Vivek Issues n Options July - August 2014

8/11/2019 Vivek Issues n Options July - August 2014

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Agenda for new Army Chief

India not immune to Jihadism Cleaning the Ganga

Xi Jinping's Upcoming India Visit

and many more .

Published By : Vivekananda International Foundation3, San Martin Marg, Chanakyapuri, New Delhi 110021, [email protected],www.vifindia.org
http://www.vifindia.org/http://www.vifindia.org/


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VIVEK : Issues and Options JulyAugust 2014 Issue: III No: IV 2

GOVERNANCE

Regulatory Impact Analysis An Essent

Element of Policy Making

- Debashis Banerjee

Cleaning the Ganga: Need for a New

Management Paradigm

- Dr M N Buch

BOOK REVIEW

Churchill and the Jews

EVENTS

Vimarsha on Transforming Centre-State

Relations

Discussion on Christine Fairs Book

Interaction with Ms. Kavita Kewal,

Department of Defence, Australia

Visit of Nepalese Delegation

Seminar on West Asia

Interaction with Dr Moeed Yusuf

Talk by Amb Hussain Haqqani

DITORS NOTE

ENTRE STAGEgenda for the New Army Chief

- Brig (Retd) Gurmeet Kanwal

ATION

ndia not Immune to Jihadist Fires

-

Sushant Sareen

EBATE

Why Muslim Clerics Oppose Madrasa

odernisation Programme

-

RNP Singh

IPLOMACY

dia Needs to Tread Cautiously in Defence

eals with US

- Radhakrishna Rao

EIGHBOURHOOD

Will President Xi Jinpings Visit change the

ontours of Sino-Indian Ties?

- Brig (Retd) Vinod Anand

he Gujrat Model of Development: Can itWork for Nepal?

-

Prof Hari Bansh Jha

EFENCE

rategic Defence and A Mountain Strike

orps

-

Lt. Gen (Retd) Gautam Banerjee

Contents

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4

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aimer: The views and opinions expressed in the articles published in the e-journal are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Vivekananda International F


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Editors Note

Hundred days is too short a period to assess the performance of a Government which came

to power riding on lot of hopes and has full five years at its disposal to keep the promises it

had made. Yet, like the box office collections of movies counted every week, the mediamakes a circus of such events. While it would be too early to pass any judgement on the

Modi Government, its over three month long tenure clearly points to certain discernible

indicators pertaining to the nations economy, security, social security etc. Of course, the

most visible changes have been seen on the foreign policy front right from the word go.

On display is a strong and decisive leadership, which is willing to take bold steps and

initiatives, secure national interests yet retain the consensus and traditions. It would take

some time for changes in other crucial sectors to become visible on the ground given the

enormity of the challenges. Nevertheless, the NDA Governments first baby steps have

restored the pride and confidence of a demoralised nation and instilled hopes that gooddays are not far away.

In this issue of Vivek, Brig (Retd) Gurmeet Kanwal outlines the challenges and

opportunities before the new Chief of Army Staff, while veteran bureaucrat M N Buch

presents a blueprint for the success of the proposed project to clean river Ganga.

Also on the menu are two insightful and analytical articles by RNP Singh and Sushant

Sareen on topics hitherto skirted by mainstream media and the intelligentsia: the

opposition of Muslim clerics to modernisation of Madrasas and India not being immune to

Jihadists as is widely publicised and perceived.

Do keep us posted with your invaluable inputs.

K G Suresh

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Agenda for the New Army Chief

General Dalbir Suhags highest priority must be to address the criticalhollowness in the armys operational preparedness

- Brig (Retd) Gurmeet Kanwal

n taking over as the COASfrom General BikramSingh, who served with

distinction for over two years,General Dalbir Singh Suhag saidhis priorities would be to enhance

operational preparedness and theeffectiveness of the Indian Army.He also said that forcemodernisation, infrastructuredevelopment, optimisation ofhuman resources and the welfareof personnel are issues that areclose to his heart.

In March 2012, General V K

Singh, the then COAS, hadwritten to the Prime Ministerabout critical hollowness in thearmys operational preparedness.He had pointed out large-scaledeficiencies in weapons systems,ammunition and equipment inservice in the army and the factthat many of the weapons and

equipment were obsolete orbordering on obsolescence. Inparticular, he had brought outthat the artillery and air defencearms needed the infusion of

modern guns, missiles and radarsand the aviation corps requirednew helicopters to replace theageing fleet.

Two consecutive reports of theCAG of December 2011 and

November 2012 brought out thatthe state of defence preparednesswas a cause for seriousanxiety.The Standing Committeeon Defence (SCD) in Parliamenthas also noted these developmentswith concern several times. In anunprecedented move, the SCDinsisted on meeting the three

Chiefs to take stock of operationalpreparedness. The SCD hasrepeatedly urged the governmentto increase the defence budget toenable the armed forces toundertake meaningfulmodernisation.

Weapons, ammunition and

equipment shortages havepersisted for long and severalChiefs before General V K Singhhad written to the PM and theDefence Minister for help to make

O

CENTRE ST

* Brig (Retd) Gurmeet Kanwal, Visiting Fellow, VIF


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up the shortfall. During the Kargilconflict the nation had heardGeneral V P Malik,the COAS,make the chilling statement on

national TV, We will fight withwhat we have. Though theconflict was confined to KargilDistrict, 50,000 rounds of artilleryammunition had to be imported asan emergency measure becausethe stock holding was extremelylow. If it had become necessary toopen another front, the shortage of

artilleryammunition wouldhave seriouslyhamperedoperationalplanning.

Militarymodernisation hastwo major facets:

the replacement ofobsolete andobsolescent weapons andequipment with modern ones,which results in increasing combateffectiveness; and, the qualitativeupgradation of combat capabilitiesthrough the acquisition andinduction of force multipliers.

General Suhag, like hispredecessors, faces a majordilemma: given small budgets,how can the army improveoperational preparedness whilesimultaneously make concerted

efforts to modernise.Logically,operational preparedness takesprecedence over modernisation.The art of military leadership lies

in finding an optimum balance sothat all efforts that are made toenhance operational preparednessalso contribute substantively tomodernisation.

The most critical operationaldeficiencies include theinadequacy of artillery firepowerdue to the obsolescence of guns

and mortars andthe consequentdegradation intheir performancein battle. Nomodernisation hastaken place sincethe Bofors 155mmhowitzer was

purchased fromSweden in the mid-

1980s.The night blindness of thearmys mechanised forces needs tobe rectified immediately. The F-INSAS (future infantry soldier asa system) programme for themodernisation of infantrybattalions must be implemented

on an urgent basis.

Air defence guns and missile andtheir radar systems are reportedto be 97 per cent obsolescent. The

Aviation Corps urgently needs 197light helicopters. The old and

Military modernisation has twomajor facets: the replacementof obsolete and obsolescentweapons and equipment withmodern ones, which results inincreasing combateffectiveness; and, thequalitative upgradation ofcombat capabilities through

the acquisition and inductionof force multi liers.


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inefficient intelligence,reconnaissance, surveillance andtarget acquisition systemsavailable today adversely impact

command and control andtargeting during war. Hence, theC4I2SR system needs a completeoverhaul. The logistics supportsystem also needs to be revamped,with the concept of just in timelogistics being implemented.

The new COAS will preside overthe modernisation process during

the remaining three years of the12th Defence Plan, including theraising of 17 Corps foremployment on the border withChina. This Corps, being raised asa strike corps for the mountains,is expected to cost Rs 64,000 croreto raise and equip over a period offive to seven years. Approximately

90,000 new personnel will beadded to the army's manpowerstrength, including those inancillary support and logisticsunits.New weapons andequipment will have to beprocured for the divisions,brigades and battalions of thisCorps. It will be a retrograde step

to milk these from existingbattalions to equip new raisings.

Recruiting additional manpower ofthe requisite qualifications has sofar not posed any problems for theworlds third largest volunteer

army. However, finding officers for17 Corps will be a major challengeas there is an ongoing deficiency ofapproximately 10,000 officers.

Transferring officers from existingbattalions will further dilute theircommand and control and weakenthem intrinsically. The methodsfor remedying this shortcomingare well known; it is for the NDAgovernment to take appropriateaction in an early time frame.

General Suhag wishes to ensure

that relatively softer issues likehuman resources development andthe welfare of serving personneland veterans are not neglected.Morale is adversely affected ifthese issues are not appropriatelyhandled. As a member of theChiefs of Staff Committee, theGeneral will help in the

formulation of therecommendations of the armedforces for consideration by theSeventh Pay Commission. Thishas been a rather contentiousissue in the past and will requiresage handling. Finally, civil-military relations have not beengood in the recent past and need to

be improved.

