Command and control of red tabs over troops decline by the day

Ordered to do menial tasks, Army jawans desert Patiala unit
Last Updated: Friday, November 02, 2012, 18:40
Zeenews Bureau
Chandigarh: In yet another breach of discipline in the Indian Army, around 16 soldiers of an armoured regiment based in Patiala left their unit after being forced by their seniors to perform 'menial tasks'.
As per reports, the jawans were part of the 56 Armoured Regiment stationed at Patiala as part of the elite 1 Armoured Division.
The jawans were allegedly asked by some officers to carry out 'menial tasks'. They allegedly protested stating that they belonged to Army's clerk cadres and were supposed to do specific tasks only, The Indian Express reported.
Reports stated that the soldiers returned to their regimental centre in Ahmednagar after the Commanding Officer (CO) issued orders to punish them for showing dissent.
CO had the jawans put through a 'Battle Physical and Proficiency Test (BPET) which requires one to run several kilometres and cross obstacles in full battle gear. They were then forced to do a 'route march’.
The newspaper added that queries to Western Command's Chandimandir-based headquarters went unanswered and no statement was issued in this regard.
Over a 1,000 soldiers have committed suicide since 2003, with the yearly toll regularly climbing over 100. Incidents of fragging (to kill or wound a fellow soldier) have also become a regular phenomenon in the 1.13-million strong Army.
A report by the Defence Institute of Psychological Research had held that "perceived humiliation and harassment, over and above occupational and familial causes", by their superiors often serves as the final "trigger" for jawans in stress-related cases in the forces.
The Army has, meanwhile, ordered a probe into the matter.
Ordered to do menial tasks, Army jawans desert Patiala unit
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The UN indictment of Indian troops in that episode of sexual abuse had surfaced in a probe report, which had revealed "prima-facie evidence" against a number of Indian peace-keepers previously assigned to one of the units with the UN Mission in Congo.
CoI verdict against Indian peacekeepers expected soon
Comment: The red tabs (only the symbols on uniforms) of all full colonels need to be done away with immediately to reduce the psychological barrier between the troops and unit commanding officers. This gesture is likely to assuage the feelings of the troops under command. The VIP status and VIP culture ingrained in Officers must be slowly got ridden off. Generals need to meet the expenses of batmen, dhobis cooks and waiters from their own funds. No appointment comes with free services and privileges. Now a days there are adequate high tech gadgets to do away with combatants working in Generals houses needlessly in peace areas especially in AHQ and all Command/ Area HQ's.

Propriety & Impropriety: A nation on the decline

- The Last Word - CNN IBN - 30 Oct 2012
An interesting debate last evening on CNN IBN, a distinguished panel to include an ex-Army Chief, an ex-Naval Chief and also an ex-Cabinet Secretary....of course, with the most popular anchor, Karan Thapar, hosting the show
The topic was " Ex-Army Chief Gen VK Singh demanding that Parliament be dissolved". Earlier it was reported in the newspapers that Anna Hazare and the ex-Army Chief had asked for Lok Sabha to be dissolved since the UPA government had crossed all limits of corruption. VK Singh had also said, "A new set of parliamentarians is needed. Let elections be held so that people can decide if they are satisfied".
While no one was asked on the credibility of the content and the intent of the statement, the issue basically revolved around the 'Propriety' of this demand by an ex-Army Chief, a man in uniform and on the Chief's chair till about a few months back. How could he question the very government he was serving and also enjoys the perk of retaining a government accommodation for a period of six months post-retirement. I shall not delve on the issue of this perk as the government has done no favour as he is entitled to such a perk like his predeccessors/successors and the government is only a custodian of such property and by no chance can claim ownership of such public property.
My comments shall be restricted to 'Propriety'....some definitions are 'The quality of being proper; appropriateness, Conformity to prevailing customs and usages, The usages and customs of polite society'. It is evident, therefore, that no one is questioning the legality or the technicality of such a statement...and the fingers are being pointed at an ex-Army man, a soldier in uniform!!
We need a level playing field...the Army cannot be judged on a template different from others....we are a part of the same society. Let us start from the top in the government, restricting my observations to 'propriety' only.
1. Why should the President of India not be questioned for impropriety for offering his consultancy services to Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi on the cabinet reshuffle? Also, was it proper for him to stand for President when his role as Finance Minister is under cloud for going slow on economic offences relating to hawala/money laundering/Swiss-foreign bank accounts
2. Does not propriety demand that the Vice President had no business to arbitrarily close the debate on Lokpal Bill at 12.00 midnight at the behest of Pawan Bansal, when the rules and advisory note by his Secretary General clarified that the session could continue
3. Propriety demands that the Prime Minister should have resigned long time ago, initially on the CVC judgement, which the PM took as 'error of judgement', his involvement in 2G scam, particularly so after the statement of ex-Cabinet Secretary Chandrashekhar, as Coal Minister in the Coalgate scam and other omissions/ discretions... the biggest damage the PM has done is that he has nullified the basic foundation of governance by his misinterpretation of 'responsibility and accountability' giving a leverage to every minister/ bureaucrat in politico-executive and executive to shun these and play safe with no compulsion to govern
4. In case propriety has to be made applicable to the Judiciary, should not ex-CJI Balakrishnan resign as Chairman Human Rights Commission for disproportionate assets accumulated by his kith & kin and offer himself for a thorough investigation
5. Propriety demands that all Governors to include Narayanan and Gen JJ Singh, appointed immediately after retiring from government appointments be asked to quit...all bureaucrats on post-retirement appointments be sent home and hereafter the government must function on its authorised establishment with total moratorium committees/commissions/advisors/consultants
6. Propriety demands that Sonia Gandhi should clarify on her state of health and source of funds/expense on her medical treatment and other visits abroad 7. Propriety also demands that all privileges of Robert Vadra and Priyanka Gandhi be withdrawn immediately as they are private persons and have no business to be allotted government accommodation, SPG cover and exempted from security checks/toll taxes ...all cases against Robert Vadra be investigated by SIT on fast track basis
8. Nitin Gadkari should resign as President BJP as Propriety does not allow him to continue in this post
9. Propriety demands that Laloo Yadav, Mulayam Singh Yadav, Mayawati and Sharad Pawar resign from the party posts and offer themselves for investigation into several disproprtionate assets cases
10. After witnessing the conduct of the Parliamentarians during the last session, does not propriety demand that the Lok sabha should have been dissolved immediately and their privileges withdrawn....all perks need to be reviewed
11. Propriety demands that the concept of VVIP/VIPs be done away with, NSG and other security cover withdrawn and those in governance start living normal lives in conformity with the dictates of a polite and cultured society
Let us not attack the messengers of change...concentrate on the issue being raised...there is no governance...the justice system has failed....the 'unelected' and the 'unelectable' are only crying that order be restored in society and the future of the nation be safeguarded... it does not matter whether the voice is raised by Anna Hazare or Arvind Kejriwal or ex-CJI JS Verma or ex-Army Chief Gen VK Singh....what matters is the "ISSUE", the issue of good governance and effective measures to arrest corruption....an aam aadmi needs such people to project their grievances and sentiments...the media does not listen to ordinary people as that does not earn them TRPs
No nation can survive by neglecting its Army....the government has not only shown scant respect for the Defence Services, it has gone out of its way to deny its entitlements and humiliated its own Army on several occasions...In the 'Rank Pay' case, it repeatedly lodged review petitions in the Supreme Court to deny the rights....What can one say of a government which cheats its own Army
Propriety demands dis-solution of the Lok Sabha, fresh elections and responsible voting by the aam aadmi, the actual custodian of this great country called India
with best regards
ajb

