both in the print and electronic media. Social media too is full of malicious  gossip and ill informed expert opinions offered by veterans who have short memories. Nitin Gokhale who has had considerable experience on matters military ,has attempted a historic survey under a piece titled ,"A quiet peek in our history". 

Supersession and seniority are two buzz words used in most articles or discussions. Let me posit that super session is a regular feature in most Militaries of the world. For instance, all cadets joining a military academy may have the same basic date of entry but a few would pass out of the academy with a penalty ranging from six months to 18 months due to relegation as a result of failure in academics, injuries sustained during training, lowering of medical category and conduct unbecoming of an officer cadet -which includes moral turpitude. Such cadets are superseded by their term mates who joined on the same date.

Later during  career courses the performance of young officers is recognised and seniority of up to one year is awarded to those that excel(there are differing models among the three services) Here again among course mates of the same seniority, the new pecking order is revised and published as a gazette notification . The entire seniority profile of officers of the same course may undergo significant changes  which may later deprive or assist some who reach senior ranks. But then Military officers live by the credo that no one can be assured of guaranteed promotion and more importantly no one is guaranteed that he would be serving or alive in the decades to follow.

A beautiful poem  called "The laws of the navy" has a stanza which reads, "Count not upon certain promotion, but rather to gain it aspire, though the sight line may end on the target, there cometh perchance a misfire...."  Indeed misfires have not spared some outstanding officers who have chosen to fade away as suggested in the poem. I have known of Naval officers who did not make the cut for promotion along with their  course mates at promotion boards, but who made it right to the top by clearing the subsequent selection board a year later along with their juniors. The selection for promotion to senior ranks of Colonels and above provides three opportunities to be considered  before one is told that he will not be placed on the select list.  I am merely restating the fact that in a pyramidical structure which gets narrower at the top with each selection process, a large number of officers are passed over or superseded at every rank. In comparison the civil services have a cylindrical structure which assures promotion upto a senior rank, unless one is unlucky to be caught for activities of moral turpitude or sheer incompetence. Do remember that an incompetent senior civil servant may take no decision and survive without inflicting  or causing death of his colleagues while a less competent military leader would not only cause death of his men but more importantly lose the war . There are no runners up in war-you have to win.

To those who constantly carp on the morale of soldiers due to super session of an officer at the very pinnacle, it would be instructive to note that the soldier lives with the phenomenon of super session all his life. He looks up to his immediate superior and leader who leads him into battle , So long as he has a good leader he is ready to offer the supreme sacrifice. Although, some officers have challenged their super session in courts of law much against the service ethos, I cannot remember a single instance of their subordinates voicing their concern in an open show of grief! Yet we have had a Chief who challenged the accuracy of his date of birth in order to gain more time in the chair, only to be reprimanded by the highest court of law. That conduct would go down as unofficer-  like  in that he fought a case for himself and not for the service as a whole or for betterment of his soldiers. Such misdemeanor hurts the morale of a disciplined community which looks up to the leader to set an example. The question now arises on politicization of the Military.

Apropos the question of deciding on seniority cum merit and deep selection for the highest rank, the Military would certainly appreciate consideration of merit. Seniority perse is a lazy solution to the problem as mere date of birth would decide the line of succession  for years to come.  That is neither good for the service nor the individual who is well placed  on the list. But then creating a process which quantifies or at best identifies merit is a greater challenge. It cannot be subjective and yet it is difficult to rate human qualities so accurately. All things being equal, the Indian parliament has little or no experts on matters military to set up an institutional process like the Senate hearings consisting of members who have participated in Military training or service in the Armed forces. That is unlikely to happen in India in the near future.

The best that can be done is to generate a discussion among experts who have dealt with HRD issues of the Indian Armed forces and not on electronic or print media-that is, until a feasible and sensible process is identified by those who have managed the process and not by veterans who have never had to face the realities at Delhi.

