Fighting Insurgency and Terrorists Reducing Army to Policemen and Indiscipline

Take turbulence in the ranks seriously
Lt Gen Vijay Oberoi | Agency: DNA | Thursday, August 23, 2012
Three incidents of collective indiscipline by jawans in the last few months, reflecting a breakdown in the traditionally close officer-man relationship, are a cause for concern, especially as all three of them are related to combat units, where a stable and healthy officer-man relationship is an article of faith.
The Indian Army, with a justifiably proud record of service to the nation, has always placed officers-men bonding at the highest level.
In the past, the army has handled such incidents with compassion and firmness. Such incidents will no doubt happen again. However, there is need for comprehensive remedial actions. We must not succumb to a tendency of being simplistic, like attributing such incidents to recent cases of corruption amongst a few senior officers. Such attributions are obviously absurd, as these are two vastly different issues. The need is actually to focus on command and control, discipline and officer-man relationships.
In combat units, a thorough knowledge of jawans by their officers is a must. Included in this are the jawans’ capabilities and limitations; what enthuses or dampens their spirits; their backgrounds as well as of their families; and whether they are team persons or loners. Earlier, senior unit officers acted as guides and mentors in this respect. Unfortunately, on account of the huge shortage of officers in combat units today, as well as the large number of tasks assigned to the few available officers, it is virtually impossible for them to spare time to do so now.
The main reason for this state of affairs is the prolonged employment in fighting insurgents and terrorists over decades now, which have taken stress and fatigue to extremely high levels. These operations are extremely difficult and full of tension, especially on account of scrupulously adhering to human rights norms.
A major caveat of the army’s secondary role of assisting the civil administration is that it must be released as soon as the task is over, but in counter-insurgency operations there appears to be no end state! There has been no insurgency in the north eastern states for many years now, but neither the states concerned nor the central government want to release the army. In J&K, the situation has improved vastly, but the police forces are not in a position to assume control. The army’s reasoning that the situation will deteriorate rapidly if the army is de-inducted is sound, but why are the police forces not being made capable?
While the government must squarely take the blame for this state of affairs, the army hierarchy also needs to be blamed for not pursuing it relentlessly.
There are also three other issues that need to be tackled by the government. The first is deliberately downgrading the esteem and importance of the military by successive governments. This has resulted in our soldiers becoming greatly disillusioned not only with the government officials but, what is worse, also with their own officers, who are being viewed as devoid of any power, as civil and police officials studiously ignore requests from commanding officers relating to various problems of soldiers projected by them. This is in stark contrast to earlier times when the civil officials responded with alacrity when a commanding officer wrote to them about the personal or collective problems of his jawans. This aspect needs immediate improvement by good governance and by educating the officials.
Soldiers’ lay their lives on the line, not because of the pay or allowances that they get (which in any case are less than what the equivalent civil officials receive) but because of their self-esteem and military élan. These need to be nurtured by the civil administration.
The second and related issue is the military intake. Although recruitment rallies draw large numbers, the reason is no longer pride in joining the military but massive unemployment, resulting in inferior manpower joining the military. In the case of officers, young men from traditional military families are no longer enthused with the forces. The main reason is the decline of respect for the military.
The last point is the treatment of the veterans. The government needs to understand that the policy of ignoring those who have served the nation sacrificing their all will be a disaster in the long run. Future generations will not heed the call of the bugle when they see neither respect nor adequate financial benefits being given to the veterans. The present indifference and callousness must end.
Will Delhi wake up?
The writer is a former Vice Chief of Army Staff.
Take turbulence in the ranks seriously

Armchair Home Secretary encounters Mao's Ghost in North Block

Tuesday 03 April, 2012.
No ready solution to Maoist problem: Home Secy
There was no ready solution to the country's Maoist problem, Union Home Secretary R K Singh said and stressed on developing intelligence to effectively counter the threat posed by it and jehadi terrorists.
"We have a fight with the enemy (Maoists) who have faith in violence and we do not have a ready solution .... There are some people who talk about finding a solution through talks. But I think no there is nothing for holding talks," he said inaugurating Indo-Tibet Border Police Force sector headquarter in Patna on Monday.
"The Maoists want to end the country's present democratic arrangement by force. At the same time they carry out propaganda that they are fighting for the poor and the tribals, which is nothing but a pretension.... Most of those killed by the Maoists were poor people and tribals and their fight is a war of attrition," he said.
The country, he said, was also facing 'jihadi terrorism' and terrorists are sneaking into the country from Nepal.
They then try to inspire others to take to terrorism and travel from one place to another to execute the terror activities.
Exuding confidence that the people and the government would effectively thwart the twin challenges and keep the country secure, he said, "We have strengthened para-military forces and different institutions for internal security during the past few years."
The setting up of the ITBP sector headquarter in Patna was a step to creating the infrastructure for the security of the country, he said. (DD-2.4)
No ready solution to Maoist problem: Home Secy

Home Minister agrees that Police are Corrupt

February 7, 2012, 9:24 AM IST.Chidambaram: Poor Conditions ‘Dehumanize’ Police.
In an interview, India’s Minister for Home Affairs P. Chidambaram, the country’s top law enforcement official, addressed the issues of corruption and lawlessness in the police force and described his government’s reform efforts. This post accompanies a front-page article by WSJ Mumbai reporter Geeta Anand on corruption in India’s police force published today. An edited transcript:

WSJ: What has your Congress Party-led government done to improve law enforcement in India?

