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Monday, January 27, 2014

Coastal Security/Constabulary Operations Versus Provision Of Maritime Security

The ‘desi’ journalists never cease to indulge in yellow journalism and superstitious oversimplifications (when the problem in  reality is far more deep-rooted), as evidenced by the contents of this report:


Next, we have this report: 

(http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/indian-navy-submarine-ins-sindhughosh-grounded-mumbai-harbour/1/338413.html

This report claimed that the Indian Navy’s (IN) submarine arm “got a very rude jolt” when one of its Type 877EKM SSKs—INS Sindhughosh—ran aground at around 5.30pm on January, 17, 2014 while trying to berth itself alongside at the naval base in Mumbai at a time when low-tide had set in (it was originally scheduled to enter by 4pm, it seems). What the ‘desi’ news-reporter—who filed this report—obviously did not know was that whenever a submarine enters or exists any naval base at very slow speeds, it always has its on-board echosounder turned on and the submarine’s navigator knows only too well what are the natural or man-made obstacles below the vessel. And many a time when low-tide sets in, submarines already berthed alongside are gently allowed to settle down over the silt and after high-tide sets in, naval divers are routinely sent to visually inspect the bottom-portion of submarine’s hull for any signs of structural damage, which indeed is a very rare occurrence. Likewise, when an inbound submarine’s echosounder indicates any obstacle due to low-tide setting in, the vessel immediately shuts off its propeller and comes to a complete standstill, and the hull is allowed to gently rest atop the silt below. Once the tide rises again, the submarine also rises accordingly and depending on visibility levels, the vessel either proceeds to its accorded berthing slot on its own power, or is towed in by a tug-boat containing a harbour pilot. That is what really transpired on January 17 and by no means did INS Sindhughosh run aground nor did the SSK’s bow-mounted sonar-dome (containing the cylindrical-array sonar) suffer any damage.   In fact, the berthing area for SSKs inside the naval base in Mumbai (see diagram below) has silted up because dredgers have been unable to remove silt from there due to the submerged wreck of INS Sindhurakshak, which awaits salvaging. 
Finally, we have this report (http://m.indianexpress.com/story/1967964/hindia/india/) about INS Betwa—a Project 16A FFG—which was recently reported by yet another ‘desi’ news-reporter as having run aground or colliding with an unidentified object while approaching the naval base in Mumbai, and that the hull-mounted, fibre-glass-built sonar-dome had cracked due to this collision, leading to faulty readings and ingress of saltwater into the sonar-dome. In reality, one does not have to be a rocket-scientist to realise that hull-mounted, fibre-glass-built sonar-domes are robust structures that are built to withstand the kind of turbulence and pressures that one encounters during Sea State 6. Secondly, the FFG’s echosounder is always available for use when the vessel is entering any naval base and consequently, the question of running aground doesn’t even arise. Lastly, the sonar-domes of all three Project 16A FFGs (containing the hull-mounted panoramic sonar) are mounted a little further behind the bottommost section of the bow (only the six Project 1135.6 FFGs, three Project 15A DDGs and four Project 28A ASW corvettes have their sonar-domes contained within a bulbous compartment located at the bottommost section of the bow) and therefore, it is impossible for flotsam like timber-logs to directly collide with the sonar-dome of a Project 16A FFG. Consequently, the only other probable explanation is that INS Betwa’s sonar-dome cracked due to normal wear-and-tear.

When it comes to the issue of collisions between IN warships and merchant marine/fishing vessels, fact of the matter is that none of the IN's principal surface combatants are presently equipped with passive infra-red search-and-track systems (IRST), which ought to be mandatory whenever any warship—large or small—undertakes incessant coastal security patrols. Such sensors effectively supplement both the on-board marine navigation radars as well as target detection/target engagement radars like the Garpun Bal-E. While the IN’s X-FAC-Ms along with those of the Indian Coast Guard Service (ICGS) are being progressively retrofitted with ELBIT Systems-supplied COMPASS gyro-stabilised multi-sensor optronic systems, the same does not hold true for the IN’s FFGs, DDGs, guided-missile corvettes, AOPVs and auxiliary vessels like fleet replenishment tankers and LST-Ls.
In fact, only the three Project 17 FFGs, plus the six 105-metre NOPVs now in delivery, are presently equipped with gyro-stabilised multi-sensor optronic systems—these being those co-developed by India’s VEM Technologies Pvt Ltd and the UK’s Vinten-Radamec and being used primarily for optronic fire-control in support of the OTOBreda 76/62 SRGM. The three Project 15A DDGs too will have them.
The obvious and only solution therefore is to retrofit the IN’s each existing DDGs, FFGs, guided-missile corvettes and NOPVs, as well as the ICGS’ OPVs and AOPVs with dual high-definition gyro-stabilised multi-sensor optronic systems, which will dramatically improve the all-weather situational awareness of the officers-on-watch on board such warships. Such solutions are already available from OEMs based in the US, Canada, France, Germany and Israel.
SAGEM’s EOMS-NG (electro-optical multifunction system–new generation) and Vampir-NG optronic panoramic surveillance system—presently being offered by SAGEM through its authorised Indian distributor Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering Ltd, is a day/night, multifunction, gyrostabilised optronic system. It offers complete functionality over 360°, including infra-red surveillance, identification, tracking, laser rangefinding and fire-control system. Remote-controlled from two consoles operating in tandem from a warship’s close-in air-defence bridge, the EOMS-NG helps assess the warship’s immediate environment, controls self-defence weapons and enhances the safety of helicopter operations. The EOMS-NG’s operating concept, based on high-rate panoramic shots, gives it the observation capability equivalent to 100 fixed cameras. 
Let us now proceed to the root-causes of the MRO/serviceability problems afflicting the IN’s operational fleet. That successive Govts of India between the early 1990s and November 2008 had no idea about what constituted coastal security becomes evident from the fact that, despite the 10 IED blasts that rocked Bombay on March 12, 1993, resulting in 257 killed or missing and 713 injured (and caused by 8 tonnes of RDX, detonators, gelatine, AK-56s and pistols plus their ammunition reloads and magazines, and hand-grenades that were ferried by sea to landing sites at Dighi and Srivardhan along Maharashtra’s coastline at between February 3 and 7, 1993), no attempt was made till early 2009 for securing the coastlines of Gujarat and Maharashtra through the establishment of a multi-sensor coastal surveillance system (CCS).
The Group of Ministers (GoM) on National Security had recommended as far back as in February 2001 the setting up a CSS in the form of shore-based remotely-operated radar stations (also equipped with optronic sensors) in areas of high sensitivity and high traffic density to provide continuous, gap free, automatic detection and tracking of maritime targets, thereby providing a reliable tactical situation display. Although the MoD had constituted a Working Group in 2002 for implementing the CSS scheme, it took till 2004 to decide which agency would execute the project. In January 2005, the project was entrusted to the ICGS, which immediately initiated a Statement of Case (SoC) for the scheme. Nonetheless, there were further delays and it took four years to sign a Memorandum of Understanding in December 2008 with the Director General Light Houses and Light Ships (DGLL), the Ministry of Shipping, and the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways in view of the inter-ministerial issues and financial implications. Apart from this, numerous revisions (six till July 2007) in the SoC at the instance of the MoD contributed to the delay. Finally, in February 2009 the Cabinet Committee on National Security approved the CSS and automatic identification system (AIS) chain together with related communications equipment along India’s coastline under Phase-I for 46 dual S-/X-band radars and optronic sensors at an approximate cost of Rs350 crore. The non-competitive and sole-source RFP for the establishment of a chain of static optronic sensors at 46 sites was in August 2009, which was awarded rather arbitrarily to the MoD-owned Bharat Electronics Ltd (BEL) and mysteriously failed to invite the country’s private-sector entities for submitting their bids. The field evaluation trials of BEL-built sub-systems of foreign origin began in December 2009 but were suspended in February 2010 due to unsatisfactory performance of the thermal imager, low-light-level TV (LLLTV) and charge-coupled device (CCD) camera. Subsequently, field trials of the optronic sensors of four foreign vendors were carried out in June and August 2010 at Chennai. The thermal imager of Israel’s Controp and the CCD camera with LLLTV from Canada’s Obzerv met the RFP criteria and passed the field-trials. Following this, the staff evaluation was undertaken by ICGS HQ. The staff evaluation report was approved by the MoD in December 2010.
It was only on November 24, 2011 that Saab TransponderTech of Sweden on was awarded a SEK116 million contract by the DGLL for supplying a national CSS network costing Rs.600 crore and stradling the entire Indian coastline. The system includes TERMA of Denmark’s Scanter 2001 dual-band (S/X) radars each with 50km-range, and equipment for regional and national control centres. Users of the CCS apart from DGLL will be the IN, ICG and DG Shipping. Saab will implement the project, which includes installation, commissioning, training and support together with its Indian partner, Elcome Marine Services. The project was targetted  for completion within 18 months. The CSS that the DGLL has ordered comprises both radars and optronic sensors at 74 locations. The sensor sites connect via VSAT links to form a Wide Area Network. Saab has delivered the network servers and software, the CoastWatch operator software, including SAR support and advanced databases and statistical functions to nine control centres—six regional and three national. The control centres are being operated by the DGLL. There is also an option within the contract to include another 12 sensor sites.

Provision of coastal security through persistent surveillance and target detection for protecting India’s vast 7,517km-long coastline, 1,197 islands and 2.01 million sq km of exclusive economic zone (EEZ) is a multi-asset and multi-layered assignment that is best achieved through a combination of shore-based, seaborne, airborne and space-based hardware which, only when employed in a combined and synchronised manner, will generate a comprehensive picture of what’s happening or who is going where and how into the sea (the so-called domain of maritime awareness or DMA), especially the Arabian Sea, which is spread over an area of 38.6 lakh sq km. While the Govt of India has, since November 2008, welcomed the IN’s desire for providing the leadership for coastal security roles and operations, it obviously continues to be oblivious of the cost in terms of conventional naval war preparedness. Why then is the IN condemning its warships and crew on an evidently self-defeating task? Primarily, for two reasons. Firstly, after the 26/11 terrorist attacks, everyone within the country’s civilian officialdom collectively pointed fingers at the IN, implying that since the medium of infiltration was through the sea, it had to be the IN’s failure. The Govt of India, though wiser than the popular perception, opportunistically decided to play along in order to prevent the criticisms coming its way. In fact, the political leadership’s incomprehension of India’s coastal borders and their vulnerabilities can be gauged by the fact that after OP Vijay/OP Safed Sagar/OP Talwar in 1999, when the then NDA coalition government appointed a task force to suggest security measures for securing India’s frontiers, the focus was only on land. And the subsequent Group of Ministers’ report on India’s border management referred to coastal borders in only a cursory manner. Secondly, why the IN got sucked into the coastal security domain was partially its own fault. In 2010, when incidences of Somali piracy were making headlines every day, the IN’s Western Naval Command decided to initiate a month-long anti-piracy exercise as a matter of routine. This exercise, which generated tremendous deterrent value in the high seas, soon unintentionally morphed into a full-fledged operation. And once the Govt of India realised that the IN to do more effectively what the ICGS’ job ought to be, it simply washed its hands away, while the ICGS developed a dependency-on-the-IN syndrome.        

