Balance and Restraint: Corruption and Indiscipline cannot be equated

NEED OF THE HOUR Balance and Restraint by the Media By Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi
A recent incident of indiscipline in a unit of the army was dutifully reported by the media, but a few newspapers and TV news channels that indulge in yellow journalism, continue to sensationalise it. This is despite the army having unequivocally stated that the incident is being investigated thoroughly. Implicit in various media releases by the army is that there is no move whatsoever to push the incident under the carpet and that exemplary disciplinary action would be taken against all those found guilty. This being so, speculative innuendos and sensational stances must stop.
 My intention is not to say that the news of the incident should not have been reported, or that the media should only report favourable news about the army. However, one starts losing faith in our supposedly independent media when sensationalism takes over and phrases like ˜unique case" or ˜army getting indisciplined" are bandied about.
This is not the first time such an incident has occurred. Â Without going too far back, there was a case in 1978 and another in 1979, both in Ladakh. In 1986 and 1987, two such incidents occurred in the eastern sector. During Operation Pawan in Sri Lanka, there were two incidents, one each in 1987 and 1989. Mutinous actions of a number of units following Operation Blue Star in 1984 are well known. There have been similar incidents in the navy and air force too. All these were handled by the hierarchy of the armed forces with balance, maturity and panache and no editor-in-chief of those days interfered or offered advice, as is being done by a few upstarts today! Neither was there any dilution in the professional capabilities of our forces!

All artillery units fire their artillery guns a number of times every year, but the annual practice firing camp has a special sanctity. During this camp, all artillery guns of the unit fire at the field firing ranges and all personnel of the unit are fully involved. When all the guns of the unit fire simultaneously, the noise, dust, smoke and explosions they produce can only be described as spectacular.

During these camps, there is a surge in adrenalin levels of all ranks, as well as tension, as everyone wants to do well. On the day the entire regiment fires, many guests are invited to witness this spectacular event. Once the firing is wound up, there is visible decrease in tension and everyone gets in to a celebratory frame of mind, having successfully achieved what they had set out to do.

It is unfortunate that after the culmination of this specific event, the unfortunate incident of indiscipline occurred. It was an isolated incident, where tempers were allowed to rise unnecessarily. There was no pre-mediation or planning, let alone a conspiracy on anyone’s part. It was simply an accident and hence there is no reason to sensationalise it or make it larger than life. From the very beginning, no attempt was made by the army to hush up the incident. One therefore cannot understand why a section of the media is bent upon making it sinister and trying to link it with other recent events.

In a 1.3 million strong army, where individuals interact with each other on a 24X7 basis, the odd aberration does occur. Despite discipline being ingrained in them from the very first day they don a uniform, and despite the excellent officer-man relationship that is nurtured on a continuous basis, tempers sometimes run high. All ranks do understand that it is this close relationship that sustains them even in the most difficult situations, but anger subsumes this temporarily. Despite the many ups and downs in the working environment of the army, officer-man relationship has endured. These are the facets that have contributed to making the Indian Army professionally highly competent and behaviourally the best in the business. This needs to be commended not criticized. I would urge those elements of the media that are going unnecessarily overboard in bashing the entire army to desist, for if such coverage continues, it will do great harm to the army and the nation.

The army has time-tested and well laid out procedures for dealing with all types of indiscipline. The media neither has the expertise nor the knowledge of doing so. Even those segments of the media that may have been goaded to unnecessarily raise the issue to absurd heights on account of their vested interests will do well to confine their reports to news and desist from voicing irrelevant views and comments. The country continues to have faith in the prowess and honesty of purpose of their army. It is best for amateurs of the media, however much they may think of themselves as the greatest media honchos, to let the army take remedial actions in their own professional manner. They will, in due course, share their conclusions with everyone.
Let me end this piece by adding that the motto of the Regiment of Artillery of your army is “Izzat o Iqbalâ€, to which they adhere to scrupulously. This particular unit- “ 226 Field Regiment, will also bounce back, provided unnecessary hounding of the unit and its personnel comes to an end immediately.
Comment:The corruption amongst the Officer Cadre need be investigated and exemplary punishment meted speedily. Indiscipline amongst Jawans is a different cup of tea- needs to investigated, correctives measures applied- Revolt and Mutiny is very rare. One should not confuse the issues!
Balance and Restraint