P.C.: At the level of administration of criminal justice and the level of policing, these are matters which fall exclusively under the states’ jurisdiction. We have tried to help, or, if you wish, put in checks and balances by creating a number of institutions — for example, the human rights commission — at the national level and at the state level. Then there are commissions that deal with the most vulnerable sections, the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, women and children. There are commissions on each one of these sections at the national level, but most states have commissions at the state level as well.

The Supreme Court has laid down a set of minimum measures for police reform. Now, we impress upon the states the need to put in place these mechanisms. For example, a committee to decide on transfers and postings at the state level, another committee to deal with complaints against police. Many states have put in place these committees, some have not.

Even where states have put in place these committees, many of them are not quite functional and don’t really exercise the authority that they are expected to exercise. The Supreme Court continues to hear the cases and pull up the states (that) have either not set up committees, or, having set up the committees, have not empowered them. We fully support these reforms, which the Supreme Court has laid down.

WSJ: One frequent criticism is the corruption of the police forces. Former Mumbai Police Commissioner Julio Ribeiro, among others, told me that corruption has become systematized in hiring so that applicants for the position of constable are routinely asked to pay bribes in order to get the jobs. That money goes to state politicians, who not only influence hiring, but also the discipline, transfers and postings of officers on the entire police force, these critics say. They say police commissioners feel compelled to heed the wishes of politicians because they control postings and transfers of the police commissioners. This scenario means the police commissioner doesn’t control his men and there’s little discipline in the force, these critics say.

P.C.: Well, I accept the criticism. I accept the criticism but I would have liked the critics to have implemented reforms when they were in office, not criticized their successors when they have retired. All of these very fine police officers headed police offices at some time or another and that is when they should have implemented reforms.
Click here to read the full transcript: Chidambaram: Poor Conditions ‘Dehumanize’ Police
Comment: What has the Home Minister done to investigate the secret swiss bank account holders. Most criminals are protected by Politicians and some of them are criminals themselves. Can Politicians cleanse the Police when both are working in tandem?

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

Saluting the Disabled Soldier of India

Wed, 09/14/2011 By Sarita Brara
New Delhi, Sept 14, 2011 (Washington Bangla Radio / PIB India) It was year 1999. A young army officer from one of the North Eastern states lay on a bed in one of the wards of the army hospital in Delhi. His leg had been amputated after he hit a land mine during the Kargil conflict. He was one of the over 1500 personnel who had been injured in the conflict.
“How are you?” I asked the young officer.
“I feel one and half Kg lighter!” he said with a smile that lit up his whole face. Brave words indeed!. How could a man in a situation like this have the courage to make light of his grievous injury? I managed to smile back but in the heart of hearts I saluted the spirit of the young man.
Twelve years later I met Lt Col Shoban Singh Danu again. This time for a story on the year of the disabled soldier. I remember that Shoban Singh Danu’s leg had to be amputated after he stepped on mine planted by the militants in the Poonch- Rajouri sector. After his artificial limb fitment he insisted on going back to the same battalion. Why? He says he wanted to boost the morale of his men as three others in the battalion had also lost their limbs in the land mine blast.
Retired Subedar LD Sharma too lost his limb in a land mine blast. Had he not been hit by a mine land blast he would have retired two ranks higher. But he has no regrets. “I did this for my country!” he says with his head held high. “I am ready to serve my country any time I am called to do so.”
These men as they defend our borders, battle against insurgents and take part in other operations, many a time suffer spinal injuries rendering them paraplegics and tetraplegics. Major Mahesh Bisht suffered spinal injury in one of the operations but today he is looking after the administration at the Kirkee (Khadki) Paraplegic Rehab Centre and is a source of inspiration for the paraplegics living there.
Rifleman Latif was on VIP protection duty in Jammu and Kashmir where after an IED blast his vehicle met with an accident and he suffered a spinal injury. He may have been depressed initially but today he is completely transformed. Last year he won three gold medals in national paralympics in Wheel Chair Race, Discuss Throw and Javelin. Latif who belongs to Anantnag in Jammu and Kashmir is now staying at the paraplegic Rehabilitation Centre at Mohali with his family.
Gunner Ajit Kumar Shukla had suffered bullet injuries. When he came to the Kirkee Paraplegic Rehab Centre he was very depressed. Today, leaving behind his pain, he too has not only won medals in the sporting events but also worked on contract basis as data operator with one of the government schools in Chandigarh.

Restructuring the Central Police Forces and the State Armed Police

USE OF INCORRECT TERMINOLOGY
Dear Chander,
I had written an article titled "Restructuring the Central Police Forces and the State Armed Police to Combat Internal Insurgencies". It was published in the South Asia Defence and Strategic Year Book 2011, which was published early this year. I am enclosing a copy as an attachment. As you will see, it is a long article of 4781 words, which all may not be interested to read. However, I would recommend that the portion highlighted in yellow be read by all. Following the publishing of the article, I was informed that the then Home Secretary (retired recently) issued immediate instructions to the police forces not to call themselves para military forces. As suggested by me, the Home Ministry issued a policy letter dated 18/22 March 2011 wherein all the armed police forces were instructed to adopt a uniform nomenclature as suggested by me. I am enclosing a scanned copy of the same as the second attachment. I do not know whether the police forces and others will follow the instructions but it is important that they do. The media continues to use the term para military forces incorrectly and so do even defence officers. Army Headquarters needs to contact all editors of newspapers and magazines, as well as others, including their subordinate formations and request them to instruct their scribes/ others to use the correct nomenclature. I thought the readers of your blog would be interested to know; they could then correct people who continue to use the wrong nomenclature.
Warm regards.
Vijay Oberoi
Former Vice Chief of Army Staff (VCOAS)
Former Director Centre for Land Warfare Studies (CLAWS)
Click here to read the full article