INS ARIHANT OUR FIRST SSBN

(Carried by QUINT this afternoon)

SLAYER OF ENEMIES(INS ARIHANT)

The first indigenously built nuclear submarine Arihant has been commissioned without any fanfare. It was as silent as Arihant would be on her war patrol when she awaits the coded message received hundreds of feet beneath the sea, through a very low-frequency signal transmitted by a specially designed transmitting station. Very low-frequency signals are one of the primary modes of transmission  which penetrate the sea without attenuation to reach its recipient operating far away from the coast and deep down in the sea. This authorization to launch would be issued by the Nuclear Command Authority headed by the Prime Minister.

My mind races back to 1973, when a brilliant mathematician, Lt Cdr Subba Rao was the head of the electrical department of INS Kirpan, an anti-submarine Frigate. Her sister ship Khukri had been torpedoed and sunk off the Saurashtra coast in the 1971 war. I was freshly appointed as the Anti-Submarine Warfare officer after my course in 1972. In 1971, I was privileged to be on board INS Veer, one of the three Missile Boats which struck ships off Karachi in December. Subba Rao often talked about future wars and how a nuclear submarine would make the navy invincible in the IOR

A few years hence he volunteered to work with BARC to build a miniaturized nuclear reactor to be fitted in a submarine. Project 932 was its designation. That he was critical of the design and had to leave the DAE and later the navy was known to many. However, after his premature retirement, when he was detained at the airport before departing to the USA, ostensibly with classified documents, the story was extensively reported by the media. Not many followed the story of how he fought his own case until he was proved innocent and was later released after being locked up for years. The papers in his custody were found to be unclassified and from an open source. Collateral damages do occur in highly classified projects. But perhaps he contributed to remedying some inconsistencies in the design. This is the time to remember his courage of conviction against all odds.

A bit of historical background

Arihant would not have been built without the close and seamless interaction among the three key players; DAE, Indian Navy, and DRDO.

A timely agreement with the Soviets ensured that the design aspects were audited and a special facility at Kalpakkam was able to work on a downsized reactor. By the mid-1990s, DRDO was charged with the responsibilities of running this project. It was headed and steered by serving Naval officers assigned to the DRDO . The seamless integration was ably assisted by two critical factors. The knowledge shared by seasoned scientists from Russia and the foresight and perspicacity of the naval leadership which pursued the leasing of a nuclear submarine, later named INS Chakra.

Leasing of a nuclear submarine resulted in the transfer of expertise to man and run this complex machine, as also the creation of shore-based special safety teams and infrastructure which had to be created on the East coast. Currently, we have yet another nuclear submarines leased to us, a follow- on of the earlier Chakra . Yet another on lease is imminent. These could not have fructified without careful planning and the support of successive Governments.

Building a first of class warship or submarine is a lengthy process with institutional  checks and balances at each stage. The keel is laid and the hull built around with essential propulsion package and auxiliaries. She is  thereafter launched into the water as Arihant was in 2009.Essentially all the fitting out of weapons, sensors takes place after its launch . After installation of all equipment and machinery, they are independently tested before the process of Harbour Acceptance Trials (HATS)  commences. On successful completion ,the ship undergoes Sea Acceptance Trials which include all aspects of ship-borne systems including the live firing of weapons. This phase alone would typically take close to two years. Once the ship is commissioned, her work up is undertaken by the Flag Officer Sea Training and a similar set up for Submarines. It is only when the ship is certified fit for combat operation that she is deployed with operational commands.

The above is to clarify many doubts raised by ill-informed reportage on the state of a newly inducted unit of the Navy.

What can Arihant do?

Wars do not happen overnight. The period of tension prevailing between two belligerents often lead to preparation and deployment. Arihant can be deployed anywhere in the Indian ocean, Arabian Sea or in the Asia pacific region. Her endurance is limited not by logistics but by human endurance to remain submerged . Nuclear submarines neither surface nor enter harbour and can only be detected by advanced sensors deployed by ships, submarines and aircraft. Strategically placed  seabed sensors too play their part.