If one may take the liberty ofusing a few well-known Americanbuzzwords and catch-phrases, therevolution in military affairs hadwhooshed by the Indian army in


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India not Immune to Jihadist Fires

- Sushant Sareen

he recent revelations of fourMumbai youth who joinedthe ranks of the abominable

Islamic State in Iraq and Syria(ISIS) should shake the Indianpolitical establishment and civilsociety out of their reverie thatIndia is immune to the Jihadismthat is infecting Muslim

communities around the world.For far too long, India has been indenial over the growing attractionof jihadist ideology andpropaganda for Indian Muslimyouth. Partly out of the ignoranceof the phenomenon of Jihadismthat is sweeping the Islamic worldand partly out of political

correctness and a fallaciousunderstanding of the concept ofsecularism, India has peddled thefiction that its pluralism anddemocracy is a perfect antidote tothe jihadist virus. But for someyears now, reports have startedcoming in about Indian Muslimsgetting involved in international

jihadist causes.

For the last ten years, India wassaddled with a Prime Ministerwho couldnt sleep in the nightthinking about what the mother of

the failed suicide bomber of Indianorigin who bombed the Glasgowairport must be going through.With no clarity, much lessdirection, coming from the politicalleadership to what was clearly anemerging, but also extremelyserious, threat which waspolitically a very sensitive issue,

almost a hot potato, even thesecurity establishmentunderplayed it. But with thingsnow heading for the proverbialtipping point, it is critical that thegovernment, the Muslimcommunity, civil society, mediaand public at large start takingcounter measures to ensure

matters dont get out of hand.Fortunately, with a newgovernment in place, thesomnolence on vital security issueswill become a thing of the past.

After the 9/11 attacks and thestart of the US-led Global War onTerror, many countries suddenly

became aware of the involvementof their Muslim citizens in jihadistactivities. While it was natural formost Muslim countries to findtheir citizens involved, the realsurprise was the involvement of

T

NATION

* Sushant Sareen, Senior Fellow, VIF


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Muslims and recent converts toIslam in Western countries in

jihadist activities. India howevergloated that not one Indian

Muslim was involved withterrorist groups like the Al Qaeda.While this may have beentechnically correct, it ignored thefact that Al Qaeda was less of anorganisation and more of aphenomenon. The radicalism thatthe Al Qaeda espoused andpractised was not very different

from a whole lot of radical Islamicgroups that hadstarted to emergein India, not justafter 9/11 but alsomuch before thatoutrage wasperpetrated. Apartfrom terrorist

groups active inJammu andKashmir for eg. HizbulMujahideen there were othergroups like al Umma, PFI, etc.that had mushroomed in India. Inthe first decade of this century, theIndian Mujahideen erupted on thescene. Initially, the IM comprisedof young Indian Muslims who hadlapped up the Pakistanipropaganda and worked on itsinstructions. But in recent years,there are reports of the IM beingmore inspired by the international

jihadist movements and are tying

in with them. There have alsobeen cells busted of Indian Muslimyouth who were trying to go to

Afghanistan to fight with the Al

Qaeda/Taliban against the US-ledinternational forces.

Admittedly, this trend of youngMuslims in India getting attractedto or seduced by international

jihadist phenomenon hasnt as yetspiralled out of control. At thesame time, it would be a terriblemistake to underplay or ignore

this trend until it erupts. There isclearly a lot ofchurning takingplace among theIndian Muslimyouth, only it isntquite manifestingitself yet in thenational life. This

in itself is a causefor worry because despite the tallclaims of pluralism and secularismfor which the previousgovernments have ad nauseambeen patting themselves on theback, it appears that there is verylittle connection or even contactbetween youth of different

communities. It is almost asthough the Muslim youth areliving in a parallel world in whichthey are being subjected toinfluences that connect them more

India however gloated that notone Indian Muslim wasinvolved with terrorist groupslike the Al Qaeda. While thismay have been technicallycorrect, it ignored the fact that

Al Qaeda was less of anorganisation and more of a

phenomenon.


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with international jihadist causesthan with national issues.

The internet is undoubtedly thesingle biggest recruiting ground.Chat rooms, websites, videos areall becoming tools for inciting,influencing and enlisting youngMuslims. All sorts ofdisinformation andmisinformation is being spreadthrough this World Wide Web.Unlike mainstream media whereany assertion can be challenged

and counter, in many of theinternet sites, there is really nocounter narrative. Compoundingthe problem is the absence of anycounter narrative even outside theinternet that could serve as anantidote to the poison that is beingspread through the internet.

Young impressionable minds are

therefore ripe for the picking,more so because of the utterlyfalse and self-servingmanufacturing of some real butmostly imagined grievances by theso-called secular forces.Interestingly, however, it isnt somuch local grievances that arepushing the youth towards

Jihadism as it is internationalIslamic causes and conflicts aswell as lure of becoming part of aglobal Islamic movement thatseeks to regain the glory of Islam

and establish Islamic rule andrecover lost Islamic territories.

Many in India were somewhatsurprised to learn of the growingattraction of ISIS for IndianMuslim youth. What we seemed tohave ignored is the fact thatMuslims of the subcontinent havealways had a thing for institutionof Caliph. Nearly a 100 years back,while the then Caliphate inTurkey was practically on itsdeath bed and hardly a tear was

being shed anywhere in theIslamic world, the Indian Muslimswere agitating in favour of theCaliph. Worse, Mahatma Gandhimade a strategic blunder by tyingin the freedom movement with theKhilafat movement. Instead ofmaking Indian Muslims seekinwards and strive for liberating

their own country, the Mahatmaended up encouraging them tothink in terms of the mythical andamorphous concept of Ummah.Not surprisingly, charlatans andbrutes like Mullah Omar of theTaliban fame and Abubakr al-Baghdadi a.k.a Caliph Ibrahim,have been quick to bestow upon

themselves grand titles of Amir-ul-Momineen (leader of faithful) andCaliph respectively. This wassimply because of the resonancethat such titles (even if self-styled)strike among many Muslims who


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counter Jihad cool. For this, whileon the one hand the Muslimcommunity will have to beengaged, on the other hand, legal

and administrative steps will haveto be taken to crack down onanyone indulging in unacceptablebehaviour or for that matteranyone inciting, misleading orindoctrinating young IndianMuslims. Alongside, intelligenceand surveillance capabilities willhave to be beefed up to pre-empt

and prevent this trend fromgrowing. Law enforcementagencies will have to buildcapabilities to both understandand maintain an unremitting vigilover any jihadist or radical

activity in the Muslim community.There is also a need forundertaking sociological andpsychological studies to try and

figure out why young IndianMuslims are getting attracted toJihadism. Ideally, all this shouldhave been done yesterday. Buteven if this happens today thingsmight be still controlled.Tomorrow however might be toolate.

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Why Muslim Clerics Oppose Madrasa

Modernisation Programme

-

RNP Singh

uring his electioneering,Narendra Modi hadassured Muslims a better

life while preserving their culture.He had stated I want to see youwith a laptop in one hand, Quranin the other. After taking over as

Prime Minister, Modis initiativewas revealed by President PranabMukherjee in his address toParliament about the BJPgovernments concept ofmodernizing madrasas. No soonerthe governments concept wasannounced, leading Islamicseminaries including Darul Uloom

Deoband and Karnataka basedmadrasa Jamat-e-Islamic Hinddecided to stall the PrimeMinisters agenda to revampmadrasa education in India. DarulUloom Deoband has beencampaigning extensively againstthe National MadrasaModernisation Programme. They

are giving excuses such as absenceof clarity about governmentsprogramme and are pushing thecommunity into darkness withoutproviding them with a viable

option of development.

While opposing the madrasamodernization programe MuftiMohamadullah of Darul UloomDeoband said from the day one inour history over a century, we

have refused government help,whether Indian or foreign. Thegovernment wants us to join theCentral Madrasa Board. We willnever do it as it will ruin themadrasa education. Even the firstMinister for Education ofIndependent India, Maulana AbulKalam Azad had tried to establish

an All India Madrasa Board tostabilize the religious education byoffering pay scale for teachers andproper examination for students,but he met with utmost resistancenotably from his close aidesincluding Maulana Shibli Nomaniand Maulana Hifz-ur Rahman.

The Sachar Committee had

reported that just four percent ofMuslim boys attend Madrasas.Why is the government soconcerned about the four percentand ignores the rest 96 per cent

D

DEBAT

* RNP Singh, Senior Fellow, VIF


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who study in secular school?. Oneproof of the state governmentsapathy towards Muslim educationis its dilly dallying in granting

land for Aligarh MuslimUniversity campus in the state,says Maulana MehmoodDaryabadi, General Secretary, AllIndia Ulema Council. He said asfar as teaching computer, Englishand science subjects areconcerned; many madrasas aredoing it on their own.