Netaji Subhash Memorial Lecture on 24 Jan 2011

Dear Friends,
Jai Hind.
An open invitation to all Military Veterans and their families, received from Netaji Subhash Chander Bose Trust, is reproduced below.
Those of you, who wish to attend the function, should kindly forward their names to Brig RS Chhikara, at chhikarars1940@yahoo.co.in
I have attended the functions organised by the Trust many times. The quality of lectures and the general administration is of a very high order.
The Metro Station nearest to the location of FICCI Auditorium is “Mandi House” - an easy walking distance. “Mandi House” Metro Station is on the Metro Line going from Noida to Dwarka (via Connaught Place). Do find time to attend it.
You are sure to like it.
In service of Indian Military Veterans
Chander Kamboj.
PS – Kindly give wide publicity to the contents of this email among the veterans living in NCR.
5th Netaji Subhash Memorial Lecture on 24 Jan 2011
Dear Chander,
The fifth Netaji Subhash Memorial Lecture is being organised at FICCI Auditorium, Tansen Marg, New Delhi from 2-30 to 4-30 PM on Monday the 24th January 2011.
The theme for this year is 'Nation Building Since 1947' - Achievements and Challenges.
Speakers are expected to cover four major aspects of nation building:

Our Democracy and State of the Polity.

National Integrity - Societal cohesion, Security and Defence of our vital National interests within and abroad.

State of Governance and Corruption.

Readying our youth to face challenges ahead.
All members of IESM are Cordially invited. Those who insist on invitation cards may please send me their address & Email ID.
You may please circulate as widely as possible on your own and associated networks. The Netaji Subhash Chander Trust will be very happy if ladies also can grace the occasion.
My mail IDs are netajisubhashvision(at)hotmail.com, netajisubhashvisionyahoo.com and chhikarars1940yahoo.co.in
Regards
Brig RS Chhikara
Secy General
Netaji Subash Chander Trust

Licence Permit Raj morphed into a Land Mafia Raj

I am appending my letter published (edited version) in the Times of India (November 4, 2010), Mumbai edition, on the Adarsh Society ,Colaba, Mumbai scam. You may like to put it on "Report My Signal" site for reading by all IESM members.
Regards,
Shashank Bendre
Wg Cdr (Retd)

Letter to Editor, The Times of India, "My Times My Voice":
Sir,
With reference to "Towering Mess" (Economist Raghuram Rajan has rightly said that yesterday's licence-permit raj has morphed into a land mafia raj, with huge socio-economic costs for the country. We need to clean up the mess, starting now.), it was time you expressed your views on the issue in your editorial. Perhaps the delay could be attributed to your reluctance to bring the so far holy image and honour of the Armed Forces personnel into question. Real Estate scams and land grabs are not new to Indian cities, towns and even villages are not spared by the land mafia. The only new and dark dimension in the Adarsh Society scandal is the open involvement of top military bosses conniving with politicians and babus to grab a piece of property in the prime locality of Mumbai where no ordinary mortal can ever dream of stepping in. The decline in moral values of the civil society has been evident for almost two decades but the shocking revelation that the bug has affected the defence services too is now bound to land the nation in turmoil as never before. This is a sad situation because the armed forces is the only institution looked upon by the general public as the last bastion of the nation for upholding honesty, uprightness and discipline and the latest exposure is bound to plant a seed of doubt in the minds of the people whether the Armed Forces too, have slipped into the quagmire of corruption that is slowly but surely gobbling up the very foundation of the nation. All veterans would like to hand their heads in shame. The article "How To Root Out Corruption" very much linked to this scam closely, advises setting up of an agency called "Lokpal" as a remedy. Though we already have a plethora of agencies and institutions established to watch over the functioning of the government and other undertakings, the fact remains that corruption thrives unhindered because these watchdogs themselves have become hotbeds of corruption. In such a scenario, the government is left clueless on how to tackle this problem. It is trapped in an unenviable position where any firm step against the corrupt politicians will invite the fall of the government itself. And that is precisely why Naxalism has gained acceptance by a large section of the people in the countryside, whose very livelihood is threatened by corruption, unlike the city folks and see no succour from the authorities. Everybody, including the corrupt themselves, must wake up to the stark reality that the situation is truly alarming as the very existence of the nation is at stake.
Yours faithfully,
Shashank Bendre
Wing Commander (Retd)

Anthony Addresses Army Commanders

Ministry of Defence
“Give Up Ambivalence on Terrorism”: Antony to Pakistan Five-Day Army Commanders Conference Begins
Monday, October 25, 2010 17:06 IST
The Defence Minister Shri AK Antony today asked Pakistan to shed its ambivalence on terrorism. Addressing the top brass of Army Commanders here, Shri Antony said Pakistan did not appear to give up India-centric posturing.

“Pakistan does not appear to be willing to leave its India-centric posturing. It will have to shed its ambivalence in dealing with terror groups. Though we are not unduly concerned, we will have to keep constant vigil on the developments in Pakistan,” Shri Antony said.

Pointing out that fighting terrorism cost the nation substantially, the Defence Minister reiterated that we will crush terrorism with all our might. Shri Antony said that violence has shown signs of abating in Jammu and Kashmir due to the constant vigil by the Army.

“The Army has been quite successful in countering the proxy war and in minimising the incidents of terror,” Shri Antony said, adding, “Still, as long as the terror infrastructure across the border continues to flourish, we cannot afford to drop our guard”.

The Defence Minister said that the security situation in the ‘AfPak’ region continues to be a cause for concern. “Despite the physical and material costs, India has at all times, advocated peace and stability with all nations – including our neighbours,” Shri Antony said. “The volatile political situation in our immediate neighbourhood has the potential of having a debilitating impact on the region. India’s role in preserving peace and stability thus, becomes all the more important,” he added.