Revolt of Field Regiment in Ladakh: An Analysis

Blame the Army's cover-up culture, not ‘colonial-era institutions'
Manvendra Singh The Hindu, May 23, 2012
Praveen Swami caught the wrong end of a long stick in his article “Ladakh troop revolt underlines Army class tensions” (The Hindu, May 13, 2012). His interesting analysis of the indiscipline and disorder by personnel of the Ladakh-based 226 Field Regiment was based on two arguments. His main argument was that the Army continued to run on antiquated arrangements which then created the conditions for troops and officers of the Artillery regiment to come to blows. Combustion is inbuilt in the functioning of the Army and the fracas at Nyoma in Leh was waiting to happen. He makes two points to underline this argument.
First, the Army continues to run on “colonial-era institutions” and, second, that it remains “divided rigidly between sahibs and men, which allowed, enabled, or rather created conditions for tempers to boil over in Nyoma. Before responding to his line of reasoning, it is important to firstly condemn the incidents that happened in Nyoma. There are no grounds to justify, or let alone explain, the fisticuffs during the bara khana after the regiment had completed its field firing practice. It must be understood that a bara khana is standard procedure following any field firing, by any unit. That an Army tradition came to be marred by unforeseen incidents is a sad commentary on the calibre of officers who were holding staff and command appointments of the 226 Field Regiment. For they are the principal beneficiaries of what Praveen Swami has called “colonial-era institutions.”
His first line of attack is on the continued practice of employing combat trained soldiers as the personal valets of officers — once called batmen by British Indian Army officers and now known as sewadars, sahayaks, and also buddies in many units. His argument is that this institution is outdated in today's India. It humiliates the soldier detailed for such duties with an officer. And because of its misuse, the Nyoma incident happened. Class tension is inherent in the structure of the Army, hence the fires of revolt in the 226 Field Regiment.
There is a basic flaw in this reasoning. For if that were the case, the Army would long have been reduced to an institution wrecked by confronting its thousand inbuilt mutinies. But that has not happened and neither will the Army go that way. Regiments and battalions under far greater combat stress, and with far higher levels of battle training, would also have been stricken with this ailment. Infantry units, the primary application of force by the Republic of India, would not have been able to perform their basic military tasks if the “colonial-era institutions” remained the prevailing atmosphere in the battalion. The institution of sahayak is certainly an outdated one, and there can be no two views on that score. But it is not responsible, whatever its levels of misuse, for the acts of indiscipline in Nyoma.
The second point raised in the report was about the Army being a house “divided between sahibs and men.” Sahib is an honorific bestowed on those who have attained certain ranks, officers or men. Officers are taught by tradition to address as “Sahib” those who have achieved such ranks even if they are junior in the command structure. Consider this: India's Army achieved one of its greatest military feats 25 years ago during this time of the year. On June 26, 1987, the 8 Jammu & Kashmir Light Infantry captured Quaid Post from Pakistan in the battle to dominate Siachen. The success of that operation was because of the extreme bravery of late 2/Lt Rajiv Pande who began the operation, that was completed by then Naib Subedar Bana Singh, for which he was awarded the Param Vir Chakra. To come to the point — even in the midst of the highest combat ever fought, Pande and Bana Singh would only address each other as “Sahib,” despite the vast difference in age and rank. That has been the practice ever since the Indian Army came to be made, and it will remain so. The addressing of someone as “Sahib” doesn't cause divisions in the Army. And neither does the presence of the ‘Sahib culture'. What causes divisions, and which lie at the root of the problems on display in Nyoma, is, in fact, of far more recent origin.
The armed forces of India, unlike other government services, have a sharply pyramidal structure, both within a unit and as institutions as a whole. The competition of ranks is far higher in the armed forces than anywhere else in the country. And this is as true for officers as it is for enlisted men, for the number of junior commissioned ranks are few and far in between. This competition for higher ranks has created a culture of command that revolves around the “zero-error syndrome.” Simply explained, this essentially means the avoidance of risk so as to sail the waters calmly. When no risks are taken, no mistakes are made. So annual confidential reports remain sanitised to the last line and the grading is excellent. Thus, promotions are easier achieved provided the examinations and courses are also graded well. True of men as also of officers. But human life is not so mechanical, and military life less so. The lure of higher ranks, however, requires that the record be spotless, so units do what they know best: brush the mess under the carpet. Lapses are routinely covered up, and command failures remain un-reported, or at best under-reported.
The failings of command, thus, come to be hidden, from platoon level upward. It is plain to the eye who is and is not fit for the higher ranks. But the military bureaucracy only looks at sterilised pieces of paper in the Military Secretary's Branch. Who they select for commanding a combat unit may really not be fit for that appointment, intellectually, physically or even morally. Murphy's Law is the most popular dictum in the armed forces, and it catches up some time or the other. In Nyoma, it caught up with the 226 Field Regiment. It is certain that this regiment has had numerous incidents of indiscipline in the past. None came to be reported, or they were covered up. Indiscipline to the point of revolt does not only affect those in the unit, but even those commanding higher formations. Accountability in the Army is lateral and vertical. So to avoid stains, some in the past have ignored goings on inside the 226 Field Regiment. All that it required was an incapable officer and an incapacitated soldier to come together, and they did in Nyoma. First-rate officers and first-rate soldiers in other units continue to perform commendably by “colonial-era institutions.” It is obvious the first-rate are not in the 226 Field Regiment.
(Manvendra Singh is co-convener of the Bharatiya Janata Party's defence cell. He was a member of the Standing Committee on Defence in the 14th Lok Sabha.)
Blame the Army's cover-up culture, not ‘colonial-era institutions'