Tatra Trucks: CBI has evidence of links with a shadowy set of former defence officers

CBI probing Tatra’s two decades of monopoly
Neeraj Chauhan, TNN | Oct 21, 2012, 05.52AM IST
NEW DELHI: The CBI, which registered a case against Lt Gen (retd) Tejinder Singh on Saturday for allegedly trying to bribe then Army chief General VK Singh to clear the purchase of Tatra trucks for the Army, is conducting a parallel inquiry into the complaint regarding the monopoly Tatra has enjoyed for two decades in supplying all-terrain trucks to the defence forces. Sources said the chargesheet in the case is in the final stages and could be filed in a Delhi court shortly. The agency is expected to charge officials of Tatra and the public sector Bharat Earth Movers Limited.
Sources said the raids were conducted at the residences of Rishi's aide Gautam Thadani, MD of Global Healthline Private Ltd, Rajan Madhu, director of F-Bar in Ashoka Hotel and Rishi's employees Anil Mansaramani and Vikram Kakia. CBI sleuths recovered Rs 98 lakh from Thadani's house.
CBI sources said preliminary investigation established Tejinder Singh's meeting with the then Army chief as well as that the latter was unhappy with what had transpired. During its probe, the CBI also established Tejinder Singh visited General V K Singh on September 22, 2010 because "the file related to procurement of Tatra trucks was lying on the table of army chief that day" and that "Tejinder Singh offered bribe on behalf of Ravi Rishi as he is closely associated with the latter".
Defence minister AK Antony's confirmation of General V K Singh's "oral complaint" was found to be strong corroborative evidence.
But what strengthened the case for a formal investigation was evidence of Tejinder Singh's alleged dealings with lobbyists for arms manufacturers, including a Korean company. Tejinder Singh has been booked under section 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Under Section 12 of the Act, a person who abets the offence of making a public servant accept illegal gratification, whether or not that offence is committed in consequence of that abetment, can be punished with a minimum punishment of six months in jail which may extend to five years.
"We have evidence of his links with a shadowy set of former defence officers who were on the payroll of arms manufacturers and suppliers," said a senior CBI source.
CBI probing Tatra’s two decades of monopoly
Comment: "We have evidence of his links with a shadowy set of former defence officers". Do they include 2 decades of former chiefs? It is logical all must be investigated top downwards. MOD and AHQ need to gear up to let out their skeletons. Will they?

Outsourcing the best option for the Military to reduce corruption

'Private sector can ease Indian Army's maintenance burden'
New Delhi,Business/Economy,Defence/Security, Tue, 02 Oct 2012 IANS
New Delhi, Oct 2 (IANS) MRO (maintenance, repair, overhaul) is a concept hitherto confined to the civilian aviation sector. Now, an industry lobby is promoting this as a means by which the Indian Army can cut down its maintenance costs and improve its operational preparedness.
"A modern army's equipment readiness has to be sustained at high levels to meet the demands of a complex and uncertain operating environment. This becomes crucial since the Indian Army is looking at capabilities for quick deployment, reducing repair cycle time, inventory overhang and repair costs," an official of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) explained.
"The Indian Army's modernisation strategy is focused on acquiring capabilities that will enable it to succeed in any operation today or in the future. Operational sustainment of weapon systems aims to retain these capabilities throughout its lifecycle.
"The proliferation of land weapon systems across the complete spectrum in the military necessitates effective implementation and integration of an MRO environment so as to keep the user in a state of mission readiness 24x7," the official said. Toward this end, FICCI and the Indian Army's Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers (EME) Monday announced that the first international seminar on MRO in Land Systems would be held in New Delhi on Dec 3-4.
The seminar aims to institutionalise measures for the Indian Army adopting MRO for its land systems "through forging strong public private partnerships, so as to ensure military equipment meets operational requirements in a cost effective manner", the official said.
The seminar will bring together MRO domain experts, IT solution providers and stakeholders from industry, including policymakers, regulators and manufacturers, to deliberate on and help evolve the MRO policy systems for land systems that will achieve the stated objectives of mission readiness.
Private sector can ease Indian Army's maintenance burden
Comment: The Local Purchase in the Military is resorted due to NA (non availability) of stores. Generally this cycle of operation is meant to defraud the exchequer- inflated bills, bribes, commissions- resulting in poor quality or substandard products or stores with 100% failure rate within a few months. Encouraging this practise is anti- national and let down of our troops. There are numerous scandals like tents, boots, blankets, motor vehicle parts, spurious stationery, defence stores, the list is endless. Even grants for training is fudged. The prime reason for failing and falling standards of troops.

Are our borders safe with corrupt Officers leading the Military?

IS OUR ARMY TOTALLY HONEST AND NON CORRUPT
Mar 28 2012
Today India is largest buyer of armaments. It buys 10% of the global arms import beating both Pakistan and China. It is the most attractive defence market leading to capital expenditure of Rs.79,579 crores. Still we say Bharat Shanti Priya desh hai.
The fault for this lies firstly with Government and the Defence Ministry. Most of the Defence Minister and their deputies do not know anything about arms or ammunition. The maximum they have seen in their life is Danda. Though there are experts to help them, but how can one judge the honesty of these experts who are linked to arms lobbies since the days of Bofors. Any Senior Retd Army, Air force or Naval officer becomes an expert after retirement and joins one of the lobby as an expert or consultant. The Defence Babus are mere pawns in the hands of the higher ups including politicians. Our leaders need to be leaders in the real sense. They ought to be models of honesty, integrity, fair play and transparency. When our leaders and Ministers are facing charges of corruption, can its followers, the Army, Air Force. Navy or any one else be far behind.
The Civil India is corrupt and dishonest. In the past the Army used to live in their cantonements, far from the madding crowds. Today the army lives right in the middle of the town and major part of the officers are eating from the hands of the rich persons who have vested interests. They buy products from the Civil traders who give fake parts so that there is more volume. The CSD stores are the hotbed of blackmarket. One can see people standing outside CSD stores holding 10 VIP bags, 24 colgate tooth pastes, 25 cakes of soaps and what not. They are not meant for home use but to be sold outside. Some recent restrictions have been made but much needs to be done. The Army needs to be segregated from the civil world as one finds in USA and UK. The Army feels jealous of civilians richness and tries to copy their practices and life style in their careers.
There is too much of pampering of not only Army but all bureacrats including Police and Revenue Officers. This shows that our Govt. is weak and timid and cannot take any long term action. Reason it itself is corrupt. At the most they hand over the cases to CBI which has a poor record of solving the defence deals cases.
The recruitment pattern has to be changed. Though the Army is almost sixth in the order of priority in the mind of an unemployed youth, the practice of giving advantage to sons and daughters of the Army Officers in the recruitment as Officers is wrong as wrong stuff gets in and deserving candidates are neglected.
With this picture it is difficult to say whether our borders would be safe. Ab Watan kiss kay Hawale hoga, Saathiyo.
Click here to read the full thought provoking article