Muslim clericswant thegovernment torecognize madrasaeducation on parwith high schoolwithout bringing itinto the MadrasaEducation Board as

according to them,this attempt of thegovernment is nothing but a ployto damage their religious system.In India, five state governments -West Bengal, Bihar, Orissa,

Assam and Uttar Pradesh- havealready set up Boards of MadrasaEducation that frame the syllabus

for madrasas affiliated with them,consisting of both traditionalIslamic as well as modernsubjects. But the Maulanas andclerics of leading seminariesconsider that the boards in these

five states have damaged Islamiclearning irreparably.

If we look into the history ofmadrasa education in India, theevidence of madrasas in northIndia dates back to the latetwelfth century when SultanMuhammed Ghori conquered

Ajmer in 1191 and set up amadrasa in the town. As Turkishrule expanded over other parts ofIndia, Muslim rulers establishedmadrasas in their domains,

providing themwith extensive landgrants (Jagirs) formeeting expensesand scholarshipsfor their students.Muslims noblesand scholarsfollowed suit and

set up educationalcentres. In due

course of time, great centres ofIslamic study emerged in variousparts of parts of India andmadrasas of Gujarat, Uchh (Sind),Multan ( Punjab), Delhi, Panduaand Gaur (Bengal), Bidar,Gulbarga and Aurangabad

(Deccan) were among the mostrenowned in the entire Muslimworld in their time.

With the establishment of Britishrule, the madrasas were facedwith what was seen as a grave

In India, five stategovernments - West Bengal,Bihar, Orissa, Assam andUttar Pradesh- have alreadyset up Boards of MadrasaEducation that frame thesyllabus for madrasas affiliatedwith them, consisting of bothtraditional Islamic as well as

modern subjects.


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threat to their existence andidentity. In the 1830s, Persian wasreplaced with English as thelanguage of official correspondence

by the East India Company in theterritories under its control. Stateemployed quazis were replaced by

judges trained in British law, asthe application of Muslim law wasrestricted to personal affairs. Anew system of education wasgradually set up where Islam hadno place. Many modern schools

were established by Christianmissionaries, whose antipathy forIslam was well known. Thus,increasingly bereft of royalpatronage and finding theiravenues of employment greatlyrestricted, the madrasa systemand the Ulema as a class had nowto contend with a major challenge

to their survival.With the participation of severalIndian Ulemas in the revolt of1857, the threat on their existencefurther increased. Therefore, tosave their identity many Ulemasturned now to setting up a chain ofmadrasas, for it was felt thatunder British rule Islam was

under grave threat and that it wasonly by preserving and promotingIslamic knowledge that theyounger generation of Muslimscould be saved from sliding intoapostasy and preventing from

falling prey to the blandishmentsof the Christian missionaries. Theeducational Jihad that theylaunched to preserve traditional

Islamic learning was seen astaking the place of the failedphysical Jihad against the British,and working to train a class ofUlema who would take revenge onthe British for having overthrownthe Mughals.

The setting up of the Dar-Ul-Uloom Madrasa in Deoband in

1865, today which is the largesttraditional madrasa in the world,marked a turning point in thehistory of madrasa education inIndia. This madrasa reliedentirely on public donations. Inthe absence of any Muslim ruleras patron, it was now ordinaryMuslims who came to symbolize

the survival of Islam in thecountry. A few years after itsestablishment, its graduates hadestablished their own smallmadrasas in various parts ofIndia, spreading Deobanditeachings of Islam. The freeeducation, board and lodgingprovided by the madrasas

attracted many poor Muslims whocould not afford to study in schoolsthat charged fees. The hope ofgetting employment as muezzins,imams and madrasa teachers,also attracted many poor Muslims


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with no other reasonable jobprospects. Thus, increasingly, andespecially after 1947, themadrasas came to be associated

with the lower classes, and todayit is only very rarely that richMuslims would send their childrento study in madrasas.

Another leading madrasa Nadwat-ul-Ulema was set up in Lucknowin 1892 to train Ulema well versedin both the traditional Islamic aswell as modern disciplines.

However, teaching of moderndiscipline in this madrasa facedstiff oppositionfrom theconservativeUlemas andtherefore, it failedto develop a newclass of Ulema.

However, to include moderneducation in its syllabus remaineda powerful source of inspiration forreformers in post 1947 India.

Muslim advocates of reform incontemporary India include bothtrained Ulema, products ofmadrasas, as well as men who

have been educated in schools.While all of them apparentlyagreed on the importance of themadrasas as institutions geared topreserving and promoting Islamicknowledge and Muslim identity,there is considerable variation in

their approaches to the nature andextent of the reform they advocate.There seems, however, aconsensus that the core of the

reform project should consist ofmodification in the madrasasyllabus and the methods ofteaching.

Such Muslim reformers feel thatmadrasas must also teach newsubjects that would enable theirstudents to play a role in nationaldevelopment such as the natural

and social sciences, the philosophyof the Indian constitution, civics

and the principlesof the social justice,human rights,

justice, equalityand freedom.

This would lead to

a transformation in how theUlema see the rest of the worldand how the world views them.Because madrasa students andUlemas are said to be cut off fromthe fast changing world aroundthem, they suffer from an intenseinferiority complex, hatingeverybody with modern education

and hated by them in turn. If theywere to prove their relevance andusefulness in the modern world,they would be able to recover forthemselves the position that Islamgives them of guides of thecommunity.

Muslim advocates of reform incontemporary India includeboth trained Ulema, products ofmadrasas, as well as men whohave been educated in schools.


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However, the views of thoseMuslim advocates who wantreform in madrasa education clashwith that of the Ulema, who see

the madrasas as institutionsmeant only for the preservation ofIslamic knowledge and for thetraining for Ulema. Hence, theyinsist that the teaching of modernsubjects if allowed must strictlysubordinate to that of religioussubjects. This differing perceptionof the role of madrasas- along with

the fear that the introduction ofmodernization of the authority ofthe Ulema as interpreters of faith-accounts in large measure for thedistinct lack of enthusiasm on thepart of most madrasas for themadrasa modernizationprogramme of the states andcentral government.

In recent years, the government ofIndia, as well as some stategovernments have launched somesmall schemes ostensibly to assistsome madrasas, such as providingthem paid teachers to teachmodern subjects. These effortshave, however, failed to makemuch of an impact, and only a few

smaller madrasas have takenadvantage of these schemes, forfear of government interferenceand control, which they see asaimed at weakening their Islamicidentity by introducing the

teaching of government prescribed books in the socialsciences which, in their opinionoften provide anti- Muslim slant.

Given the fact that almost allMadrasa teachers and studentscome from lower and lower middleclass backgrounds and theyremain largely insulated fromdevelopment in the wider society,the need for reform is not felturgently as it should be. Reform isalso seen threatening their

privileges and their position assole interpreters of normativeIslam. The existence of fiercedifferences of school of thoughtand sects have made impossiblethe task of setting up an all Indiabody to regulate the policies andactivities of the schools and effortsto do so in the past have all failed.

Almost all madrasas areadministratively independent,which means that efforts to reformhave so far been scattered andsporadic. But the Muslimcommunity does not realise thatthe clerics and also leaders, byrefusing modernization, play thepolitics of vote bank just to acquire

state patronage for themselvesand their coterie. The madrasamanagement also makes thingsdifficult by not acceptinggovernment grant because theywill lose their autonomy and will


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have to report to the governmentover its expenditure. But they failto understand that the communityas well as the country cannot

progress unless the Muslims moveahead.

References

1. Qamruddin, Hindustan KiDini Darsgabe (Thereligious schools of India,)Hamdard EducationalSociety, 1996, pp-33-40)

2.

Mumshad Ali Qasmi,Tarikh-i-Dars-i-Nizami(The history of the Dars-i-Nizami, Majma al-Bahuthal-Ilmiya, Bilaspur, 1994,p- 48

3. Iqbal Ahmad Ansari, DiniMadaris Ka TalimiNizam, (The educational

system of religiousschools,) Khuda BakhshOriental Public Library,Patna, 1995, p- 165.

4.

Moinuddin Ahmad,Ulema: The Boon andBane of Islamic Society,Kitab Bhavan, New Delhi,1990, p- 105.