Calling upon the Armed Forces to maintain a high level of operational readiness, Shri Antony stressed that the Government remains committed to modernisation and indigenisation.

“The Defence Ministry has introduced changes in the Defence Procurement Procedure to increase private participation. I am confident that the changes in our ‘Procurement Procedures’ will help in realising the full potential of Public Private Partnership and leverage the advantages in the fields of R & D and manufacturing,” Shri Antony said.

The Defence Minister underlined the need for probity and transparency in defence deals. “I wish to strongly reiterate that we must adopt ‘Zero Tolerance’ towards corruption in letter and spirit. Even the slightest hint of corruption will erode the lofty image of our Armed Forces that the people of our nation have become used to,” Shri Antony said.

The inaugural session of the Army Commanders’ Conference was attended among others by the Chief of Army Staff, General VK Singh and the Defence Secretary, Shri Pradeep Kumar. The five-day conference will review the security situation, emerging challenges and strategies. Issues pertaining to operational logistics to include infrastructure development and modernization will also be discussed. Keeping pace with the technology transformation and advancement, the conference will also focus on training and its effectiveness based on state-of-the-art technology for meeting the future challenges as also attaining a high state of combat readiness. PK/SR
Give Up Ambivalence on Terrorism”: Antony to Pakistan

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CRPF masquerading as a paramilitary force

Specialised Force for Internal Unrests
By Maj Gen Mrinal Suman
IDR Issue: Vol 25.4 Oct-Dec 2010 | Date: 11 October, 2010
Policy and methodology to counter the Naxalite threat have been subjects of intense debate recently. Army’s reluctance to get embroiled has been questioned in some government quarters. Sadly, opinions are being expressed, both by military and non-military experts, more as short term fire-fighting solutions rather than well analysed long term strategy.

It requires no crystal gazing to foresee increasing unrest amongst various sections of Indian society. Awareness has fired the urge of the people for a higher standard of living and enhanced opportunities for advancement. As the country fails to ensure that fruits of development get equitably and evenly distributed across the complete spectrum of society, disadvantaged segments lose confidence in the fairness of governance. They resort to violent means to wrest their perceived share of resources from an apathetic government. Naxalite unrest is a manifestation of the same challenge to the lawful authority of the state. Needless to say, in addition to effective use of force, convincing measures have to be initiated at political, economical, social and cultural levels to restore credibility of governance amongst the aggrieved people.

This article restricts itself to the nature and type of force that should be employed to counter Naxalites. As the alienated populace is highly motivated and possesses intimate knowledge of the local terrain, a well equipped and suitably trained force becomes an absolute necessity. India has three broad options open to it – employment of an existing central police force (CPO) with additional training and equipment; deployment of the Army to crush armed resistance; and raising of a special force for the assignment. Each of these have been analysed below to identify the most suitable option.

Use of CPO
The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) is currently countering the Naxalites. CRPF came into existence as Crown Representative’s Police on 27th July 1939. It became the Central Reserve Police Force on enactment of the CRPF Act on 28th December 1949. Over the last sixty years, it has grown into sizeable entity with 207 battalions. It is a federal law enforcement agency and a police force. It has been organised, equipped, structured and trained to supplement efforts of state police forces in the maintenance of law and order.

... it is an unwritten convention in the Indian Army that an officer always leads from the front – he is the first one to step into a danger zone. No officer thinks twice about it.

Presently, a crisis of identity is overwhelming CRPF. A part of the blame for the prevailing confusion about its exact character can be apportioned to CRPF itself. Symptomatic of the same is the message of its Director General on its website. To start with, he refers to CRPF as one of the ‘Para Military Police Force’ of the Nation and subsequently calls it as the most experienced ‘Armed Police Force’ of the country. Apparently, the organisation does not know where to position itself. There can never be a ‘paramilitary police force’ – a force is either a paramilitary force or a police force. The term paramilitary police force is self-contradictory, dichotomist in substance, paradoxical in nature and ambivalent in identity.

It must be understood that a true paramilitary force is an auxiliary force whose function and structure are similar to those of a regular military force. In other words, it should be capable of acting as an adjunct to regular military. CRPF, by no stretch of imagination, can be called a paramilitary force. With a view to garner enhanced status and to demand equivalence with the armed forces, it has been masquerading as a paramilitary force. Resultantly, it has got trapped in the self created delusion that it can perform like a paramilitary force.

Read More: click here

Poor Governance and Corruption gives birth to Naxals and Maoists

The Maoist threat – And what it Tells us about our Governance
Posted on September 15, 2010 by Gopalkarunakaran
This was written by me about three years ago after an opportunity to be part of group debating internal security threats to India. The group comprised of very eminent people, Mr Arun Shourie, Mr Ved Marwah, General Ved Malik, Commodore Uday Bhasker, Mr Ajay Sahni, General Patanker, Mr Rammoham of the BSF , Mr Ajit Duval of the IB. We were trying to put together a paper for the government to act soon. What was startling, but not surprising, was that the threat was well known – but till it reached the drawing rooms of the upper class, through attacks on Rajdhani trains and the stories began in the Media – it was unattended by the State of India. Do give me your views!
by Col. Gopal Karunakaran (retd)

There is so much noise in the media now on the Maoist – so many extreme views – on the one side the Home Ministry who see it as a law and order problem and on the other, left wing intellectuals who see the State being oppressive and unfair to the forgotten masses of India.

What about the larger debate on what the Maoists are fighting for? Who are they? What are their demands? What do they want?

