New Delhi: Union Home Ministry on Monday ordered fresh trials of 59,000 bulletproof jackets for central paramilitary forces.
In a press release issued on Monday evening, just a few days after CNN-IBN exposed massive irregularities in the trials for the bulletproof jackets, Home Ministry has decided to scrap the previous trial results and go in for fresh tests.
"The Ministry of Home Affairs has decided that the Technical Evaluation Committee and Tender Advisory Committee may be advised to maintain strict vigilance and ensure scrupulous adherence to the terms and conditions of the tender," the release said.
The Ministry also asked bidders to submit fresh samples of bulletproof jackets.
Sources in the Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPR&D) say the seven members of the sub-committee, including a Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) Joint Director named in the CNN-IBN report, now face disciplinary action.
DRDO will wait for the Technical Evaluation Committee report against Joint Director (Terminal Ballistic Research Laboratory) RK Verma who conducted the trial before taking any action against him.
TEC Chairman and Bureau of Police Research & Development (BPRD) Director General will submit their report to the Home Ministry and recommend action against Verma to DRDO.
BPRD is also investigating the role of the sub-committee responsible for ballistic trials of jackets headed by the Indo Tibetan Border Police DIG.
Verma was on January 7 called from Chandigarh to Delhi and questioned on the trials of the jackets.
He was asked to explain the discrepancies during the trials.
During the questioning Verma was also confronted with a CD in which he is allegedly heard confessing to fudging technical data; attempting to collude with vendors on the price bid and claiming political patronage.
Verma reportedly admitted that the voice on the CD was his when grilled by senior officers from the Intelligence Bureau, DRDO and Home Ministry.
Home Ministry press release:
A tender was floated for procuring 59,000 Bullet Proof jackets for the Central Paramilitary Forces. A Technical Evaluation Committee (TEC) under the chairmanship of DG, BPR&D and a Tender Advisory Committee (TAC) under the chairmanship of DG, CRPF were also constituted.
The Tender Evaluation Committee included Shri RK Verma, Joint Director, Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory, a laboratory under the DRDO.
The samples submitted by the qualified bidders were tested in the TBRL. Ballistic tests were conducted under the supervision of Shri RK Verma. The TEC submitted its report on the tests to the TAC.
When the matter was under consideration of the TAC, several complaints were received from different sources. A CD purportedly containing conversations between Shri RK Verma and one of the bidders was also received. After a preliminary consideration of the complaints and the CD, Home Minister directed on December 23, 2009, that the tender process shall be stayed and that the price bids shall not be opened until further orders.
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The complaints and the CD have been examined carefully by the DG, BPR&D. He has reported that Shri RK Verma has admitted that it was his voice on the CD. The report of the DG, BPR&D has been considered by the TAC and the TAC has made its recommendations to the Ministry of Home Affairs. After considering the aforesaid report and the recommendations, MHA has decided:
(1) that the test reports submitted by TBRL be scrapped;
(2) that the bidders may be requested to submit fresh samples which shall be tested afresh;
(3) that the facts of the case may be reported to DRDO to nominate one or more Scientists/Technologists of integrity to conduct the tests on the fresh samples;
(4) that the DRDO may be requested to take suitable disciplinary action against Shri RK Verma after holding an enquiry according to law; and
(5) that TEC and TAC may be advised to maintain strict vigilance and ensure scrupulous adherence to the terms and conditions of the tender.
Irregularities during the trials:
Violation No. 1
Two different samples of jackets were tested for live firing at the same time - 1305 hrs IST to 1320 hrs IST and 1312 hrs IST to 1318 hrs IST but the DRDO lab is a single bench test firing range, two samples just cannot be tested at the same time. How did the second test start before the first one finished?
This months after the Ram Pradhan Committee report indicted the Maharashtra government for the use of poor quality bullet proof jackets during 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks.
Violation No. 2
As per the rule or standard operating procedure –‘wet jackets' have to be fired at within 10 minutes of soaking but the document clearly reveals how a sample was fired at after 17 minutes and rejected. Ironically, other bidders did adhere to this guideline and passed the trial.
Violation No. 3
If a jacket is perforated during a test shot, testing must end and the sample stands rejected. But the report shows how shot number 4 from an AK-47 pierced the jacket and yet more shots were fired at the sample. In another case, when an MP5 bullet pierced a sample jacket, the shot was declared "unfair", to allow testing to continue.
Even the declaration is a whiteout job endorsed only by RK Verma, one of the seven members on technical evaluation committee and the man who fired the shot.
Interestingly, of the 376 shots fired during the trials, this was the only shot declared unfair.
Jackets belonging to this vendor were approved in the technical bidding making it eligible for the financial bid.
CNN-IBN also found that lab test reports don't have the signatures of five out of seven members on the technical evaluation committee. Ironically, the Union Home Ministry in an internal note had conceded it has received several complaints about these trials.
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