AWHO sets standards of low transparency

Allotment of Army Flats in Panchkula
Consumer panel sees Adarsh-like scam
Vijay Mohan/TNS Monday, January 2, 2012, Chandigarh, India
Chandigarh, January 1
Holding that the allotment of some dwelling units made by the Army Welfare Housing Organisation (AWHO) in its project at Sector 20, Panchkula, was in violation of rules, the State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission has observed that the exercise was done “presumably with a view to accommodate favourites and everything does not appear to have been done in a transparent manner.”

Ruling that the system adopted to fix the seniority of applicants was arbitrary, the Commission held that if enquired into deeply “this may again turn out to be another scam like Adarsh Society at Mumbai.”

AWHO, the Commission observed, is an organisation created for the welfare of serving and retired defence personnel and expected to act in a transparent manner.

A resident of Sector 2, Panchkula, RK Dhingra had earlier moved the District Consumer Forum against the non-allotment of a flat in AWHO’s colony or failing which, in another similar project in Panchkula or Mohali. The forum had granted him relief following which the AWHO authorities appealed against the order before the commission, which dismissed the appeal.Dhingra’s prime grievance was that some senior officers who were much junior registrants in the scheme by virtue of their date of registration, were later placed higher in the waiting list. Dhingra, with registration number 98,248 was placed at serial number 15 in the waiting list, where as a Brigadier with registration number 1,04,727 was placed on top of the list.

The seniority in the list was to be determined on the basis of the date on the bank draft and allotment thereafter on the basis of a draw of lots.

The complainant, however, had been told by the AWHO authorities that he was the senior-most applicant on the waiting list. When he came to know that some allotments were made “illegally”, he approached the authorities and was told that his present position in the list was No. 1. He could either seek transfer or withdraw his registration as all dwelling units stood allotted and had been handed over.

On pointing out discrepancies, he was told that all but one unit had been handed over and formalities and paperwork were in process for the lone remaining unit.
AWHO: Consumer panel sees Adarsh-like scam

Army Officers and the Golden Norms

This is an excellent write up.
Best wishes.
Harbhajan Singh
Please find an excellent article, ARMY OFFICERS AND SEVEN GOLDEN NORMS by Veteran Bombay Sapper Maj Gen Mrinal Suman, AVSM, VSM, PhD.
Gen Suman is a soldier, a scholar, a thinker and a prolific writer on matters Military and National Security. He is known for being frank and forthright in expressing his views; and, his articles are a reader’s delight.
Veterans are welcome to comment on the article and fwd the same to Maj Gen Mrinal Suman

Officers Training Academy Inaugurated at Gaya

Second Military Officers Training Academy Inaugurated
PTI | Gaya | Jul 18, 2011
The country's second academy for training military officers for short-service commission was inaugurated today in Bihar's Gaya district as part of efforts to meet the shortage of over 12,000 officers.

General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Army Training Command, Lt Gen K Surendra Nath, hoisted the flag to inaugurate the academy, the second after the one at Chennai, in the presence of senior military officers and other dignitaries.

The academy would mould young dynamic minds into capable future military leaders and fulfill a long felt need of the Indian Army to train and induct more officers into its ranks, Nath said in his address.

It will start with training 135 officers and would reach its capacity of over 700 Short Service Commission (SSC) officers in the next two years, they said.

The army is facing a shortage of 12,349 officers against its sanctioned strength of around 46,500. It is also looking to increase the number of officers to meet the new security requirements.

The trainees will be provided basic military training attuned with the advancements in the latest technology to enable them to serve as professionally skilled leaders of a modern army, a press release said.

A team of well qualified instructors and staff specially chosen from the Indian Army will train the first batch of gentlemen cadets.

To achieve and maintain paramount standards of physical and the mental health of the trainees, various training and sports facilities have been made available in the Academy.
Second Military Officers Training Academy Inaugurated
The Hindu: Gaya OTA to open today

The Academy situated at the picturesque Paharpur Military Station, Gaya amidst lush green surroundings is spread over an area of 863 acres. It is approximately 8 kms from Bodhgaya, a major international tourist attraction. Well connected by road and rail, the Academy is only 100 kms from the state capital, Patna.

