By Nantoo Banerjee
Is something genuinely wrong with the way the affairs of the country are being run? They probably are. How else can one explain and put up with India’s emerging as the world’s biggest annual defence importer with its army, navy and air force still putting up with massive shortage of modern armament and equipment. Why do India’s indigenous missile and satellite programmes have little connect with its military capability? Why is India short of modern guns, trucks, war ships, aircraft carriers, nuclear submarines, fighters, bombers, signal equipment and electronic gadgets? Why does India’s annual defence import of less than $10billion raise a critical national concern when the poor country, having a per capita annual income of less than Rs. 6,000, officially imports $70billion worth gold every year for personal consumption? Why does anti-India campaign often get official protection and campaigners rarely booked with the charge of treason or let off the hook cheaply when they should spend their entire life in jail? Why does India often fail to book and punish terrorists in the country and blame others for shielding anti-India terror? Why are certain political elements in India over-concerned about what the country’s prime minister communicates to overseas Indians, who support India’s economy with repatriation of over $70billion a year? Why is India still struggling to grow while China, a much economically weaker country in 1950, became the world’s second largest economy in 2013? India occupies the 10th position in GDP.
These questions and many more trouble ordinary Indians, both at home and abroad, when they know that their government failed to strike a 126 fighter aircraft import deal with France’s Dassault Aviation SA for seven years between 2007 and 2014 and that India finds it tough to spend $12-14 billion per year to modernize its defence forces. India spends over 20 per cent or more than $100billion on luxury imports every year. India’s military has remained in the hands of foreign equipment suppliers since its independence as the Nehru’s Congress government trusted foreign suppliers agents more than possible local manufacturers. The tradition continued for decades. How come the present prime minister managed to decide so quickly to strike a deal to import 36 Rafale fighter jets directly from the French manufacturer? The fact is the French fighter aircraft are not going to land in India next week or month. The deal may take almost two years to complete.
While Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s last concluded three-nation foreign trip covering France, Germany and Canada became an eye opener for these countries as well as others about the seriousness with which the government is dealing with India’s defence, strategic and economic concerns, a lot need to be done to take the country forward on all these areas. Uranium import from Canada is fine. But, will the government be able to implement the pending nuclear projects in the country? The unfortunate fact is that there is a massive political and NGO resistance to development in the country. Can the government lift spirit of the people towards development?
The resistance to the new land acquisition act is pretty depressing despite the fact that India has to grow strongly in the fields of industry and infrastructure to create jobs and hope for its massive unemployed youth both in the rural and urban parts. Modern agriculture is less job-oriented. More rural youth from the hinterland are moving to towns and cities both in China and India for jobs. Industry must have land to ‘Make-in-India’ to ensure higher economic growth and jobs for the youth, after training them in various trades.
The Rafale deal with the French government involving an outright purchase of 36 fighter aircraft ready-to-fly on operational exercise is considered to be a great move since the Indian Air Force waited for almost 15 years for new generation aircraft. IAF had to make do mostly with Russian supplies. Many of the Russian fighters, especially MiG 21, are old. While MiG 29, Sukhoi and other newer Russian aircraft have come to the rescue of the IAF’s inadequate strength and limited operational versatility, the country badly needs to pruce up its airpower in the face of aggressive acquisition by neighbouring hostile and unpredictable Pakistan and China’s military expansion. Until now, Russian supplies provided the key operational strength to the IAF.
Russia has also been the first to offer technology transfer to build MiG aircraft in India. But, India needs more. IAF’s aircraft strength is fast aging. It also requires to improve versatility of air strength. Defence sources say that India urgently need to conclude a host of defence purchase deals worth over $ 40 billion (Rs. 250,000). These purchases have been pending for years. While insisting on its ‘Make-in-India’ programme, the new government is keen to ensure that urgent defence requirements are not further delayed or stalled by vested interest groups in military, bureaucracy and DRDO. The government wants the transactions go down smoothly and fast. Among the urgent defence requirements are six submarines worth $8 billion to be built in India, 440 helicopters worth $6.5 billion for all the three services to be mostly made in India, 56 transport aircraft costing around $3.2 billion for which a Tata-Airbus consortium made a bid and assortment of anti-tank missiles, infantry fighting vehicles, armored personnel carriers and other crucial military hardware worth $1.1 billion.
Almost 60 per cent of the Indian Army budget is spent on payroll. Indian Air Force is said to be operating at 75 per cent of sanctioned strength of combat squadrons. Indian Navy too has been hit by the delays in acquisition and technology upgradation as well as a series of accidents. The defence ministry plans to spend $150 billion within the next 12 years to modernize India’s military and push domestic manufacturing involving both the private and public sectors. For all these, the entrepreneurs will require land and infrastructure support. Is India ready to meet these challenges?
The prime minister sought the support of both France and Germany to use the huge potential of India to make it a manufacturing hub. He also addressed overseas Indians in Germany and Canada asking them to invest in India and undertake manufacturing activities in the country. France and its nuclear power companies, AREVA and Alstom, are keen to settle issues concerning the Jaitapur nuclear power plant in Maharashtra. Are Shiv Sainiks ready to welcome the French nuclear plant at Jaitapur? Airbus has announced its decision to enhance outsourcing from India from 400 million Euros to two billion Euros over the next five years. French National Railways offered to co-finance a semi-high-speed (200Km per hour) project on Delhi-Chandigarh route. India is keen to be a modern country. However, all these can’t be achieved if political parties have a different agenda. (IPA Service)