Immediately after 26/11, the Govt of India rushed matters by making the IN the lead provider of coastal security (the IN up till then had only been responsible for providing maritime security and coastal defence) and prematurely fixed the areas of responsibilities (AOR) for the ICGS and the various State Marine Police agencies without first appreciating their respective capacities and capabilities. In October 2010, the IN submitted a detailed 262-page technical blueprint on the ‘integrated national maritime domain awareness project’ to all the concerned Union ministries and the 14 coastal states and union territories of India. This detailed blueprint centred around the creation of the IN’s multi-spectrum National Command Control Communication and Intelligence Network (NC3IN), whose HQ is now in Gurgaon, Haryana. The blueprint called for an additional allocation of Rs.9 billion for implementing the entire project, whose principal aim is to generate a common operational picture of all ongoing activities at sea through an institutionalised mechanism for collecting, fusing and analysing information from technical and other sources like the CCS, satellite-based automatic identification systems (AIS), vessel traffic management systems (VTMS), fishing vessel registration and fishermen biometric identity databases. The proposal also called for the need to create state- level monitoring centres in coastal states/union territories to act as nodes for the national DMA network and upgradation of the four existing joint operations centres at Mumbai, Kochi, Vizag and Port Blair, as well as the creation of a shipping hub and fisheries monitoring centre. The blueprint also identified the need to establish VTMS at the 56 non-major ports that handle international traffic. While India's 13 major ports either have or are being equipped with VTMS, except for Port Blair, Mumbai, Chennai and the Gulf of Khambat, none of the 200 non-major ports have any identification or surveillance systems as yet. The blueprint also called for a VTMS for the eastern off-shore development areas like the one set up for the western ones.

The area stretching from the shore out to 3nm into the sea was made the responsibility of the Marine Police agencies, while the area from 3nm out to 12nm (territorial waters) was entrusted to the ICGS, while the area beyond the 12nm limit out into the high seas became the IN’s AOR. Now, as per international norms and conventions, the area stretching out from a country’s baseline right to a distance of 24nm is known as the contiguous zone within which a country’s fiscal and health laws apply. 200nm ahead of the baseline lies the EEZ. Unfortunately, prior to 26/11, conceptualisation of India’s various maritime borders was never understood or taken seriously. Consequently, when the state-level Marine Police agencies were brought into the loop for providing coastal security, they never understood what all this meant, since they had all been under the assumption that India’s borders ended at the shorelines. Additionally, several of these state-level agencies grasped rather lately that coastal security was a pan-India issue and that despite territorial/jurisdictional reservations, eventually all the maritime agencies operating out of India’s coastal states will have to follow one unitary national directive.

Another major problem was the unavailability of trained manpower to man the various coastal police stations of the Marine Police agencies (initially 73 marine police stations were established under a Rs.329.62 crore plan (this was to be followed by an additional allocation of Rs.1,579.91 crores for another 131 police stations). Of these, 32 marine police stations are on the west coast, with 12 of them being in Maharashtra). And wherever some human resources were available, they loathed their offshore patrolling taskings since they were not trained in seamanship. Such personnel soon discovered that cruising on the sea on board high-speed interceptor craft was quite different from cruising cruising on a lake or river. Thus far, 340 FICs (Motomarine SA-built Hellraiser and Invader) have been approved for import. These are being licence-assembled in India by the MoD-owned GSL and GRSE, with the latter being contracted for the supply of an initial 78 FICs for those marine police agencies straddling the Bay of Bengal. The 12-tonne FIC—called Hellraiser—is built of glass-reinforced plastic (GRP), costs Rs25 million per unit, and is capable of a top speed of 38 Knots (70 kph). The boat is 13 metres long and has an endurance of 75nm with 25% reserve fuel capacity. It can carry four crew members along with a patrolling party of 16 persons. The boat is fitted with two inboard main engines of 500HP each with waterjet propulsion. These boats have been designed and constructed for deployment in Indian territorial waters for day and night surveillance and investigation of suspected vessels in and around harbour, anchorage and along the sea coast. The boats are highly seaworthy and unsinkable type having 10% reserve buoyancy even when filled with water. An on-board radar provides the boat’s commander with automatic, real-time updates of maritime activity received from navigation, positional, and position-tracking sensors such as AIS, automatic radar plotting aids, and full-motion optronic sensors so as to afford greater clarity in the tactical picture and thus improve decision-making. The live data is shared amongst the nodes in the network via an intelligent router, thus allowing critical and prioritised information to be broadcasted on the best line connectivity available over up to four different channels using HF, VHF, UHF, SATCOM or WIFI.
The Invader 5.4-tonne FIC can attain speeds of 40 Knots, is 9.60 metres long, and has an endurance of 75nm with 25% reserve fuel capacity. The boat can carry four crew members along with a patrolling party of 10 persons and comes fully equipped with life-saving, fire-fighting and communications facilities. The boat is fitted with two outboard Motors of 275HP each for propulsion and manoeuvring. The wheel house is fitted with anti-ballistic panels for protection of the patrolling crew to withstand firing from an AK-47 assault rifle at 10-metre range. Deliveries of the Invader and Hellraiser FICs have so far taken place for the marine police agencies of Maharashtra (28 ordered), Goa (five ordered), West Bengal (18 ordered), Tamil Nadu (44 ordered), Gujarat, Kerala, and the Andaman & Nicobar Administration (eight delivered). Maharashtra, meanwhile, is procuring an additional 29 patrol boats costing Rs1.5 billion from Mumbai-based Marine Frontiers Pvt Ltd. The night patrolling capabilities of the Hellraiser and Invader families of FICs are severely limited in view of the non-availability of dedicated COTS-based navigational radars (like those from FURUNO). In addition, the non-availability of night vision binoculars/goggles on-board also affected their efficacy for dark-hour patrols. In addition, both the ICGS and various marine police agencies also lacks vital equipment such as hand-held GPS receivers, night-vision binoculars, SAR transponders, and emergency position indicating radio beacons (EPIRB).
A far bigger challenge has been the creation and operationalisation of a hierarchical, multi-agency coastal security ensemble as part of the IN’s visionary DMA—something that required all stakeholders to cooperate with one another and evolve an over-arching set of standard operating procedures (SOP) and rules of engagement (ROE)—all under a centralised command-and-control structure overseen by the IN. This has proven to be the most complicated challenge to overcome, since both the IN and ICGS never really had interacted with state-level and Central civil agencies like harbour/port authorities, Marine Police, Customs and Immigration agencies, and the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI). Even though the IN, to its credit, had created several Joint Operations Centres (JOC) by late 2009 and had driven home the point that these JOCs were coordinating and not command centres, a high degree of agency mistrust and turf-protection mindsets continue to prevail, thereby preventing the JOCs from being fully functional and subverting such well-meaning multi-pronged initiatives. As a compromise, the IN has thus far succeeded in establishing telephone hotlines between all concerned agencies as an interim solution, and has also convinced the Union Home Secretary to prevail over his state-level counterparts who, in turn, have taken some tangible steps towards coaxing the various state-level agencies to send their representatives to their workstations within the JOCs.

In addition to these, the IN has, post-26/11, initiated the ‘Sagar Kavach’ series of exercises (at a rate of two exercises per year per coastal state) aimed at sensitising all stakeholders towards the concept of coastal security. This task too has proven to be difficult to implement, since non-IN and non-ICGS agencies did not participate with the same degree of enthusiasm until the IN invited the Chief Secretaries of the concerned coastal states to chair the debriefing sessions after the conduct of each such exercise. Bottomline: no amount of sensitisation will produce tangible results unless each stakeholder is made accountable for its part.

Consequently, the IN is now paying the price for such ill-conceived initiatives by being compelled to play policing or constabulary roles, which were previously tertiary, as one of its primary tasks. Instead of insisting that provision of maritime defence/security should be its only task, the IN has accepted the additional responsibility of providing coastal security, a move that has serious national security implications since it diminishes the IN’s conventional warfighting capabilities. For instance, out of the 365 days between August 2010 and August 2011, all principal surface combatants of the IN’s Western Naval Command were involved in patrolling for almost 280 days, causing needless wear-and-tear of frontline operational warships. Prior to 26/11, such warships of the Western Naval Command and Eastern Naval Command used to participate in fortnight-long exercises twice a year, with enough time in-between for recoup, recovery, review of warfighting doctrines and tactics, and embarking on naval diplomacy. Now, with the heightened focus on coastal security, the damage wrought to the IN is three-fold: DDGs costing Rs.3,500 crore and FFGs costing Rs.2,500 crore are being used for chasing pirates, thereby taking a toll on the service lives of such warships since they have limitations on serviceable engine-hours when used at low-speeds; a defensive mindset is overwhelming the IN’s rank-and-file, which in turn serves to diminish the IN’s sea deterrence capacity; and dilution of its primary role is coming at the cost of exercising with friendly navies. Though an instrument can be used for multiple purposes, it is best used only when it is used for the role that it was designed for. Otherwise, it operates a lower efficiencies and at higher costs. And this is exactly what’s happening with the IN’s frontline surface combatants. Military capabilities come at an extremely high premium. But if the Govt of India feels that the armed forces will not be called upon to perform their primary roles (i.e. conventional warfighting), then it should disband the armed forces and save the premium. After all, why spend Rs.1,000 on a job that can be done with Rs.100? Better invest that money elsewhere.     