Have our recent economic polices triggered social unrest in India, unknown to the small urban English speaking opinion makers and decision makers of India? It has now risen from a slow simmer, to a raging boiling point, creeping up into our drawing rooms, and finally drawing the attention of our ruling class...
Read more
The Maoist threat – And what it Tells us about our Governance
India is safe, PC tells Naxal-wary investors
Naxals out to capture power through the use of gun: Pranab Mukherjee

Building Schools and educating children is a novel way to bust insurgency

Greg Mortenson's work, through his non profit Central Asia Institute, continues today. As of 2009, he has established eighty one schools, including fifteen new schools in Afghanistan, and additional scchools in in regions of Azad Kashmir, Pakistan, that was devastated in a 2005 earthquake.
Three Cups of Tea has been a freshman, honors, or campus- wide required reading selection in over eighty universities and hundreds of schools. It is required reading for senior US military commanders, Pentagon officers in counter- insurgency training, and Special Forces deploying in Afghanistan. More than two hundred communities have used Three Cups of Tea as a "One Book" common read, and is being published in over thirty one countries. In March 2009, Pakistan's government presented Greg Mortenson with its highest civilian award, the Sitara-e-Pakistan (Star of Pakistan).
Visit: Three Cups of Tea
The best way to combat insurgency in the North East, Jammu and Kashmir, Naxal and Maoist terrorism is to build schools and educate children. Greg Mortenson's method should be studied and emulated by all PMF and the Military commanders invested with the responsibility of combating insurgency.

A modest proposal on AFSPA

The Hindu 05 Sep 2010 by Siddharth Varadarajan

Students of various organisations hold placards during a protest demonstration, demanding withdrawal of Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) from northeast and Kashmir, at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on August 21, 2010. File Photo: S. Subramanium

Change the blanket ban on trials without official sanction to one where the government has the power to bar prosecution in individual cases provided it satisfies the courts that its reasons for doing so are valid.

The Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act has come in for widespread criticism in Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur and other parts of the northeast because of the human rights abuses that have come to be associated with its operation. So strong is the sentiment against AFSPA in Kashmir that in recent months Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram and Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah have all spoken of the need to re-examine the law. The Army, on the other hand, says this is unnecessary.

The Army Chief, General V.K. Singh, has gone so far as to say that the demand for the dilution of AFSPA is being made for “narrow political gains.” On his part, Lt. Gen. B.S. Jaswal, GOC-in-C, Northern Command, has compared the Act to scripture. “I would like to say that the provisions of AFSPA are very pious to me and I think to the entire Indian Army. We have religious books, there are certain guidelines which are given there, but all the members of the religion do not follow it, they break it also … does it imply that you remove the religious book …?”

On paper, AFSPA is a deceptively simple law. First passed in 1958, it comes into play when the government declares a particular part of the northeast (or Jammu and Kashmir under a parallel 1990 law) a “disturbed area.” Within that area, an officer of the armed forces has the power to “fire upon or otherwise use force, even to the causing of death, against any person who is acting in contravention of any law or order for the time being in force in the disturbed area prohibiting the assembly of five or more persons or the carrying of weapons or of things capable of being used as weapons or of fire-arms, ammunition or explosive substances.”

Even though activists have made this the focus of their criticism, giving soldiers the “right to kill” is not, in my opinion, AFSPA's principal flaw. After all, if a ‘law and order' situation has arisen which compels the government to deploy the Army, soldiers have to be allowed to use deadly force. Even a private citizen has the right to kill someone in self-defence, though the final word on the legality of her or his action belongs to the courts. Similarly, a civilised society expects that the use of deadly force by the Army must at all times be lawful, necessary and proportionate. Here, the Act suffers from two infirmities: the requirement of prior sanction for prosecution contained in Section 6 often comes in the way when questions arise about the lawfulness of particular actions. Second, AFSPA does not distinguish between a peaceful gathering of five or more persons (even if held in contravention of Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code) and a violent mob. Firing upon the latter may sometimes be justified by necessity; shooting into a peaceful assembly would surely fail any test of reasonableness. ...Read more click here

Gen Nathu Singh & AFSPA: Readers Views

Dear Chander,
1.Seen a series of 'hagiographic' / hard line mails related to these unrelated topics. Did not wish to follow the long trails, and unable to resist a comment, am resorting to this device.
2. Have interacted- a fairly intense exposure in 1988/89- with the formidable General and admired his overpowering personality and principles even at that stage. Also recall an informal moment with Bipin Joshi in the Chief's office wherein he declared Gen Rajendrasinghji as his most admired Chief.At that time I thought that he was over-indulging his Regimental loyalty! However, the character and selflessness shown by these stalwarts in the 'succession stakes' makes them stand very tall; notwithstanding any warts.
3. The moot point is as to why is this 'model' out of date now-at least in the essential numbers required. Are we not selecting right or developing wrong? I don't buy the line that the 'manufacture' has stopped. My considered view is that, in our obsession with numbers/quantification, we have discounted/ under weighted the non-quantifiable core character values.We tried, not very successfully, to remedy the balance and others have since followed up- but the present systems need radical tweaking. And for that you need creative Leadership like Gen Nathu'- the kind not chained by 'conventional/received wisdom'.
4. Which brings me to AFSPA - the rash of 'conventional' defence of, the content and need for this Act, is getting 'dyspeptic'. Ironically, highly respected and admired colleagues have plugged this line. By definition, LICO are politico-military in nature; the strategic space/objs are public sp vs alienation- the existing CONTEXT can, therefore, not be disregarded.The Valley and Manipur are getting alarmingly alienated.
5. No one can question the need for legal/ prophylactic cover for tps; the issue is how best to package it. Justice REDDY Report provides a take-off platform-but all heels are dug deep in the conventional rut/ turf battles? Also, the lack of synergy and the blame-games are no longer amusing. One hopes that the Army will ultimately play the salvager as always,through some innovative thinking and leadership.
Yogi
Lt Gen YN Sharma, Former Army Commander