War Hero's Medal of Honesty

He is a hero in life too
R. Krishna Kumar: The Hindu: 01 July 2012

Epitome of integrity:Despite being in need of money, retired Air Force Corporal Charles Williams wants to return the excess money credited to his pension account.— PHOTO: M.A. SRIRAM
Mysore: Amid growing scams and corruption and amassing of wealth in improper ways by many, a retired Air Force Corporal has shown the world exemplary honesty will be hard to ignore and one can live with dignity even amidst penury.
Charles Williams, 89, a World War II veteran from Mysore and who is in poor health, wants to return the excess money credited to his pension account.
Williams joined the Royal Air Force in pre-Independent India. Aftera six-week pre-induction training, he was posted at Agra. Within days, he was sent to Burma where he saw action against Japanese.
“Though in the RAF, our unit saw a lot of ground battle and we dug in and stayed put in the trenches. We were holed up for weeks without regular supply of food and water. The battle that raged was horrific with soldiers getting maimed and killed in the heavy exchange of fire. But ultimately we prevailed,” recalled Williams, whose father, P.V. Williams, had enrolled with the British Army and took part in World War I.
Speaking to The Hindu at his residence near Bamboo Bazaar here, Williams said that after Independence, he was inducted into the Indian Air Force and was part of the first convoy that landed in Srinagar following the outbreak of hostilities with Pakistan. He opted for voluntary retirement from the IAF in 1959, joined HAL and retired in 1983.
After retirement, he found certain anomaly in his pension and complained that he was being underpaid. “A visit to the local Sainik Welfare and Resettlement Board did not help me much as officials are apathetic to the grievances of ex-servicemen,” Williams said. He approached M.N. Subramani, president, VeKare Ex-Servicemen Trust in Mysore.
But calculations showed that the Centralised Pension Processing Centre of State Bank of Mysore, Mangalore, had credited Williams’ account with excess money.
Mr. Subramani said he was being credited with Rs. 300 towards fixed medical allowances for which he was not entitled to. He was credited with Rs. 15,200 in excess with effect from July 2007.
“When this was brought to the notice of Williams, he asked me to inform the bank to recover the amount in 15 equal instalments so as not to put him in financial hardship,” said Mr. Subramani.
What is ironic is that Williams is returning the medical allowance when he needs it the most. He is visually impaired and desperately needs Rs. 1.5 lakh for a heart operation. “When I am not entitled for something, the national exchequer should not be made to bear the burden,” said Williams.
Meanwhile, Mr. Subramani has mailed a letter to SBM, Mangalore, drawing their attention to the anomaly.
War Hero's Medal of Honesty

Congratulations, Gen Bikram Singh

Dear General Bikram Singh,
Heartiest Congratulations on your assumption of the appointment of COAS. I wish you an eventful and a satisfying tenure.
I have never met you, and neither did i have the opportunity to meet your predecessor Gen VK Singh. The only attachment i had with VK was that he joined NDA as a 36th course cadet when i was in the final term as a 31st course CSM(Cadet Sargeant Major). This created a natural bond and somehow compelled me voluntarily to take ownership of his conduct. I compliment him for all that he achieved and take full responsibility for his non achievements or misdemeanours (if any) as my cousemates and me may have been found wanting in his initial grooming. VK did a wonderful job and i salute him for single handedly taking on the political establishment where and when it mattered, notwithstanding the behind-the-scene effort by a faceless bureaucracy to place hurdles and sabotage well meaning and well intended initiatives of VK to promote the interests of the Army he commanded with courage of conviction and dignity. Of course he had a few irritants both from serving as well as ex-servicemen, disgruntled and trouble makers who always indulged in such activities for their vested interests.
Some say that you are taking over a controversial army. I am absolutely confident that you are not going to be mislead by such rumours and misinformation, created by the political class, voiced by a select group of subservient sycophants from the veterans and the journalistic field and an irresponsible and sensational media obsessed with TRPs. Not that you are not aware of these trouble makers, i thought it would be worthwhile to just apprise you to be a little discreet as to who you interact with in the public domain.
As regards the brothers-in-arms, i am a little wary of persons like Lt Gen Shankar Prasad (somehow has a close resemblance to Kapil Sibal of politics and Vinod Sharma of HT), another named Maj Gen Ashok Mehta (cannot spell out what everyone already knows as i have some degree of loyalty towards him being my DS in IMA), a young and innocent-looking Maj Gen Sheru Thapliyal (still to grow up) and lately Lt Gen Kadyan who appears to have lost his faculty of reasoning. Beware of the first visitor to your office, Lt Gen Tejinder Singh who is looking forward to call on you and renegotiate the TATRA deal at a more realistic offer.
Many say that you have a tough task ahead of you after a tumultous tenure of VK. Let me assure you that VK has given you a road map which is an absolute smooth ride. The netas will bend backwards to give you whatever is on your wishlist, the babus in the MOD are shell shocked and most have headed to Tirupati/Shiridhi/Vaishno Devi and will be down on their knees to give you full support. As regards your own Army is concerned they shall live up to each and every expectation of yours as they are charged, resolute, inspired and proud that they have another Chief with spunk, spine and guts, a distinct change from the days of the three successive predecessors of VK. A word about the media. Handle the anchors with shrewdness and smartness. Most of them consider to be know-all being fauji brats; do not fall for the likes of Karan Thapar/Arnab/Rahul Kanwal and of course Barkha Dutt. And take my advice, keep Shekhar Gupta at an arms length.
Bikram, all the best to you and your family. You have your own style and personality and i for one am sure that the Indian Army is in good hands. One thing which i have totally fallen for is your beautiful smile !! Keep smiling !!
With best regards,
ajb
(Col AJ Bahadur)
9/204, The Heritage, Yelahanka, Bangalore - 560064

Bikram Singh vows to address concerns on Army's modernisation

Press Trust of India / New Delhi May 30, 2012, 19:55
Lt Gen Bikram Singh will take over as the new Army Chief tomorrow with a resolve to strengthen the work culture of the force and address the "hollowness" of the modernisation process.
Observing that Army's warfighting capabilities get adversely impacted due to prolonged deployments in internal security situations, he said the force will continue to provide help in training to the central armed police forces (CAPF) to deal with internal security situations. "My priority would be to ensure operational readiness of the force... Then to address the hollowness and ensure the modernisation process proceeds as per stipulated timeline and to strengthen Army's work culture and core values," Lt Gen Bikram Singh said in an interview with Defence Ministry's journal 'Sainik Samachar'.
"All commanders must endeavour to create a climate during their command tenures that hinges on our cherished core values, professional ethos and is conducive for growth and cohesion," he said.
The incoming Army Chief said the force was "fully prepared to face and counter any external threat and deal with internal security challenges."
Commenting on the assistance provided to the CAPFs by the force, Lt Gen Singh said till March this year, the Army has trained 70,000 personnel from CAPF and state police forces including 38 battalions of the CAPF in counter insurgency operations.
"140 Assistant Commandants of various CAPFs have undergone six months attachment with Army units in CI operations and another batch of 120 officers was presently undergoing attachment. Our endeavour is to make these junior leaders proficient in handling their units in sub-conventional war fighting areas," he said.
Bikram Singh vows to address concerns on Army's modernisation

Communal Twist to the Appointment of Army Chief?