The Academy has been raised under Lt Gen Vijai Sharma from the Corps of Engineers. Lt Gen Sharma has served army for about 36 years in a variety of appointments. Prior to taking over as the first Commandant of OTA, Gaya, the General officer was serving at Army Headquarters, Delhi.

To achieve and maintain paramount standards of physical and the mental health of the trainees, various training and sports facilities have been made available in the Academy. The area is equipped with numerous training facilities for weapon training, drill, physical training, swimming, equitation and equestrian sports and adventure/hobby clubs for the all-round development of the Gentlemen Cadets. Training in soft skills like verbal and non-verbal communication, public speaking, interpersonal relationship, leadership, emotional intelligence, team building etc are an integrated part of the curriculum at the Academy. OTA, Gaya is the third Military Academy of its kind in addition to the existing ones at Dehradun and Chennai.
OTA Gaya

Reality- National Geographic Channel Shows Indian Army

Anil Bhat 4/12/2011 10:24:15 PM
“March with the Indian Army and pay tribute to the saga of the unknown soldier with honour and pride” is the slogan of the ten - serial television reality show produced by National Geographic (Nat Geo) and currently being aired extensively on the Star Network.

Having produced Mission Udaan -Inside the Indian Air Force, in 2005 and Mission Navy- Lehron ke Sartaj in 2008, showcasing both the services in their full glory, Nat Geo launched a project to make the same on Indian Army, called Mission Army – Desh ke Rakshak.

Extensive interaction between the Army and Nat Geo resulted in this mega reality show aimed at giving television viewers an insight into the ‘making of an Army officer’ and ‘life in the Army’, through the eyes of a few civilian youth, selected and further trained. The serial showcases the history, values, customs and traditions as also operational and administrative activities of various combat arms and services of the Army, in varied terrain and extremes of climatic conditions.

Three young men and two young women were selected after passing physical, mental and medical tests of actual Army standards during the auditions Chib, a former Army officer of the Kumaon Regiment has as such a great asset to Nat Geo in making such programmes across Mumbai, Bangalore and New Delhi, for which 30,000 participants from all over India came to try to be a part of this mega reality show. They were, Ela Vohra 23, working at working IBM India, Pune, Priyanka Chand Oswal 19, from Pune College, Rohan Vijay Takalkar 24, running a fitness club in Pune, Rudrashish Sengupta 22, from St Xavier’s college, Mumbai and Kuldeep Rana 24, pursuing MBA from JIMS, Delhi.

Interacting at length with The Asian Age, Mr. Ramon Chibb, Senior Vice President, National Geographic and Fox International Channel, India, said “After grilling 30,000 enthusiastic and patriotic youth applicants across the country, Nat Geo selected the final five who embarked on a journey to win themselves a never before opportunity to experience the life of an Indian Army Officer. National Geographic Channel has taken the viewers to locations and places where none ever has and our Mission properties in the past have lived up to this tradition. We have worked closely with the Indian Army for our biggest Mission property – Mission Army “Desh ke Rakshak” and will take our viewers into the second largest army of the world – The Indian Army. I firmly believe that in the age of scripted reality shows, a docu-reality show like Mission Army will attract millions of people from different age groups across the country. Mission Army- Desh Ke Rakshak is a ten part series which will give us an insight into all arms and services of the Army”

‘Inside the Indian Army’, the first episode starts with a re-created story of Capt Vikram Batra, hero of the Kargil Intrusion of 1999 narrated by his then Commanding Officer, Brigadier Joshi. It is followed by the introduction to the Indian Army, considered as third largest in the world and what it takes to be an officer in it. Through the eyes of young civilians, viewers watch the selection process with high medical fitness standards and the aspirants going through a battle obstacle course at the Rajputana Rifles Regimental Centre to get their first feel of training in the Army.

