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Ranjit B Rai
IDU Update (September 2007)
When a
senior experienced and capable bureaucrat Ajai Vikram Singh
became Defence Secretary few years ago, he crafted what is
known as the AV SINGH report for ensuring retention in the
Armed Forces. In Western countries officers and men are given
retention pay, incentives, and such but A V Singh provided
quicker time scale promotions to Col/ Captain and Gp Captain
level in phase 1 and more Flag Officers in Phase 2. A V Singh
had held posts of India's Supply Mission in Audley Street
in London in times when UK was a large supplier of defence
and other equipment to India and then in India's MOD he knew
how to handle the Armed Forces. The Army implemented Phase
1 post haste and the Army was top heavy with senior officers
and Navy and Air Force tried to object as it would be difficult
to run ships with all Captains and limited accommodation of
cabins or IAF stations with all Gp Capts but the scheme got
implemented. The Army from the days young Lt Cols commanded
Battalions now had multiple elderly Colonels in Regiments.
The current UPA government pending possible elections in the
next nine months is set to implement the Pay Commission and
immediately create 156 additional posts for general-rank officers
in Phase 11 of the AV Singh report and this has led to what
media calls a virtual war among the services, with the Army
launching a charge on Navy and IAF. As first reported by TOI,
Defence minister AK Antony had held a meeting on August 31
for "speedy implementation" of Phase-II of the Ajai
Vikram Singh committee report to remove the stifling stagnation
in the higher ranks of the forces.
As
per the projections the calculations were on the earlier strength
of Flag Officers and proportional increase in the three services.
Hence the 1.13 million-strong Army was to get only 20 more
Lt-Generals to add to the existing 68, and only 75 more Major-Generals
to add to the existing 216 based on strength of some sanctioned
45,000 officers, with only 35,377 in service. The Air Force
is to get 7 full Air Marshals and 31 AVMS and Navy was to
get 7 Vice Admirals and only 16 RADMs on base strength of
some 100,000 ( 10,563 officers) and 57,000( 7336 officers)
.
Gen
JJ Singh who retires end September has demanded a bigger share
since the Army was battling terrorists and losing personnel
everyday. A "very surprised" Antony asked the service
chiefs - Gen Singh, Admiral Sureesh Mehta and Air Chief Marshal
F H Major - to sort out the issue. Gen JJ Singh has also stated
the Armed Forces are not ready for a CDS in a surprising statement.
This has brought Inter Service Rivalry in the open, and does
not augur well. But the question IDU asks who is the Commander
In Chief to adjudicate with no CDS, PM in hospital after surgery
and convalescing and Pranab Mukherjee on tour.
See IDU
Story on the CDS Issue hanging fire and Field Marshal S F
Manekshaw. As an aside Gen JJ Singh is standing for election
to post of President of the prestigious Gymkhana Club and
Air Marshal Ahluwalia CinC Western Air Command is opposing
him. Once again IDU states the Indian Armed Forces are one
of the world's best but most time lack, Command and Control
and direction from the political Leadership so Bureaucracy
fills the vacuum.
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