With no prejudice
M.G. Devasahayam : Indian Express Sat May 19 2012, 03:36 hrs
‘Four out of the seven petitioners are from Tamil Nadu and have nothing to do with the communal conundrums of North India. And so the mud will not stick’
Shekhar Gupta’s article on the “communal twist” in the PIL filed in the Supreme Court by seven “prominent citizens” (‘With prejudice’, National Interest, IE, April 28) is far from the truth and is unfortunate. I, being one of the petitioners, owe an explanation as to the facts to put the record straight.
In this context some paragraphs from the writ petition have been quoted. These passages are mere narrations of events that were neither rebutted by the government through any counter-affidavit nor during “preliminary” arguments by the Attorney General or Solicitor General in the Supreme Court. Nowhere in the entire petition is there any “communal twist” except mentioning some names in connection with the events narrated. The petitioner’s counsel did not even raise this issue during her arguments.
Tweaking the words “orders from above” the article insinuates that “above” meant Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and he is portrayed as communal. Nothing can be more absurd. My acquaintance with Manmohan Singh dates back to the mid-1970s, when I was administrator of Chandigarh and I know him rather well to even remotely suggest that he is communal! By the way, is the PM the only person “above” Defence Minister A.K.Antony?
One wonders as to why Operation Bluestar, that had no relationship with the issues raised in the PIL, has been given such a long narration. Nevertheless, this being a sensitive matter I would share some of my own information and that obtained from sources that were part of the operation. The fact is that Operation Bluestar was neither led by the then Major General K.S. Brar nor Lt Gen R.S. Dyal. The “strike force” was a bizarre khichadi comprising of two infantry battalions (26 Madras and 10 Guards) under a nominated brigade commander (D.V. Rao) of the Madras Regiment. There were no Sikh troops in this strike force.
In total contravention of the army’s operational ethics, these battalions were taken out of their command set up and put under Brigadier Rao as an ad hoc arrangement. Major General Brar’s role was just that 10 Guards was part of 9 Inf Div of which he was GOC. What is worse, Lt Gen K. Sundarji as army commander, Western Command, took direct control of the operation by-passing the Jalandhar-based 11th Corps commanded by Lt Gen Gowri Shankar. Such blatant cannibalisation of the fighting forces and the general officer’s keenness to please Prime Minister Indira Gandhi led to utter chaos and unacceptably huge carnage and extensive damage to the sacred Amritsar Golden Temple.
Be that as it may, let us see the core reasons that prompted the petitioners to knock at the door of the Supreme Court. To start with, it was the defence ministry’s manipulations to cut short the tenure of General V.K. Singh and the premature announcement of Lt Gen Bikram Singh as the next army chief without finally resolving the date of birth issue of the former. Documents in the MS Branch prove that selection boards for the promotion of V.K. Singh to the select ranks of Brigadier (September 1996) Major General (October 25 2001 and September 18/19 2003) and Lieutenant General (September 30 2005) reflect his DoB as May 10, 1951. But ignoring all these, the issue was raked up by former COAS General J.J. Singh with an ulterior motive to cut short the present army chief’s tenure.
In its order dated February 10 2012, the Supreme Court had neither endorsed the entry in the UPSC application form (May 10 1950), nor upheld the so-called “commitment” given by V.K. Singh regarding his DoB. Also, contrary to wide publicity, the court had taken no position on the general’s DoB and left it to the “Union of India” to recognise one of the two DoBs (1950 or 1951). It had also allowed the government to withdraw the operative part (merits) of its December 30, 2011, order in which it had rejected Gen V.K. Singh’s statutory complaint seeking recognition of 1951 as his year of birth. With the merit part withdrawn, the original statutory complaint stands revived. MoD since then had not passed any legally speaking order recognising the actual DoB of General V.K. Singh before announcing his successor.
The next issue was J.J. Singh’s plan to eliminate others from amongst Lt Gen Bikram’s contemporaries from the race. The main target was Brigadier Ravi Arora, gold medalist, senior in IC number but younger in age to Bikram Singh. This has been explained in detail in the PIL. More important grounds were the grave allegations pending against the army chief designate. One is his alleged involvement in the fake-encounter death of a 70-year-old man, and thereafter branding him as a terrorist to achieve personal advantages, and this matter pending in writ petition in the Jammu and Kashmir High Court seeking a commission of inquiry. The second case related to events in the Congo Republic when in 2007-08 then Major General Bikram Singh was the Eastern Division Commander of the UN peacekeeping force. Indian troops under his command had been accused of mass sexual abuse. Sixty-eight cases, including the siring of illicit children, had been reported, and the matter is being investigated by a court of inquiry at Meerut. When P.J. Thomas was appointed as Central Vigilance Commissioner, and the Centre for Public Litigation challenged it, a division bench of the Supreme Court comprising Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia and Justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and Swatanter Kumar declared the CVC as India’s “integrity institution” and not only struck down the appointment but had castigated the government for its lack of respect for institutional integrity. Thomas had just one corruption case against him for which an application to seek his prosecution was pending.
The primary responsibility of the Indian Army is to preserve national interests and safeguard the sovereignty, territorial integrity and unity of India against any external threat by deterrence or by waging war. In the event our army is as important an “integrity institution” as the Central Vigilance Commission, if not more.
The petitioners therefore contended that as there were two serious cases pending against Lt Gen Bikram Singh, it will not be prudent to appoint him as the next COAS. Drawing a parallel with the P.J. Thomas case, where the Supreme Court had overturned his appointment on the grounds that at the time of approval by the ACC an application was pending to prosecute the officer, the plea in the PIL was for applying the same yardstick in the matter of the appointment of the next COAS. Individuals and names mentioned in the PIL were only incidental.
The petitioners had hoped that the apex court will reiterate the well-reasoned verdict of its own larger bench and uphold the institutional integrity of the Army that is being ravaged by a well entrenched coterie. Instead our petition was summarily disposed off with these crisp words: “We have carefully gone through the averments made in the writ petition, the materials placed on record by the petitioners and the original file concerning appointment of the next Chief of Army Staff. We do not find any justifiable ground to invoke our jurisdiction under Article 32 of the Constitution of India. Writ petition is, accordingly, dismissed. However, it is clarified that dismissal of writ petition shall not affect the legal proceeding or matter pending in the court or any other forum.”
The dismissal is based on a clearance report given by the Intelligence Bureau. One wonders whether IB has jurisdiction to give such clearance on matters pending before a high court and a court of inquiry, particularly so when the Supreme Court has allowed these proceedings to continue. It is in this context that the perilous implication of the court order needs to be understood. These twin “Swords of Damocles” hanging over the head of the army chief severely compromise the institutional integrity of the army. Is this what our valiant army deserves? All that the petitioners wanted to do was to avoid such horrid embarrassment and restore the integrity of the institution. For this “communal” charges are being hurled at us.
As to this “communal mudslinging” it will be pertinent to point out that four out of the seven petitioners — Admiral Ramdas, N. Gopalaswamy, Sam Rajappa and myself — are from Tamil Nadu and have nothing to do with the communal conundrums of North India. And so the mud will not stick. We have done what we have to do with pride and without any prejudice.
The writer is a former bureaucrat
With no prejudice

President Pratibha Patil who serves and lives in Royal Style: Will she be remembered in History?

