Reports surfaced last week that the army, faced with a growing salary budget and an immense officer shortfall, has moved a proposal to increase intake of Short Service Commission (SSC) and correspondingly reduce the number of permanent commission officers. The MoD appears satisfied with the proposal, which also involves offering some lumpsum payments to those who serve 10 or 14 […]
The first meeting of the Defence Planning Committee (DPC) headed by the NSA, Ajit Doval, was held early this month. It being the first meeting, a statement mentioned, ‘No major decision was taken. The meeting, which lasted for around two hours, discussed the key challenges ahead and how to address them’. Another statement mentioned, ‘The members deliberated on the geo-strategic […]
A report in the press last week stated that the army, in its latest conference of senior officials termed the army commanders conference, deliberated on its holding of ammunition stocks, both in quality and quantity. The army, as per government directives is expected to be prepared for a two-front war, involving both China and Pak operating in collusion. Adding a […]
Introduction There has been a spurt in suggestions on downsizing of the Indian army, since China took the giant step of announcing last year that it would cut its PLA strength, while increasing the strength of the PLA navy and strategic forces. The calls gained pace post the announcement of the defence budget, picking up steam after the release of […]
Post the furore created over the presentations of the vice chiefs of the three services to the Parliamentary Committee and their submitted report on poor allocation of the defence capital budget, the army chief has been constantly seeking to convey that the army’s preparedness would not suffer, despite lack of funds. In fact, in every interaction with the media, this […]
The defence ministry recently announced new directions to enhance functioning of the two joint commands of the Indian armed forces, the Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) and the Strategic Forces Command (SFC). These commands comprise of personnel from the three services who till now operated under their respective service rules and under directions of their respective service Headquarters (HQs), while […]
The rifle for a soldier is an extension of his body. It is the weapon on which he must possess maximum trust. Every soldier, irrespective of his nature of duties has a service weapon allocated to him, which is termed his personal weapon. It is this which he fires during peace to build confidence to operate the same in war. […]
In a recent seminar on ‘Geo-strategic manifestations in Pakistan and implications for India’ at the Punjab University Chandigarh, army commanders of the Army Training Command (ARTRAC) and Western Command shared their perspectives. The army commander ARTRAC stated, ‘Peace on the border is difficult to achieve at the tactical level alone. Restoring ceasefire requires statesmanship not brinkmanship.’ On the other hand, […]
In an article in the Business Standard yesterday, Abhijit Iyer Mitra commented that while the budget this year has little for modernization, the fault lies with the army. He defended his argument with examples, most of which were misplaced and ill-founded. In fact, the entire piece appeared to be written without any tactical or strategic knowledge, inputs based on incomplete […]
In a recent reply to a question raised by Mr Chandrashekar, a Rajya Sabha MP, on whether the government was considering grant of Non-Functional Upgradation (NFU) for the armed forces, the MoS Defence replied in the negative, stating that the case was sub judice. In the meanwhile, there has been no action on the part of the MoD to even […]