The existing combination of ship launched missiles, such as Brahmos, carrier-launched aircraft, surveillance and attack capability of the P8 Maritime patrol aircraft assisted by Satellite imagery and dedicated communication satellite for the navy is now augmented by a strategic asset which can remain over 3000 km from its intended target and complete her mission.

Would Aridhaman, the second of this class be followed by more? Indeed, published material also indicates that Attack submarines would also be built as part of our plans to secure our national interests.

Readers would do well not to fall prey to corybantic worshipers who sing paeans of all our adversaries and their 'infallible machines'. Just remember that we now build Fast attack craft, patrol vessels, landing craft, Minesweepers, Amphibious vessels, Frigates, Destroyers, submarines, nuclear submarines and  Aircraft Carriers . Look around, who else outside the Five members of the security council(the big boys) is capable of this?

URI to URAN-The unlearnt Lessons (Published by First Post.com on 23 Sep)

 Uran Alert: From Mumbai to Uri, India's Failure to Learn from the past is the only common thread.

The first televised live coverage brought to our drawing rooms was the real time events of the Kargil conflict of 1999. Daily military briefings by the DGMO was a much-viewed event . But they were Military operations, which according to the then Army Chief General VP Malik, were fought with 'what we have'. He was alluding to critical shortages of weapons and ammunition and unduly long processes to modernize our Armed Forces. 

But, yet again the Indian forces pulled it off with' what they had'.

The Government was quick to appoint a Committee of experts headed by the doyen of matters national security, K Subrahmanyam. Restructuring of the Armed Forces, revitalizing  border security and other critical matters were comprehensively addressed. The deputy Prime Minister as the head of a group of ministers reviewed all the recommendations including one on Defence Management submitted by  a task force headed by Arun Singh and constituted an implementation mechanism which functioned rather efficiently.  

Then, the  government changed and the remaining points for implementations was confined to the proverbial dust bin.

The Mumbai attack of 2008, forced the Government to once again review the existing weaknesses and take appropriate measures. Predictably, over time, they too were buried to be redusted during the next episode.

The point to note is that had the recommendations made post-Kargil been seriously and consistently addressed, perhaps the Mumbai attack may not have occurred. Extending the same logic, had we implemented many of the weaknesses rediscovered during the Mumbai attack along with the recommendations made by the group of interlocutors in 2011, we may not have had  the situations in the  valley, Pathankot or Uri to worry about.

Much of our problems are linked to the improper functioning of the parliament and consequently poor formulation of effective legislations and laws to tackle the entire spectrum of economic, social and security related issues that confront us. In many ways, they are all interlinked. While politicians bash up each other, at times physically too, we the citizens fret and frown without ever acknowledging, that we the people, put them into parliament in the first place; by casting our votes for the incompetent, ignoring elections or not participating in any process of cleaning up of dirty politics.  Electoral, police, judicial and administrative reforms are long overdue. Not much will change without these reforms.

Since the canvas of corrective measures is vast and long, let me focus on just one issue in this piece, viz,Police reforms.

An ungainly and shameful sight on television is an inadequately equipped, physically unfit and apparently ill led police force in any part of the country. Just compare these pictures with not only the more advanced nations but also with our immediate neighbours. Without exception, the first line of defence or assistance to the citizen,i.e,the policeman is the most unfortunate product of State politics. The very States who zealously protect their rights on law and order  and object to any intervention by the centre, are guilty of politicizing, under equipping , neglecting welfare of the policemen and his family and undermining the police leadership.

See the video clips of the Uran alert that happened on 22 Sep. When the first reports of suspicious armed personnel in the sensitive location of Uran reached the police, cameras captured policemen with neither bullet- proof jackets nor helmets, arriving in hoards with (mercifully) 7.62 rifles and not .303, on motorbikes and lining up on the streets. 

You would never, on such occasions, see an officer of the force with them . Any uninitiated citizen would wonder what this ill-equipped  band of rag tag policemen would have done if they were attacked by well trained AK 47 wielding terrorists. They would have been excellent cannon fodder, for, they neither had protection nor a clue on how to take offensive or defensive positions. After subjecting themselves to a photo opportunity, they climbed on their motorcycles and vanished. There were some who due to their over sized bellies could not even have dropped to the ground to take up firing position.