In Episode 2, on Indian Military Academy, the Alma Mater of an Indian Army officers, the chosen five go through a tough training schedule of the academy by learning the basics of Army life as Gentleman Cadets and Lady Cadets - of drill, physical training, firing an INSAS rifle, doing night outdoor camping, negotiating the tough Russian obstacle course and finally crossing obstacles while live bullets are fired over their heads as a doze of ‘battle inoculation’.

Episode 3, with the Infantry, shows how it operates in various and toughest of terrains in the country, including the highest battlefield of the world – Siachen- where the temperature can be as low as minus 60 degrees centigrade. This episode covers the training in the Siachen Battle School and the High Altitude Battle School. The five contestants go through commando training at the Infantry school in Belgaum, compulsory for all Infantry officers. This includes unarmed combat, raid, rock climbing, escape and evasion and surviving by living off the land, which also involves catching, skinning, cooking and eating a snake. Their final task is the challenging climb and crawl to a 60 feet high board and jumping from into a swimming pool.

Episode 4, takes the team to the Armored Corps and the Mechanized Infantry Regimental Centres at Ahmednagar, where the contestants learn about customs and traditions of the cavalry and functioning mechanized forces. They get a great opportunity to learn how to drive the state of the art T-72 and the T-90 battle tanks, fire their guns and watch the complex flotation maneuvers by the amphibious Infantry Combat Vehicles in water.

Episode 5, about Artillery and Air Defence involves deployment of these big high-decibel guns in all terrains, learning about the artillery’s role and the performance of Bofors field guns in the Kargil war, the contestants functioning as artillery observation post officers, who guide the firing of guns over long ranges.

Episode 6, on the Army Aviation finds the team in the Army’s helicopters, watching the complexity of flying in high altitude and the role of Army Aviation Corps in support of the combat arms. The indigenously designed Advanced Light Helicopter, Dhruv and the versatile Cheetah and Chetak choppers are profiled in extremely challenging conditions of flying in inaccessible terrain like the Siachen heights and the scorching deserts. At the Combat Aviation Training School the contestants learn what it takes to be an army aviator, fly the Cheetah simulator and navigate a Chetak helicopter in a casualty evacuation mission.

Episode 7, on the technical arms of the Army, has the team watching the Sappers (Engineers) construct bridges, lay mines and handle high explosives as well as work with sophisticated communication equipment of the Corps of Signals. They get to drive the tank trawler and lay underwater depth charges. Their final task is breaching a minefield and blowing up a railway track with explosives.

Episode 8, covers the Army Service Corps, Army Ordnance Corps, Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (EME) and the Army Medical Corps. The team learns how the Army is administered, how it gets its logistics support and how it is kept battle-ready at all times. The contestants get a feel of repairing and maintaining a battle tank with EME.

Episode 9, shows counter terrorist operations in the Kashmir Valley and on the Line of Control(LoC). The Corps Battle School at Srinagar imparting training for counter terrorist operations is showcased, includes fighting a battle in a built-up urban areas, where the margin of error is very small. While here the contestants get trained and tasked to flush out terrorists from a mock village, on the LoC, they learn how the Indian Army soldier is alert 24 x 7.

Episode 10, The Grand Finale, is about Indian Army’s men who spend their lives reinventing themselves to fight in all possible scenarios – the Paratroopers. Specialists of raid and know no obstacle and are trained to operate behind enemy lines. On rare display are some of the unique customs and traditions of this coveted maroon berets regiment, which has tough standards and a probation period, not everybody can pass. The final task for the five contestants is a parachute jump from a helicopter. This episode will also decide the winner of Mission Army, who will have the opportunity to be a part of an overseas Indian military contingent.

Chib, a former Army officer of the Kumaon Regiment and as such a great asset to Nat Geo in producing such monumental programmes, says the viewer ratings on the five episodes broad casted so far have been excellent.

An exciting development for contestant Ela Vohra has been that she has very recently been selected for pre-commission training at the Officers Training Academy, Chennai.