Pained at fallacious observations regarding post retirement home President of India decides to forego her accommodation
The President of India, Smt. Pratibha Devisingh Patil has been reading and watching the unfolding of some fallacious observations regarding the accommodation in Pune which she was to occupy after relinquishing the office of the President. She chose not to react as she has always held herself answerable to the Constitution of our country and her conscience. It was expected that once the facts were made public it would convince the concerned people. But despite clarifications given by the President's Secretariat, it is unfortunate that the misgivings continue to persist.
What has pained the President the most is the fact that she is now being portrayed by some people as one who, by agreeing to accept a defence accommodation for her post retirement home, is insensitive to the cause of war widows and ex-servicemen. But facts are to the contrary. She has always been proud of our brave jawans who are ever-ready to display their spirit of sacrifice while defending our borders. She has the highest regards for our war widows who have lost their dear ones for the sake of security and integrity of the nation. To express solidarity, boost their morale and to gain first hand experience of the hardships faced by our Defence Forces, she visited far flung army establishments like those in Tangdhar, Bhadarwah, Leh, to name a few, and several distant inhospitable forward areas in the North East. She would be the last person to ever think of dislocating or coming in the way of creating facilities for our war widows and ex-servicemen.
Women’s issues have always been her concern and those of war widows particularly occupy a very special place in her mind. She has worked relentlessly towards their welfare and would like people to know that as Governor of Rajasthan she personally wrote to 1192 war widows to help resolve their problems. Here is an article which appeared in the Hindustan Times a few years ago which said:
"Away from the media glare, Rajasthan Governor Pratibha Patil is quietly attending to problems of hundreds of war widows. She has asked the war widows to contact or see her personally. Over 1000 letters have been posted in the past one month as the Raj Bhavan gets deluged with responses. Now, Patil receives around two dozen letters every day while a number of widows of martyrs meet her personally with problems. Their letters are being forwarded to the concerned department in the State Government for suitable action." (Anjul Tomar, Jaipur May-2, 2005).
As Governor, she had instructed all the District Collectors of Rajasthan to inform her regularly about the progress in resolving the problems of war widows. Under her directions, a State Level Committee was constituted with the Director, Sainik Kalyan Board, Rajasthan as its Chairman to address the issues affecting the war widows on a priority. The District Collectors were also instructed to organize camps at Sub-Divisional level for hearing the war widows and to solve their grievances expeditiously.
She ensured that the newly constructed 'War Widows Hostel and Rehabilitation Centre' at Jaipur was allocated Rs. 2 crore from the Amalgamated Fund of the Governor to facilitate its smooth functioning. The District Sainik Kalyan Officers were invited to Raj Bhavan, Jaipur and were advised to make wide publicity about the Hostel and Rehabilitation Centre so that no war widow was denied the facility for want of information.
Once there was a news item in Dainik Bhaskar, Jaipur Edition of 9th March 2005 that the Headquarters of Western Army Command would be temporarily shifted to the War Widows Hostel & Rehabilitation Centre. She took up the matter with the Chief Minister of Rajasthan immediately. The then Chief Minister Smt. Vasundhara Raje promptly responded through her letter, that the headquarters of Western Army Command would be relocated elsewhere and that the War Widows Hostel & Rehabilitation Centre would not be utilized as Headquarters of Western Command or for any other purpose.
If as Governor she had pursued the matters of war widows with such passion and concern, and if she had objected to even the temporary shifting of the Western Command Headquarters to the War Widows Hostel and Rehabilitation Centre in Jaipur, would she ever think of dislocating or come in the way of creating accommodation for war widows or occupy a property allegedly meant for any such purpose as her post retirement home? The accommodation proposed to be allocated to her by the Ministry of Defence was never indicated as one earmarked for war widows. It was to be allotted to her for use as her post retirement residence only during her lifetime with no rights of ownership, transfer lease, etc. However, considering the fact that the issue has got linked with the issue of war widows accommodation by some people, the President has chosen to forego the aforesaid allotment of accommodation proposed to be made to her as her post retirement home in Pune.
Hope this will put an end to all misgivings in this regard.
PIB Release-click here
Comment: Honourable President trying to shed crocodile tears for the defence forces who still remain exploited by all the Polical Forces to downgrade them to a non- entity. Where is justice for the Patriotic Jawans who guard the nation 24x7? The Supreme Commander's response sadly has remained negative. Her luxurious style of living at tax payers expense is most disgusting and telling proof of her indifference.

Antony urges top brass of Armed Forces to be honest and transparent

Ministry of Defence 24-April, 2012 15:39 IST : Core Values not to be Given up in Modernisation Process: Antony
The Defence Minister Shri A.K. Antony today told the top brass of Armed Forces that while modernization remains the topmost priority of the Government and to achieve the same a mechanism has been put in place to fast track procurement of equipment and upgradation of infrastructure, this however cannot be done at the cost of a set of core values- transparency, probity and accountability. Addressing the Unified Commander’s Conference, here, Shri Antony urged all commanders to ensure that these principles are adopted and followed in letter and spirit. “We have a collective responsibility to ensure that every single rupee is spent meaningfully and judiciously and wasteful expenditure is eliminated”.

Shri Antony said, the Government is constantly fine tuning the Defence Procurement Procedure to cut down delays in procurement process. He asked the Services to put their best foot forward by having a well-defined approach to procurement, based on clear and objective General Staff Qualitative Requirements (GSQRs). He said there is also a need to ensure that procedures are strictly adhered to and the Services ensure the timely meeting of technical parameters.

Referring to a nationwide, secure and dedicated optical fibre network, to be implemented by the Ministry of Communication & Information Technology, in lieu of the vacation of a part of spectrum by Defence Services, Shri Antony said the approval of Cabinet Committee on Infrastructure for the budget is awaited. He said, the “defence band” and the “defence interest zone” have been mutually agreed upon by the Ministry of Defence and Ministry of Communication & Information Technology to meet the spectrum requirement for strategic communication of defence forces and this will be promulgated soon. Shri Antony said, while on the one hand IT has helped in breaking down linguistic and geographic barriers and resulted in a level playing field, on the other hand, Information and Communication Technology are also being misused by anti–social and anti-national elements. Describing Cyber-crimes as another dimension in the security architecture, Shri Antony said the Services need to be fully aware of the implications and put in place security systems and standard operating procedures to counter such threats.

Talking about the neighborhood, the Defence Minister said latest events in the Af-Pak region clearly show that it cannot be presumed that the Af-Pak issues are nearing solution. He said we need to keep a close watch on the situation in the region as any developments in the Af-Pak region will have strategic and security implications for India. Referring to Jammu and Kashmir, Shri Antony said the situation in the State has improved over the past few years. However, the coming summer months will prove to be a real test for an even more realistic assessment. “We have to remain vigilant and active and cannot afford to drop our guard”, he said.