5. Nizam Elahi,Modernisation of MadrasaEducation Scheme, Delhi:State Council for

Educational Research andTraining, 2001, p- 21

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India Needs to Tread Cautiously in

Defence Deals with US

-

Radhakrishna Rao

he statement that theDefence Minister ArunJaitley, who also holds

finance portfolio, made to theIndian Parliament recentlyreveals that India had spentRs.32,615.18-crore on acquiring

defence hardware from US. Thisgoes to show that US has replacedRussia as Indias largest armssupplier. By no means, thisdevelopment augurs well for India.For it is no more than a case of

jumping to the fire from the fryingpan. Both USA and Russia haveproved to be far from fair and

reliable defence partners. USA,which on earlier occasions, haddenied India certain types of highend fighting equipment is nowmore than keen to make availableto India a range of combathardware featuring latest genretechnologies. The reason for thisovereager US drive rests on the

one point agenda of sustaining andkeeping alive the Americanaerospace and defence industrialunits faced with the cold prospectof poor orders and a possible

closure. There is no denying thefact that American origin defenceequipment are overpriced. Tomake the matter worse, theconditionality that US attaches tothe use of arms acquired by Indiais certainly irritating and

intolerable. And on the top ofthese, the US combat equipmentin service with the Indian defenceforces are constantly under theDamocles Sword of sanction thatUS is capable of invoking at thedrop of a hat. Clearly andapparently, sanction at one fellswoop can render US origin

fighting equipment unserviceableand in turn unusable. So much forthe American concern to bolsterIndian defence preparedness as acornerstone of stability in South

Asia region. Of course, ModiGovernment should make it veryclear to USA that arms,ammunition and combat

equipment bought on commercialterms should not end up as avictim of changing political andgeo-political dynamics.

When it comes to arms supply,

T

DIPLOMA

* Radhakrishna Rao, Visiting Fellow, VIF


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Russia is no better than USA. Forover pricing and sudden andshocking escalation the pricesafter the final contract is signed on

some self imagined, flimsygrounds as well as the delay inthe supply of spares which in mostcases come with poor quality haveall become the hallmark of Indo-Russian defence deal. How Russiablackmailed India into coughingup a huge amount over and abovethe amount stipulated in the final

contract for the refurbishment andmodernisation ofthedecommissionedwarship AdmiralGorshkov renamedby India as INS

Vikramaditya isnow a part of the

history. And recentmedia reportssuggest that Israel, which inrecent years has emerged as one ofthe major arms suppliers to India,is also trying to exploit theopportunities provided by theIndian need for certain high techdefence equipment and extractbenefits far out of the proportion ofthe deal. Israel, like Russia andUSA, knows for sure that India isnow the largest arms importer, afar from salutary distinction thatshould send India into a mood ofdeep introspection. For a country

that has already launched acryogenic fuel driven launchvehicle and is on the job ofbuilding its own aircraft carrier,

the tag of being the largest armsimporter is certainly a kind ofblack mark.

But then on the positive side, thehope for India to become selfreliant in defence production liesin the commitment of theNarendra Modi led Government toend Indian dependence on

imported fightingequipment byputting in place avibrant Indianmilitary industrialcomplex. Since hetook over as IndianPrime Minister inMay 2014, Modi

has on more thanone occasion

reiterated the need for India tobecome an exporter of arms frombeing an importer of defencehardware now. The massive outgoof precious foreign exchangeinvolved in the import of armsalong with scams and scandals

associated with certain high ticketdefence deals have proved terriblycostly for the Indian economy aswell as the defence preparednessof the country.

How Russia blackmailed Indiainto coughing up a hugeamount over and above theamount stipulated in the finalcontract for the refurbishmentand modernisation of thedecommissioned warship

Admiral Gorshkov renamed byIndia as INS Vikramaditya is

now a part of the history.


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Against this backdrop, the ModiGovernment should not beenamoured of the sweet talksand alluring offers made by US

administration whose previoustrack record in dealing with hightechnology transfer to India is farfrom reassuring. And this talk ofso called bureaucratic red tapestymieing the efforts to boostIndia-US defence cooperation isnothing but a clever US move todump its defence products on

India. During his recent visit toNew Delhi, US Defence SecretaryChuck Hagel had stated thatBureaucratic red tape withineither of our governments mustnot bind the limits of ourpartnership and initiatives.Certainly, US bureaucracy isknown to act in swiftness only in

cases where the deal benefits USmore than the country importingthe US origin equipment andtechnology. The notorious USmulti lateral control regimeconspicuous for its vexatious andirritating bureaucraticexpressions with long windingsentences makes the process ofhigh tech weapons import from USan exasperating experience. Willthe US administration allow itsdefence and aerospace majors likeBoeing and Lockheed Martinmake available to the IndianSpace Research

Organisation(ISRO) certain highend technologies that India wouldneed to give a practical shape toits manned flight programme is a

question that cries for answer.Hagel should also make it clearthat whether the defencehardware of US origin beingacquired by India will enjoyimmunity against the notorioussanction regime?

Modi Government should alsoseek assurance from USA that in

future it should not interfere withthe deal India may enter intoindependently with a country of itschoice for acquisition of arms orhigh technology systems. In thiscontext, the Indian side shouldbring to the attention of USA howit prevented Russia fromtransferring the cryogenic engine

technology to India in 1990s. Atthat point of time, USA hadcoerced Russia into going back onits contractual commitment toIndia to transfer the technology ofcryogenic propulsion to the IndianSpace Research Organisation(ISRO) to help develop the threestage high performance

Geosynchronous Satellite LaunchVehicle (GSLV) on the ground thatit constituted the violation of theMissile Technology ControlRegime (MTCR). From USperspective, the cryogenic


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propulsion is a sensitive and dualuse technology. But then USshould know that cryogenicpropulsion is not a preferred

choice to propel missiles.In the context of the broadercanvass of a highly disturbedhistory of Indo-US strategicrelations, India should not walkinto the trap set by US to push thesale of its arms and fightingequipment with the sole objectiveof saving its arms and aerospace

industrial entities from movinginto red. Even the argument ofHagel that Indiaslook East Policyand US rebalancein Asia were insync withconvergence in thesecurity interests

of two countries stands in sharpcontrast to the policy that US hadpursued in the second half of thelast century to arm and prop upPakistan which considers India itsenemy no one. Rightly andappropriately, strategic analystssee a design and motive behindmore than usual enthusiasm of

USA to expedite the pendingproposals of acquiring US defenceequipment. Of course, ModiGovernment need not rush intothe act of clearing the pendingproposals made during the second

term of Congress led UPAGovernment. These proposalscentre round the plan to acquire22 Apache attack helicopters, 15

Chinook heavy lift choppers andfour P-81 long range maritime andanti submarine aircraft.

By all means, India would need tostudy seriously and analysecarefully the offer of co-productionand joint development of defenceequipment offered by USA. Whilein New Delhi, Hagel had stated

that US had come out with adozen proposal to India under the

bilateral DefenceTrade and

TechnologyInitiative forproducing militaryequipment under

joint venture

partnership. We have offered tonot only co-produce but also co-develop the next generationJavelin anti tank guided missiles.This is an unprecedented offer,said Hagel. Of course, Indiashould cautiously weigh the optionof US offer with particularreference to its cost, terms of

technology transfer, intellectualproperty rights and the chances ofthe joint venture project attractingthe sanction. Indias ownexperience in terms of acquiringhigh end technology from foreign

By all means, India would needto study seriously and analysecarefully the offer of co-production and jointdevelopment of defenceequipment offered by USA.


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partners has been far fromsatisfactory. In fact, the effortsthat Defence Research andDevelopment Organisation(DRDO)

had made to take forward thedevelopment of home grownKaveri engine-- which could notgenerate the requisite thrust itwas designed forin tie up withthe French engine major Snecmahad come to naught after it wasrealized that the French companywas not ready to part with certain

advanced technological elementsthat India was keen on mastering.As such India, should exerciserestraint while evaluating the USoffer of co production and jointdevelopment. For in the ultimateanalysis, there is no substitute forindigenous research anddevelopment and a self reliant

base for manufacturing high enddefence equipment. In fact, theworlds major arms producersstarted approaching India withoffers of high tech equipment onlyafter Indias strength in many ofthe advanced areas of technologywas recognised globally.

In particular, US wants greater

access to Indian defence bazaronly with an eye on bolstering itsdefence and aerospace industrywhich accounts for a lionsshare ofits GDP (Gross DomesticProduct).With global sales of US

arms showing a steady decline andChina slowly emerging as adecent player in the multi billiondollar global arms market, USA is

all set to lose its clout in theinternational defence trade. Thisis a reality India should takecognisance of. And on its part,India should leave no stoneunturned to enter the arms exportmarket even while moving on thepath of self reliance in thedevelopment and production of

defence hardware.India, which now imports twothird of the defence hardwarerequired by its defence forces,should initiate a national missionfully well supported by a forwardlooking Defence TechnologyCommissions as well as aempowered National Defence

Industry Committee to clear thedecks for the creation of a vibrantmilitary industrial complex. It isalso important that the IndianGovernment should start lookingat private and public sectorindustrial units active in defenceproduction as a holistic entityforming part of the vital national

defence sector. Thrust should beon harnessing the capabilities andexpertise cutting across theprivate-public sector juridisctionalboundaries to attain self reliancein defence production speedily and


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efficiently. Some other areaswhere India should come out withproactive measures with a view totransform the country into a major

exporter from being the worldslargest defence equipmentimporter include: removal of entrybarriers for industrial units takingup defence production, upgradingthe manufacturing expertise ofIndian defence industry, thrust onenhancing the quality of defenceproducts, encouraging

competition, promoting private-public partnership as well asincentivising research anddevelopment that would help Indiasustain its lead in defenceproduction.