The Way Forward
And yet, despite lavish spending on hardware procurements by the MoD and Union MHA, today, it can hardly be said that India’s 7,516km-long coastline is secure, if not impregnable. While India is not as vulnerable today as she was in November 2008, improvement has only been marginal and the country still needs a lot of luck. After all, provision of comprehensive coastal security is not like a polythene bag inside which one can put India, with all the bad people remaining outside. Ideally, instead of the IN, the ICGS should have been designated as the nodal agency for coordinating with all other civilian stakeholders. But that was not to be. Now, the IN needs to hand over to the ICGS at the earliest the task of providing coastal security. In reality, the IN should have no locus standi within India’s territorial waters. Instead, only the ICGS and the various Marine Police agencies of the coastal states should be made responsible for providing coastal security. 
As per the ICGS’ in-house analysis (for the 2002-2007 Plan), it requires 175 ships and 221 aircraft for effective patrolling of the EEZ, coastal and shallow waters. Against this, India’s CAG audit report reveals that the ICGS had only 68 ships/vessels and 45 aircraft as of January 2008. Out of the 28 ships/vessels available with for patrolling of the entire West Coast, 16 ships/vessels, of all types, were based in the Maharashtra and Gujarat areas. Ten ships in 2007 and 14 ships/vessels in 2008 and 2009 deployed in the Maharashtra and Gujarat area were responsible for EEZ and International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) patrolling. Compared to the force-level of 122 vessels envisaged in the Perspective Plan for the period 1985-2000, the ICGS had by December 2010 possessed only 65% of the required force-level in terms of ships. With respect to the aviation arm, the corresponding figure was 48%. As of December 2010, the ICGS had not processed the cases for acquisition of deep-sea patrol vessels (DSPV), medium patrol vessels (MPV) and aerostat-mounted optronic sensors, even though they were envisaged in the Perspective Plan 1985–2000. During the 9th Plan (1997-2002) period the ICGS was able to achieve only about 50% of its targetted acquisitions. During the 10th Plan (2002-2007) period, of the 61 ships planned for acquisition, the procurement action for only 26 ships could be finalised, i.e. a mere 43%. More importantly, not a single acquisition fructified in the plan period against the planned targets. The ICGS acquired 12 vessels, against the contracted-for 26, well after the plan period, only by December 2010. The procurement action for the remaining 35 vessels was carried over to the 11th Plan period (2007-2012). Of these 35 vessels, only 27 vessels had been contracted for by December 2010. Although new projects had been sanctioned during the 11th Plan period, taking into account the planned decommissioning of ships, it proved be difficult for the ICGS to achieve the Perspective Plan (1985-2000) force-levels even by 2012 i.e. by the end of the 11th Plan. The deficiency is now to the extent of 17% and 45% in respect of vessels and aircraft. Presently, 72% of FPVs/IPVs, 47% of AOPVs/OPVs and 37% of interceptor boats are either on extended lives or their extended lives have also expired. Three OPVs meant to be decommissioned in 2003, 2005 and 2006 still remain in service as the contract for their replacement was signed only in February 2006 and the replacements were expected between February 2010 and November 2011, respectively. Thirteen IPVs were to be decommissioned between 1998 and 2006. However, approval of the MoD’s Defence Acquisition Council under the ‘Acceptance of Necessity’ clause was obtained only in August 2006. The contract was concluded in March 2009 and the first vessel was delivered by only August 2011, i.e. 12 years after the first vessel was due for decommissioning.
The ICGS presently has government sanction to operate four squadrons of Do-228s, four squadrons of SA.316B Alouette-III/Chetak helicopters and one squadron of Dhruv ALH helicopter. As high as 82% of the Chetaks and 54% of the Do-228s are more than 17 years old. This age profile compares unfavourably with the prescribed life of Chetaks (15 years) and that of Do-228s (25 years). In order to meet its requirements primarily for SAR and afloat operations, the Coast Guard’s Development Plan for 1992-1997 had provided for the acquisition of two twin-engined helicopters for which the ICGS had identified the HAL-built Dhruv ALH. However, the first ALH was delivered only in March 2002 and the second ALH in March 2003. The ICGS concluded the contract only in March 2003 with the MoD-owned HAL. Subsequently, a third and fourth Dhruv ALH were received in March 2004 and March 2005, respectively, without any government sanction and contract. The availability of Dhruv ALHs was poor as they remained under evaluation since service induction (2002-2005) till May 2009. Even during evaluation, their serviceability ranged from 21% to 40% and the entire Dhruv ALH fleet was grounded in November 2005 and flying was re-started only in January 2007. Even after seven years of induction of the first helicopter and after incurring an expenditure of Rs162.03 crore, the Dhruv ALH still does not meet the ICGS’ operational requirements, according to the CAG. The Dhruv ALH is thus being exploited only for basic flying as the present state of the helicopters precludes accomplishment of any mission-oriented flying. Worse, the Dhruv ALHs in ICGS service have not yet been fitted with weather radars, which is a major limitation. Fitment of operational role equipment has also been kept in abeyance. Consequently, these helicopters can neither be exploited for SAR missions nor for afloat operations, pending the resolution of many issues, including rescue hoist trials and certification, structural provisions for SAR operations (like fitment of flotation gear), radar flickering and Doppler failure (of the DRDO-developed and BEL-built Supervision SV-2000 chin-mounted radar), and AFCS software updates for auto-hover capability. Furthermore, fleet serviceability has been poor. On an average the ICGS’ Dhruv ALHs have spent more time at HAL’s facilities than with the squadron since their induction. In September 2007, for every Dhruv ALH, out of 100 hours of flying undertaken by the helicopter, only 30 hours and 40 minutes contributed towards service flying and the remaining was towards maintenance test-flights. The helicopter has been plagued by premature component failures and frequent groundings for complying mandatory servicing instructions and modifications. Lastly, the shipborne deployment has not yet been achieved due to problems in blade-folding even though the ICGS’ new AOPVs have been specifically designed to accommodate the Dhruv ALH on board. The ICGS has a total requirement of 12 twin-engined helicopters against which it presently has four Dhruv ALHs. However, due to extreme dissatisfaction with these helicopters, the ICGS has no other choice but to import alternatives like AgustaWestland Aerospace’s AW-139.
Despite the MoD and Union Ministry of Finance (MoF) curtailing the ICGS’ projected requirements, actual capital expenditure as a percentage of capital outlay ranged between 82% in the 9th Plan and 53% in the 10th Plan. This was due to delays in finalisation of procurement process and delayed signing of contracts; abnormally slow progress on the part of MoD-owned shipyards to construct the ships; and neutralisation of requirement of spares through revenue budget, cancellation of project, expiry of validity of approvals of the procurement process, delayed supply of spares, inconclusive trials, etc. In addition, procedural delays at all levels, i.e. ICGS HQ, MoD and Union MoF, were responsible for non-utilisation of the budget. For instance, the delayed conclusion of contact for Interceptor Boats worth Rs213 crore took place in only March 2006, wherein the proposal was mooted as early as December 2001 for procurement. In addition, there was non-sanction of new schemes by the MoD. Thus, the procurement of four new Do-228s, five FLIR turrets for installation on board existing Do-228s as well as integration of ELTA Systems-built EL/M-2022(V)2 radars could not take place in the year 2007-2008 and consequently, Rs70.47 crore had to be surrendered on this account. Lastly, due to the slow progress of construction of ships by the MoD-owned shipyards, Rs120 crore was surrendered in 2008-2009. By the end of the 10th Plan period (2002-2007), even though the ICGS had activated 23 coast guard stations, a large number of these stations continued to function with infrastructural/fleet deficiencies. These deficiencies were yet to be made good as of December 2010 at most of the stations. Post 26/11, the Govt of India had sanctioned 14 new stations in a span of 18 months (between June 2009 and November 2010). However, only five had been activated till December 2010.

(to be concluded)

196 comments:

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

Some sorely awaited good news:

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Japan-enters-where-China-is-barred-northeast-India/articleshow/29427619.cms

Raman said...

Well written..........at least you come up with solutions/thoughts......instead of just criticizing etc.......

sntata said...

Dear Prasun,

Your above link is very interesting very timely and very beneficial to India's interests.

Japan is surely rallying other Asian powers against the evolving threat from the fire-breathing Red Dragon, surely with the blessings and backing of America. I think it is high time for other Asian powers to gang up on China, or it will be too late and we will see the emergence of another Nazi Germany. Is there any chance that Japan may abandon its pacifist defence posture and go for N-weapons and missiles? Please give us your valuable views on the emerging military-political scenario.

VIKRAM GUHA said...

Prasun Da ,

What is the Combat Range of the Su 30 MKI ?

AFAIK the Combat Radius is 3000 kms , so Combat Range would be around 40% of the Combat Radius .

Thank You

Vikram

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Prasun Da ,

I was reading the two links that you shared . The first dealing with the Frigates and the second was the TOI news about Japan in
North East India . These news agencies supposedly hire graduates ONLY from Premier Institutes . Now if such highly sough after
grads write such shabby news articles one wonders if the problem is with these Institutes or the organizations that hire them .

As an individual who spend his formative years in the North East I can only say that the TOI article is a good material for a Bollywood
script where fantasy rules supreme . Fact is NE India is already a spoilt lot . Approximately 70% of their expenditure is borne by the
Center.There is a separate Ministry in the Center to deal with the NE . Inspite of all this radical Tribalism rules the roost in NE .

Consider this , Yesterday just like any other year there was a bandh called by separatist outfits in Meghalaya , Manipur , Nagaland
and the response was total . The amount of disposable income that these tribals have is huge. They do NOT need any development.
Meghalaya is fighting for Inner Line Permit to prevent people from other parts of India from coming there . Earlier this month Bodo
militants shot dead 5 migrant labors in Assam . China is not causing these problems unlike what the writer states . This is home
grown insurgency


There is a limit to Japanese aid . Instead GOI should utilize the Japanese loans to develop those states that do not have an
entrepreneurial culture . If these states show progress more loans should be made available , if they don't they should not be patronized.

Buddhadeb Bhattacharya as CM had tried hard to get the Japs to invest in Bengal but achieved little success . It is said about the
Japs that they spend 80% time in planning and 20% in implementing . Therefore ,in hindsight I don't think the Japanese would risk
investing in the NE .

Thanks & Regards ,

Sujoy






Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAMAN: VMT. There’s more of the narrative & illustrations coming in a short while. Need to give the entire background for the sake of contextualisation.

To SNTATA: There’s no need to portray those hailing from the PRC as being 9 feet-high. Nor will Japan focus its resources on acquiring WMD. But Japan has been ‘pacifist’ in character & military power projection terms post-World War-2 due to the US’ strategic umbrella not only over Japan, but also over the ROK & ROC (Taiwan). However, Japan has always been a key developer-cum-provider of cutting-edge military technologies to its key friends & allies. Back in mid-1999, it was the Japan-supplied digital direction-finders that were procured by the Indian Army for OP Vijay.

To VIKRAM GUHA: I’m sure the figures for unrefuelled combat range will be available from IRKUT Corp’s website or from UAC’s website. With aerial refuelling the figures will obviously increase.

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: That news-report from TOI in fact blew up matters beyond all proportions & was totally way off the mark. What the Govt of India wants is access to Japan’s heavy-engineering/construction expertise for establishing all-weather road/rail connectivity as well as electricity supplies within the North East. For, as is fairly well-known, Japanese & South Korean companies have developed several innovative solutions, almost all of which were sought & acquired by China when it began developing its high-altitude border transportation infrastructure in both Sichuan & Yunan since the late 1980s. And since India’s BRO has proven itself to be totally inept in absorbing such innovative ideas/practices, India is now knocking on the doors of both Japan & ROK. That’s basically what it all boils down to, & has nothing to do with OEMs from Japan or ROK setting up manufacturing plants or agricultural/horticulture businesses in the North East. Therefore, strictly speaking, this is not an invitation to invest through Japanese FDI, but merely an attempt to access Japanese solutions perhaps in partnership with India-based heavy engineering/construction companies.

Rajeev Chaturvedi said...

Prasunda,

See this yellow one..

http://www.defensenews.com/article/20140127/DEFREG03/301270030/Indian-AF-Tired-Delays-Looks-Overseas-Trainer

What does he want?

Anonymous said...

