Procedures holding defence modernisation hostage: Army chief

Stressing on the necessity for self reliance in defence manufacturing, Chief of Army Staff General M M Naravane on Thursday stated India had made some advances on this space over the previous few years however procedural bottlenecks have been holding defence modernisation “hostage”.
Speaking at an occasion organised by CII and the Society of Indian Defence Manufacturers, General Naravane stated, “There are certain procedural lacunae in the procurement process, which primarily arise due to the overbearing nature of our rules and guidelines in trying to ensure zero error.” He added that the issue “is also aggravated by our own interpretation of rules,” he stated.
He stated that India was nonetheless depending on imports for a number of area of interest applied sciences. “Considering the quick pace of defence modernisation undertaken by our adversaries, we are lagging behind slightly. The continuous and heavy dependence on equipment of foreign origin needs to be addressed in right earnest through indigenous capability development,” he stated.
But he added that previously few years, “we have tried to reverse this trend, by boosting indigenisation and focusing on dual-purpose high-end technology”. This method, he stated, “will not only ensure self-reliance, it will also hold good during times of contingency”.
However, iterating that, “indigenous development alone cannot fill existing… operational voids due to lack of niche technology and manufacturing capability”, the General stated “there may be some inescapable need for a certain percentage of imports. Once cannot afford to have operational voids when the enemy is at the gate”.
Adding that tying to plug each loophole was inflicting delays within the course of, Naravane stated it, “results in the acquisition process being tied up in knots” and “what has happened is that the processes and procedures have become paramount rather than the product and these are holding hostage defence modernisation.”
Speaking concerning the Defence Acquisition Procedure-2020 (DAP 2020), which, which was launched by the Defence Ministry in September, he stated it has launched “substantial amendments to provide for efficient and expedited procurement of defence technology and equipment, large incentive to the private sector-promising transparency and probity to the process”.
Private gamers at the moment are offering massive defence platforms like artillery weapons, bridges, radars and a variety of weapons and tools, he stated.
Speaking concerning the dependence on world suppliers, he stated the Covid-19 pandemic “has shown the fragility and disruptions of global supply chain and consequent effect on trade and economic growth” and once more burdened that “self-reliance is the only way to insulate ourselves from such disruptions”.
“Increasing security challenges due to India’s rising stature in the international community, apart from unresolved borders and revisionist adversaries have led to Indian Army being embroiled in protracted conflicts such as insurgencies and proxy wars,” Naravane stated, and acknowledged that “continuous and concerted capability building of the Army through modernisation to address these security challenges therefore is a national imperative”.
The Defence Ministry, he stated, has “further strengthened the Armed Forces by according enhanced financial powers to meet instant requirements and is making endeavours for allocating requisite financial outlay”.