In a shocking turn of event, Indian Army has submitted a harsh report to the parliamentary standing committee, where army said clearly that they don’t have the adequade budget to meet the modernisation expenses.
The Vice Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Sarath Chand has slammed the poor budgetary allocations for the army for 2018-19 calling it inadequate. Lt Gen Chand also warned that this will severely affect several ongoing projects undertaken by the Indian army.
In his oral deposition to the parliamentary standing committee on defence, Lt Gen Chand said, “Budget has dashed our hopes, most of what has been achieved has actually received setback. To highlight a few cases, the marginal increase in BE barely accounts for the inflation and does not even cater for the taxes. Allocation of Rs 21,338 crore for modernisation is insufficient even to cater for committed payment of 29,033 crore for 125 on-going schemes.
The report also says ” “Modernisation of both Pakistan and China is going on in full swing. China is competing to reach the levels of US. It is important that we remain deterrent as far as these are concerned. The possibility of two front war is a reality and speaking about it, it is important that we are conscious of the issue and we pay attention to our modernization and filling up our deficiencies. More than ever, there is an increasing obligation to ensure that our Nation cements its military capability and is recognized as a net security provider in the South Asian region. However, the current Budget does little to contribute to this requirement.”
In one another interview chief of army staff Gen. Bipin Rawat says, We have to match the power of China, who know how to balance economic growth with the growth of military power.
These Army report and statement are very important for the government to take note of, looking at the treat India faces from its borders.