While there is no doubt that the serials mentioned and movies like JP Dutta’s Border, LOC and yet to be produced Border II go well with viewers, it remains to be seen how much of a difference they will make in the near future in attracting more academically, physically and mentally fit youngsters to join the Army, which is still short of about 12,000 officers.
REALITY SHOW OF WHAT INDIAN ARMY IS ALL ABOUT

Job Placement for Armed Forces Veterans

A Job Fair for the Armed Forces Veterans will be held on 11.12.2010 Saturday at 08.00 AM at Island Grounds, Chennai (Behind Kendriya Vidyalaya).
This fair is being arranged by the HQ, ATK&K Area, Fort St George, Chennai 600009 for the benefit of veterans.
All the Armed Forces Veterans desirous of attending the fair are to contact and register their names by 10.12.2010 with the Officer-in-Charge, Ex-servicemen Helpline Centre, ATK&K Area, Fort St George, Chennai. They have to obtain token for having registered their names. (This is very important)
Note: Plenty of vacancies are available for different types of job. There is ample opportunity for technical personnel belonging to Signals, EME, MEG & NSG.
Out station candidates will be provided accommodation at the ESM Helpline Centre. They are to report one day in advance i.e. on 10.12.2010.
For further information and assistance contact:
Hony Capt M David (Retd)
Officer-in-Charge,
Ex-servicemen Helpline Centre,
Fort St. George, Chennai -09.
Phone: 044-25675337, 044-25675236.
Email: oicesmchennai@yahoo.com
Don’t miss this golden opportunity. All veterans are to report in appropriate dress with all their testimonials.
Job Fair for the Armed Forces Veterans

CWG: Army hands over newly-built foot overbridge

New Delhi, October 1, 2010 Army hands over newly-built foot overbridge
PTI

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED: Engineers from The Madras Engineer Group, informally known as the Madras Sappers (a regiment of the Corps of Engineers of the Indian Army) are elated after successfully erecting and commissioning the "Bailey Bridge" near Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium following the collapse of the originally planned bridge last week, in New Delhi on Friday. Photo: V. Sudershan

In less than a week, Army's 'Madras Sappers' have built 95-metre-long Bailey bridge at Commonwealth Games main venue.

The Army on Friday handed over the newly-built Bailey foot overbridge outside the main Commonwealth Games venue Jawaharlal Nehru stadium to the Delhi government, six days after it was tasked to construct it.

The Army was approached by the Delhi Government after a 95-metre-long under-construction foot overbridge came crashing down on September 21, injuring 27 people and causing a major embarrassment to the country.

The Army engineers had started work on the bridge on Saturday and completed its construction on Wednesday.

The hanging bridge, which was intended to be a showpiece, was built by a private firm for Delhi Government’s Public Works Department along with another adjacent bridge at a cost of Rs 10.5 crore to connect the parking lot of the stadium with other side of the street in Lodhi Road in south Delhi.

An army engineering regiment with nearly 1,000 men was deployed to construct the Bailey bridge which is a portable pre-fabricated bridge designed for use by military units.

The Delhi Government official said the PWD has completed construction of the second foot overbridge, adjacent to the collapsed bridge.
The Hindu: Army hands over newly- built foot overbridge

CWG: Stop misusing the Army

THE INDIAN Army has once again been called in at the last second to replace the collapsed foot overbridge near the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium constructed by the PWD. I leave it to the people of the country to form their own opinion on the commitment, pride, accountability and efficiency of the civil department and its masters in handing over to problem to the Army after being at it for well over a year.

Despite the Armed Forces being a 24 x 7, all weather and all problem response, why are soldiers being treated shabbily? Why is a soldier retired compulsorily at an early age without a suitable alternative career or being compensated for the overall loss of his lifetime earnings while every other government servant retires at an age of 60 or above? Doesn’t the government compensate government servants and employees of the Public Sector Undertakings by paying them a handsome compensation for a Voluntary Retirement Scheme? Even the lowly One Rank One Pension that can partially offset the loss of overall lifetime earnings is being denied.