I never had the good fortune of knowing the famous and gallant general (Lt Gen Nathu Singh), the account by VK was absolutely spellbinding!
When Gen Nathu Singh was Army Commander, Brig (later Lt Gen K Umrao Singh) was, (perhaps) Chief of Staff. I used have daily and leisurely chats with Gen Umrao on the Ham Radio. I had my 'home brew rig in the corner first floor room in Central Vista Mess (Air Force).
His call sign was VU2US and was popularly know by his 'handle' Uncle Sam (U for uncle and S for sam). We were all very pally and while discussing something, unwittingly, I cracked an old Army joke: Sant Singh is better than Natha Singh (Something is better than Nothing).
Uncle Sam retorted seriously, Rai do'nt repeat that ever because Gen Nathu Singh has just been succeeded by Gen Sant Singh!
Col BK Rai
Former Secretary to Government of India, 3rd Graduates Course of the IMA, Premature Retirement in 1970

Dear Sir,
I had had the privilege of meeting General Thakur Natu Singh at his younger son, Cmde. Ranvijay Singh's residence in Delhi in the mid seventies. He took me into his study and gave me a glass of beer while my wife chatted with pretty Kumud, his daughter-in-law, in another room.
He told me that, contrary to general belief, he was from a humble background. One day when he was playing with other children, the Raja come riding and the other kids ran helter-kelter but he did not. The Raja approached him and asked sternly, " Why have you not run away like the others?" Natu Singh replied that he had done no wrong so why run away. The Raja was impressed by his candour and gave orders to have him brought to the palace and requested his parents to allow their son to be brought up by him. He was first sent to Mayo College and then to Sandhurst.
Hearing this frank admission, and the manner in which he told me made me feel very privilaged to meet a great gentleman. Regrettably, both Ranvijay, a fine Navy pilot, and Kumud, a lovely lady, are no more. As also General Thakur Natu Singh.
Regards,
Hirak Nag
Cdr HK Nag, Joined JSW in August 1952

Dear Chander,
I would like to add that Lt Gen Nathu Singh had two sons in the Services. Pratap Singh the elder, joined our Course- 1st Course (JSW) NDA, while Ranvijay joined the Navy in the 2nd Course. Pratap was commissioned in the Infantry and took premature retirement as a Major to join the tea gardens. I haven't met him since commissioning but about two years ago he had long chat with me on telephone, while staying with Ranvijay at Sainik Farms. No contact with him since. Both the brothers are thorough gentlemen.
SK Bahri
Lt Gen SK Bahri, 1st JSW Course, Former MGO, Army HQ

Farmers clarify meaning of Service to the Bureaucrats

This will help you to clear any doubts...
I became confused when I heard the word 'service' used with these agencies which are run by bureaucrats:

Indian Administrative 'Service'

Indian Police 'Service'

Civil 'Service'

Indian Revenue 'Service'

Indian Postal 'Service'

Telephone 'Service'

State, City, Public 'Service'
This is not what I thought 'service' meant.

But today, I overheard two farmers talking, and one of them said he had hired a bull to 'service' a few cows. BAM! It all came into focus. Now I understand what all those bureaucrats are doing to us.
Now you are as enlightened as I am.
Brig Vijai K Nair, VSM [Retd] PhD.

Adopt carrot and stick policy against naxals: expert

Respected Sir,
The following report-- released by the United News of India news agency on August 27, 2010 -- is for your kind perusal and the fourth in a series.
With regards
Abhi
Adopt carrot and stick policy against naxals: expert by Abhijit C Chandra
Bhopal, Aug 27 (UNI) An Indian Army veteran with extensive combat experience against Northeast rebels advocates adoption of a carrot and stick policy for tackling the naxalism menace.
"There is always the human element that simply cannot be ignored. Besides, the Maoists are Indian citizens with a divergent ideology and certainly not imported terrorists to be crushed with an iron heel," Indian Ex-Servicemen Movement Vice-Chairman Major-General (Retd) Satbir Singh, Sena Medal, told UNI over telephone.
Reminiscing his tenure as Brigadier in Assam (now Asom), the veteran narrated an example to prove his point that struggle-truce-struggle is the golden mean for eventually terminating the scourge of militancy.
"In 1997, I was stationed at Tezpur performing duties as Administrator of the Unified Command in a heavily insurgency-affected area. It was well past midnight when the telephone rang," he narrated.
The man on the line mentioned that he was calling from a village about 40 km away where an acute shortage of water was the root cause of misery. "Please supply water Sir. There are women and children here," the caller lamented.
"Though I was well aware that the village was a den of ultras I did not reject the request right away. I informed the caller that I will arrange for the water but if a single shot was fired at my boys I will give the order to massacre the entire village," the Maj-General recalled.
In the succeeding minutes, 15 tankers were mobilised and filled prior to undertaking the hazardous journey. Atop the tankers were positioned soldiers cradling light machine-guns.
"My officers and men were in constant radio contact with me. They reached the village, supplied the water and returned sans incident," the veteran said. What happened the following day seems to prove the Maj-General's point.
"A speeding motorbike carrying two masked youths shot past my camp and one of them lobbed a stone with a piece of paper wrapped around it. On reading the message we found the words 'Thank you Brigadier Singh'. When I was eventually sent to a new posting, a teeming multitude saw me off at the airport," he said.
Emphasising that the Armed Forces Special Powers Act must not be diluted under any circumstance, the veteran went on to state that as the Army is authorised to employ deadly force in achieving its objectives, collateral damage is inevitable.