Prasun Da,

Does this news have any shred of credibility to it or is it yet another product of yellow journalism?

http://www.dnaindia.com/india/report-dna-exclusive-100-price-escalation-on-rafale-fighter-aircraft-to-rs-175-lakh-crore-likely-to-dent-iaf-s-strike-capability-1957107

ALso can you tell us the status of the FINSAS program and the multi-caliber rifle?

Thank You,

Neil

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAJEEV CHATURVEDI: The IAF is extremely happy with its growing fleets of PC-7 Mk2 BTTs & Hawk Mk132 AJTs & therefore it no longer requires an IJT, period. Only LIFT solutions are required now & the tandem-seat version of the Tejas Mk1 MRCA can easily morphe into a world-beating LIFT solution. That’s the reality, & nothing else.

To NEIL: Had already posted my comment on the M-MRCA contract’s cost implications in the previous thread. That news-report is absolutely crap for sure.

joydeep ghosh said...

@Prasun da

Looks like your contention that Tejas Mk1 be used as LIFT for stage 3 training that has good export potential might just come true with IAF rejecting IJT for stage 2 training, awaiting official nod. But then very much possible that for the time being IAF will go for PC mk9 for stage 2 training (something i said a few threads back)and later on if ever Kaveri engine fructifies use it in Tejas LIFT on stage 3 teraining with Hawks used in stage 2 training.

Also my calculation says that Rafale order will touch 250 excluding 40+ Rafale M with 126 bought off shelf and 124 made in India when realization hits that its much better to buy off racks

thanks

Joydeep Ghosh

KH said...

Hi prasun,

Looks like your blog has an able fan following it and is making a better use of the info:
http://m.rediff.com/news/report/modi-tears-into-congress-over-lack-of-war-memorial/20140128.htm

Cheers,
Hary

Raman said...

Excellent..........well detailed/thought thru......obviously if I use my car more often (on highways (Ocean) or Chandni Chowk (Mumbai Port)....in addition to the normal wear-n-tear.....it's bound to get scratched.....but is any one listening..... ????

Look forward to the concluding part..........

Rajeev Chaturvedi said...

@Joydeep Ghosh,

The IAF's PC-7 MK-ii is nothing but PC-9 with a lower rated engine. So why will IAF buy it for intermediate training, another turboprop?

Prasunda,

Most of the clamour for this news is coming from two journalists - Vivek Raghuvanshi and Rahul Bedi. It would be mighty helpful if some elaboration on their news source was also provided.
Thanks..

joydeep ghosh said...

@Rajeev bhai

with all due respect you have answered your question 'The IAF's PC-7 MK-ii is nothing but PC-9 with a lower rated engine. So why will IAF buy it for intermediate training, another turboprop?'

This clearly means that PC7 cant be used in stage 2 training and IAF will have to go for some PC9 in the interim since IAF cant have the luxury of sparing Hawk AJTs for stage 2 training.

As such unless IAF/MoD decide to develop LIFT Tejas mk1 and use it for stage 3 training IAF will have to make do with PC 7 for stage 1, PC9 for stage 2 after Kirans retire and Hawk AJTs for stage 3.

However i think if ever the Kaveri engine fructifies IAF can certainly equip the LIFT Tejas mk1 with Kaveri engine and use it for stage 3 training thereby leaving the Hawk AJTs for stage 2 training

btw thanks for your view

@Prasun da i would like to have your thoughts in this

thanks

Joydeep Ghosh

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Prasun Da ,

Many thanks for sharing the information .

Will you please take a look at this NDTV news article . It states that the Indian navy is also interested in Japanese patrol vessels and electronic warfare equipment.

Can you please state which Japanese Patrol Vessels and EW systems are they referring to ?

http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/india-close-to-buying-japan-made-military-aircraft-in-1-65-billion-deal-476482

Thanks again ,

Sujoy

sntata said...

Dear Prasun,

Is there any truth behind some news items that iAF is thinking of building Pilatus PC-7 Mk2 in house, after refusal by HAL? Have they the facilities and technical manpower?

Messenger said...

Hope some one in IN, MoD, ICGS, State Govts reads this, understand this and implement this.

Prasun, why don't you go the extra mile by emailing them this content for the sake of our country, for the sake of this article to achieve its meaningful results you intended.. and we intended...? Thank You

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: Not patrol vessels for sure, but definitely in ELINT/SIGINT systems developed by Fujitsu, NEC Corp & even Mitsubishi Electric (MELCO). Back in mid-1999 at the height of OP Vijay, manportable digital direction-finders used at high altitudes were procured by the IA from Fujitsu. In addition, such Japanese OEMs are acknowledged world-leaders in micro-miniaturised solid-state electronics & their products can easily be found on both US-origin long-range & tactical PGMs ranging from T-LAMs to JSOW. Also to be noted is the fact that the ASDF’s Lockheed Martin/Mitsubishi F-2 MRCA (a souped-up F-16) was the world’s first operational MRCA to make use of AESA-MMR (developed by MELCO), even before the F/A-22 Raptor had entered service.

To SNTATA: Not building them, but merely licence-assembling them after Pilatus Aircraft delivers them in knocked-down condition. This job can easily be done by one of the IAF’s existing BRDs. But a far better option for the MoD would have been to select an Indian private-sector company through a competitive bidding process for not only licence-assembling the PC-7 Mk2s, but also providing through-life product-support in partnership with Pilatus Aircraft for the IAF’s fleet of PC-7 Mk2s.

To MESSENGER: VMT. Believe me, those concerned parties are indeed reading & absorbing all this, especially the ones from the three armed services & this has been directly communicated to me several times before by the concerned agencies/institutions.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To JOYDEEP GHOSH: Arey yaar, for the Nth time, different stages (1, 2, 3) tend to undergo changes as newer generation flying training platforms & technologies become available. Consequently, the older model of stage 1 on piston-engined HPT-32, stage 2 on HJT-16 primary jet trainer/basic jet trainer/intermediate jet trainer & stage 3 on Hawker Hunters & MiG-21Us no longer holds any credibility. Instead, the new-generation 3-stage flying training curriculum is based on PC-7 Mk2 BTT + its cockpit procedures trainer full-flight simulator for stage 1, Hawk Mk132 AJT + its cockpit procedures trainer & full-flight simulator for stage 2, & lastly a tandem-seat supersonic LIFT + its cockpit procedures trainer & full-flight simulator for stage 3. Consequently, there’s simply no need for an IJT to be inserted into any part of the curriculum. No self-respecting air force employs IJTs between the BTT & AJT, period. Total projected reqmt for Rafale MMRCA is for 189 units, no more.

To HARYVANAM KIRAN: VMT. At least that’s something to cheer about today, which also happens to be my 48th birthday. Vande Maataram & Jai Ho!

To RAMAN: VMT. Concluding part will be uploaded tonight for sure.

To RAJEEV CHATURVEDI: AFAIK, there are no foreign OEMs offering IJTs. There are only two foreign OEMs—KAI & Russia’s UAC—that are proposing their TA-50 & Yak-130 as LIFT options. Plus, as I have just explained above, there’s simply no place/vacancy for any IJT once an air force has already procured BTTs & AJTs. The only other flying training platform that the IAF now requires is a LIFT for training the IAF’s pilots & WSOs in cockpit resource management procedures/practices when undertaking both sequential & interleaved mission-related operations from within the tandem-seat cockpits of aircraft like the Su-30MKI. For this to be achieved, the tandem-seat version of Tejas Mk1 is already available as the most viable homegrown option.

Abhay Jain said...

Prasun Sir
Wish you a many many happy returns of the day. May God bless you with health, wealth and prosperity in your life. HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To ABHAY JAIN: VMT & may God also bless you & all your loved ones as well with good health, life-long prosperity & everlasting wisdom.

Anonymous said...

Prasun,

1 Is Indian Navy right by selecting Tejas for Aircraft carrier ops considering its short range and low weapons load? Is it just bcaz its cheapand indigenous?

2 I read an article in DNA that says that the cost of rafale deal has doubled and will cost india no less than 25-30 billion dollar,can india afford it now or will it buy less than 126?

3 An IAF official is quoted as saying that the force is not happy with fgfa project...what are the real problems....and will india even after covering 50% of cost get any red hot technology that iaf wants?

4 can india consider yak 130 inplace of hal ijt?

5 Instead of troubled s80,type 214,amur subs shouldn't the p 75I be between Soryu sub and an HDW design,either 216 or Dolphin ?

6 How will Rafale ToT help india in AMCA/LCA projects,will it really benefit HAL?

7 Which AESA radar will Tejas mk2 get,indigenous or elm 2052?

8 Whats the status of Abhay IFV and 4 MRSV for navy?

9 Can Tejas be equiped with 2 air to air missile on wing tips?


Anonymous said...

Happy Birthday Prasun !!!

Wish you good health and happiness

Anonymous said...

http://m.indrus.in/articles/2012/04/02/foreign_hand_how_big_a_threat_is_it_15333.html
is there any truth in above article about KGB penetration in India and Krishna Menon ? The above is really hard to digest......
SIDDHARTH

Anonymous said...

"MANY MANY HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY SIR"
SIDDHARTH

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Happy Birth Day PrasunDa,

Hope your special day brings you all that your heart desires .

Regards,

Sujoy

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To Anon@10.56PM: Arey yaar, yeh ‘Anonymous’ handle ke badle koi aur handle pasand karo na. Phir milega sabhi sawaalo ka jawab.

To Anon@11.10PM & SIDDHARTH & SUJOY MAJUMDAR: VMT & God bless you all.

To SIDDHARTH: Yes, it's all mostly true & the data on such revelations has come mostly from various KGB archives that were made accessible to Russian historians after the demise of the USSR.

Bhaswar said...

prasun da,

looking at the new avtar of the arjun mk.2 on r-day it seems that they did indeed put some thought in to the era placement and design, in fact the end result is surprisingly even aesthetically pleasing.

but the laser warners seem to have been added as an after thought with not even any rudimentary protection- jutting out of the turret and open to being put out of any use by simple shrapnel that dominates a battlefield- surely they could have shaped simple metal fixtures to cover the back and the flanks of the laser warner devices?

same goes for the placement of the alwacs, it seems the seemingly inane placement of the ir jammer shall be retained- lord knows why?

one wonders though, even if the ia is serious about retaining the era add on modules surely they can find a better config for the ir jammers so as to extend the era cover properly across the turret. that having been done they could look towards shaping amap/composite add on armor modules for the roof, gun manlet, side track skirts and frontal portion of chassis? that way they can retain their beloved era protection and still add formidable survival capabilities to the tank.

are you still sure about a final iteration of the tank with amap modules, smooth bore gun and better vectronics taking over from the current r-day variant by 2016? considering that it would be quite different from the current variant won't it become a whole different "mk." altogether and where would it leave the current mk.2 avatar and fmbt in the scheme of things- as in how would it fit between the two?

VIKRAM GUHA said...


Bhul kota Dada. Agey bola uchit chilo :)

Anyways , wishing you a birthday filled with sweet moments & wonderful memories to cherish always.