Shri Antony, at the very outset, congratulated all Scientists, technicians and other DRDO personnel for the successful flight test of Agni –V and said, this significant achievement has done the entire nation and our Armed Forces proud. SitanshuKar/NA (Release ID :82460)
Core Values not to be Given up in Modernisation Process: Antony

Chennai: Ex-Army officer gets life for murder of teenager

A retired Army officer has been sentenced to a lifetime in prison for the murder of a teenager who was shot dead while plucking almonds from a tree in Army property in Chennai.
Retired army officer Lt Col Kandasami Ramraj was today given the life term by a Chennai court for killing 13-year-old Dilshan on July 3 last year. Dilshan had trespassed into the Army officers residence on Flag Staff Road, Chennai to pluck fruits.
Ramraj was arrested on July 10, 2011 by the CB-CID for the murder. He has maintained he was innocent in the case, which largely stood on circumstantial evidence. But the Chennai court today upheld the murder charge against the retired Lt Colonel.
Dilshan, who stayed in a locality adjacent to the Army quarters, fell victim to a mysterious bullet while collecting almonds. His family alleged he was shot by an Army personnel.
The post-mortem report established a bullet injury had killed Dilshan when he scaled the Army campus.
Following a public outcry, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa ordered a probe by the Crime Branch. Subsequent probe pointed at the Lt Colonel as the possible offender.
Lt Col Ramraj gets life term for murder

General VK Singh withdraws his petition on age row

Updated Feb 10, 2012 at 03:57pm IST
Age row: General VK Singh withdraws his petition
New Delhi: Army Chief General VK Singh has withdrawn his petition filed in the Supreme Court on the controversy over his date of birth. General Singh's counsel UU Lalit told the two-judge bench of Justice RM Lodha and Justice HL Gokhale that they do not wish to press the matter any further in the court. The apex court also asked the General to give an undertaking that he would accept his date of birth as May 10, 1950 within the next 48 hours.

The petition was withdrawn after Attorney General Goolam E Vahanvati told the apex court that the government had never questioned the bonafide or integrity of General Singh and contesting the petition did not reflect any lack of confidence in the Army Chief.

Earlier, Vahanvati had told the bench that even though the government was resisting General Singh's plea, it was not against the highly decorated soldier.

General Singh's lawyer Puneet Bali said that the petition was withdrawn as the Army Chief was fighting for his honour and integrity. Claiming that the petition was not about General Singh's tenure, Bali said that the petition was only about determining the correct date of birth.

"The Government of India and the General sorted out the matter gracefully and amicably. Right from the time the petition was filed in the court, it was a matter of integrity. This petition was not meant for extension of service. We are satisfied with the court's ruling as the honour and integrity (of the General) has been restored. The honour and integrity is restored, and it wasn't meant to be beyond that for us. The matter has been amicably solved and we have withdrawn the matter," said Bali.

Adding that "this is the end of the matter", he said that they don't plan to agitate further on the matter.

Earlier, in a major setback to General Singh, the Supreme Court directed him to accept May 10, 1950 as his date of birth and asked him to withdraw his plea or else the court would pass an order on it. The General would complete his tenure as Army Chief on May 31, 2012 and retire on the same date.
click here to read more

Spare the General and save the Nation

09 Feb 2012
The face-off between the government and the Army Chief General V K Singh is not in the interest of the nation. While there appears to be a concerted attempt to depict Gen. Singh in bad light, a close scrutiny of available information seems to be in favour of the Army Chief.

Defence minister AK Antony says the government exercised maximum restraint and patience on the issue of determining Gen. Singh’s date of birth and wants to wait for the final verdict of the Supreme Court. There is no legal issue involved for the apex court to lay down any law.

A confidential memo A/4501/01(GEN/MS(1) dated 01 July, 2011, from the Military Secretary’s Branch sent to the Ministry of Defence on the DoB of IC 24134 General VK Singh PVSM, AVSM, YSM, ADC, by Lt.-Gen. GM Nair, Military Secretary observed, says: “On scrutiny of past records pertaining to Selection Boards, it has been that the MDSs pertaining to Gen. VK Singh which were drawn up at the time of his consideration for promotion to select ranks reflect the date of birth of the General Officer as 10 May, 1951.”

The memorandum said that copies of the relevant MDS sheets were available with the Ministry of Defence for verification and that this had been brought to the notice of the Defence Minister for due consideration.

This memo flies in the face of Antony’s claim that Gen. Singh accepted 1950 as his year of birth when former Army Chiefs asked for it before his promotion as Major-General and Lt.-General.

What was the need for their asking when the Selection Board’s records show his year of birth as 1951?

Gen. Singh earned the wrath of Home Minister P Chidambaram and the powerful mining lobby for his principled opposition to the deployment of the Army to decimate the tribal population of Dandakaranya forests to hand it over to MNCs by saying: “We cannot do this to our own people. Maoists are not secessionists.”

The hard line adopted by the Army Chief against the erring officers in the Adarsh co-operative housing society scandal did not make him popular among his peers in the Army.

The corruption-ridden UPA government has no place for an upright officer like Gen. Singh, particularly at a time when large arms deals are going to be signed.

Gen Singh's service track-record vouches for his integrity

An error committed by VK Singh while filling an application form for entrance to the National Defence Academy when he was just 14 years old has been ferreted out to change his DoB as 10 May, 1950, and the government is sticking like a leech to this piece of paper to deny justice to the chief of the world’s third largest Army.

To add insult to injury, the government is trying to portray him as someone fiddling with his date of birth to hang on to the power and pelf of the high office.

The President, in her capacity as the Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, has a duty to safeguard the honour of soldiers like Gen. Singh, who has lived up to the credo embossed in Chetwood Hall of the Indian Military Academy.

“The safety, honour and welfare of your country comes first, always and every time; The honour, welfare and comfort of the men you command come next; Your own ease comfort and safety come last, always and every time.” – TWL Bureau
Click here to read the full article

Will MoD see sense in the date of birth evidence?

Age row: Time for MoD to see sense
February 7, 2012 DC
The way the wrangle over the issue of the Army Chief’s age has gone, the critical observations of the Supreme Court on matters relating to the subject last week should not cause surprise.

To those who don’t take recourse to splitting hairs, the defence ministry’s public position on the chief’s age appeared unduly hard, and not mindful of the sensitivity of the question that may have an indirect bearing on civil-military relations.

What appeared particularly combative was the recent observation of defence minister A.K. Antony that the government had shown “patience” in the affair, suggesting Gen. V.K. Singh was out of line in approaching the Supreme Court for justice upon the rejection of his statutory complaint by the ministry on December 30 last year.

While the Supreme Court is yet to go into the merits of the case of Gen. Singh’s age — and it has made that quite clear — it had no hesitation upholding Gen. Singh’s right to move the nation’s highest court with his plea. Besides, the court held that the government’s order of December 30 was against the principle of natural justice and was ultra vires.