226 Arty Regt: Officers and Jawans clash at Mahe Field Ranges

Officers-jawans clash in Ladakh not mutiny: Army
Ladakh, May 12 (IBNS): The Indian Army on Saturday said the 'minor scuffle' between officers and jawans in Ladakh is an 'isolated act of indiscipline'.
Army officers and jawans of an artillery unit clashed at the Mahe Field Ranges in Ladakh Region during the field firing exercise of Field Regiment on Thursday.
"The entire episode can at worst be seen as an isolated act of indiscipline. It can in no way be termed as mutiny," read a media statement issued by Army spokesperson Colonel Jagdeep Dahiya on Saturday.
"No arms and ammunition have been used by anybody. The armoury has not been captured by the troops as is being wrongly reported."
"Misinterpretation and mischievous reporting to sensationalise the incident by some sections of print and electronic media need to be dispelled," he said.
Dahiya said the Brigade Commander of the Artillery Brigade and General Officer Commanding of the Division interacted with the troops on Friday.
"The situation was brought well under control and the Regiment is being moved back from ranges to its location with effect from 12 May 2012," said the spokesperson. "A Court of Inquiry to investigate into the circumstances under which the incident took place has commenced," he said.
"The Court of Inquiry will identify the complicity of the officers and men. However, nobody has been removed, dismissed or suspended," said Dahiya.
"Col P Kadam, the Commanding Officer was not assaulted by other officers, as has been wrongly reported. The CO as well as Maj AK Sharma and Sepoy Suman Ghosh who suffered superficial injuries, have been given medical treatment," he said.
"The situation is well under control," said the Army spokesperson.
Officers-jawans clash in Ladakh not mutiny: Army

Army officers, jawans battle it out in Ladakh
Rajat Pandit, TNN | May 12, 2012, 02.17AM IST
NEW DELHI: In a shocking breach of discipline in the Army, officers and jawans of an artillery regiment deployed in the Nyoma sector of eastern Ladakh violently clashed with each other on Thursday evening. The ugly brawl ended with the commanding officer (CO) of the 226 Field Regiment deployed in Durbuk, Colonel Prasad Kadam, a Major, S K Sharma, and two jawans being admitted to the military hospital at Leh with multiple injuries.
The entire artillery unit of around 550 soldiers, which was at the high-altitude Mahe range in Nyoma to practise firing of their 105mm guns, was subsequently "disarmed" by additional forces rushed to the spot.
The incident sent ripples down the 1.13 million-strong Army, justifiably proud of its disciplined ethos and esprit de corps, and the entire defence establishment in South Block. Even as Karu-based 3 Division commander Major General A L Chavan rushed to the spot, Army chief General V K Singh briefed defence minister A K Antony on Friday morning after talking to Northern Army commander Lt-Gen K T Parnaik.
The artillery regiment will "eventually be disbanded", much like a few Sikh regiments were in the aftermath of Operation Bluestar in the mid-1980s, after the court of inquiry ordered into the incident establishes the chain of events and identifies the guilty. "It's an isolated act of indiscipline. The situation is under control...the accused will face court martial,'' said a senior officer.
Army officers, jawans battle it out in Ladakh
Comment: Sadly this a complete command Control breakdown in the Regiment. Undue coverage by media will surely dent the image of the Indian Army. Units undergoing training in harsh conditions need good leadership to acquire requisite skills for warfare... one must remember the Chetwode Motto. Veterans should reserve and control their comments in the public domain.

