After national outrage, MoD clears LTIPP, 12th Defence Plan

After the Army Chief’s letter baring the glaring lacunae in the military preparedness, the Ministry of Defence swung into action on Monday. All in a day’s work, the Ministry cleared the pending 15 years perspective investment plan for the three services and the 12th five year defence plan giving a projection of the Indian defence spending in sync with the country’s envisaged role in the region and outside. 

Getting flak for long winding acquisition processes severely impairing the capability of the armed forces, the Defence Minister AK Antony on Monday passed the buck to the Indian Army and asked the force to put its house in order and “streamline” its own procurement process.

The Defence Ministry sought to approve the long standing demands of the Army in a review meeting with Army Chief General VK Singh and the top brass of the Indian Army. In the meeting, attended by Defence Secretary Shashikant Sharma and DG Acquisition Vivek Rae, Antony told the Army to “streamline its acquisition process in such a manner so that accountability can be fixed in case of any slippages”.

In any acquisition, the services are needed to put up a statement for requirement that is needed to be approved by the Ministry, thereafter, a tender is being issued, followed by field trials and technical evaluation by the forces. This is followed by the Ministry approving it and the Contract Negotiation Committee (CNC) holding negotiations with the vendor. This is followed by the approval of the Cabinet Committee on Security and finally the signing of the contract.

The Ministry has completely washed off its hands from the delay in the acquisition even as the formulation of the Defence Procurement Policy that guides the acquisitions is formulated by it.  Antony has also asked the officials of Defence Ministry and the Army “to examine the possibility of compressing the time taken for technical evaluations and trials.”

The Defence Ministry is also mulling increasing the financial powers of the service chiefs. Presently the service chiefs can directly finalise any deal below Rs. 300 crore.

Later in the day, the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) attended by General VK Singh, IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne and Indian Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma cleared the LTIPP for the year 2012-2027 and the 12th Defence Plan for 2012-17. While LTIPP is a broader vision for the 12^th, 13th and 14^th defence plans, the 12^th Defence Plan deals more specifically with the requirements and the modernization plans of the armed forces.

The Defence Ministry was supposed to finalize the LTIPP in 2011. However, it got finalized in April 2012, since when it needed to come into effect. Even as the state of Indian Army’s preparedness has been talked about, the state of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Indian Navy is not any different.

The IAF is compelled to train its pilot on a decrepit MiG-21 fleet or cut down the schedule of the pilot training for the lack of basic trainers. The fighter jets fleet of the force also calls for major overhaul. The IAF is still short of its sanctioned squadron strength of 39.5 is still a decade away from inducting its first of the 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircraft (MMRCA). The home-built Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) marred by constant delays and cost overruns is still a few years from entering the inventory of the IAF.

The Indian Navy fairs no better. The Emergency Committee of the Cabinet had envisaged a force level of 138 ships for the Indian Navy. Nearly five decades after later, we still have not reached the mark. In 1999, the submarine strength of the force was projected at 24, but presently the submarine strength is down to 14 with most of the platforms already crossing their age. All the acquisitions – aircraft carrier, submarines or destroyers – are running behind the schedule and the costs have inflated.