The latter suggests misuse of authority or poor judgment in the exercise of powers. What must sting is the court’s suggestion that the government “withdraw” its December 30 order so that Gen. Singh may have the option to go with his plea on age to the Armed Forces Tribunal or to the high court, even indicating that the latter may be the preferable course as the general is due to retire in four months’ time.

It is pertinent that the Supreme Court framed its observations in the context of deficiencies in the process of decision-making, which it said had “vitiated” the decision in this case — leading to the rejection of the Army Chief’s statutory complaint. This is clearly a rap on the knuckles.

The court said that the government’s July 21 order dismissing Gen. Singh’s contention on age flowed from the advice of the attorney-general, and the later rejection of the statutory complaint of Gen. Singh against that order also derived from the advice of the same law official.

The court has all but indicated that if the government does not withdraw the December 30 order, it may proceed to “quash” it. The hard time the government is getting is of its own making. Evidently, the A-G’s advice in one too many high-profile case has proved less than sound. The government would also do well to get off its high horse.

It shouldn’t in every instance of dealing with the military imagine that it is preserving the notion of the superiority of civilian authority over the armed forces.
Age row: Time for MoD to see sense
Comment: Why is the MoD so obsessed with the succession plot evolved by former Army Chief's, Gen's JJ Singh and Deepak Kapoor whose intentions obviously are mala fide. MoD needs to honestly give its reasons and not use the Date of Birth as a ploy to play around.

Ex-generals and admirals being employed by munition dealers for lobbying in South Block

Army’s war within: corruption
Ex Servicemen used as conduit for corruption and bribes by the MOD
After General VK Singh had taken over as Chief of Army Staff in 2010, a retired Lieutenant General, whose name figures in the Adarsh Society Housing scandal called on him at the office ostensibly to discuss developments in Kashmir. After the polite conversation, the retired intelligence chief asked him about the pending heavy vehicle contract and blatantly made it clear that there was Rs 50 crore for him in cold cash if the Rs 400 crore deal was awarded to an East European manufacturer instead of Indo-Russian joint venture. The retired general was immediately escorted out of the Chief’s office and was declared persona non grata. The ex-serviceman was not the first or the last of his kind as greed seems to be good for Army’s top brass.

On Tuesday, the CBI registered a case against a former Army Vice Chief Lt General Noble Thamburaj for allegedly conspiring with a builder Kalpataru over a select piece of Pune Cantonment defence land. One of the companies of the same builder is also under the CBI scanner for illegally obtaining prime defence land in Kandivili in Mumbai with the support of former minister of defence production Rao Inderjit Singh and former Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor. The CBI has already registered a preliminary inquiry into the Kandivili land deal last month and moving towards registering a proper case.

After Mumbai’s Adarsh Housing scandal, involving two former Army chiefs and one former Navy chief among others, and Sukhna land scandal, which led to court martial and dismissal of former military secretary Lt Gen Avadesh Prakash, these two illegal land deals have taken the Army’s morale to a new low. From the unsavoury sagas of Ketchup Colonel, Booze Brigadier and Ration General, it becomes quite evident that Indian military is going through marked deterioration of human resource and character.

To top it all, there is growing politicisation of the Indian military for promotions, lucrative assignments and post-retirement jobs. The rot within the Indian defence establishment is clearly evident from the retired officers who liaison for defence contractors at golf courses and bars in Lutyen’s Delhi to ex-generals and admirals being employed by hardware dealers for lobbying in South Block.

In public perception the image of an Army officer is hardly different from that of an untrustworthy police officer. It is evident from these scandals that significant section within Army is out to make a quick buck and would do anything for few pieces of silver. This mindset goes right to the top, as otherwise, how one justifies that no less than five top generals including Kapoor and Thamburaj were declared low medical category for disability pension and IT rebates. Before the health of Indian Army deteriorates further without the help of Pakistani ISI or Chinese MSS, it is time that the UPA government intervened to stem the rot.

Fortunately, South Block has defence minister AK Antony and Army Chief Gen V K Singh at the helm of affairs at this crucial juncture. Both are above board integrity wise and cannot stand corruption. While swift action and stringent punishment act as a strong deterrent, it is time that the military mounted strong vigilance on its men and started the weeding out process at an early stage.

The promotions and postings process must be made totally transparent through technology with any interference from ruling party politicians or influential arms dealers. Promotion should be based on merit and not seniority as is the case now. Postings to big cities should be rotated fast so that an officer does not develop vested interest. There should be consolidation of defence lands sprawling all over the country with land records updated so that unscrupulous Army officers cannot illegally pass it on to builders.

While it is impossible to isolate or insulate military personnel from increasingly money oriented Indian society, it is important that military ethos is maintained or professionalism will be hit hard in the services. It is important to drive home the fact that the government takes special care of the armed forces through dedicated hospitals, housing, primary and secondary education and recreation facilities.

The average facilities provided to an Army Colonel, equivalent to a director level officer of central government, are far above as compared to his or her government counterparts. Same holds true for higher ranks. Yet there is increasing tendency within the armed forces to get attracted to money through illegal means or hardware deal making. The prevention exercise has to start from the top as the trooper on the border or the Line of Control looks towards the top brass as idols. Otherwise, all the respect won by those armed forces personnel who gave up their lives will be lost and Indian borders will be at peril.
Army’s war within: corruption

Adarsh Scam: List of officers in the dock

Gen Nirmal Chander Vij

Gen Deepak Kapoor

Lt Gen G S Sihota

Lt Gen P K Rampal

Lt Gen Shantanu Choudhry

Lt Gen Tejinder Singh

Maj Gen Ram Kanwar Hooda

Maj Gen A R Kumar

Maj Gen V S Yadav

Maj Gen Tej Kishen Kaul
Army probe faults 10 top Officers

CBI to probe sale of Army plot to private builder in Mumbai

TNN: Jan 14, 2012
NEW DELHI: The CBI has registered a preliminary enquiry (PE) into Maharashtra government's decision to sell a plot of just over an acre, occupied by the Army in suburban Kandivli, to a private company. The PE was registered on the basis of a report received from the additional director general, discipline and vigilance, (Army).

"It was alleged in the report that certain senior Army officers while serving in the Southern Command committed gross misconduct in as much as a plot of land which was in the possession of Central Ordnance Depot (COD), was relinquished unauthorisedly and later on, the same was sold to M/s Neo Pharma ( Kalpataru Builders)," CBI said in a statement.

According to the anti-corruption wing of CBI, Kalpataru constructed a 31-storey apartment on the plot which overlooks the ordnance depot of the Army and thereby compromises security of the depot.

The case is similar to the Adarsh housing society scam in which the defence ministry had alleged that state government officials had in connivance with private persons handed over the land which was under Army's possession.

According to the Army, in June 2007, the government sold the land for Rs 5.94 crore despite objections by the defence ministry.

The land now houses the car park and recreation area of the 31-storey Kalpataru Towers that has been built on an adjoining private plot.
CBI to probe sale of Army plot to private builder in Mumbai

Army chief's age issue: Government loses face either way

Army chief's age issue: Government loses face either way
January 05, 2012 09:48 ISTFor the armed forces, for whom their chiefs have been the sole leader, the age controversy has eroded their confidence in our State, feels Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd).