Why? Doesn’t a soldier need as much finances to bring up his children and take care of his family as anyone else in the society? Talking of finances, the government has no problem providing Rs 70,000 crore for the botched up Commonwealth Games, Rs 80,000 crore for the loan waiver scheme for the farmers or to enhance the pay and allowances of the Parliamentarians.

The loss to the exchequer through illegal mining or scams which surface almost on a daily basis does not seem to be a cause of financial worry to the ruling class but when it comes to paying the soldier, they seem to have an inexplicable predicament.
Brigadier V Mahalingam ( Retired)
Mail Today Sep 2010 Page 40

Indian legal tangle a blast from the past

Why should the 50% of military recruits be given a special weightage? Should not all entrants into the DSS (Deputy Superintending Surveyor) be treated alike without being afforded a handicap in the race? We see no difficulty in upholding this weightage, once we accept the reality that the military portion of the Survey is a compelling factor for national defence. We hold, on a study of the materials already adverted to, that sans they army engineers the Survey of India will become a functional failure in discharging its paramount duties in times of war and in spells of peace, defence spreads beyond hot war or cold war and sustains the sense of security by a state of ever readiness. There is enough literature to establish that the work done by the army wing of the Survey is far too important to be played with and such work is best done by that wing. The military recruits, as has been already observed, are commissioned officers with 3 to 6 years of service. They have a certain salary scale and period of service when they are baptised into the Survey of India. Giving due weight to these factors, Rule 5 lays down the criteria for seniority as between the military sector of recruits and the civilian counter-parts. What needs to be appreciated is that for the very efficiency of the Survey of India, a substantial army element is structurally essential. Army engineers are invited into this Service not because this department historically belonged to the Defence Forces but because it cannot minister to one of the major objectives of its creation if it does not have engineers with military training, aptitude, courage, discipline and dare-devilry in hours of crisis. The necessity of the Survey, not opportunity to the armymen, has determined the need to attract and, therefore, to allot a quota in the upper echelons, viz., Class I, for military engineers. This, in turn, has desiderated the offer of reasonable terms and conditions for army men to join the Survey of India. The military engineers belong to the Corps of Engineers. They are commissioned officers with service of 3 to 6 years before coming into the Survey which needs, not raw engineers, but men with some experience. They have prospects and scales of pay in the Defence Department. Why should they look at the Survey if on entry they are to lose their commissioned service and begin the rat race with civilian freshers? Why should they suffer pay cut by walking into the Survey of India? It is, therefore, fairly intelligible and basically equitable to allow military engineers credit for commissioned service and protection of already earned higher salaries. The reasoning is simple. The functional compulsions of the Survey of India require army engineers to be inducted, say half its Class I strength. These engineering officers have to possess some years of experience. How, then, can they be attracted into the Survey except by assuring them what they were enjoying in their existing service, viz., credit for the years under commission in reckoning seniority and fitment of their salary at a point in the scale of Class I officers so that, by way of personal pay or otherwise, a cut may be obviated. This is not discrimination or favoured treatment but justice to those whom, of necessity, you want and must, therefore, pay what they were being paid in the Army and give service credit for the years on commission because you need men with specified years of commissioned service. To equate them with unequal civilian freshers is precisely the Procrustean exercise which is unconstitutional equality anathematised by Article 14."
Posted by Navdeep / Maj Navdeep Singh at 4:54 AM 16 comments

False statements are made by the Union of India by misleading their own counsel and then unethical appeals are filed if the case still goes against the Govt. The observations of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Urban Improvement Trust Bikaner Vs Mohan Lal on 30 October 2009 were apt :

