The defence acquisitions ofIndiaare also proving to fruitful for the Indian defence industry which is likely to gain by defence offsets signed so far. The offset contracts value at a whopping $ 4.279 billion. Any foreign vendors entering a defence contract valuing more than Rs. 300 crores is mandated to invest 30 percent of the deal in Indian defence industry and it is called offsets. Surprisingly not a single defence offset for the Indian Army.
Here is the reply of Defence Ministry in the Parliament
The Defence Procurement Procedure (DPP) is refined and updated periodically. DPP was last reviewed in 2010 on the basis of experience gained during its implementation and feedback received from various stakeholders including Armed forces, Indian defence industry, Industry Associations and Original Equipment Manufacturers. DPP-2011 was promulgated with effect from 1st January, 2011. The amendments aim at expediting decision making, simplification of contractual and financial provisions and establishing a level playing field for the public sector and private sector.
17 Offset contracts have been signed so far with a value of about US $ 4.279 billion. Details are given in table below. The offset contracts are at various stages of execution.
The offset policy was introduced in 2005. It is a relatively new policy and in the process of evolution. The first offset contract was signed in 2007. Implementation of the Offset contract is co-terminus with the execution of the main contract as per present guidelines. Indian Industry both public and private sector are benefitting through investments and purchases by foreign vendors who have signed Offset contracts. The positive impact of Offsets on development of the indigenous Defence industrial base will be visible in the coming years.
ANTRIX DEAL A CASE OF PUBLIC INVESTMENT FOR PRIVATE PROFIT: CAG
NEW DELHI: The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on Tuesday criticised the roles of the Department of Space and its former secretary, G Madhavan Nair, in the Antrix-Devas deal, saying the deal was a “classic case of public investment for private profit”.
A CAG report, tabled in Parliament on Tuesday, found the Department of Space guilty of concealing facts from the Cabinet and violating various rules and procedures. It also accused Nair of “conflict of interest”, and said his role had affected the system of checks and balances in the decision-making process, leading to the award of the contract to Devas.
“The Antrix-Devas deal is a classic instance of failure of the government structure in which selected individuals, some serving and some retired public servants, were able to successfully propel the agenda of a private entity by arrogating unto themselves, powers which they were not legitimised to exercise,” the report said.
The report said the Cabinet’s approval for introducing the Devas service was not secured. The department had also failed to bring crucial facts to the notice of the Space Commission, responsible for formulating policies related to the development and application of space science.
“Of the 70 MHz of S Band spectrum, 10 MHz was intended for strategic use, and was not to be shared for commercial applications. Even this band was earmarked for Devas,” the report said.
The CAG said undue favours extended to Devas by the Department of Space resulted in a loss of considerable revenue to the government. “The Devas service had considerable fiscal potential for the government, and by not following the due process for this new service, the revenue interest of the government seems to have been totally ignored.”
Terming the method of allocation of the contract to Devas “cherry-picking”, the CAG said the Department of Space chose agreements that benefited Devas, not the government.
On Nair’s role, the report said, “There was concentration of many roles in one person.”
INDIA‘S HANSA TRAINER TO GO UNMANNED
If you thoughtIndiahad way too many unmanned air vehicle programmes, here’s reason for you to slap your forehead again: The makers of the Hansa are looking to spin off an unmanned version of the trainer/general purpose aircraft. The state-owned National Aerospace Laboratory (NAL), which developed the Hansa, has entered into an agreement with private firm Kadet Defence Systems to convert the aircraft into an optionally unmanned platform. The agreement also includes joint development of a new tactical UAV (yes, another!).
Do remember that the Indian Air Force looked abroad and will now spend close to a billion dollars to buy new propeller trainers, even when the Hansa has proven that such an aircraft can be built in the country. Therefore, apart from a smattering of flying clubs around the country, the Hansa remains just that — a swan.
There’s an appalling lack of resource and research synergy between HAL, NAL, the DRDO and the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA), all of which appear to be either developing (or, in HAL’s case, marketing) UAVs with areas of obvious technological overlap. Weirdly, beyond the meaningless paper seminars and lofty presentations, none of these laboratories or agencies actually cooperate to deliver even a single, capable unmanned system to the armed forces. All we ever get to hear about is new UAVs, or old UAVs with new names. Someone needs to do something about this.