However, the way ahead of Indiasstrategic independencechampioned by Modi, ischallenging and strewn with a

variety of complex obstacles. Butwith a Government fully wellcommitted to defence self reliance,nothing can prevent India frombecoming a thriving hub of defencedevelopment and production.

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WillPresident Xi Jinpings Visit change the

Contours of Sino-Indian Ties?

-

Brig (Retd) Vinod Anand

he coming visit of President XiJinping is being viewed as a

visit that could define the nextdecade of engagement between the two

Asian giants. It is generally acceptedthat Sino-Indian relationship could turn

out to be more important than the Sino-

US engagement if leadership of both thecountries were to cooperate and givesubstance to the conception that the

locus of global economy and power hasshifted to Asia. Notwithstanding the

fact that there is dissonance between thetwo countries on a number of issues,

both nations do share commonperceptions on many of the international

issues and especially so on the nature of

the emerging world order.

Further, the visit also needs to be seenin the backdrop of the unprecedented

two summit meetings between PM LiKeqiang and Manmohan Singh last

year, recent visit of Vice President

Hamid Ansari to China to celebrate 60

years of Panchsheel and not to be left

behind the visit of Indian Army Chief

Gen. Bikram Singh to China in firstweek of July (after a gap of 9 Years).All these engagements were topped by

Xi and Modi meeting on the sidelines of

BRICS where both leaders established a

good rapport. These multifariousengagements have already brought to

fore the Indian concerns and haveindicated the direction in which both

countries want to proceed further. Onething which is certain is that no

dramatic breakthroughs in the

relationship should be expected.Modis mantra is development and

growth and that has been the basis on

which he has come to power. Havinghad firsthand experience during his

visits to China as Gujarat ChiefMinister, he has been thoroughly

impressed by the development and

economic growth of China and

especially its infrastructure in terms ofroads, ports, highways and some of the

new cities and towns. Therefore, he iskeen to conclude agreements with the

visiting President regarding Chineseinfrastructure companies undertaking

projects in India. India is looking for

infusion of Chinas surplus funds in

Indian infrastructure and in other

avenues of investment. Though an

MOU for setting up an Industrial Parkhas been signed by our Trade andCommerce Minister during Vice

President Ansaris visit to China, it is

just a small step; Modi is looking for a

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NEIGHBOURH

*Brig (Retd) Vinod Anand, Senior Fellow, VIF


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framework agreement on investment by

China. Modi is keen to pushinfrastructure development by the

Chinese in Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh

and Tamil Nadu.

Indias requirements of funds are a huge1 trillion US dollars as per its current

Five Year Plan and it is hoped that

China can contribute possibly 30

percent of such requirement over aperiod of time. But a Sino-Indian

agreement for anything closer to 30billion USD or even somewhat lesser

amount in the coming visit could be agame changer. There would be some

problems like theabsorption capacities

and many otherdifficulties connected

with the localenvironment but all

such issues can beovercome provided

the political will is there from bothsides. Recently, a country like UK

offered 1 billion pounds (around 1.75billion USD) for infrastructure

development in India. Obviously,Chinas capacities are much beyond this

amount.

Second agreement that could give apositive momentum to Sino-Indian ties

needs to be in the field of trade andcommerce. The trade imbalance

between the two nations is now to thetune of around 35 billion USD which

needs to be addressed. In all theprevious top level political

engagements, while promises have been

made to come to grips with the issue, nosubstantial progress has been made.

Therefore, in the coming visit, New

Delhi is looking forward to anagreement that grants greater access of

Indian goods and services to theChinese market, for instance Indian

pharmaceutical products, IT enabledservices, cotton textiles & home

furnishings etc. There are many non-

tariff barriers on Indian exports ofgoods and services. Removal of these

would enable India to close the trade

gap; though it is also not expected thatthe trade should always be balanced yet

another way is that

China invests in India.

Under the presentcircumstances, it

appears unlikely that

the projected bilateraltrade figure of 100

billion USD by 2015

can be achieved.

Thirdly, whenever a bilateral visit takesplace, there is a pattern of behavior

from Chinas side which needs to beavoided. Such a behavior has been

exhibited with regularity on the eve ofall previous political visits. Before the

Indian Vice Presidents visit, a

controversial map was released byChina besides transgression by PLA

troops in Pangong Lake. Last year

before PM Li Keqiangs visit to NewDelhi, there was the Depsang valley

intrusion. In fact, it is difficult to recallany visit where before the event there

There would be some problems like

the absorption capacities and many

other difficulties connected with thelocal environment but all such issues

can be overcome provided the

political will is there from both

sides.


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has been no negative incident. Largely,

the perception is that suchevents/incidents are deliberately

planned to put Indian decision-makers

on the back foot and in order to testtheir resolve.

Though it may not be necessary to have

any written agreement on the above

aspect, both leaders can reach an

understanding that such incidentsshould be avoided in order to give

positive atmospherics to the bilateralmeets.

While many agreements have beensigned culminating into Border AreaDevelopment Cooperation (BADC)

agreement of 2013, the border incidentscontinue to take place. Several

incursions in Ladakh sector by Chinese

troops have taken place since January

2014. PLAs posture has becomeincreasingly very assertive and it has

been attempting to expand its claimedareas (which are in any case ill-

defined). After the signing of BADC,

such incidents should have been a

rarity; both leaders need to reach anunderstanding on the same and need to

enforce their writ; any fresh formalagreement on the issue would not be of

any avail if the previous agreements arenot adhered to in their true spirit. There

is a need to arrive at a mutual modusvivendi on the issue. Peace and

tranquility along the border remains animportant element for growth and

development. This has been recognizedso in the previous agreements.

Fourthly is the question of lack of

Chinese sensitivity to Indias coreconcern of Kashmir issue. Since

nineties till 2005, China had been

following somewhat of a neutralapproach but after 2005 or so, there has

been perceptible difference in Chinasapproach with its tilt towards Pakistan.

Chinas developmental and otheractivities in Pakistan occupied Kashmir

have a negative impact on Indias

security. It also needs to be rememberedthat even Pakistan considers Kashmir as

disputed therefore; if China wants to

reduce dissonance with India, thenChinas return to a neutral stand wouldadd to positivity of Sino-Indian

relationship.

Fifth is the Tibet question. This year is

being celebrated as the 60th year ofPanchsheel Agreement. India is not

much enamored with the PanchsheelAgreement as it recognized Chinas

suzerainty over Tibet without anyconcession to India in the bargain. It is

considered as a lack of strategic visionon part of Nehru. While the Five

principles of peaceful coexistence arequite all right, it was the preamble of

the agreement that became moresignificant than the clauses in the main

text. The fact that India was represented

at the celebratory event in China by itsVice President is also some kind of

message that Panchsheel does not hold

that level of significance. In the bilateralsummits for last three years or so, even

though India has been adhering to oneChina policy, the same is not being


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mentioned in the Joint Communiques

issued after the summits. This has beenlargely as a response to Chinas failure

to recognize J & K as part of India.

There have been many other irritantslike the stapled visas issue to residents

of Arunachal Pradesh.

Further, the presence of Lobsang

Sangay, Kalon Tripa / Sikyong of Tibet

Administration at Modis swearingceremony also indicates the current

governments stance in some measurethough there is no change in Indian

governments policy that Tibetanscannot carry out any political activities

in India etc.

Another significantissue that needs

further discussions is

the damming activities

on YarlungTsangpo/Brahmaputra

River; somediscussions took place

during VP Hamid Ansaris visit to

Beijing; the two governments signed an

implementation plan on provision ofhydrological information on the

Brahmaputra River in flood seasons byChina and India. Expansion in areas of

cooperation in this field has to take noteof the interests of lower riparian nations

like Bangladesh and India. So farChinese policies on the issue are not

conducive to good relationship.

Coming to the regional situation, the

most important issue would be that ofAfghanistan post 2014. Both sides

largely share similar perceptions on the

emerging scenario and have commonconcerns on the security implications of

the unfolding scenario. There is a JWG

on the subject; both sides are expectedto explore practical ways of cooperating

in Afghanistan so that peace andstability is brought to that nation.