It's time, he says, for the defence minister and the army chief to sit down and decide the issue based on legally tenable evidence.
There is a lot at stake in New Delhi [ Images ] for the prestige of the nation's most respected institution: The Indian Army [ Images ].
The issue of General V K Singh's age is not just an issue of the government accepting that he was born in 1951 as per his school leaving certificate which remains the basic document for proof of age, but it is also a case of the entire institution of the armed forces watching from the sidelines how the government deals with the man who heads their million plus army.

The general has undoubtedly been a revered leader in every appointment that he has served in the army and boasts a fabulous record of service. That he was destined to be the army chief someday was an opinion entertained by his colleagues even when he was a brigadier. The controversy of age has come to the fore repeatedly in the past, even when he was being appointed army commander of the Eastern Command. With our system of appointing the senior-most army commander as army chief on the army chief's retirement, by and large, he was already in line for the next chief then.

A lot was expected from General Singh when he took over as army chief. Hugely popular in the organisation, as army commander he had led a study to define the contours of transformation that the army requires to undertake. However, there has been very little news of the transformation contemplated while there has been a deluge of reports centered on the age controversy. The episode has been a setback to all but perhaps a few who have always enjoyed an unsavoury spectacle unfolding.

The issue of the army chief's age also influences the succession chain. Should the army chief retire early, Lieutenant General Bikram Singh, currently the army commander, Eastern Command, is the most likely candidate to become the next army chief. However, should the ministry of defence accept the army chief's contention regarding his age, it would be Lieutenant General K T Parnaik, army commander, Northern Command, who could take over the reins.

A lack of trust between the army headquarters and the ministry of defence has existed for decades before the current model of the integrated HQ of the ministry of defence was put in place. The current model has failed to bring in the integration desired, nor has any effort been made to further joint functioning between the ministry and the three services. In effect, the ministry works with minimal representation from the services. For synergy between the military and the politico-bureaucratic combine to be genuinely operative, trust is a big factor. The age episode, as it gets played out in public, erodes the trust even further.

As far as army officers are concerned, a large majority of them feel their chief must get his due. Never have officers of the forces held the bureaucracy in high esteem. But for the odd defence minister like George Fernandes [ Images ], who made repeated trips to the Siachen Glacier and, rarely, if ever, combined his visits to military establishments with any political itinerary, none have ever even tried to earn any respect from the rank and file soldier.

For the men and women in armed forces, for whom their chiefs have been the sole leader, the age imbroglio has only eroded their confidence in our State. If we do have a case of the chief resigning now, as a lot of press reports suggest, it would definitely alienate the rank and file of the defence forces.

With all facts of the case being surely available, it's time for the defence minister and the army chief to sit across the table and decide the issue based on legally tenable evidence. The minister must realise that the government loses face, either way. However, if his decision is an honest one, it will at least be a display of moral courage and uprightness for a ministry surely in need of a more positive image.
Brigadier S K Chatterji (retd)
Army chief's age issue: Government loses face either way

Malpractices in the supply chain management of the Army

Army ration supply practices rotten: Public Accounts Committee
The Hindu: Special Correspondent
In certain cases troops consumed dry rations 6-28 months after expiry
Pointing out that the Army marches on its stomach, the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament has taken exception to its ration supply chain practices and cited several “glaring deficiencies and inadequacies.”

Observing that in certain cases dry rations were consumed by troops even 6-28 months after the expiry of their normal Estimated Storage Life (ESL), the PAC in its report, tabled last week, recommended that the authorities revisit/amend the existing provision of the Army Service Corps technical instructions to ensure that food items were issued in accordance with their ESL.

As for fresh vegetables and fruits, 74 per cent of these items issued to the units by the supply depots were not in accordance with the prescribed norms.

Citing “serious anomalies in receipt and supply of vegetables in one station alone,” the PAC said the Northern Command rations worth Rs. 1.92 crore remained untraceable as on March, 31, 2008. A test check reflected “deep-rooted and widespread malpractices in the supply chain management of the Army.”

Observing “shortcomings” in the procurement procedures of the Army Service Corps, it noted highly non-competitive procurement of fresh rations and deviation from the laid down guidelines.

Deploring the mismatch between the issue and receipt of rations, the PAC said it was inconceivable that such things could happen “without the complicity of officers” concerned.

In another report on the Canteen Stores Department (CSD), the PAC took a serious view of the Army Headquarters denying auditors access to the accounts of the Unit Run Canteens (URCs), which recorded an annual turnover of Rs.8,500 crore during 2008-09.

Noting that the Comptroller and Auditor-General was unable to audit the 3,600 URCs, the report said this restricted parliamentary oversight to the CSD.

The CAG has been seeking to audit the URCs' accounts on the ground that the CSD transfers money from the Consolidated Fund of India in the form of qualitative discounts. But the armed forces are opposed to the move, claiming that the URCs are run with a non-public fund.

“The Committee is dismayed to note that Audit was denied access to records of the URCs by the Army Headquarters in spite of repeated requests…What is more intriguing is the fact that such denial was made despite the directions of the Defence Ministry to make records of the URCs available for audit.”
Army ration supply practices rotten: Public Accounts Committee

PAC smells scam in army canteens after audit denial

India Today, Updated: 29/12/2011
The PAC also claimed that the ration supply chain was in a mess after the CAG highlighted several discrepancies in the system and cartelisation of suppliers.
New Delhi: A parliamentary panel has come down heavily on the army for not allowing audit of the unit-run canteens (URCs) while taking serious note of malpractices in ration supply for the troops.

The Public Accounts Committee (PAC), which had gone into the findings of the comptroller and auditor general (CAG) highlighting that the jawans were being fed food items past the expiry date, has given wide-ranging recommendations to streamline the supply chain management of rations in the Indian Army.

But the decision to not allow the URC audit was fiercely defended by army chief General V.K. Singh when he, along with senior defence ministry officials, appeared before the committee. There are 3,600 URCs in the country with a turnover of over Rs.8,500 crore.

The committee said it was "dismayed" to note that the audit was denied access to the URC records by the army headquarters in spite of repeated requests on the ground that the canteens were being run from a non public fund.

The panel stated that the army resisted attempts to get the URCs audited overlooking the defence ministry's directions. "We fail to understand how the URC audit will be so intrusive as to have an adverse impact on troop morale," it added. PAC chairman Murli Manohar Joshi said these facilities, running on government land and by government employees, should be audited. All the three services had opposed the move.

The PAC also claimed that the ration supply chain was in a mess after the CAG highlighted several discrepancies in the system and cartelisation of suppliers. The committee backed the CAG findings, saying 74 per cent of fresh vegetables and fruits issued were not in accordance with the prescribed norms. The troops were being supplied food items even after their expiry date.

The panel expressed surprise that these dry rations were consumed by troops even six to 28 months after the expiry date.
PAC smells scam in army canteens after audit denial
PAC finds widespread malpractices in Army rations

Surfers' Comments
Posted by: A K SAXENA
DELHI | December 29, 2011
Corruption in Indian army canteens (URC) is an open secret. Let the Army Chief face the stark reality, not run away from it. Resisting URC scrutiny by the statutary Auditor by the army chief, raises strong suspicion against unethical practices. Transparency will boost the morale of the armed forces.