Mess in defense .
The edit, Firing Blanks, and the report, Saint Anthony leaves army weaponless (DNA, 3/1) exposes one more failure of the UPA. India which is surrounded by hostile neighbours should always be one step ahead of them to defeat their nefarious designs. However, UPA has messed up the modernisation of weapons and equipments of the army, navy and airforce by " a labyrinthine bureaucracy, replete with overlapping jurisdictions, lack of planning and lach of transparency" as pointed out by you. The decision-making in defense ministry is stymed by the procurement process with layers of bureaucratic committees and lobbying by various defense equipment manufacturers from Europe and USA.This is a fertile ground for commissions and bribes. The government seems to meet this problem by adding more committees and banning the firms involved in bribing. While bribe giving and receiving should be punished, India cannot afford to give up latest weapons and equipments which will serve our forces well. The time has come for India to build a strong defense manufacturing industry by inviting private sector and collaborating with manufacturers in other countries. India would not be strong without it.
January 3, 2014.
*********