“It is a matter of concern that such frivolous and unjust litigation by governments and statutory authorities are on the increase. Statutory Authorities exist to discharge statutory functions in public interest. They should be responsible litigants. They cannot raise frivolous and unjust objections, nor act in a callous and highhanded manner. They cannot behave like some private litigants with profiteering motives. Nor can they resort to unjust enrichment. They are expected to show remorse or regret when their officers act negligently or in an overbearing manner. When glaring wrong acts by their officers are brought to their notice, for which there is no explanation or excuse, the least that is expected is restitution/restoration to the extent possible with appropriate compensation. Their harsh attitude in regard to genuine grievances of the public and their indulgence in unwarranted litigation requires to be corrected. This Court has repeatedly expressed the view that the governments and statutory authorities should be model or ideal litigants and should not put forth false, frivolous, vexatious, technical (but unjust) contentions to obstruct the path of justice”

Even way back in 1973, the Hon’ble Supreme Court had this to say in Dilbagh Jarry Vs UOI while quoting the Kerala High Court :

“The State, under our Constitution, undertakes economic activities in a vast and widening public sector and inevitably gets involved in disputes with private individuals. But it must be remembered that the State is no ordinary party trying to win a case against one of its own citizens by hook or by crook; for the State’s interest is to meet honest claims, vindicate a substantial defence and never to score a technical point or overreach a weaker party to avoid a just liability or secure an unfair advantage, simply because legal devices provide such an opportunity. The State is a virtuous litigant and looks with unconcern on immoral forensic successes so that if on the merits the case is weak, government shows a willingness to settle the dispute regardless of prestige and other lesser motivations which move private parties to fight in court. The lay-out on litigation costs and executive time by the State and its agencies is so staggering these days because of the large amount of litigation in which it is involved that a positive and wholesome policy of cutting back on the volume of law suits by the twin methods of not being tempted into forensic show-downs where a reasonable adjustment is feasible and ever offering to extinguish a pending proceeding on just terms, giving the legal mentors of government some initiative and authority in this behalf. I am not indulging in any judicial homily but only echoing the dynamic national policy on State litigation evolved at a Conference of Law Ministers of India way back in 1957.”

That was 1973, this is 2010, but sadly, the story remains the same. Mr Moily, are you there???
Posted by Navdeep / Maj Navdeep Singh

Two colleges for children of ESM planned

Pune, April 07 To enable the children of ex-servicemen and widows of army personnel to get higher and better quality education, the Department of Sainik Welfare, Maharashtra, has proposed two professional colleges predominantly for them. Slated to be on the lines of the Army Institute of Technology (AIT), the department plans to construct the colleges and hand over their management to the Army. The Southern Command GOC-in-C Lt Gen Noble Thamburaj has said that he will discuss it with the Ministry.

Department director Col Bhagatsinh Deshmukh (Retd) has suggested a proposal to the Southern Command for the two institutes in Kolhapur and Pune, with at least 50 per cent of the seats reserved for the children of ex-servicemen. “The land is available with the department in both the locations. We have offered to construct the colleges on the site. We have suggested that the Army Welfare Education Society (AWES) should run the colleges,” said Deshmukh.

On 07 April 2007, while addressing retired veterans of Bombay Sappers, Southern Command GOC-in-C Lt Gen Noble Thamburaj stressed the importance of education among the wards of the army personnel. “We have received the department’s proposal and it’s definitely feasible. However, the department’s demand about the percentage of reservation needs to be discussed with the AWES,” said Thamburaj.

“The institutes will be on the lines of the Army Institute of Technology (AIT) located here in Dighi Hills,” said Deshmukh. “However, we have proposed that the children of ex-servicemen hailing from Maharashtra be entitled to 50 per cent of the seats, while the remaining can be thrown open to children of serving officers and ex-servicemen from other states,” he added.

Pune: 21,564 ex-servicemen and 3,137 widows of army personnel.

Kolhapur: 10,183 ex-servicemen and 3,712 widows of army personnel.

Maharashtra: 154,554 ex-servicemen and 40,464 widows of army personnel
Two colleges for children of ex-servicemen planned
AIT

Comment: A noble idea and 18 months have elapsed since birth of the concept. When is the expected date of the two Institutes becoming a reality?