Use of Special Forces to neutralise Naxal Leaders

USE SPECIAL FORCES TO NEUTRALISE NAXAL LEADERS: EXPERT By Abhijit C Chandra
Bhopal, Aug 18 (UNI) Special Forces can be used in conjunction with police intelligence to eliminate known naxal leaders and decimate the top rung, opines an Indian Army veteran who served in the Defence Ministry's Counter-Terrorism Division.
"The naxal problem is primarily a politico-economic-criminal problem and not really an insurgency. The Army has a duty to come to the aid of civil power when required but this has to be quick and short and only when an inescapable necessity," Lieutenant-Colonel Behram A Sahukar -- who retired in November 2003 as Additional Officer, Headquarters (HQ) Defence Intelligence Agency -- told UNI.

If really necessary, "we can have military advisors" with the police or paramilitary during operations as well as in the training schools, the expert -- who commanded a Special Forces Parachute Battalion -- said while emphasising that in such cases the Army officer must be given seniority over the police officer. Slowly but surely the police will come up to scratch after a few initial ''reverses'' that must be accepted.

"Police have adequate current resources to deal with the situation within own states. Take the case of Punjab and now Jammu and Kashmir. The Border Security Force and other paramilitary also have air resources, which can be augmented," said Lt-Col Sahukar who has been actively involved in the planning and execution of counter-terrorism operations at Divisional HQ in the insurgency-affected areas of Jammu and Kashmir and the Northeast.

It is about time the paramilitary and the reserve or armed police are used for the tasks they were raised for, he felt while adding that the local political agencies should pull their weight and do the work for which they have been elected.

"The Centre has been very very stingy with the Armed Forces and now there is a lot of discussion on the Armed Forces Special Powers Act. Many troops come from the affected areas and the Army has to use deadly force to achieve its objective," explained the combat veteran who first saw action during the 1971 India-Pakistan War, in the Western Theatre.

"No point in turning to the Army at the slightest pretext. Think of the Veerappan case during which the Army was not used," Lt-Col Sahukar reminisced.

MPs want 300 percent hike in salary

Ruckus in Parliament17/08/2010
Members of Parliament want a 300% hike in their salary. Though they get just Rs 16,000 a month, they are entitled to huge perks that include Rs 20,000 office expense, Rs 1000 per day when the Parliament is in session for just shouting and disrupting the Houses. Some MPs like Vijayasanti of the Telangana Rashtriya Samiti and BJP's Jaswant Singh have an abysmal record of 10% and 45% attendence respectively.

The MPs are also entitled to free air and rail travel. Forget about corruption like the one in Commonwealth Games or money that MPs allegedly get for raising questions.

New Delhi: The Union Cabinet on Monday deferred a decision on hiking the salary and allowances of MPs though the issue was discussed in detail.

The proposed increase is unlikely to be effected in the current session of Parliament.

Members of the Cabinet felt that raising MPs' emoluments at this stage in the wake of allegations of corruption in Commonwealth Games, the drought situation in some parts of the country and the inflation yet to be tamed would be seen in bad light, sources in Government said.

MPs currently get Rs 16,000 per month as salary while a secretary to the government gets Rs 80,000 a month. The proposal is to hike the salary to Rs 50,000.

Besides the base salary, an MP gets a daily allowance of Rs 1000 for each day when Parliament is in session or a sitting of a House committee is scheduled. A member is also entitled to a constituency allowance of Rs 20,000 per month and office expense allowance of another Rs 20,000 each month. Apart from these, he is also entitled to a certain number of air journeys, AC first class train travel and rent free flat or hostel accommodation through out his term.

The Joint Parliamentary Committee on Salaries, Allowances and Pensions, headed by Congress MP Charan Das Mahant, had proposed salary of Rs 80,001, arguing that an MP's salary should be at least a rupee more than that of an officer of the rank of Secretary (Rs 80,000), whom an MP outranks in the list of protocol.

Every MP can avail 34 single air journeys during a year with spouse or any number of companions or relatives.
Source: Agencies
MPs want 300 percent hike in salary

Comment: What the Government has denied the Military veterans for over two decades (Rank Pay- 4th Pay commission omission) of its legitimate pension is now ready to grant 300% salary hike for MPs who are blackmailing the Government except for the CPI who remain averse to the quantum jump!

National Security: Can Nuclear waste be a potential threat?

Wake-up call from Mayapuri
The leakage of the highly radioactive cobalt-60 in Delhi raises questions about the trade in such materials and how their movement escapes detection.

Deadly Scrap by Dr Bhaskar Balakrishnan

The recent incident in the Mayapuri industrial area of Delhi, where five persons suffered high radiation doses due to accidental exposure to highly radioactive cobalt-60, should be seen as a wake-up call for tightening security and accountability in respect of radioactive materials.

Cobalt-60 is a highly active man-made isotope of Cobalt, a metal which is known for the attractive pink colour of many of its compounds. This material has many applications — radiation therapy, industrial radiography, sterilisation of food, measuring instruments, and laboratory uses. Because Co-60 is so highly radioactive, it must be shielded in lead containers, handled very carefully, and accounted for from “cradle to grave”. The Atomic Energy Regulatory Board (AERB) monitors compliance with safety requirements.

In the latest incident, Co-60 in the form of wires was part of a scrap consignment. Efforts are on to trace the origin of this material, as the disposal of Co-60 containing material as scrap is strictly prohibited. No doubt those responsible will do all they can to cover up the traces.