INDIAN ARMY WOMEN MOUNTAINEERS TO LAUNCH EVEREST SUMMIT ATTEMPT ON WEDNESDAY
A 22-member team of Indian Army women mountaineers will make its attempt to scaleMount Everest, the world’s tallest peak, over the next five days.
The mountaineers got some encouragement when the Chief of the Nepal Army, Gen C M S Gurung, arrived the Everest base camp to personally meet the team in the inhospitable region of the Everest and greet and exhort them prior to the summit attempt.
Gen Gurung was accompanied by Indian Ambassador in Nepal Jayant Prasad and Indian Defence Attache Col Ajay Pasbola.
“The visit of the Chief of the Nepal Army and the Indian Ambassador was a great boost to the expedition team,” an official press release said.
Addressing the team members led by Col Ajay Kothiyal, Gen Gurung said, “Physical fitness can get you here but it is mental strength, drive and determination that will get you there (pointing to the summit of Everest, clearly visible in the distance)”.
The Chief, an honorary General of the Indian Army, is an alumnus of theIndianMilitaryAcademy, Dehradun and has also undergone various other professional courses in Indian military institutes.
He offered all help, material and said that a helicopter is available to the team and a smaller aircraft is on standby at all times for any exigencies that may arise during the expedition.
He recalled past joint expeditions the Indian and Nepal Armies have participated in, citing the 2003 Joint Indo-Nepal Everest Expedition and the recently-concluded Eco-Annapurna Trek 2011. He also revealed future plans of joint expeditions between the two armies to be conducted in India 2013 andNepalin 2013.
The team, which includes seven women officers, had leftDelhiforKathmanduon March 22.
NAGPUR AIRPORT BAGS AWARD FOR INDRA SYSTEM
NAGPUR: Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar International Airport has received a special AAI chairman’s award from the ministry of civil aviation for successful installation and commissioning of a new Air Traffic Control (ATC) automation system ‘Indra’ at the airport. The officials of Airport Authority of India (AAI), under the leadership of airport director Ashok Kumar Verma, have recently made the new system, imported from Spanish company Indra, operational here.
Talking to TOI, Verma said that the new system would increase efficiency, reduce chances of mishaps and human error, and ensure complete radar coverage.Nagpurwas chosen for the first installation due to its central location and the fact that it guides the movements of over 650 aircraft that pass over fromNagpurcontrolled airspace from Europe, Middle East and Africa to South East andEast Asiaand most of the domestic traffic from North to South and East to West.
With the new system, aircraft would be in continuous contact with the ATC while transiting fromNagpurairspace. ATC can direct the pilots to ascend in case the flight is losing height to avoid mid air collision. The new system has facilitated direct routing of planes instead of detouring which will help planes to be separated by 40 nautical miles instead of 80 nautical miles. It ultimately will help in reducing flight timings and saving fuel to the tune of 1.28 crore litres per year, Verma said.
With Indra,Nagpurhas been connected toBhopalandHyderabadairports through radars and is slated to be connected with Jharsuguda in Orissa and Ahmedabad radars soon, he said. This will further facilitate larger coverage up to Jaipur in north toBangalorein south and Vishakhapattanam in east toAurangabadin the west, he added.
SATELLITE-BASED NAVIGATION FOR AIR TRAVEL SAFETY
CHENNAI: Air travel in India is getting safer and better as the GPS-aided Geo Augmented Navigation system (Gagan), a satellite-based facility to enhance safety and efficiency of aircraft operations, will be installed in all airports across the country by June next year. Gagan is a joint venture between Airports Authority of India (AAI) and Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro).
After commissioning the Air Traffic Signal Automation at the Tiruchy airport, AAI Air Navigation Services member V. Somasundaram said Gagan would improve air traffic management through timely information on aircraft movement, integration of meteorological data and aeronautical information. The pilots will directly receive details from satellites.
“Indiawill be the fourth country after theUnited States,Japanand European Consortium to have Gagan, which minimises or eliminates human intervention in the air traffic control and plane cockpit,” he said, adding that the system would enhance safety and efficiency of aircraft operations through better situational awareness and safety tools for the ATCs.
The AAI had installed ground reference stations in 15 strategic locations across the country and all airports would be networked through them. The national Gagan centre would be located in Bengaluru.
Apart from air navigation applications, Mr Somasundaram said, Gagan would also be useful to other service providers like the Indian Railways and Archaeological Survey of India. The Navy and Indian Coast Guard could also use the facility, he added.
