Of Matters Military
Modernisation Travails
Of Matters Military
Modernisation Travails
Major General Mrinal Suman,AVSM, VSM, PhD
Vij Books India Pvt Ltd
New Delhi (India)
Published by
Vij Books India Pvt Ltd
(Publishers, Distributors & Importers)
2/19, Ansari Road
Delhi – 110 002
Phones: 91-11-43596460, 91-11-47340674
Mob: 98110 94883
e-mail: [email protected]
web: www.vijbooks.com
Copyright © 2020, Mrinal Suman
ISBN: 978-93-89620-56-6 (Hardback)
ISBN: 978-93-89620-58-0 (ebook)
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, transmitted
or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,
recording or otherwise, without the prior permission of the copyright owner.
Application for such permission should be addressed to the publisher.
The views expressed in this book are of the author in his personal capacity.
(There is no shade like a mother, no resort like a mother, no securitylike a mother, no other ever-giving fountain of life!
–Skanda Purana: Mo. Ch. 6.103-104)
Dedicated to my mother
Late Smt Kailash Kumaria
Contents
Evolution of India’s Defence Procurement Regime
1. India’s Defence Procurement Procedure Underwent Radical Transformation after the Kargil War
2. Defence Procurement Procedure – 2005
3. Defence Procurement Procedure – 2006
4. Defence Procurement Procedure – 2008
5. Amendments to Defence Procurement Procedure – 2008
6. Defence Procurement Procedure – 2011
7. Defence Procurement Procedure – 2013
8. Defence Procurement Procedure – 2016
Acquisitions Need Professional Management
1. Centralised Authority for Defence Acquisitions: An Urgent Requirement
2. Defence Procurements Suffer due to Staff Inadequacies: Need for a Training Institute
3. Report of the Expert Committee on Procurement Procedure: High on Clichés and Low on Substance
4. Technical Appraisal of Military Equipment: Need for Independent Oversight
5. Defence Procurements: Need to Bridge the Communication Gap
6. Disjointed Functioning – Bane of Defence Procurements
7. Bhamre Committee Barked-up the Wrong Tree: Staff Inadequacies is the Prime Reason for Delays
8. Acquisition Travails: The Services should Put their Own House in Order First
Part – III
Acquisition Challenges
1. Defence Acquisitions: Risk Management is Better than Crisis Management
2. Time to Discard the Archaic System of Qualitative Requirements
3. Need for Formulating Rational Field Trials and Evaluation Plan
4. Defence Procurements: Learning from Past Mistakes
5. Defence Procurements Sans Competition
6. Dissuasive Features of Indian Defence Procurement Regime
7. Vendor Performance Profiling is an Indisputable Requirement
Part – IV
Need for Cost-Conscienceness
1. Cost-consciousness in Defence Procurements
2. Life Cycle Cost Analysis for Commercial Evaluation 222
3. Defence Procurements: Need for Expert Financial Advice
4. Negotiating Arms Deals: Need for Special Skills
5. Defence Procurements: Utilising ‘Option’ and ‘Repeat Order’ Clauses
6. Defence Procurements: Need for Accountability Audit
7. Commercial Evaluation is the Weakest Link
8. Poor Financial Management is Costing the Defence Ministry Dear
Part – V
Radical Reforms are Overdue
1. Defence Procurement Regime: Need for Paradigm Revamping
2. Time to Unshackle the Defence Acquisition Regime
3. Equipping the Services: Need to Graduate from Procurements to Acquisitions