Best Regards,
Vikram

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To SIDDHARTH: One Russian historian has even gone to the extent of publishing a book in which he claims that in the mid-1980s the KGB opened a bank account in Switzerland in the name of Rahul Gandhi, this being a reward for the then Indian PM Rajiv Gandhi's decision to continue procuring USSR-made military hardware in ever-increasing numbers, i.e. continuing the procurement practices initiated by the late Smt Indira Gandhi since the early 1980s.

No wonder, there's enough circumstantial evidence to support such allegations. For instance, no logic can explain why the IAF decided to procure MiG-23MF & MiG-29B-12 air-superiority combat aircraft along with MiG-23BNs & MiG-27Ms on one hand, & Mirage 2000H/TH MRCAs on the other hand. Same goes for the IN's SSK's procurements: Type 877EKMs from the USSR & Class 209/Type 1500 SSKs from Germany. Such procurement practices were highly suspect because they only severely increased the Indian end-users' product-support logistics burden.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To VIKRAM GUHA: LoLz! VMT indeed.

To BHASWAR: Aesthetically pleasing only when viewed from the portside. Look at it from the front-end & all sense of symmetry disappears, especially on the turret. Laser warners are always so positioned so as to provide them with unrestricted field-of-view. In fact, even APS sensors are usually positioned like that. And yes, the IR jammer could definitely have found a better place at the top-end of the turret ahead of the RCWS, BUT ONLY IF a more compact RCWS installation was selected (like the one on the T-90AM). While adoption of TWMP is permissible, adoption of ERA tiles in this day & age when technologically matured APS is available is indeed distressing. In terms of dimensions & volume, future iterations of the basic Arjun Mk1 MBT will remain the same, since the improvements will be almost internal, such as MIL-STD-1553B databus-based vectronics suite & turret-mounted autoloader, along with an all-electric turret stabilisation system.

Bhaswar said...

indeed its like having a thick mane of hair on one side of the head while being near bald on the other side.

aside from the internal upgrades you had mentioned that the current drdo mk.2 is actually the mk.1a and that the actual mk.2 variant with all the internal upgrades in terms of vectronics etc. along with the smooth bore gun, composite armor modules akin to amap modules will be out by 2016? how will that variant fit in between the supposed mk.1a which we saw recently on r-day and the mythical fmbt? or are plans for add on armor modules, smooth bore gun and an aps off the board?

buddha said...

Happy birth day Sir
Wish You a long prosperous and healthy life

SOUBHAGYA said...

DaDa,
Boleto pura Happy Birth Day:):):)

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To BHASWAR: All existing 124 Arjun Mk1s will eventually be upgraded to Mk1A standard at the IA’s EME Workshops. As for the definitive Mk2 variant, why should it incorporate add-on AMAP or slat-armour when APS is already available? This is a heavy main battle tank, not a medium battle tank, meaning the former will always rely on superior situational awareness when operating in the hunter-killer mode & that’s where the BMS terminal & the always-present RSH helicopters & Rudra helicopter-gunships will enable Arjun Mk1A-/Arjun Mk2-equipped formations to locate, track & destroy hostile MBTs of the type operating in India’s immediate neighbourhood. That’s why I had stated earlier that there’s no need to convert the T-90S or Arjun as a jack-of-all-trades weapon. One can definitely live & survive without LAHAT, CLGM & INVAR anti-helicopter projectiles. The 120mm smoothbore cannon till take some more time to mature, although in-house R & D is well underway & is at an advanced stage. Internal vectronics suite’s composition & architecture has already been finalised & frozen & the first MBT prototypes in this configuration will be subjected to technical trials at a brand-new integrated mobility-cum-firepower testing range now being built on the outskirts of Pune. No more ferrying of the prototypes to Pokhran—a process that had in the past been extremely time-consuming & had resulted in wasteful expenditure.

BTW, do read the 2nd & 3rd paras of the narrative above, which I’ve just uploaded. Should give you a laugh or two.

To BUDDHA & SOUBHAGYA: VMT indeed & God bless.

Bhaswar said...

well what can one expect with our journos, rcs and aoa figures are computed by looking at still images and air launched atgms with mwr seekers have a 2 way data link to send back images? take such examples which denote the prevalence of certain shameful proclivities- plagiarism, plagiarism without even understanding the concerned material and context or outright fictions where the tejas gets test flown by foreign fighter pilots- and one is left hoping that there is a brand of mouthwash out there potent enough to erase the highly unpleasant taste of bull excrement that such journos leave behind in their wake. i hope you recall that article i had posted the link for in one of your threads, the one which mentioned a turboshaft engine being developed by us in order to power a combat aircraft in the future? i gave up all hope after that.

on that note happy birthday. may you have a prosperous and joyful year ahead of you.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To BHASWAR: I reckon you’ve summed it all up pretty well in a nutshell. And at a time when the country is awash with already-issued RFIs & RFPs, one ‘desi’ broadcast TV journalist still has to gall to twit: “Never seen a more subdued run up to #DefExpo2014. Never too exciting any year. But this time, it's zombie mode for international vendors.” I guess such headless chicken-like entities are forever condemned to being spoon-fed. VMT for the compliments & good wishes.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

Bad news for those T-50 PAK-FA/FGFA-baiters:

https://medium.com/war-is-boring/9edbae7da1ee

AK said...

Prasunda,

Belated but MANY HAPPY RETURNS OF THE DAY.

Congratulations on completing 48 worthwhile years of opinion building and educating young generation rookies in military technology and policy to all of us.

Hope you live long and long and long and long ...........

Best Wishes

Rajeev Chaturvedi said...

Dear Prasunda,

Happy Birthday..Wish you all the sweetness and happiness in the world.

Your opinion on naval construction in government shipyards is quite illustrative. One often wonders as to why is government keeping four shipyards in separate existence when all of them benefit from government dole and subsidies?

1. Has there been any attempt to put Goa Shipyard, Mazhgaon Shipyard and GRSE under one umbrella corporate group (like a navratna or miniratna)? That way they can pool their resources together and better perform and stick to deadlines.

2. How much independence the shipyard head has over the construction and the component purchase? Is anyone made accountable for the delay? Are government shipyards penalised for the delay or defective/sub-par manufacturing?

3. Why is MoD holding on to HSL? It has a history of horrible way of functioning and bankruptcy so why cling on to it? Even if they don't want to privatise it due to their own personal reasons, what is the harm in leasing out its facilities? How about GOCO (government owned contractor operated) mode of functioning, because on its own, this shipyard is in a horrible shape? Look what they did to the INS Sindhukirti submarine MLU? Why not look for creative solutions if not outright sale?

4. When Cochin Shipyard has developed expertise in building large flattops, what explains the move to award LHD/LPH construction contract to HSL again? That kind of large docks are now also available with PIPAVAV so why is there a deliberate attempt to project private shipyards as less patriotic/trustworthy while government ones are epitome of efficiency and patriotism? Our own private industry and shipyards are less trustworthy but Italian, French, Russian, German, Korean and even Sri Lankan shipyards are full of Indianness?

5.Its bit of a mind boggling astonishment to see that we are efficient in building destroyers, frigates and even aircraft carrier now. But the core of the sea deterrence capability i.e. patrol vessels and submarines are almost completely ignored? Who is making these decisions? By 2020, we will have effectively six good submarines. Will they be enough for 7516 km of coastline?

If only the next government could establish a full-fledged inquiry commission to find out who are these haphazard decision makers, hindering national defence preparedness (whether in MoD/MoF or services), that things will start becoming transparent.

Thanks

Kris said...

Dear Prasunda,

1. What is hindering the completion of INS Vikrant in Cochin Shipyard now? If it was 75% complete last year at launch, what are they waiting for to finish it and send for sea trials? Which components are still to come? Also what are the parts which we are importing from foreign OEMs?

2. When will INS Arihant go on sea trials? Is there any thing wrong with it? We are hearing about its going to sea trails since last 6-7 months. Is there anything missing?

Thanks and Wish you all the happiness for your birthday.

Anonymous said...


sir , as per this news report everything from design to engine and the engine transmission system, gun barrel, computer-controlled integrated fire control system, the tracks, the suspension, and the Muzzle Reference System has been imported so sir what does drdo exactly do ..?

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/hyderabad/Poor-Israeli-parts-delay-Arjun-Mk-II/articleshow/29514617.cms

SS said...

Belated many many happy returns of the day prasunji... :)

SS said...

Prasunji,

This article seems to highlight the not so good parameters of F-35

https://medium.com/war-is-boring/5c95d45f86a5

VMT.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To ANON@11.15AM: Total hogwash & utter baloney, rest assured. The muzzle reference system & cannon are both indigenous. There were problems with the MRS fitment on the cannon but these have all been resolved. The powerpack’s re-jigged/re-calibrated transmission & the wider tracks from DIEHL have already successfully ALL mobility-related user-trials conducted to date. In fact, the performance figures have well exceeded all previous estimates & expectations. The ONLY problem that awaits a solution is that concerning the LAHAT anti-helicopter round’s smoke emission after propellant ignition because the LAHAT had originally been developed for launch from smoothbore cannons & not rifled-bore cannons. It has now become known that the adapter-kit for LAHAT developed specifically for the Arjun ‘s 120mm rifled-bore cannon needs further R & D effort. In any case, as I explained last night to BHASWAR, MBTs like Arjun & T-90S don’t even require guided anti-helicopter projectiles & consequently the IA will be well-advised to stay away from anti-helicopter projectiles like LAHAT, CLGM & INVAR.

To AK, SS, KRIS & RAJEEV CHATURVEDI: VMT & God bless you all as well.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

As expected, Alcock Ashdown is up for sale & is unable to deliver the remaining five catamaran survey vessels to the IN. Hopefully some private-sector shipyard will step in with a takeover offer.

Meanwhile, the latest issue of FRONTLINE has published a series of reports on ISRO’s quest for mastering cryogenic engine technologies. They’re all available here:

http://www.frontline.in/cover-story/

The most interesting report, however, traces in chronological order the history of cryogenic engine R & D efforts within India, the missed opportunities & the roles played by various foreign countries, especially France & Russia:

http://www.frontline.in/cover-story/the-long-haul/article5596628.ece

KH said...

Belated birthday wishes Dada...wish for more health n fun bashing the desi nautankis!!!...:)

spanky's Blog said...

Happy 48th.Belated b'day wishes to u Prasun.Hope you had a blast....And again thanks for all the informative articles and comments. This one is also smack on target. very nice informative article.

Thanks
Swarop

RD said...

Prasunda,
A Belated Happy Birthday to U & we are priviledged to enjoy ur threads.
On a lighter side it seems Namo is following ur recent thread-
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/rajkot/Navy-breathes-life-into-Gujarat-marine-police/articleshow/29483947.cms

It would have been good if these reports of defence shortcomings are placed in the desks of Govt. planners, during planning for various Bharat nirman ads. Though not blaming any party but its impossible to change the mindset of the state machinery. Else we have to wait for another 1962. An interesting read-
http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/SOU-01-270114.html

Vikrant said...