To upgrade air traffic management sector, Mr Somasundaram said, the AAI would install Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B), a cost-effective surveillance technology in 14 airports in the country by July this year.
“We are constantly upgrading our technologies. ADS-B, which helps in tracking aircraft as part of next generation air transportation system will be useful as a supplementary device especially when the radar fails or withdrawn for some reason,” he added.
ANTONY SAID NO TO ISRAEL REQUEST FOR A VISIT BY EHUD BARAK
NEW DELHI: In a rebuff prompted by domestic political concerns,Indiaturned down an Israeli request for an official visit by its high-profile Defence Minister Ehud Barak during the Defexpo last month.
Tel Aviv felt that the event provided the right forum for a political visit to showcase the growing defence partnership. But sources said the Defence Ministry — the organiser of Defexpo — took the line that inviting Israeli political leaders to the event could raise a controversy.
Israelis among the top three defence suppliers toIndiaand was the biggest participating country in terms of floor space at Defexpo. It had close to 20 companies at the show given that it is DRDO’s largest technology partner. Given this scale of participation,Israelfelt, a visit by its Defence Minister would have been an appropriate gesture.
But Defence Minister A K Antony was quite clear about keeping this a low-profile relationship. It’s believed that the MoD did not consult the MEA before regretting the request.
UPA II Ministers S M Krishna, Kapil Sibal and Kamal Nath have visitedIsrael. The last major Israeli visit was by President Ariel Sharon in 2003 and Foreign Minister Shimon Peres next year.
‘INDIA CAN RESPOND TO ANY MISADVENTURE BY PAKISTAN’
PUNE :Indiais fully capable of responding to any misadventure byPakistandespite the west-side neighbour acquiring nuclear weapons, a top Indian Army commander said here Tuesday.
“Since the 1998 nuclear tests, India and Pakistan have been through limited war (Kargil) and a major military crisis (Indian Army exercise ‘Operation Parakram’), making clear that the nuclearisation of both the countries has not made conventional war between them an obsolete concept,” Lt. Gen. A.K. Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Southern Command, said.
He was delivering the Gen. B.C. Joshi Memorial lecture at the Pune University MBA (PUMBA) campus.
Speaking on “Prespective on war in 21st century”, Lt. Gen. Singh said, “Acqusition of nuclear weapon byPakistanhas not altered the strategic balance in the subcontinent and it has not been able to neutraliseIndia’s conventional war fighting superiority.”
“Notwithstanding the nuclear deterrence in place, there is adequate strategic space forIndiato respond to a Pakistani misadventure, which might arise out of its miscalculated confidence,” he asserted.
Lt. Gen. Singh pointed out that nuclear capability may limit the objective, scope and intensity of war and despite views to the contrary, the nuclear threshold would not be as fragile and low as was made out by many strategists and academicians.
“The biggest concern for nation states is the acquisition of weapons of mass Destruction (WMD) by non-state actors (extremist groups). How will the dynamics of deterrence, coercion and escalatory control work against non-state actors? It is a nightmare scenario and remains a very real threat,” he said.
Lt. Gen. Singh said that in order to be effective against non-state players, deterrence, coercion and escalatory control must rely on international protocols to prevent proliferation through sanctions and other tough measures.
“Most important of all, international cooperation is needed among intelligence agencies to detect moves by identified non-state actors to acquire WMD, so that timely counter-action can be initiated.”
“Future wars will be hybrid and conventional forces the world over will have to constantly adapt and evolve to face new challenges,” the commander said.
NO PLANS TO PULL BACK INDIAN TROOPS, CLARIFIES DEFENCE MINISTRY
The Ministry of Defence on Monday rubbished Pakistani Media Reports, which said that the ‘Indian Government may move troops to peace time locations’. The news was widely printed across the Indian media with some newspapers even marking it as a headline.
“The report published in Express Tribune,Islamabadedition, dated 14 May 2012, that “Indiamay move troops to peace time locations” is completely incorrect and without any basis. There are no such plans,” said a Defence Ministry release.
Media reports earlier said that the Indian Government is likely to pull back troops from what they call ‘wartime positions’ to which the troops were moved at the working boundary withPakistanafter the 2008 Mumbai terrorist attacks.
The decision to withdraw troops is among the first substantial overture since India and Pakistan resumed peace talks following the terror strike in 2008 which killed more than 160 people, including foreigners, reports The Express Tribune.
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