Where’s the defence industry?

By Shailesh Dobhal , 05/09/2010
The Indian automobile industry is the seventh largest, and the second fastest growing in the world after China. Its auto components manufacturers are globally competitive, and every manner of automaker is already here or is in the process of setting up a base here.

Even till early 1980s, the country was an auto backwater, with just about a handful of manufacturers. The industry maturing followed, in a manner of speaking, the market. With domestic demand for anything from two-wheelers and cars to light and heavy commercial vehicles exploding in the last two decades, India has emerged as the global small car hub, and a big exporter of both finished cars and components.

In the last six years, while production doubled, from 7 million to 14 million, exports more than tripled, 0.5 million to 1.8 million last fiscal.

A big consumer market for cellphones made the world's biggest cellphone maker Nokia set up its largest manufacturing plant here, to meet the domestic requirements as well as to build an export base. The story of a big and growing domestic market spawning a vibrant domestic industry repeats itself with consistency across sectors -- apparels, consumer expendables, packaged food, pharmaceuticals, etc.

In fact, it is difficult to think of any industry sector where a huge domestic market is not a prelude to a vibrant domestic industry. Perhaps, only in God-gifted natural resources like oil, gas and minerals can a country be a big consumer and a big importer at the same time. Can there be any other such exceptions?

Well yes, if you consider the country's experience with defence equipment like submarines, ships, fighter planes and artillery guns. India is one the world's biggest consumer of defence equipment, having spent $50 billion in the last 10 years and estimates of over $100 billion in the next decade or so.

And historically we have relied on imports to fulfil over two-thirds of this requirement, as the public sector monopoly of DRDO, 8 PSUs and 39 ordnance factories have failed us squarely. Our defence exports are pathetic, even compared to other big arms importers like South Korea and Singapore. For every dollar worth of export of defence equipment, India imports $200 worth, compared to $20 for Singapore and under $9 for Korea.

Even after almost a decade of opening up of private participation and 26% foreign investment, just about 130 companies have entered the fray, and very little foreign funds have flowed in. Now the defence industry is a sensitive, highly technological one, with governments and graft never far from the scene. And you can't exactly extend the arguments of the plebeian cars and cellphones industry to as highly geo-strategic sector as defence, goes one argument.

Well, maybe not, but the logic of the market is finally inexplicable -- one who pays the piper calls the tune. True, existing big boys of the global arms club will hold back the change, and foreign governments will withhold cutting-edge technologies and newer versions for itself. But purchasing power has to be leveraged to change the old order, and a beginning has to be made somewhere.

Consider what China is doing. The authors of a paper, Leveraging Defence Offset Policy for Technology Acquisition, in the Journal of Defence Studies, January 2009, argue that China is launching its large civilian aircraft industry on an aggressive leverage of transfer of production technology from other countries in the form of outsourcing and offsets, primarily from the US and other aerospace companies.

So why can't India? The reasons are not hard to find. Our much touted defence procurement policy, which inter alia provides for an offset policy, is somewhat unclear in its objectives. The 4-year-old 'Offset Policy' requires a foreign arms vendor winning a contract of more than Rs 300 crore to offset a minimum 30% of this value in the domestic market through purchase of products/services from Indian companies or investments in setting up a joint venture with an Indian partner.

Already, in the absence of a robust monitoring mechanism, some experts have started flagging offsets as the country's next big scam in the making, with unscrupulous foreign vendors using it as a means for kickbacks.

Best practices in offset management can be gleaned from countries like Israel and South Korea that have used it to kickstart their domestic industries. Israel's offset policy explicitly emphasises acquisition of technology and not the product, for that alone can have a technology spillover effect that can spawn related ancillary industries, the backbone for all big manufacturing successes.

Ditto South Korea, where the approval of the offset contract is subject to the foreign arms vendor assuring 'approval' of technology transfer to the importing country.

Or take the example of Saudi Arabia. It realises that some cutting-edge technologies won't be shared or transferred and therefore its offset programme has evolved to harness commercially exploitable (transferred) technology, which has helped its offset-related domestic industry to already clock in billions in export sales.

Gunnar Eliasson, a professor of industrial economics at the Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, in his recently released book, Advanced Public Procurement as Industrial Policy, argues that there are four waves of spillovers of any technology, such as fighter aircraft manufacturing -- core, related, engineering and industrial technologies.