Wish you a Happy Birthday,may you have a prosperous year ahead and will bother you with questions tomorrow.

Vidyut said...

Prasun sir,
Wishing you a belated Happy Birthday and a great year ahead!(with the elections coming there's actually hope for the year to turn out great!)

And a ton of thanks for all the great threads, finally there was a blog which gave relevant information.

Defense and Aerospace said...

Happy Belated BIRTHDAY Prasun

Like everyone else I too get a lot to learn from your blog .

Just had 2 questions :

(1) Had the Ruskies not jacked up the price of the SU 30MKI unilaterally , would the IAF had gone for the MMRCA ?

(2) Re the link that you had shared about the Tender issued by CVRDE for the Commander’s Multiple Target Tracking and Queuing
Targets (CMTT) and Gunner’s Automatic Target Tracker (GATT) on tank , which companies do you think will apply ?

Thank You

Pintu said...

Belated Happy Birthday Prasun Da, Wishing you many Happy Returns of the Day , God Speed :)

Littlemaster said...

Wishing you a belated Happy birthday sir. Have a bombastic and prosperous year ahead. Now I have some questions.

1. The deep upgrade which is being designed by IA and CVRDE for Bhisma does it have the AM turret and all around add on armour protection like the T-90AM. And is there Era or composite armour on tge hull sides.

2. The T-90 Bhisma hull has no armour protection on the sides besides thr three thin steel plates in the front. Are these Era? Won't additional armour blocks or era be installed on the sides before the contact battle. Why doesn't HVF Avadi redesigining the turret and including more armour thickness in the line of Western designs. This is definitely a weakness and so is absence of some addon armour for the hull sides,engine compartment.

There is a box on each aide and another one in the rear of the turret. Are these armour or storage boxes ?

3. Many Vijayantas have been phased out and many have been put on displays. Then how many of these and T-55 remain in service now .

4. Almost all Western principal surface combatants both old and new have sort of passive surveillance systems. Why then was the IN exception to this practise ? In the immediate future will these systema be installed on the warships?

5.When is the 3 P15 class up for slep? During slep will they get new ascm,sam as well as volume search, secondary airspace search radars?

6.When the Redut seres of long range SAM were available why did In go for the old 32 km 9M317 Shtil-1 ? At present the air defense/sam armament of all In principal surface combatants are truely deplorable and isnt consistent for a true blue water navy. Just look at the systems of Rokn,Jsdf navy and Plan Type 052 line of warships.

7.What is exactly done to the warships in the periodic refits they undergo? Are the suboptimal performing elctronic components in the radars and othet mission sensors replaced and the engines, gas turbines overhauled ?

8. IAF had called for tenders for upgradation of MiG-29B-12 and An-32 by private aerospace firms. What is its status?
Has the mig upgradation started at 11 Brd Nashik/ is it continuing or is it stuck ?

Heberian said...

Happy birthday Prasun!

Hope you had a good one and enjoyed at least one nice stiff drink :)

sntata said...

Dear Prasun,

Happy Birthday and many happy returns of the day! {I only came to know about it today!} Satamanam Bhava!

Thank you for above link of Frontline cover story on Indigenous Cryo engine. It is a fantastic feast of information.

Anonymous said...

happy birthday sir
sir i just want to know that how by just increasing the size of air intake of tejas mk 2 they are going to compensate to the bigger engine. aren't they going to choke the bigger engine and how come gripen flies at mach 2 and carries more payload than mk1 while using same engine.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAJEEV CHATURVEDI: The managements of ALL MoD-owned shipyards have been crying for greater administrative & financial autonomy for more than a decade. But it is the MoD’s Dept of Defence Production & Supplies, along with the Dept of Public Enterprises that have stridently opposed any such moves. The shipyards above all want financial autonomy so that the MoD’s bureaucratic red-tape can be bypassed & production deliveries can take place on time. But on even matters like shipyard modernisation/expansion, the MoD does not want to surrender is micro-management stranglehold. 1) Consolidation of the various MoD-owned shipyards has never even occurred to the MoD=based decision-makers, although, ironically, whenever shipyards like MDL, GSL & GRSE have participated in overseas naval/maritime expos, they’ve always consolidated their product-brochures into a single folder titled ‘Indian Defence Shipyards’! 2) Virtually none, since the foreign exchange accounts of all MoD-owned shipyards are under the exclusive control of the MoD’s Finance Dept. Consequently, even indents deposited for procuring raw materials, rotables & consumables are routed through cumbersome procedures, with the various MoD-based Joint Secretaries calling the shots. 3) Far better than the GOCD model is an outright sale to OEMs like Larsen & Toubro, which already has a far larger ship[building facility slightly down south. That way, L & T can mentor & shepherd HSL & share hull fabrication activities with HSL. 4 & 5) It’s all got to do with a regressive mindset that’s been prevailing since 1956. And it is EXTREMELY REGRESSIVE. Want some examples? Since the ICGS was created in 1978, why was the establishment of its first ever cadet training academy approved in only late 2013? Why has the ICGSD been denied its own integral sea cadet training vessel since 1978? Why was the first such vessel ordered only last December? And why located the ICGS training academy in Kerela? Is Kerala India’s only coastal state? What was A K Antony’s role in promoting Kerala’s cause? Was there any study/analysis done by the Union MHA or MoD on the various basing options for such an academy? If yes, then was it ever tabled in Parliament or even debated by Parliament’s Standing Committees on Defence or Home Affairs? Has anyone in Parliament ever bothered to ask successive Govts of India why the ICGS has traditionally been treated as the IN’s step-brother & why has the ICGS’ expansion been so excruciatingly slow despite the fact that since February 1993 it was known that future sub-conventional threats to India’s landmass would emanate primarily from the sea? Could successive Govts of India not have established a coastal surveillance system along just India’s western seaboard between 1995 & 1999? At the end of the day, who is to be held accountable for such gross criminal negligence?

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RD: Such reports are routinely compiled & placed by not only the MoD & Union MHA, but also by the CAG. But regrettably, the national TV broadcast channels have never bothered to do 1-hour or multi-serial documentaries on such issues (which BBC & Al Jazeera do), choosing instead to do only 20-minute programmes every year on the eve of 26/11. A typical documentary should take us all back to March 1993 & explore various ‘what if’ angles through on-the-record interviews with politicians, bureaucrats, technocrats & law-enforcement officials who were serving at that time. A similar exercise exercise should be undertaken for analysing the 26/11 terrorist strikes. The country’s citizens should be shown the progress (or its lack) made so far by various coastal states in terms of possessing well-oiled Marine Police networks, explaining how coordination between various stakeholders at the JOCs is being undertaken, & finally, the IN & ICGS should gave an audio-visual glimpse into the state-of-the-art national & regional coordination centres where all the fuzed data/imagery is received in real-time & is processed. If a documentary is packaged in such a comprehensive manner, then its broadcasting will at least give the country’s citizens some relief & restore confidence, & at the same time unveil the high-tech angle aspects of coastal security. Regretably, prevailing mindsets are such that such a proposal won’t be entertained. After all, the IN has yet to allow TV cameras inside any one of its Class 209/Type 1500 SSKs (even for filming for IN recruitment ads) even though these SSKs were acquired in the latter half of the 1980s! Contrast that with what much smaller navies like the Royal Malaysian Navy has done by producing a 1-hour documentary on life on-board a Scorpene SSK within a year of that SSK entering service.

To DEFENSE & AEROSPACE: 1) The Ruskies never unilaterally jack-up the Su-30MKI’s procurtement costs. They went strictly by the book & procurement prices were frozen between 1998 & 2007. Only after that were the prices raised & that too in accordance with the cost-escalation indices that were already codified into the original contracts inked in 1998 & 2000. 2) Raytheon teamed with L & T, SAGEM, ELBIT Systems, & TATA Power SED.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To LITTLEMASTER: 1) No. Turret stays the same. Slat armour installation has been developed. 2) The side-plates aren’t ERA tiles. For all-round protection, APS has been specified for T-90S. 3) About 850 re-engined Vijayantas & 500 upgunned T-55s. 4) All principal surface combatants of the IN do have passive ESM/ELINT/SIGINT sensors on-board. 5) It is already overdue for SLEP. Almost all on-board weapon/sensor suites will be replaced. 6) Shtil-1 was selected & contracted for way back in the year 2000. 7) Periodic refits are meant for re-painting, corrosion detection/prevention & replacem,ent of rotables & consumables. Selective installation of new sensors & sub-systems takes place during medium refits. Only during the mid-life refit are the propulsion/weapon systems either overhauled or replaced. 8) Tender submissions haven’t been opened so far. 11 BRD has commenced upgradation of 4 MiG-29B-12s.

To Anon@11.41PM: New handle-of-your-choice, new handle-of-your-choice, new handle-of-your-choice……. No more ‘Anonymous’, please.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To KRIS: Completion of 75% fabrication of the IAC-1’s hull in volume terms does not translate into 75% completion of the entire vessel. The most critical & complicated phase of construction concerns the installation & integration of the powerplant, installation of elevators, laying of electrical wiring harnesses throughout the superstructure, installation of on-board electrical & electronic systems + air-conditioning systems, sensors, etc. All this is done only after the main hull is floated into the wet-basin. There’s nothing wrong at all with the Arihant. What is now being conducted are exhaustive preparations for the sea-trials phase & getting both the on-shore & offshore support infrastructure in place.

To HARYVANAM KIRAN, SPANKY’s BLOG/SWAROP, RD, VIKRANT, VIDYUT, DEFENSE & AEROSPACE, PINTU, LITTLEMASTER, SNTATA & HEBERIAN: VMT for all your felicitations/good wishes & I too wish for all of you & all your loved ones all the very best for all your respective present & future endeavours & may God bless all of you. And do rest assured that bashing of the ‘desi’ nautankis/naaatakaarans will continue unabated whenever reqd, especially after what emerges from them during & after DEFEXPO 2014 That’s what will give me the ultimate blast. (LoLzzz!).

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

This is the ultimate low-down by ‘desi’ journalists! To think that they can stoop so low is mind-boggling:

http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/western-fleet-chief-summoned-in-dress-no-2-over-series-of-mishaps/article1-1177781.aspx

Institutions throughout the world take internal disciplinary action to fix accountability, but never in full view of the public. And even though Indian officialdom frequently wastes time in fixing the blame instead of first fixing the problem, there can’t possibly be any justification whatsoever for washing one’s linen in public in such a brazen, distasteful, demeaning & demoralising manner. The very least I can now hope from RM A K ‘Saint’ Antony is for him to act with alacrity & immediately order an investigation to be conducted by the IN HQ’s Directorate of Naval Intelligence & its Command Intelligence branches as to how news of this incident got out in the first place, & whether the source of the leak was the IN or the MoD. It is also high time the three service HQs got together to formulate a unitary set of rules & regulations/code of conduct regarding leakage of such highly damaging & demoralising information & formally direct the Editors of India’s media/broadcasting houses to desist from publishing such information.