Yes we have the police commandos, yes we have a quick reaction force, but who would authorize the low-end baton or stick- wielding Cop to counter a terrorist threat. Do we have well trained adequately equipped rapid reaction capability to reach Uran at short notice? Perhaps not. Would it not have been the best option to seek the immediate assistance of the naval security force until the right fighting element arrived on the scene? This was only a random sighting reported by a shocked school girl and not a firefight with confirmed terrorists. 

What chance would these policemen have had to survive an attack? In the event, it may turn out to be Forest Guards who are also equipped with some firearms.

Even after repeated terrorist attacks, we are unable to provide the first sensible and rehearsed reaction as dictated by the threat. Is the police force equipped to tackle rampaging crowds at short notice? Do they even have basic attire and accessories for self-protection counter  disturbances and law and order problems? If not why not?

 Prakash Singh who fought for Police reforms ten years ago and more importantly based on which the Supreme Court gave clear directions in 2006 have both witnessed the tenth anniversary go by with little or no action to modernize the force.

Let us at least address the reforms required to provide security at the citizens level in the first instance. The Military would  be happy to address their primary task-external threat! 

http://www.firstpost.com/india/uran-alert-from-mumbai-to-uri-indias-failure-to-learn-from-past-is-the-only-common-thread-3017822.html

Leaked Documents of Scorpene Submarine (Published by First Post on 24 August 2016)

IMPLICATIONS OF LEAKED DOCUMENTS OF SCORPENE

On 06 Apr 2015, Parrikar undocked the fully fitted- out, but yet to be commissioned   first of class Project 75 submarine. It is scheduled  to be commissioned in September 2016 after mandatory sea trials. The project as contracted with the French builders DCNS had already suffered many slippages in delivery schedules and in naval parlance is well astern of the original intent of expeditious delivery to address the force level shortages of diesel electric submarines of the navy.

The earlier experience at Mazagaon Docks to build the German origin state of art submarine designed by HDW had to be terminated in late 1980's owing to allegation of corruption in the deal. The Indian navy was deprived of a well established production line when the Political decision to terminate it was taken ; more as a knee jerk reaction. The costly investment in infrastructure and technical manpower was thus wasted away. The opportunity cost of terminating this prestigious project can be  best summed up by the idiom, "cut your nose to spite your face". The cost was exorbitant to put it mildly.

Even though, the Soviets stepped in to supply   the EKM submarines to bolster the depleting force levels, a 30 year build programme which was approved at the end of 1990s, was to ensure that our build capacity was augmented by creating the necessary infrastructure and technical manpower in two indigenous yards. Inordinate delays in executing the plan has resulted in Mazagaon docks progressing the construction of the much delayed Scorpene. The other is yet to take off.

This is the backdrop against which the leaked documents of today need to be viewed.

The Australian newspaper which broke the story of the leak, has reportedly carefully redacted sensitive data contained in the leaked document, under the advice of Military and legal experts. A few pages exclusively sourced by First Post confirm that the redaction has been professionally             carried out. Whether it covers the whole document running into over 20000 pages is yet to be ascertained. Responsible and ethical reportage makes it incumbent on news paper to blank out what may have undesirable geo political implications. Australia too is on the threshold of building submarines with similar assistance. They ought to know the implications of this action.

As regards the sensitive data, acoustic signatures and 'cavitation appearance' are indeed closely guarded secrets and the sole custodian of such data is the builder. The builder creates a data bank based on simulated and empirical studies carried out over a long duration . The customer in turn would hold him to such data which needs to be proved during sea trials. Hence the actual recorded and analysed data during sea trials would be more valuable than what is stated in documents. Tactically the submarine has many options to deceive sonars by masking its radiated noise. Hence  the impact of such a disclosure ( authentic or not) depends on the quality of submarining-the Indian submariners have decades of experience on both Western and Eastern origin submarines.