The value for country procuring high technology-led armaments is how its organises its industrial systems' absorptive capacity to leverages on such spillovers that can have long-term economic benefits in terms of spawning related industries, dual-usage commercial technologies.

Our offsets system, which has become virtually a government dictait-led windfall for big and small domestic players alike, should instead strive to create a defence industrial ecosystem of technology absorption, assimilation and innovation.
Source:Financial Express
Where’s the defence industry?

Colonel held with bar girls in Gujarat

Shiv Aroor, Monday, April 19, 2010
An army officer was recently caught frolicking at a sleazy rave party at a farmhouse in Ahmedabad district's Sanand area recently. The officer was arrested along with seven bar girls and 21 others at the party.

Colonel Ritobroto Sengupta was arrested on April 15. He was reportedly caught dancing with bar girls and consuming alcohol at the party, both illegal under the Gujarat laws.

Confirming the news to Headlines Today, the Army said that the officer's conduct was being probed. He was arrested, questioned and then handed over to army authorities for further action. The officer belongs to the Dhangadhra military station, where he commands an artillery unit.

The party, which had free-flowing illegal alcohol and seven bar dancers from Mumbai, was allegedly thrown by an Ahmedabad businessman and had several other businessmen in attendance.

Sources told Headlines Today that the officer was being probed for giving the police a fake name. The police were also investigating the possibility if he provided alcohol at the party. His links with the businessmen in attendance was also being probed.

Sources said there was also a serving brigadier involved in the party, but he might have given police the slip during the raid. The Army has not confirmed the brigadier's presence at the party.
Colonel held with bar girls in Guj

Rito Brato Sengupta, serving as colonel with Indian Army at Dhrangadra base was also among the arrested. He initially told investigator that his name was Rakesh Varma. We have charged him with misguiding investigators.
Police bust booze party at Sanand farmhouse, 29 held

Blacklisted STK prepares Indian Field Howitzer- 2000 trials

New Delhi: With artillery having killed more soldiers during the last century than any other battlefield weapon, the decade-plus delay in equipping the Indian Army with modern artillery guns is widely considered a major procurement lapse. The stop-start-stop process of buying 1,580 towed guns for the Indian Army will effectively restart on Monday when a C-130 Hercules aircraft lands in New Delhi, carrying a 155-millimetre artillery gun for trials this summer.

This gun, the Indian Field Howitzer-2000 (IFH-2000), developed by Singapore Technologies Kinetics, or STK, is competing for the Indian tender with British company BAE Systems' FH-77B-05, a derivative of the controversial and respected Bofors gun. The lower-profile IFH2000 is the world's first 155mm 52-calibre howitzer, which the Singapore Armed Forces have used for over a decade.

A 52-calibre howitzer fires heavier shells than older, 39-calibre and 45-calibre guns, inflicting greater punishment on the target. The Indian tender for towed guns specifies that only 52-calibre guns will be evaluated.

Trials for procuring 155 mm, 52-calibre towed guns began in summer 2002, when the Ministry of Defence (MoD) began evaluating three guns from BAE Systems; Israeli firm, Soltam; and South African company, Denel. Five rounds of trials, conducted in 2002; 2003; 2004; and 2006; reached no conclusion. Denel was blacklisted for corruption in September 2005; the other two guns did not meet the army's standards.

The trials remain dogged by controversy even after a fresh tender was issued in 2008. Last year, one of the two contenders, STK, was unofficially blacklisted for corruption after the arrest of former Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) chief Sudipta Ghosh. But CBI investigations have made no apparent headway in the past year; not even acharge-sheet has been filed against Sudipta Ghosh. Now, STK has been asked to field its gun for trials.

STK plans to start preparing for the impending trials by practising firing at the Pokhran ranges using Indian ammunition and a crack gun crew of seven former Indian Army artillerymen, recruited by STK's Indian partner, Punj Lloyd Ltd.

The BAE Systems gun, too, is in India, having been brought for the Defence Expo in February and for trials scheduled immediately after that. But those trials were postponed when the IFH2000 was damaged in Singapore while being loaded into an aircraft for despatch to India.

"Punj Lloyd is STK's Indian partner for the 155 mm gun," explains Patrick Choy, STK's international marketing chief. "STK will rely on them for logistics and engineering support during the trials; and if STK is awarded the contract, we will manufacture a substantial part of the gun at Punj Lloyd's facilities near Gwalior." STK's rival in this tender, BAE Systems, has a similar arrangement with its Indian partner, Mahindra & Mahindra. These two companies have formed an Indian joint venture, Defence Land Systems, with Rs 100 crore equity held on a 7426 per cent basis between Mahindra & Mahindra and BAE Systems.