However, on the question of terrorism,China still continues to see through

Pakistani prism. While the Americans,

the Western nations and possibly theChinese have seen through the double

game of Pakistan, they feel constrained

to take any action against Pakistan for anumber of geo-strategic reasons. The

negative role of

Pakistan needs to berecognized by China

otherwise peace and

stability in the regionincluding in Xinjiang

would remain elusive.

While at the international level, both

nations largely identify with eachothers aims, objectives and interests in

the multilateral forums, on climate andtrade issues, WTO etc. yet, China is yet

to endorse India becoming a permanentmember of UNSC as also a member of

the Nuclear Suppliers Group.

Meanwhile, China led by President XiJinping has become increasingly

aggressive and assertive in Asia both

militarily and economically indicatingthat it aspires for leadership role in

Asia. Promotion of a number economiccorridors and silk roads, offering

However, on the question ofterrorism, China still continues to

see through Pakistani prism. While

the Americans, the Western nationsand possibly the Chinese have seen

through the double game of

Pakistan, they feel constrained to

take any action against Pakistan fora number of geo-strategic reasons.


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funding by establishing Asian

Infrastructure Development Fund,Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

Development Fund and many other

economic initiatives by China are aimedto enhance its strategic presence.

On the other hand, China needs India on

its side for the success of its view of the

new Asian security architecture where

according to Chinese perceptions theUS and the others have no role. India

favours a strategic equilibrium in Asiawhereas China is anti-status quo

aspiring to dominate the Asianfirmament. Thus, Modis visit to Japan,

Australian PM Abbots visit to Indiabefore President Xis visit and later

Modis visit to the US need to be seenin the context of India attempting to

balance the emerging strategicequations.

Overall, the forthcoming visit of

President Xi is unlikely to change thefundamental nature of Sino-Indian

relationship as China is not ready to

relent on issues considered by India tobe part of its core national interests.

Some advances on economic andconnected issues are possible. Modis

approach includes management of theconflict areas between the two nations

while at the same time striving to have

enhanced economic, political,diplomatic and people to people

engagements.

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The Gujrat Model of Development: Can it

Work for Nepal?

-

Prof Hari Bansh Jha

he 'Gujrat Model ofDevelopment' has becomesynonymous with Narendra

Modi, formerly the Chief Ministerof Gujarat state between 2001 and20014 and now the Prime Ministerof India. Sometimes, this model is

also called 'Modionomics,' in whichdevelopment is treated as amovement. Primary role for thedevelopment is given to theprivate enterprises. Strong focus isgiven to the development of soundinfrastructure, creation ofbusiness friendly regulatoryenvironment, simplification of

procedures, promotion ofentrepreneurial spirit, andadoption of intolerant attitudetowards bureaucratic red tape.The underlying principle is to givea vigorous boost to the economy byincreasing the supply sideeconomics.

In Gujrat, the red-tape was

slashed at the state level. Tomaintain unnerving grip onadministration, interference intransfers and postings was

disapproved. Each year, the stateadministration was equipped toachieve one or the other new goal.If in one year the goal was to makeGujrat Nirmal (sanitary); in theother it was to achieve NirogiBalak(healthy child).

Most importantly, the idea of'minimum government, maximumgovernance' was executed in letterand spirit to secure utmostparticipation of people indevelopment activities. Since2003, Chintan Sibir (Thoughtcamp) was organized annually fortwo-and-half days with theobjective of making governanceleast formal, reducing thecommunication gap between thetop and bottom rungs of officialsand also developing networks toget the work done on the spot.

Apart from the Chief Minister andMinisters, the IAS officials, toppolice officials and the principal

forest conservators participated inthe camp right from early morningtill 8:00 PM. Each participant,including the Chief Minister, was

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NEIGHBOURH

* Jha is Professor of Economics and Executive Director of Centre for Economic and Technical

Studies in Nepal


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expected to follow the queue andthey were free to sit anywhere formeals. Interestingly, Yogaexercises and cultural events were

also organized to trace out theinherent talent among theparticipants.

In the infrastructure sector,modern ports were constructed inGujrat. A network of high speedroads was created to connect allimportant cities of the state.Congenial environment was

created for guaranteeing energysecurity to the investors. Hugechunk of resourceswas invested inthermal, atomic,hydel, andrenewable energysector. Altogether23 conventional

power plants wereinstalled. Production of windpower was raised to 3,147 MW in2013. Installed capacity of solarpower reached over 900 MW. A2,200 km gas grid wasconstructed. Within a short spanof time, Gujrat began to producesurplus power.

As industrial peace wasguaranteed in Gujrat, the numberof unrest cases declined drasticallyfrom 42 in 2003 to 28 in 2011.Trade unions were made morecompromising than

confrontational. As many as 200industrial estates were establishedto accommodate most of the smalland medium enterprises. Many of

the industries were located atenclaves like Vapi.

Following the agitations againstthe location of the Tata Motorfactory at Singur in West Bengal,Modi offered 1100 acres of land atRs. 900 per square yard to thiscompany at Sanand, adjacent to

Ahmedabad, for the establishment

of Nano car factory. Themanufacturing of Nano could not

prove that muchprofitable venturefor the TataMotors. But forGujrat it was ablessing. Sanandhas now been able

to attractinternationally famous companieslike Ford and other autocomponent manufacturers.

A survey conducted in 2010-11revealed that Gujrat had 21,300factories, which formed 10 per centof total factories in India.

Manufacturing sector accountedfor one-fourth of state's GDP. Thisstate alone has been able toemploy nearly one-tenth of thecountry's total factory labour. Allsuch factories are large entities as

Trade unions were made morecompromising thanconfrontational. As many as200 industrial estates wereestablished to accommodatemost of the small and mediumenterprises.


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they employ on an average overfifty workers.

While industrial sector was givena key role in Gujrat model, theagricultural sector was notoverlooked. To promote this sector,the land records werecomputerized and informationabout the land use was providedon the website. Irrigation wasgiven top most priority. TheNarmada dam project proved to bea game changer. Agricultural

extension programme waslaunched on a vigorous scale.

Agricultural planning activitiesreached the blocks and villagesand even to the doors of thefarmers. Krishi Mahotsavs wereorganized in agricultural outreach.Over a-hundred-thousand officialsfrom eighteen departments of the

state had to visit the farmers intheir villages for a month beforethe onset of monsoons. Their jobwas to test the soil, prescribenutrients, suggest hybrid seedsand give advice for making theagricultural activities profitable.The traders, processors and eventhe retailers were allowed to

purchase agricultural productsfrom the farmers directly.Consequently, agriculture no moreremained a subsistence activityand it emerged as a business-likeventure. Despite being a semi-arid

state, Gujrat was able to achieve 8percent farm growth against thenational average of 3.1 per cent inthe last one decade.

Vigorous drive was given forincreasing the enrolment ofstudents in education sector. Thenumber of schools was doubled;many of which were governmentschools. Almost 79 per cent of thetotal population in Gujarat aboveseven years turned to becomeliterate. In the knowledge sector, a

number of universities related toagriculture, petroleum, defenceand security, Sanskrit and Yogawere established.

In the social sector, the infantmortality rate fell from 64 perthousand live births in 2001 to 38in 2013. People below the poverty

line dropped down to 14 per cent.Investment commitment in thestate rose spectacularly to $450billion in 2011. All this helpedGujarat to achieve over 11 percent, which was highest among allthe Indian states.

Success achieved in Gujrat took anew dimension as the focus on

development changed from thestate to national level whenNarendra Modi became the PrimeMinister of India in May 2014.Soon after this event, Modideveloped a new vision to


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transform India into a modern,vibrant and fast-growing economy.

A tough decision was taken toupgrade the level of technology.

An ambitious project to connectMumbai with Ahmedabad is inoffing. One hundred mega citiesare being developed. Nearly 800million toilet houses are beingconstructed within five years until2019 to end the problem of opendefecation in the country. TheSagarmala project is introduced to

interconnect all the coastal citiesin the country through roads, rail,ports and airports. Effort is on toensure transparency ingovernment functioning, increasethe performance in education,health care and commercial sector,which is likely to have trickledowneffect in the Indian economy

sooner than later. So here is agrowing public opinion that thegovernment of India should makethe Gujrat development model as

the main tenet in India's foreignpolicy, especially in relations tothe neighbouring countries. Thereis ample opportunities for Nepal toemerge as an economic powerhouse in South Asia if an effort ismade to execute this model byslashing red tape, developinginfrastructure, and modernizing

agricultural, industrial, trade andservice sectors.