Apropos the need to leak  this document and the timing of it, some deductions are possible..Competitors for the second line of building are most likely to gain from this leak . It means Billions of Dollars worth of business at a crucial time when both economy and employment are critical to their survival. It is not that MOD would terminate orders on DCNS- which would be another folly of even greater proportions-but the second line of production is round the corner. Builders from East and West are possibly salivating on the quantum of order.

The very nature of this leak of over 22000 pages makes it amenable to hacking. Considering that we are not a fully wired society, it is unlikely that any single in house source would have all such data on a single but networked computer. This could have  also been hacked from those OEMs in Europe who were associated with this project. We can at best speculate at this stage.

Is it critical for operations? Most of the pages, as would be the case in any documentation, would consist of data which is common to all builders. The operational profile being common to all submarines,  it is likely that factors related to detection of the submarine from ship, airborne  or a hunter killer submarine are critical to operations. But this is the raison d'être  of the submarine arm. Experienced submariners know how to avoid detection.

As regards data on  weapons, whether torpedoes or missiles, these are well known to all submariners. The greatest advantage that we have is that our submariners have for decades operated both Western and Eastern origin submarines and have learnt to innovate when required.

Recent reports suggest that the choice of Torpedoes which is the primary weapon, has not been finalised. In the extant case that has turned out to be an advantage as the torpedoes are the main weapon of submarines and this leaked document pertains to discussions held in 2011.

The navy needs more submarines to address the depletion of conventional units. Delays caused by events like these ought not to result in further reduction in force levels.

Parikkar's statement this morning is noteworthy for its sobriety

CHINA PLAYS CHINESE CHEQUERS IN SOUTH CHINA SEA-WHAT NEXT?

 (This article was carried by First Post on 11 August)

CHINESE CHEQUERS AND SOUTH CHINA SEA

CONSEQUENCES OF CHINA COCKING A SNOOK

AT THE TRIBUNAL'S VERDICT

Attempts to create order after experiencing extreme disorder has been the story of mankind since creation. More recently, the creation of the league of nations, the Geneva convention, the United Nations and many more such measures have been pursued with the sole intention of creating law and order where little existed. The situation is equally applicable at sea where the absence of laws could result in anarchy, collisions and worse, destruction of  the entire eco system which has the capacity to support life on earth.

International Maritime law covering a wide spectrum of activities at sea have been conceived and activated to cater to maintaining good order and discipline in oceans which are international highways, where ships of all nations ply. These laws find application among heads of state, legislatures, courts, diplomats and indeed among those who man, commercial as well as war ships.

The two better known convention/rules/laws that affect all those who are associated with the sea are the UN/IMO sponsored International Regulations for Prevention of Collisions at Sea and the United Nations convention of the laws of the sea.(UNCLOS)

Since this article is confined to the recent judgement of the dispute brought to the international tribunal by the Philippines, against her powerful neighbour PRC, on the illegal claims to her maritime territory in the South China Sea (SCS), let me limit the discussion to consequences to law abiding coastal and island states and the world at large.

Given that Philippines or her other neighbours Vietnam, Brunei,  Malaysia and Taiwan either singularly or collectively do not have the capacity to stand up to China, the continued presence of a powerful US Navy carrier task force in the area coupled with a strongly worded Japanese white paper released just a couple of days ago are indicators of the immediate reaction to China's bizarre and crude response to the verdict delivered by the international tribune.

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Can China be allowed to get away by not abiding by the convention that she voluntarily signed and ratified.? What if China  is emboldened by a meek response of the international community, to violate the clauses of NPT for instance? Is this the beginning of the end of an era of initiatives taken by the UN and other multi-national bodies to regulate and maintain a conflict free environment especially at sea? In this context, the non-military and if necessary military response to contain China's aggressive thrust in the SCS merit examination and consideration. A brief review of China's apparent change of strategy after Xi Jinping  took over, would clarify the situation.