At stake in the forthcoming trials is an order, worth $1.8 billion (about Rs 8,000 crore), for the outright supply of 400 towed guns; and the licensed production in India of another 1,180 guns. If the MoD imposes even the minimum offset requirement of 30 per cent, that would translate into $540 million (about Rs 2,400 crore) worth of manufacture within India.

STK and BAE Systems are also vying for a $700-million (over Rs 3,100 crore) contract for 140 ultralight howitzers (ULHs) for Indian mountain divisions.

Two more artillery purchases are simultaneously in the works: A $800 million (Rs 3,500 crore) order for 100 medium guns, mounted in tracked vehicles, for self-propelled (SP) medium regiments that go into battle with India's strike corps. Another $900 million (Rs 4,000 crore) will buy 180 vehiclemounted guns for more SP regiments.

The stakes are high for everyone involved. For BAE Systems, this is an opportunity to bury the stigma of the Bofors scandal; for STK, this is a golden opening into the lucrative Indian market; and for the Indian Army, desperately short of artillery firepower, this is a chance to fill a gaping operational void.
Source: Business Standard
Singapore gun arrives; stage set for artillery trials

Challenges before the new Army Chief

General V.K. Singh has taken over as the 26th Army Chief in an environment full of challenges. Nearly half the army is committed in fighting various insurgencies and a proxy war. The combat potential of the army is at an all-time low of nearly 50 per cent.
There has been little modernisation in the last decade or so. The budget for the army gets reduced every year in real terms. The deteriorating civil-military relations do not bode well for the safety and security of the nation. And the regional security environment is cause for concern.
The status of army personnel is dwindling continuously, adversely affecting the morale of the rank and file. The shortage of officers is again at a precariously high level. The veterans’ resentment consequent to the dragging of feet by the government on their long-pending demand for one rank one pension (OROP) threatens to boil over.
The situation reminds this writer of the battlefield message sent by a General to his Emperor: “Am surrounded both sides. My centre cannot hold. Situation excellent. I shall attack.” Will the new Army Chief, who had cut his professional teeth in a proud and valorous regiment, replicate this by being proactive? The citizens, who have a great affection for the army, do expect it from him.
Lt-Gen Vijay Oberoi (Retd)
The writer is a former Vice-Chief of the Indian Army
Click link below to read the full account
Challenges before the new Army Chief by Lt-Gen Vijay Oberoi (retd)

Indo Pak war 1965

An outcome of an engr convoy after PAK airstrike.

PAK shelling of Mtn Regt gun position

The pond had plenty of fish which was later consumed by the gunners

Sitting on the grave yard tomb is the OP party and near the minaret some gunners are digging trenches

The body of a Gunner laid to rest in a sugarcane field near Pagowal village. In due course of time the location of the burial site would have been obliterated
Col Ranga Raj Jairam (Retd)

Remembrance: Lt Col Nirmal Singh- Veteran and Social Worker

REMEMBRANCE
Great veteran Lt Col Nirmal Singh who rendered his entire retired life of more than two decades for the welfare of Ex-Servicemen of Doon Valley as a Vice President Dehradun Ex Services League, passed away on 18 Dec 09 at the age of 81 years at his residence, 267 Garhi Cantt. As per his real brother Col KS Kambo, Retd who met me this morning at IMA Golf Course, stated that before the last breath of his brother Lt Col Nirmal Singh, had said his prayers and mentioned leaving this world for ever so had a peaceful passing away.

Born in an affluent business family on 23 April 28 at Dakra, Dehradun. He earned his BA degree from the Lucknow University and was commissioned in Indian Army on 12 Jul 1950 and retired on 10 Apr 1979. During his illustrious career he completed his staff college successfully and participated in three wars ie 1962, 1965 and 1971. He commanded the 22 Mountain Regiment during the Indo Pak War of 1971.

After his retirement not only did he devote his entire life for the welfare of Ex-Servicemen but he also played a very active role in public social service constructing Tapkeshwar Cremation Ground and also started a charitable homoeopathic dispensary at Dakra Gurudwara Dehradun. He was a great sportsman and a great golfer with fairly good handicap. He used to coach many a golfer like me to make us better players on the field.