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34/73


Strategic Defence and A Mountain

Strike Corps

-

Lt. Gen (Retd) Gautam Banerjee

Begin, be bold and venture to be wise - Horace

Cause for a Mountain Strike

Corps

ight from the days when thePeoples Republic of China(PRC) decided to use

military power to address itsborder issues with India, theIndian Army suffers from aserious operational debility. Thisdebility arises from an absence ofcounter-offensive capability acrossthe watershed of the Indo-TibetBorder or the Line of Actual

Control (LAC). Indeed, Indiasdefence oriented military strategyremains inconclusive unless it haswithin its ambit a viablecomponent of autonomous counter-offensive or riposte capability toconfront the aggressor withcounter-threat(s) that forces himto divert or recoil from his

venture.

The decade past has found thatBeijing, perhaps buoyed byfruition of her military

modernisation, is no more able torestrain from exercising her tacticof forcing gradual migration intoclaimed territories. Havingalready firmed up her possessionof the Aksai Chin and Shaksgam

Valley, she is engaged inpreparing grounds for her nextphase of expansionism throughoutlandish claims over the

Arunachal Pradesh and manyother bits. Accordingly, the LAC issubject to increasing intrusions atHayuliang-Fish Tail, Asaphila-

Longju and Lungma-Kerang areasin the Eastern Sector, Thag La Barahoti areas in the CentralSector and Chumar, Demchok,Pangong Tso, Depsang Plains andDaulat Beg Oldi areas in theWestern Sector of the Indo-TibetBorder. In the process, the PRChas advanced its notional claim-

lines well into the Indian territory.

Offensive-in-Defence

Captain B H Liddell-Hart had

R

DEFENC

* Lt. Gen (Retd) Gautam Banerjee, Executive Council, VIF


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argued, with substance ofhistorical proof, that thoughneither flamboyant norspectacular as the offensive, it was

the defensive strategy in mostcases that brought assured victoryin the end. However, there is acaveat. According to the universalPrinciples of War, for a defensivestrategy to come successful, aneffective offensive content must beintrinsic to each level of itsprosecution. It is so that the

various stages of defensiveoperations to harass, delay, resist,limit and causeattrition to theenemys attackingforces have to beinfused withoffensivecharacteristics. At

the tactical level,this principle manifests in theform of the defenders raids,spoiling attacks, reinforcingmanoeuvres and local as well asdeliberately planned counter-attacks, the last named being anexclusive operation for whichcontingency plans are made andforces earmarked.Further, as the history of warfareteaches, to trigger final collapse ofthe enemys aggression, acapability to undertakeautonomous counter-offensiveasdistinct from the aforementioned

counter-attack phase of adefensive battle at a place andtime of the defenders choosingmust be but imperative to what

may essentially be an ambit ofdefensive strategy.

Beyond the Line of Defence

Navies perform their mandate ofdefending national waters andcoastlines by engaging inoperations beyond the nations

maritime boundaries. The AirForces too target the enemybeyond thenational air space;only in case ofhostile ingresswould they directtheir attack intoown territory. In

similar vein, inorder just to maintain the sanctityof a given line of defence but nomore, ground forces have to resortto offensive action across that line.To be really effective, theseoffensive operations call itcounter-offensiveor ripostehaveto be launched from distinct firmbase(s) and at timing(s) that arewell clear from the tumult ofdefensive engagements; needlessto state, in the contemporarycontext, all of these would be jointservice operations. The purposehere is to exploit those sectors

According to the universalPrinciples of War, for adefensive strategy to comesuccessful, an effectiveoffensive content must beintrinsic to each level of itsprosecution.


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where the aggressor prefers toremain in relative dormancy, andso upset his strategic designs bydisrupting his force-matrix,

terrain-orientation and task-to-time equation. The UnitedNations Forces offensive onInchon in the Korea War of 1951-53, Indias counter-offensive in theLahore Sector during the 1965Indo-Pakistan War and Israelsencirclement of the 3rd Egyptian

Army in the 1973 Yom Kippur

War are apt demonstrations ofthis principle.

The Idea of 17 Corps

By the Year 2007 or so, the extentof build up of the PRCs militaryinfrastructure along the Indo-Tibet Border had at last stirred

the Indian Governmentsconscience. Thus, it raised twoarmy divisions and beefed up airpower to round off Indias defencecapability in the Eastern Sector.However, the void of that elementof autonomous offensive actionwhich must be intrinsic to anydefensive strategy, remainedunaddressed. That is thedeficiency which is sought to befilled by the raising of a MountainStrike Corps, the proposal forwhich had been pending with theGovernment since some yearspast; the Depsang La incident in

April 2013 may have been the laststraw. That was when the Chinesetroops set up camp well behindIndias LAC and refused to budge,

just as it had done earlier in theZimithang, Asaphila andHayuliang areas in ArunachalPradesh and Demchok area inLadakh, thus highlighting forthe nth time - the helplesssituation that could confront Indiashould Beijing decides to spurnIndias entreaties to vacate

intrusion.

According to the official versionand its implications, the 17 Corpsis under raising at Ranchi, whereduring the Second World War,General William Slims 14th Armyhad geared up to win back Burmafrom the Japanese, and where the

Eastern Command Headquarterswas located till 1953. Once fullyraised, the Corps Headquarterswould move to establish itself atPanagarh in West Bengal, anotherWorld War II logistic base fromwhere the wars in Burma andChina were sustained. The Corpswould have two speciallystructured mountain divisions - 59& 72 Divisions - headquartered atPanagarh and Pathankotrespectively. Besides, there wouldbe two each of independentarmoured and infantry brigades,one of each being located in


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Ladakh in the West and the othertwo stationed in Sikkim and

Arunachal Pradesh in the East. ACorps being a very large formation

of nearly 70,000 troops and vastparaphernalia of weapons,equipment, transport etc., thebrigades and units, numberingabove 200 odd, would be locatedvariously from Ladakh to

Arunachal Pradesh. Anotherdivision is reportedly beingconsidered to be orbatted to this

Corps in which case the strengthwould be around90,000 troops. Ofcourse, there wouldbe many changesaffected in theforce-structure andtheir locations asthe Corps shapes

up in step with itsevolving conceptsof operations.

The idea of 17 Corps is unique inmilitary history. No fieldformation has ever been assignedto operational contingencies sofluid, across so distinctlyseparated frontages and axesspread over 4000 odd kilometres,over freezing deserts of 4300 to5300 metres altitude where livingitself is no less a battle, toprosecute offensive operations as acorollary to strategic defence.

These challenges are sought to betackled over the next seven oddyears, to which end elaboratesurface and air transportation,

communications and baseinfrastructure are to be createdalong the border belt. Formationsand units are to be located close toair bases and surfacecommunication hubs, expansion ofthe Air Force transportation,railways and border roads being astep complementary. Even then, it

would have to be a formation thatis structured tooperate at the farends of tenuouslines of

communications,build up and deploy

astriderudimentary axes

after acclimatisingthe troops over oneto two weeks, and prosecuteoffensive operations inconfrontation with a great militarypower.

The charter is mind boggling. It isdoable of course, but there arecomplexities and concerns to bedissected in all seriousness andaddressed with strategic sagacity.Therefore, a discussion on the coreconsiderations would be in order.

Role and Objectives

A Corps being a very largeformation of nearly 70,000troops and vast paraphernaliaof weapons, equipment,transport etc., the brigades andunits, numbering above 200odd, would be located variouslyfrom Ladakh to Arunachal

Pradesh.


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The likely role of 17 Corps, withinthe overall ambit of the nationsdefensive strategy, may be

envisaged in light of the precedingdiscussion. Foremost, it would beto launch in counter-offensive -autonomous or conjoined withother formations - to unhinge anymilitary aggression. Next, it wouldbe to balance out territorial loss inone sector by sallying out insector(s) of choice, to secure, in

part or whole, the Indian versionof the boundary alignment. Otherroles could be to deploy to limitand destroy the attacking forces,or to invest the adversarys ingressand to evict it if necessary. Inother words, besides its classicalcounter-offensive role in war, evenin no-war scenarios when the

option of forcible eviction of theintrusion may not be exercised inorder to avoid escalation, it wouldbe possible to, firstly, contain theintrusion, and secondly, to counterit by advancing the LAC in someother locationa sort of tit-for-tat.

Proceeding further, the firstquestion to arise in the context ofany worthwhile strike relates tothe possible objectives ofsignificance. Obviously, theobjectives would be such as tounhinge PRCs militaryaggression, and that purpose

would be indicative of theoptimum depth of operations.Starting from the Indo-Tibet-Myanmar Tri-junction and ending

at the Aksai Chin, the Westernperiphery of Gongrigabu Qu(River)-Chayu, the Southernperiphery of Yarlung Zangbu(Brahmaputra River)-LangquenZangbu (Sutluj River) and theEastern periphery of Lingzi Tang-Kailash Range - inclusive of theWestern Tibet Highway or its

subsidiaries - could be thatreckonable depth.