China Under XI JINPING

XI has introduced a shift in Chinese declared policy about her willingness to project and use power, as is evident in the    May 2015 White Paper on Military Strategy. He has, with great resolve, steered China away from  the direction proposed by  one of his predecessors Deng Xiaoping. The silent and subtle methods suggested by the latter have been gradually replaced with show of power and aggressive intent. Ongoing PLA reforms appear to focus on power projection outside her own territory and in the  immediate periphery.

What then are the options open to law abiding coastal and island nations who have benefited by the provisions of UNCLOS?

Non-Military Measures.

These include Diplomatic, Judicial and Economic. Sensing that sooner than later the international community with or without the cover of UN would launch a diplomatic offensive, China has adopted some unprecedented countermeasures. A battery of diplomats and Chinese Military personnel have descended on the Capitols of Countries that have a say in the UN. Hurried consultations and meetings with decision makers to justify their stand of rebutting the verdict of the international tribune is the agenda. Massive graphics and video clippings of their stand are available on the official Chinese media. Not even the Time square in New york has been spared of media onslaught on a giant screen. This is an unprecedented show of diplomatic/media offensive that has not been attempted by any global power.

It is to be seen if the Americans can or will mobilise their allies in the Asia Pacific including Australia and Japan to match this diplomatic offensive.

The Judicial measure initiated by the Philippines has been justly rewarded. It is to be seen whether UN Security Council will attempt to rebuke one of its erring permanent members with a veto power. The very fact that in the past too, the permanent members of the security council have violated laid down procedures to establish peace in crisis ridden areas, strengthens India's repeated call for reforms of the UN.

Economic measures against China have repercussions on almost all powerful nations who trade with China. It would need consensus of a unique nature.

Military Measures

USA in its attempt to continue to engage with China is expected to adopt a twin track approach of openly challenging China's claims in SCS by claiming the right to innocent passage and freedom of navigation as enumerated in UNCLOS. Japan and Australia may join this venture. This will be supplemented by inviting China to join powerful displays of warships drawn from  many  nations including India, as was the case in the recently held RIMPAC off Hawaii.

India has the option of participating in non-military and military measures of her choice. We need to support the desire of the international community to  contain China before she assumes the role of a permanent bully in the critical waters of East and South China sea.

Lack of action or sitting on the fence is not an option we can afford , given that China is expected to flex her muscle increasingly in the immediate future and in our backyard too!  

  

Golden opportunity for Shri Parrikkar-Defence Minister

Long pending reforms in the Ministry of Defence can now be addressed. 

My thoughts carried by  First post today 08 July Time for Manohar Parrikar to reform MOD

Agusta Westland and defence acquisition (courtesy The Quint-published on 04 May 2016)

THE AGUSTA WESTLAND EPISODE

WHAT AILS DEFENCE PROCUREMENT IN INDIA

What is fortuitous in the Agusta Westland deal which is much under discussion in the Indian media, is that the helicopter was meant for use by VVIPs in India. In a society which is obsessed by the term VIP / VVIP it is perhaps poetic justice that has invited so much attention on these two countries; India and Italy. The question that should be uppermost in the minds of the common man is,"why has it taken twenty years or more to procure a helicopter for our 'beloved VIPs and VVIPs?' If they cannot be looked after, how long will it take to get platforms, equipment, arms and ammunition for the fighting arms of the services of India? " The answer has been blowing in the wind for decades; starting from Independence to  the Kargil war and stretching to date. From starting a case for acquisition to signing a contract has taken one to two decades in most cases. whether it was the Main battle tank(MBT) for the army, the Advanced Jet Trainer (AJT) for the airforce, Light combat aircraft(LCA) and scores of other platforms and equipment whether imported or indigenous met with the same fate.

Dr Abdul Kalam in his capacity of SA to RM in 1996, made an effort through a self reliance implementation Committee(SRIC) to increase the indigenous content of procurement for our armed forces. Having been a member of that committee and having participated in never ending processes of the Ministry of Defence, I now see the light at the end of the tunnel. Let me explain for the benefit of the layman.

