Army goes to war with faulty artillery

New Delhi: Does the Indian Army go into a war unprepared? One would think not.

But a shocking report submitted by the Comptroller and Auditor General of India in Parliament this week, says that not only does the Army possess below par arms and ammunition, many of the equipment imported for defending the nation since 1999 have been found defective.

The report says that twice in the year 2002, when the Indian Army had launched Operation Parakram for a war with Pakistan, soldiers had an arsenal of defective tanks, rifles and ammunition to fight the battle.

And this, according to the report, is just the tip of the iceberg. Since 1999 imported arms, ammunition and equipment worth Rs 1,221 crore have been found defective.

Questions have been raised on the quality check done by the Directorate General of Quality Assurance, which imports such material worth nearly Rs 1,500 crore for the Army every year.

Even surveillance systems vital for detecting enemy attacks failed to work properly when required.

The report goes on to say that because of a software defect, helicopter detecting radars worth Rs 159 crore failed to function properly.

The radars had not been subjected to a full functional test when they were purchased.

Startling new revelations suggest that Rs 303 crore worth of ammunition, weapons, and multipurpose boots acquired in a hurry during the Kargil operations were sub-standard.

Also nearly 15,000 rounds of ammunition - worth Rs 14 crore - are lying unutilised because they are defective.

The report clearly states that this had put the lives of thousands of soldiers, who are responsible for protecting our nation, at risk and the Army's operational effectiveness was hampered time and again.