Lt Col B M Thapa, Retd,
Gen Secy DESL, Member IESM

India ready for war? Forces grapple with delays, red tape

20 Jan 2009, 0602 hrs IST, Rajat Pandit, TNN

NEW DELHI: For all its aspirations about becoming a superpower, India continues to fumble in formulating strategic plans to systematically build the country's military "capabilities" in tune with its geopolitical objectives.

For one, the government is yet to finalise the 11th Defence Plan (2007-2012) due to wrangling between the finance and defence ministries. For another, similar is the fate of the much-touted LTIPP-2007-2022 (long-term integrated perspective plan) till now, say sources.

"Successive governments have failed to formulate budgetary plans with a concrete strategic underpinning," said a top official. India does spend a lot on arms deals but it happens in a haphazard manner, without clear prioritisation, and is dogged by huge delays.

India's defence expenditure, of course, has also fallen below 2% of its GDP for the first time in decades this fiscal despite military experts demanding at least 3%. Even as UPA government now belatedly fast-tracks procurement of military hardware and software in wake of 26/11, here's a look at some of the gaps in military capabilities:

Nuclear Deterrence: India has Agni missiles as well as fighters to deliver nukes but no nuclear-powered submarines armed with nuclear-tipped missiles. The "nuclear triad" is still some four years away from completion, with the 25-year-old indigenous programme to build nuclear subs under the ATV (advanced technology vessel) project yet to come to fruition.

Submarines: To China's 57 attack submarines and submarine-launched ballistic missiles, India has just 16 aging diesel-electric submarines, with huge serviceability problems. Only half of Navy's 10 Russian Kilo-class, four German HDW and two virtually-obsolete Foxtrot submarines are operationally available. The Rs 18,798-crore Scorpene project will deliver six submarines only between 2012 and 2017. Pakistan, meanwhile, is building its submarine arm, inducting three French Agosta-90B vessels.

Fighters: Airpower may be decisive during wars but IAF continues to grapple with a free-fall in its fighter squadrons, down to 32 from its sanctioned strength of 39.5. Though 44 squadrons are needed to meet "a full conflict" with Pakistan, while maintaining "a dissuasive posture" against China, IAF will reach the 39.5 mark only by 2017. Delays in both the indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft as well as the procurement process for 126 new multi-role combat fighters in the $10.4 billion project has led to this situation.

Artillery: The Bofors ghost has derailed Army's artillery modernisation plan, valued to be well over Rs 15,000 crore. There has been no induction of big guns since the 1986 procurement of 410 Bofors 155mm/39-calibre howitzers. Army wants to induct 400 155mm/52-calibre towed guns, with another 1,100 of them to be manufactured indigenously, in a Rs 8,000-crore project; 180 wheeled self-propelled howitzers for around Rs 4,700 crore; 140 air-mobile ultra-light howitzers for around Rs 2,900 crore.

Night-Fighting: Army, in particular, requires a strong dose of third-generation thermal imaging sights and night-vision devices. It wants to equip all its tanks, which include 1,200 T-72 tanks, with solid NF capabilities by around 2010-2011.

Aircraft Carriers: Navy has long demanded three carriers but it does not have even one operating at present since the ageing 28,000-tonne INS Viraat is currently undergoing another life-extension refit to ensure it can run for five more years.
India ready for war? Forces grapple with delays, red tape

New nuclear-capable BrahMos version test fired

Jaisalmer, Jan 20 (PTI) India today successfully test-fired a new version of the nuclear-capable BrahMos missile at Pokhran in Rajasthan's desert. The test comes in the midst of heightened tension between India and Pakistan following the Mumbai terror attacks.

Defence Minister A K Antony, however, told reporters in New Delhi that the test was pre-planned and not directed against any country. "It (BrahMos test) is a normal thing. The test was pre-planned...BrahMos (is part of the arsenal) of the Navy and the Army. Decision (to test) was taken much earlier. We are continuing with that," Antony said in reply to queries.

The missile, with a 290-km range and capable of touching a speed 2.8 times that of sound, was launched during the trial in its vertical mode, DRDO officials told PTI.

The present round of trials was earlier scheduled for January 17 but was postponed till today. However, the DRDO sources did not specify any reasons for the delay. BrahMos is a missile that India is developing in collaboration with Russia and is named after the river Brahmputra and Moscow.