Within the aforementioned belt,one class of objectives could beterritorial in nature. Consideringthe historical legacy, theseterritorial objectives may bebroadly identified as: one, in the

North-East, the areas West ofChaya (Rima) and South ofNyngchi, Tsona Dzong, theChumbi Valley, Khamba Dzongand the Brahmaputra River; two,the Mansarovar (Mapam Yumco)-Sutluj River Belt in the CentralSector; and three, in the WesternSector, the Pangong-Indus (SengeZangbu) Valleys and the Depsang-Soda Plains. Herein, any of thetactically feasible axes ofoperations, single or multiple,leading to territories across theLAC or up to and beyond the Indo-Tibet Border may be activated.


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Indeed, there are many possibleareas which may be logisticallyupgraded within a decade or twoto support offensive operations of

battle formations ranging incomposition from brigade groupsize to two divisions plus; some ofthese axes may even be upgradedin just a few years time. Notably,while the desolate terrain may notoffer classical military objectives,the very act of pulling offterritorial riposte would be

sufficient to lever Indias cause.Besides, targeting logistic hubs atNyngchi, Gyangze, Ngari, Rudogand some more, denial of bridgesover Yarlung Zangbu andLangquen Zangbu, and breach ofthe Western Highway or itssubsidiaries would definitely tellupon the Peoples Liberation

Armys (PLA) aggression.

The other class of objectives couldaim at force-destruction, in whichthe attacker would be contained in

hostile terrain, weakened andthen destroyed. Notably, themodest scale of Indias retaliatorystrike in comparison to Chinas

doctrine of massive offensive maynot be an issue just penalisingand holding up a giant woulddampen his blustery, andtherefore could be seen as apolitico-military redemption.

Organisational Structure

By far the biggest challenge inraising the 17 Corps would be tostructure a potent and cost-efficient force and equipping it forthe kind of terrain - and as acorollary the kind of warfare - itwould be called upon to master. Inthat context, recourse toreplication of orthodox tactics,

structures and equipment profilewould offer strong attractions.However, having seen that theforce, terrain and mission, allthree are unparalleled, adoption oftemplates would be a gravemistake. For the rightorganisation to be devisedtherefore, it would be appropriateto evaluate the functions of theterrain and conceptualiseappropriate battle tactics toharness its nuances.

From Indias view point, theterrain is like a funnel, its narrow


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stem widening into an expanse asthe watershed is approached andthe Tibetan Plateau unfolds.Resultantly, for nearly three-

fourth of the 300-450 kilometres tothe watershed, deployment offorces would have to be alongrelatively narrow, steep, windingand rugged valleys, mostly oversingle axes, with availability ofshunts and laterals few and farbetween. Obviously, forces wouldhave to move and deploy in

echelons over restricted axes tillthey cross over to the plateau-landwhence they wouldhave the option ofeither diverging orconverging combatpower to reduceselectedobjective(s).

Indeed, in thatremote anddesolate expanse of cold highaltitude desert, the quantum offorce-application would be decidedby the logistic capability to fieldand sustain battle formations. Asa corollary, the Corps may need todivide itself to operate astridemultiple axes, even acrossmultiple sectors North-East,Central and West in varyingcombinations of divisions andindependent brigades to sally outinto the plateau-land.

The severe dictates of the terrainattributes may be turned into

tactical advantages provided

organisation, tactics, equipment

and logistics are customised inexclusivity. For example,induction, establishment of logisticbases and movements through therugged mountains on Indian sideof the watershed may well berendered much safer from air andmissile attacks as compared to theenemy on the plateau-land who

would be open to detection andinterdiction from air-groundoperations. Evenfrom theconsideration oftime and space, thefactors would notbe adverse towardsIndia when the

traversingdistances,communications and altitudes areweighed in comparison. Lastly,when well reconnoitred andadapted to, the plateau-land wouldoffer to the Indian forces goodscope for behind the lineoperations.

Factoring analogies from pastcampaigns as well as concurrenttactical concepts, the tactics wouldhinge upon manoeuvre of multiple

combat elements to shape the

battle-matrix and followed up with

Obviously, forces would have tomove and deploy in echelonsover restricted axes till theycross over to the plateau-landwhence they would have theoption of either diverging orconverging combat power toreduce selected objective(s).


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sharp engagements, rather than a

replay of mass assaults of the kind

propagated before the advent of

Revolution in Military Affairs. The

objectives could either becommunication and logistic hubs,or opponent forces. Indeed, thecampaign would follow the eternalpractice of what is currentlydescribed as Hybrid Warfare, inwhich 4th Generation battleswould shoot-off from fieldformations engaged in deliberate

offensive campaigns. Of course,dominance in air power would playa singular role in reconnaissance,information war, destruction,interdiction, support to groundoperations, troop mobility andlogistic sustenance of the wareffort.

In the overall context therefore,organisation and equipment forthe 17 Corps have to be exclusive.For example, the Corps may becomposed of integral scout,reconnaissance and special serviceunits and brigade groupsintegrated into flexible mix of lightand heavy combat arms. It mayalso have to be structured fortransportable, manoeuvrable andhigher volume of fire-power andenhanced grouping of support armelements. Similarly, provision ofin-built force-multiplicationelements of information warfare -

like command and control warfare,reconnaissance, intelligencepreparation and deception andgeo-spatial survey teams would be

mandatory for the Corps to fulfilits role. Above all, the Corpsoperations must be tuned to truearticulation of air power formanoeuvre, air assault andoperational logistics.

Equipment

Needless to emphasise, it would bewise to equip 17 Corps withtransportable and manoeuvrablewar-like equipment, the loss ofmass being compensated by higherscales of holdings and briskoperational momentum. Theproblem is that the global armsindustry has not found it

profitable to invest in developmentof weapons and equipment thatanswer to the characteristics ofhigh altitude mountain warfare,and therefore most suchequipment do not form part ofimportable inventory. Most of itstheatres of war beingmountainous, Indias defenceplanners could have turned thisdearth into self-advantageousforce-superiority throughindigenous research anddevelopment. Regrettably, theyfailed to adapt to that ratherobvious need, confined as they


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were with dated notions aboutponderous characteristics ofmountain warfare. Equipping the17 Corps in a manner

operationally desired wouldtherefore require specific design

modifications, field trials and mix

of import and customised

production under an overarch of

economical viability. Given Indiassystem of functioning, theofficially promulgated time-line ofseven to eight years to acquire the

right range of weapons andequipment maytherefore turn outto be rather tight.

But more thanthat, optimalequipping of the 17Corps would be an

exerciseadvantageous onlyif the Indian military fraternitysets out to assimilate whatweapons and equipment that maybe readily acquired, and subsumethe qualitative shortcomings intospecifically devised battle-tacticsand operational procedures. Inother words, to begin with, itwould be wise to foster tactical

ingenuity to customise orthodox

tactical concepts, and accept

redundancies in scales to overcome

lesser performance from what

military hardware is available at

hand. Great armies are known todo so; Indian Army has done sobefore.

Logistic Springboard

The quantum of force that can becommitted to offensive operations

through a given sector would be

dictated by the extent of sectoral

logistic capacity, existence of

operational axes therein, and the

robustness of these. Besides, final

outcome of trans-Himalayaoperations wouldbe decided by

logisticsurvivability ofthat force in aterrain sounliveable. By

implication

therefore, based onthe intendedcounter-offensive tasks of the 17Corps, logistic infrastructurewould have to be developed, bothin terms of sectors and axes ofpossible operations as well as thequantum of likely force-applicationalong those sectors and axes. Thiscapability would have to be builtup in the form of staticinstallations - such as roads, air-heads, administrative bases,dumps, services, survivable-habitat, etc as well asexpendables like ammunition,

By implication therefore, basedon the intended counter-offensive tasks of the 17 Corps,logistic infrastructure wouldhave to be developed, both interms of sectors and axes ofpossible operations as well asthe quantum of likely force-application along those sectors

and axes.


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rations and fuel. Besides, onceacross the watershed, the burdenof logistic sustenance wouldrequire to be extended, insulation,

portability and mobility being thekey determinants in this case.Further, logistic capacity-buildingwould have to be maximised toconform to foreseeable operationalcontingencies. No doubt, planningand build up of logisticinfrastructure calls for intelligentforethought and deliberate time-

and-cost intensive undertaking atthe national level.

Even if well within Indiasengineering capabilities,infrastructure developmentprojects would necessitatedeployment of additionalconstruction agencies and

enormous funding; these twofactors would determine whetherthe projects would take a decadeor double that to be in place. As forthe turnover or replacement ofexpendables, the challenge wouldbe even more complex. Life-cyclestocking and turnover ofammunition in itself would be atedious and costly commitment.Lastly, in environs soexcruciatingly hostile, air-powerwoul

Vivek Issues n Options July - August 2014

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