Unknown said...

Hi Prasun,
The US is technology much advanced country than Russia. However, when it comes to 5th gen fighter planes, both F-22 and F-35 are not that promising and well commented, except by army man turned journalist. It is not that US cannot make a better fighter plane than Raptor. What is stopping them to make one? Is any secret project that US is involved? I mean, better than any 5th gen fighter plane?

Thank you,
Ramesh

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To MAHESH M MENON: That’s because the adverse publicity originates from folks who tend to evaluate a US-origin 5th-generation MRCA from platform-centric optics, resulting in biaised & incorrect conclusions. And this happens because the US very closely guards its network-centric warfighting concepts, tactics & tools & not much data is available about all this except when US forces are involved in warfighting & information starts coming out in bits & pieces. As far as platform-centric solutions go, the US today is still the undisputed champion & is already well ahead in developing probable 6th-generation MRCA solutions.

Siddharth said...

Seem Chinese has built something very impressive.

http://defencenews.in/defence-news-internal.aspx?id=Z6rBE4j95zE=

Prasun da, can we bloggers have your comments over this article.

Siddharth

Vikram said...

Dear Sir

TWO More BAD News Coming in

1 The visit by HAL Team to France
has been cancelled

2 At the same there is news that ALL Defence deals have been put on HOLD Till LOK Sabha Elections and the NEW Government will take them Forward

shah said...

Hi prasun sir i just want to know that how by just increasing the size of air intake of tejas mk 2 they are going to compensate to the bigger engine. aren't they going to choke the bigger engine and how come gripen flies at mach 2 and carries more payload than mk1 while using same engine.

Anonymous said...

Awesome detailing !!!.............and admire your patience in getting it all down..........appreciate your time/effort........

What a mess/lack of planning/lack of foresight/lack of implementation/lack of taking responsibility-onus.........makes you wanna scream/cry.....

Someday, Prasun, do take time out to write-up on something "positive" happening with the Indian Armed Forces........

Raman said...

Ooops........sorry don't know how.......got the identity wrong........it's Raman...

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To SIDDHARTH: Impressive in terms of external looks, yes, definitely. But in terms of what’s destined to go inside the airframe, the jury is still out. What is confirmed is that the J-20 MRCA will have panoramic AMLCDs of the type shown at both the 2010 & 2012 Airshow China expos in Zhuhai. Nothing else, like IRST sensors, integrated EW suite or AESA-MMR, has been revealed publicly at the Airshow China expos—even as illustrations—& certainly China will not miss a chance to showcase its cutting-edge R & D exploits to both a national & international audience at such expos on home-ground. Therefore, the absence of such products during such expos indicates that such products are still under R & D & will not enter service until 2020. The same goes for the J-31 MRCA. That’s my personal take based on verifiable evidence.

VIKRAM: The first one ain’t bad news at all, since matters can be sorted out through video conferences in this day & age. About the second one, that’s not true at all. There is bipartisan support within India for major procurements like the Rafale M-MRCA.

To SHAH: Firstly, congratulations on acquiring a decent handle, albeit due to some prodding! Not only will the air-intakes have to be larger, but also the internal engine bulkhead will have to be strengthened & even widened slightly, & subsequently the wing-area will also have to be increased so that the Mk2 variant’s climb-rate, banking rate & turn radii are not reduced while fully armed & the overall agility quotient is enhanced. Tejas Mk1’s max speed at Mach 1.8 is certified for certain specific altitudes, but when in a steep dive, the max speed will be more. Payload capacity is dependent entirely upon 1) the type of pylons & ejection racks used; & 2) type of PGMs used. Therefore, instead of a single pylon carrying a 1,000lb LGB, a triple-ejector rack can carry 3 laser-guided LGBs while a dual-ejector rack can carry two Griffin-3 LGBs.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To RAMAN: There are several positive elements in the narrative above....like the CSS now being installed. When the contract was announced in November 2010, I was the only one (believe it or not) to approach SaabTech & ask for illustrations of the pan-India CCS deployment & once I obtained them, they were published in the December 2010 issue of FORCE magazine as part of a feature-length report. I don't remember seeing such detailed reports & illustrations being published anywhere else thus far. The most interesting part will be the concluding part with suggestions & prospective future procurements will be uploaded tonight, rest assured.

anand said...

why is this happening? In unis in UK thats all you see,same for hindu girls,even worse are the ones who come from india/kenya to study.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/punjab/amritsar/love-jihad-exploitation-of-uk-sikh-girls-by-pak-youths-worries-akal-takht/article1-1177246.aspx

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Prasun Da ,

(a) Did the MoD or IN release any RFI for the Gyro-stabilised multi sensor optronic systems that are being co-developed by India’s VEM Technologies Pvt Ltd and the UK’s Vinten-Radamec ?

(b) Which Radars and Sensors do you think are required by the IN & the Coast guard in the near to medium term ?

(c) In your opinion what are the prospects that Private players , both foreign & domestic have in the Naval Radar & Sensor market in India ?

Thanks ,
Sujoy

VIKRAM GUHA said...

Prasun Da ,

The link below just released by the US Director, Operational Test and Evaluation states that the F 35 cracked during tests & is not reliable

http://www.dote.osd.mil/pub/reports/FY2013/pdf/other/2013DOTEAnnualReport.pdf

According to Flight Global IAI wanted to help HAL develop an unmanned version of the Dhruv . But the project was abandoned . Now IAI is going solo . I think HAL should have accepted this proposal since they will take ages to develop an unmanned Dhruv.

http://www.flightglobal.com/news/articles/iai-advances-unmanned-helicopter-plans-395389/

Regards,
Vikram

Anonymous said...

Happy birthday Prasun!
I'm late as I was not paying attention. Let the good time roll!!

NR

shah said...

thank you sir for ur comments
sir i was just going thru some articles on internet i got this
article http://publications.drdo.gov.in/ojs/index.php/dsj/article/view/4179

can drdo pull these kind of hitech projects with out any assistance.

and sir an article on j 20 http://idrw.org/?p=32684
an arch rival JAP. comparing it with zero. so what's ur take on these articles.

thanks in advance.

zubin said...

Hello Prasun,
I have been following your Blog for some time now and I do get all the information I want from here. I compliment you for the wonderful original and detailed articles you produce. I have an observation and two questions:
1. There e are no Vijayant tanks left for war fighting, no Armoured Regiment holds any of these. That is now over.
2. Can you tell us the progress on the indigenous seekers on missiles especially the Nag & Helina. That's one area where we are lagging behind. Also some info on the SLBM series (K-4 & is there a K-5 Project?).

Vikrant said...

Sir,
I hope you had a good time yesterday.Just 2 questions
what is the status of P-17a,P-15b and follow on of saryu class
2)Any news on nirbhay,LCH,Hal Rudra?

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To ANAND: Not just in the UK, this has also been happening since the 1990s throughout Southeast Asia.

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: A) They have already been developed & deployed on-board IN warships like the three P-17 FFGs & the six NOPVs now in delivery. The two photos above show the masthead of a Project 17 FFG equipped with such sensor fitments. B) Definitely the dual-IRST mounts for larger warships, while the guided-missile corvettes & coastal ASW corvettes can make do with COMPASS. Then, probably the three P-15 DDGs due for mid-life upgrade can adopt the RAN-40L radars. C) Prospects are good since the IN has already identified the types of warships it wants to acquire through to 2025.

BTW, S-2/Arihant’s PWR attained full criticality on August 9 last year, & the submarine tender equipped with a DSRV from Russia has at last arrived in Vizag.

To VIKRAM GUHA: As far as NRUAVs go, the IN originally toyed with the idea of converting its existing SA.316B Alouette IIIs into VTOL-UAVs with IAI’s assistance. That idea was dropped by 2010 & IAI instead proposed the Dhruv ALH as a possible platform worthy of being modified into a VTOL-UAV. This too has proven to be a challenging task due to the twin-engined Dhruv’s inability to incorporate folding main rotor-blade hub. In addition, the Dhruv is also quite a heavy platform. Consequently, both the IN & IAI/MALAT dropped this idea as well. Now, both are exploring the possibility of developing a VTOL-UAV variant of the single-engined & much lighter LUH that HAL is developing.

To NR: VMT & God bless.

To SHAH: 1) Such laboratory-level concept exploration projects have been routinely undertaken & by no means represent any critical design breakthrough. 2) The same question was asked yesterday @9.34AM & was answered @1.30PM.

To ZUBIN: VMT. 1) They’re indeed part of the IA’s ORBAT & can remain so in serviceable condition till 2030. There are several missions that L7 rifled-bore cannon-armed medium tanks (like Vijayanta & upgunned T-55) can fulfill which 125mm smoothbore cannon-equipped MBTs cannot. 2) Those will come in brand-new threads sometime in the near future.

To VIKRANT: Always endeavour to have a good time every day, not just on any one day, kindly rest assured. 1) Raw materials reqd for fabricating the hulls of P-17A FFGs have already been ordered. Hull-fabrication of first P-15B is well underway in Mumbai by MDL. 2) Nothing new or path-breaking as of now.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

As I had predicted two years ago about the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia acquiring DF-21B MRBMs from China:

http://www.newsweek.com/exclusive-cia-helped-saudis-chinese-missile-deal-227283

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

Gong Xi Fa Cai (happy lunar new year) to all Chinese visitors to this blog. This is the year of the horse.

Unknown said...

Dada

What would be the essential skill sets required for manpower to be recruited in aerospace MROs? Is there an opportunity in setting up private institutes to train skilled manpower specifically for MROs?

In the same context, retiring /ex-technical personnel from IAF BRDs could provide sufficient skilled manpower for such MROs

AK said...

Prasunda,

Hahaha...Happy Lunar New year to you as well.

How do you know that your blog receives Chinese visitors as well? All we see is one or two comments once in blue moon.
Or they prefer silent watch??

Anonymous said...

blogspot.com is blocked in the PRC, so the few visitors you see here have either jumped over the great wall or they are from the PLA.

Raj

Wu Jian Qui said...

谢谢。 新年快乐给你。

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To AK & RAJ: Well, there are also more than 50 million folks of Chinese origin residing in Taiwan, ASEAN, HK & Macau SARs, Australasia, Europe as well as in North America & India, & not just inside the PRC.

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Many thanks for those insights PrasunDa .

On a different note the BBC today released a report that states that most cars sold in India do NOT have adequate safety features thereby putting the lives of occupants at grave risk .

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-india-25974754

One lakh forty thousand deaths on Indian roads every year.We actually do not need enemies to get killed . We are more than proficient in killing one another.

Thanks again ,

Sujoy

zubin said...

Thank you Prasun, will eagerly await those threads. But no, the Vijayant's are not in service (not with the armd regts) ...you will have to believe me on this one!!!

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/State-of-the-art-test-facility-for-carrier-borne-aircraft-goes-operational-in-Goa/articleshow/29664041.cms

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Five-years-after-2611-small-vessels-still-a-threat-Coast-Guard/articleshow/29673393.cms

Messenger said...