During the visit of Russian Defence Minister Anatoly Serdyukov to India late last year, an agreement was reached between the two countries for development of a hyper-sonic BrahMos missile, an improvement on the already-developed supersonic missile, termed as "the most advanced" in its category. PTI
New nuclear-capable BrahMos version test-fired

Three Army Regiments Merge: Madras Regiment

MRC
Udhagamandalam (PTI): The Indian Army's old regiments -- the Madras Regiment, 16th Cavalry and 4-Field Regiments -- on Saturday became a single entitity with the three being formally affiliated at a function at the Madras Regimental Centre at nearby Wellington.

The affiliation (merger) would encompass greater understanding of each others combat potential, harmonize and encourage active participation in each others sporting and adventure activities, an MRC release said here.

This would also provide greater synergy amonst all ranks through deeper understanding of each others traditions, culture and heritage, it said.

Because of the deep roots of the regiments with South India and the fact that a substantial portion of the core manpower of the 16th Cavalry and 4 Field regiment were originally from the Madras Regiment, the regiments were formally affiliated through a 'memorandum of understanding,' it said.

The Madras Regiment came into being on Dec 4, 1758, when two battalions were raised under Col Robert Clive, consequent to the seige of Fort St George in then Chennapatnam (Chennai) by the French.

16th Light Cavalry regiment was raised prior to 1776 in the Service of Nawab of Arcot as the 3rd regiment of the Native Cavalry. This is the senior most regiment of Armoured Corps, standing right most of a joint ceremonial parade and carries two standards, a privilege unique in the whole of the Commonwealth.

The 4-Field Regiment was raised in May 1956 as a Field regiment in Hyderabad under the 27 Mountain Artillery Brigade, by converting the 8th Battalion.
Three army regiments merge

Indo - China War: Tsangdhar 20 Oct 1962

There were many unanswered questions in my mind about Tsangdhar both related and unrelated to communications. The only person who could have thrown some light on that was 2 Lt AJS Behl, Capt Talwar’s No 2 and the GPO at Tsangdhar. I did not know his present whereabouts. On the spur of the moment I rang up Talwar, who not only told me about Behl, now a retired Brigadier and staying in Chandigarh, but also gave me his telephone number. He was also kind enough to speak to AmarJit Behl about me. Post haste I made a call to Brig Behl followed by a letter, we established a quick rapport and he was more than willing to answer my queries and sent me an account of the events from the time he and his boys left Agra on the morning of 30th September 1962 till they became the POW’s on the afternoon of 20th October 62.

No one has written an authentic account of the happenings on 20th at Tsangdhar, at least, to my knowledge. What was happening at Tsangdhar from 4.45am onwards when we in the Brigade HQ were under attack with Mortar Bombs? There were three wireless links working from Tsangdhar to Brigade HQ- that of Signal Section, of your Troop and that of Mortar Bty. None came on the air that morning? What happened to Maj Ram Singh and Sqn Ldr Sehgal? There was another Bell flight from Ziminthaung to Tsangdhar piloted by Williams to check as to what was happening at Tsangdhar when Sehgal did not return I believe it was also fired upon. What is the truth? While escaping from Rongla we could see small arms firing at Tsangdhar. Who was firing at whom and of course what was happening to your own Troops? These were the questions I put to Brig Behl in my letter, not only he answered all of them, but also brought some new and startling facts to light. Most gratifying was to learn about the high morale and the fighting spirit of the men and the baptism of young Behl by fire; an inspiring story of events unfolding at a rapid pace which would have taxed an officer with a many times over seniority as compared to that of an oven fresh Second Lieutenant. Read full story as recollected by Brig AJS Behl on the link given below.

Brig Lakshman Singh (Retd)

Tsangdhar 20 Oct 1962: Brig AJS Behl narrates
Rescue Missions at Tsangdhar Oct 1962

Elephants in Artillery Role

The Elephants were used as a draught animal in conjunction with our heavy batteries in India, particularly those of the siege train (5 Inf Div- Mhow). Elephant batteries are of modern origin, though the animal has been used in war from the earliest times, and can be managed by his mahout with as little difficulty as a well trained Jawan. It is, indeed, astonishing to see the apparently clumsy animal wheeling to the right or left when ordered, as though he, like the gunners who accompany him, had passed a considerable time under the care of the drill Havildhar. Each animal can carry with ease a load of 400Kgs. Its food is usually from 6Kgs to 15Kgs of flour mixed with sugar, or molasses, and 175kgs of green food. It requires at least 100 Litres of water per Diem, but works well on only five hours of sleep. Each heavy gun is drawn by two animals. The gunners are seen in front of the elephants.

Contrast 1897 Artillery with current Bofors Shoot and Scoot!