Known Obstacles in procurement

First ,Inability to convert long-term induction programmes into time-bound acquisition plans along with budgetary support. Although the service headquarters of the three services periodically submitted 10/15 year plans, the Ministry of defence neither had the expertise to accept or reject such proposals nor was there assurance of budgetary grants for such plans. Ministry of Finance often sprang a surprise by reducing allocations to MOD just prior to announcement of the budget.

Second, the service Chiefs neither had financial powers to run the revenue nor the capital budgets allocated to their respective services till the New management strategy was first introduced  in the late 1990s.  Their powers for capital expenditure remains limited.

Third, excessive reliance on public sector manufacturing and production agencies and inability to provide level playing field to competent private industries deprived the forces from  the timely supply  of equipment as also of international quality of products.

Fourth, protracted procedures for compiling Request for proposals and field trials resulted in unaffordable opportunity costs to be incurred by the Government. Neither the Ministry nor the service headquarters was held accountable for inordinate delays which ipso facto led to frequent changes of performance related quantification.

Fifth, inability to meet stringent time schedules of indigenous equipment to match the operational needs of the forces, often resulted in the import of platforms and systems which in turn created its own dynamics of middlemen, corruption and litigations. Blacklisting of foreign suppliers caused further delay in restarting the process ab initio.  Consequently, the end user was forced to continue to use obsolete and obsolescent equipment with no hope of replacement for decades.

 Defence Procurement Policy.

Some of the obstacles quoted above suggest that a clear cut policy framework is essential for streamlining the whole process of procurement. It was the Group of Ministers post the Kargil war that recommended setting up a procurement structure for time bound acquisition of platforms and weapon systems. Such a system was created in 2002 but significantly the process of integration of the armed forces with the MOD ,recommended by the same GOM was not implemented.

Such were the complexities of procurement which encompass numerous factors concerning procurement from within and without. that DPP was revised in 2005,2006,2008,2009,2011 and 2013. Any sane organisation would desist from issuing policies almost every year, which compound issues and confound the suppliers. That was perhaps the reason why hardly any worthwhile procurement including ammunition took place during that period.

DPP 2016

The latest DPP issued during the recently concluded DEF EXPO at Goa has some notable and far-reaching policy formulations. Extensive consultations with leading industries of India and abroad gave birth to Digital India, Make in India, Start up India all of which have an impact on the DPP. All three have interlinking policy directions for executing the vision of the Government. Consequently, the following weaknesses in the procurement system have been addressed comprehensively;

·       The parameters and processes for Make in India have been articulated with emphasis on self-reliance through the facilities of the much improved indigenous public and private sectors. Incentives and assured production order with possible export capabilities have been covered.

·       Offset conditions for foreign suppliers exceeding the supply of Rs 2000 crores has been specified with clarity.

·       Incentives for MSMEs and the need for the Government to bear part costs for design and development has been recognised.

·       Transparency, probity and public accountability form the backbone of the policy document.

·       Long Term Integrated Perspective Plan (LTIPP), the 5 years Services Capital Acquisition Plan (SCAP) and Annual Acquisition Plan (AAP) for all three services duly integrated by the Integrated Defence Staff under COSC have been rationalised.

·       Fast track mechanisms have been streamlined. Much would depend on execution of the policy

·        Strategic partnerships commensurate with current geopolitical realities are under consideration. Transfer of technologies and access to cutting edge technologies are part of discussions currently in progress.

What more needs to done

Three missing links in the Government's well-directed efforts are the integration of the three forces under a CDS ,the integration of the MOD with service headquarters to professionalise decision-making at MOD and to eliminate corruption at the final settlement of payment to indigenous suppliers at the respective CDA outlets. The latter has been pushing the cost incurred by suppliers which can be totally neutralised if there is a will. Digital India ought to remove this undesirable interface and facilitate direct payments to suppliers.

There is hope that the VVIP Helicopter along with long pending demands of the services will all be met within the stipulated time frame. The term VVIP should be dispensed with.