If the scrap was imported, it raises serious questions on safety in the trade of scrap, where several incidents of toxic materials have also been reported.

The persons who unknowingly cut open the container of Co-60 received strong radiation doses, causing symptoms of radiation sickness which at that time were not recognised. The material was then stored in the office of the scrap dealer for nearly a month, during which all persons who visited or worked in the office received radiation doses.

Gamma radiation is a silent, insidious killer which does not announce itself, unlike other dangerous chemicals. The radiation gets continuously absorbed by the body, causing mutations which could lead to cancer, and death of cells. It is intensely penetrating (unlike the alpha and beta radiation which is stopped easily) and requires thick lead to stop it. By the time symptoms of radiation sickness become manifest, the dose absorbed is already far above the safe level.

INTRIGUING ISSUES
Many questions need to be resolved in this case. Had any radioactive material included in the scrap already been disposed of since early March? If so to whom and for what purpose?

What was the origin of the scrap — domestic or imported? All scrap acquired over the past month needs to be traced back and investigated to find out who was responsible for the disposal of Co-60 containing scrap. Was any contaminated scrap sold and processed into steel products? Has any quantity of Co-60 spilled out of its container and got dispersed?

It is important to ensure that there has been no leakage of radioactive material into other products of scrap recycling by accounting for the Co-60 up to the highest possible accuracy. As mentioned before, smaller amounts of Co-60 could have leaked out and handled without giving rise to any visible symptoms. Is this an isolated first case, or has this been happening earlier and only detected now? Were any previous consignments of scrap acquired from institutions using radioisotopes, and if so are all such material duly accounted for? If the material came in as imported scrap, from where did it come and how was it processed through export and import channels without detection of radiation? The authorities in the country of export would need to be involved in such a case.

ACCIDENT IN MEXICO
The authorities would be well advised to revisit the case of Co-60 leakage from a junked radiotherapy machine, which occurred in 1983 in Mexico, resulting in spread of this material into 600 tonnes of steel products which ended up in 23 US states, Mexico, and Canada. In one of the worst radiological disasters in US history, contaminated steel products and reinforcing bars had to be tracked down. Some 100 homes in Mexico had to be destroyed as they used contaminated steel bars. The US Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) reported that it is notified of about 200 lost or stolen radioactive sources each year and that since 1983, 20 sources had been accidentally melted at steel works and other foundries. According to other sources, 65 meltings have occurred worldwide. IAEA says it is aware of 49 meltings worldwide in 1998. Also worth studying are the European Commission's technical guidelines on the future management of scrap metals arising from the decommissioning of nuclear sites.

RADIOACTIVE MATERIAL
Despite availability of instrumentation, it is quite possible for radioactive material to pass through undetected if it in thin wires or powder form and is encased in lead containers — this is a technical problem container security experts have been trying to deal with. The scenario of terrorists shipping in radioactive materials for subsequent dispersal in populated areas is one we have to deal with.

For example, Co-60 could be easily converted into soluble chemicals, diluted and introduced into drinking water supplies.

The case is complicated and needs a combination of determined police work and technical expertise to resolve the host of issues involved. The AERB must be strengthened to handle this task.

No equipment should be disposed of as scrap without approval of the AERB or its delegated authority. Scrap dealers should be sensitised to be cautious and report any suspicious containers, especially of lead, that might contain radioactive material.
(The author, a Ph.D in partcle physics, is a former Ambassador to Cuba and Greece. blfeedback@thehindu.co.in)
Nuclear waste- Wake-up call from Mayapuri

War Heroes Comic publication

My dear Col AS Butalia,
On 14 Aug 10 we will be releasing the Next Indian War Comic on Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan AC at the Vivekananda International Foundation (3 San Martin Marg Chankyapuri, New Delhi) in a function from 1730- 1930 h.

India is heading for a period of great turbulence and challenges in the form of Jihadi Terrorism and LWE as also the significant long term threat from China and the immediate and very real threat from Pakistan. Is our youth prepared to face these challenges? Is the country? Today the Indian Army itself is short of some 12000 young officers at the cutting edge. As a nation we need to reinvent ourselves if we are to surmount these major threats to our national security. We need to spread the time tested values of Duty , Honour, Country.

We need to get old fashioned Patriotism back into vogue in the national conciousness. How do we revive these fast eroding value- systems? How do we overcome the climate of cynisim, corruption and moral collapse? By creating a new, Post-independence Mythology around our Military Heroes who laid down their lives , who gave their today for our tommorrow.

Indian war comics seeks to immortalise these martyrs in our collective memory.The First of this series on Capt Vikram Batra was released by Gen VP Malik. The second was on Col NJC Nair AC, KC one of the highest decorated Indian Army officers. The Latest is on the Hero of Mumbai, the saviour of 26/11- Maj Sandeep UnnikrishnanAC - The braveheart of Mumbai.

If we forget such national heroes and icons we do ourselves a great dissevice as a nation and as a people. Nations are built on the trans personal values of Patriotism, courage and Sacrifice. These heroes did not lecture about these value. They lived them in their lives; they laid down their lives for their beliefs. The youth of a country needs such role models, such beacons of light in an encircling gloom of cynisism and the rising stink of corruption and debasement of values.

Please join us on the eve of Independence to salute the sacred memory of these Martyrs and to pass on their tales of valour to the coming generations.

The artist who has done the drawings for these War comics is from Manipur! Any greater proof that India is one?

May I request All ESM fraternity to join us in this noble venture? Could you please pass on this message?
Regards,
Maj Gen G D Bakshi
Deputy Director (Research)
Vivekananda International Foundation