It is not the car safety that is causing the deaths to start with.

India does not have standardised roads (categorised roads, standard road markings, road management, enforcement, approach roads, proper junctions, traffic calming measures, cameras, etc etc ).

India does not have proper driving license issue mechanisms such as theory test, practical test etc.

India does not have proper implementing authority and is very corrupted.

Pathetic and non-considerate Public and Not planning the roads according to the growing needs.

Some interesting striking points:
1. For teenagers getting a driving licence in UK is like passing IIT-JEE exam.
2. It costs nearly £ 1000 until we get ready for practical test.
3. If we exceed speed we automatically get fine to our home through post with photographic evidence.
4. average speed between two points.
5. Driving assisted by GPS and Postcode (Indian Postal Dept should be shameful on this aspect), A single post code points to a single location, not an area. For RG17PE postcode see this http://tinyurl.com/q9unuxm
6. Road widths and Vehicle Widths are standardised.
7. It is strictly illegal for anyone to stand/walk on motorways/highways.
8. Undertaking is strictly prohibited
9. it is strictly illegal to stop a car on a live lane.
These are just some striking points for Indians

For more information see this:

https://www.gov.uk/browse/driving

And most importantly see this (this is for drivers)

https://www.gov.uk/browse/driving/highway-code

For Building roads (for Indian R & B dept )

http://www.dft.gov.uk/ha/standards/dmrb/

UK and India have the same cars and same RIGHT HAND driving. So we can just copy these UK standards.

Hope these links helps atleast some of the people.

And most important suggestion is establishing retail parks (like a cluster of shops associated with parking and other amenities) in every town and city and BANNING shops on road side completely, so we can have clean towns and clean roads and pavements in every town.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To WU JIAN QUI: Shi Shieh Ni. I too was born in another year of the horse (1966).

Messenger said...

The above writing is WRT driving in Uk.
Mostly the people dying in road accidents are bread winners of their family. so it is heartening and the cost to the country is running into billions and to the family it is devastating situation.

I would like to elaborate the retail park suggestion.

In India we have 99% of the shops in villages, towns and cities facing the road.

so the road is being used not only for transport but also for retail activity. Public who is shopping, parks the vehicle for hours on already congested roads.

By banning on shops doing business facing roads and subsequently moving all these shops into a retail cluster zone we can have clean and un congested roads in india. those retail clusters can be provided with parking, police outposts, public transport etc there by removing all the retail activity from road side to a designated retail cluster. The benefits are manifold.
we can see a nice and clean india all of a sudden where roads are super cool, clean and empty and hassle free.
All govt need to do is collecting some 30-40 acres for each cluster and give the real estate for the retailers for removing shops in exchange.

I hope my suggestion is meaningful.

The resultant macro and micro economics will be in billions.

Am using Prasun's blog for my ideas as I find road accidents in India is extremely paining to me and also when I see Indian streets it is again heartfelt for mismanagement on the govt part and equally on every individual.

Thank you Prasun for allowing me to post this and taking advantage of your blog and your goodness.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To KAUSTAV BHATTACHARYA: For aerospace engineering applications in the manufacturing sector, the concept of churning out apprentices with specific skills needs to be adopted, & not diploma- or degree-holders. This role can easily be fulfilled by the private-sector. Then there’s the vast pool of available licenced technicians/engineers from the IA, IN & IAF on short-service commission that can easily be absorbed by OEM-authorised private-sector MRO companies.

To ZUBIN: VMT, my deal ol’chap. But in my line line-of-activity, only seeing is believing & consequently, I respectfully will disagree with your assertion.

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: To add to what MESSENGER has comprehensively outlined (all of which I fully agree with), I must say that the concept of ‘defensive driving’ is almost absent in India. Furthermore, parliamentary democracy as is presently being practiced in India is of the same standard as the Westminster model was 150 years ago. Consequently, mindsets in terms of adherence to discipline & non-flexible enforcement of laws & regulations will take far longer to change, except in few isolated pockets like sparsely-populated areas or within gated communities. And just like retail car-parks, centralised retail food-outlets also need to be established in every locality, instead of allowing individual cart-using hawkers to thrive on the pavements & making life miserable for pedestrians & motorised road-users as well. This will encourage adherence to the mandated food hygiene regulations, efficient disposal of perishable waste materials, & effective control over the rodent menace.

On another note (related to the KSA’s acquisition of DF-21B MRBMs), here are the links about the next-generation of cannister-encased ballistic missiles of PRC-origin that will enter service in Pakistan before the end of this decade:

http://trishul-trident.blogspot.in/2012/09/time-to-keep-247-tabs-on-uninvited.html

http://trishul-trident.blogspot.in/2012/05/recent-developments-in-china-pakistan.html

Akshay said...

Has Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS)cleared Project 17A ?

Gessler said...

Hi Prasun ji! Long time since I posted here...

1) WRT your statements of new Chinese BMs entering service with Pakistan within the end of this decade, I suppose all these new missiles will be re-named as Shaheens, or Ghauris or Abdalis before entering service with Pak?

2) Does the IN have any plans to acquire any type of LCACs that are in the class of Zubr?

3) With your informed sources, when do you think MMRCA could be signed? Before or after elections?

4) Is ADA working on multiple design concepts for AMCA? I have heard they are working on canard-delta designs as well as single-engined tailless designs with LEVCON/moving LERXs. Are these true?

5) What exactly is the deal between China giving away advanced ballistic missile technology to a nation of confusion and chaos like Pakistan? What is India going to do about this? We can't just sit around and allow them to spoonfeed Pakistan with missile tech so that they can keep India contained.

6) Any updates on Prithvi-3 development and Brahmos Block-3 series production?

Thanks in advance, really appreciate your patience of answering us everytime! Have a nice day sirji.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To AKSHAY: Done last year itself.

To GESSLER: 1) Yes, definitely. Maybe newer names will be given. Depends on whether Pakistan’s military decision-makers can dig out the names of some more Muslim invaders (apart from Mohd Ghori, Ahmed Shah Abdali, Mahmud of Ghazni & Zahiruddin Babar) who had mercilessly killed fellow Muslims in Multan, Lahore & Sialkot while on the way to Delhi! Maybe Qasim, Khilji, Lodhi, Tughlak, Sher Shah Suri, etc. This is to be expected, since the majority of present-day Pakistanis live & thrive upon ‘reflected glory’, i.e. taking credit for the achievements/deeds of others. For, these invaders were NEVER the forefathers—either culturally or ethnically—of present-day Pakistanis as is erroneously claimed by many Pakistanis. All the invaders were either Arabs, or Turks or Afghans. Not even one of them was a homegrown ‘hero’ who happened to hail from the Indo-Gangetic plain east of the Hindukush mountain range. 2) No, not like Zubr. But more like the LCAC. 3) By late March, when the Govt of India will have at its disposal the revised fiscal 2013 expenditure figures from all ministries & depts. 4) They may well be worked upon & the truth will come out only after the wind-tunnel scale-models have been fabricated by CSIR. 5) Well, the existing Ghaznavis, Shaheen-1s & Shaheen-2s do require replacement after the expiry of their shelf-lives since China has refused to provide NESCOM with missile re-lifing expertise,technologies/industrial facilities. That’s precisely the reason why no one in Pakistan has released any photos of ballistic/cruise missile fabrication/final-assembly industrial facilities relating to such missile-types. Therefore, it does not mean that the cannister-encased DF-16s & DF-25s will add to Pakistan’s existing inventories of Shaheen-1s, Shaheen-2s & Ghaznavis. 6) Not much. Maybe during DEFEXPO 2014 some new updates will become available.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To GESSLER: The same goes for Pakistan’s so-called indigenous industrial-scale production of WMD-related fissile materials. Look at any imagery of the PHWRs at Khushab & you will notice that they only have captive heavy-water production facilities, but ZERO captive facilities for fissile materials storage or for fuel reprocessing. Now, some will claim that fuel reprocessing takes place at PINSTECH’s New Labs, but there again you will notice that these so-called labs are merely administrative buildings. Nor can fuel reprocessing plants be located completely underground without the presence of any over-ground industrial installation that’s reqd for processing of industrial effluents & toxic waste. Even at the super-secret Israeli nuclear facility in Dimona, all activity—production of WMD-specific fissile materials, their reprocessing & fabrication of WMD warheads, is concentrated in one unitary site, most of it over-ground. Therefore, scattering of all WMD production-related industrial sites is economically & industrially untenable, unless a technologically-providing country like China insists that such a cost-prohibitive mechanism be put in place at any cost, i.e. even if Pakistan’s population continues to eat grass as it has been doing since 1990. And whosoever wants to disbelieve all this is only living in a make-believe world/fool’s paradise.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: DEW families of weapons are indeed the way of the future & by the following decade, tactical DEWs of various types & mounted on diverse land-based/naval & airborne platforms will usher in the next-generation revolution in military affairs (RMA), reminiscent of--may I dare say--those days during which the epic battle of Kurukshetra was fought thousands of years ago between the Pandavas & Kauravas & up to 46 different types of DEW-based 'exotic' tactical weapons were then extensively used.

Sujoy Majumdar said...

That's great PrasunDa ,

DEW during the days of Mahabharat . I never knew about this. I realize that DRDO is probably working on it based on my discussion with an individual from DRDO . He was even boasting that our neighbors are fearful of our DEW capabilities :)

-Sujoy

buddha said...

sir it would be nice if you kindly write an article on alien species and their relation to earth
and topic on DEW of Mahabharatain
war

Anonymous said...

Dear Prasun,

I have read some news regarding the shore based training facility for Air Craft Carrier Landing and Takeoff Operations in Goa.

Does such a facility we have now comes with a movable platform? or just a static one constructed mimicking ACC deck?

I have an idea in my mind that a steel platform mimicking ACC deck moving on rails ( not 2 like traditional rails but say 20 to represent full ACC Deck and to withstand landing and takeoff craft) at a speed of 30 nm being pulled by 2/3 diesel rail engines for a length of 3 or 4 kms, so as to present our trainee pilots for realistic scenarios..

Which one we have come up with now? static one?

Thank you very much for your patience..

Vikrant said...

Thanks for such an informative post on the coastal and littoral security,really appreciate the vast details and eagerly await the conclusion.

Btw an opinion of Christine Fair on the 'Strategic' relations of US and our delusional neighbour to the west
or should i say 'gravy train relations"

http://warontherocks.com/2014/01/ten-fictions-that-pakistani-defense-officials-love-to-peddle/

I reckon that pindi's dream of 'strategic depth' is still some distance away.Abhi kabul door ast

Abhay Jain said...

prasun sir

1)I would appreciate your views about this clip.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FwGvfSb5Bao

2) Can you tell us something about indian DEW programs and whether programs like "KALI" has has any military substance.

3) Do you see india as a manufacturing powerhouse in next decade or Can we replicate the Chinese model? Will we able to fulfil at least our home grown needs in sectors like electronics, telecom equipment etc?

4) We have a flourished Auto mobile industry that can fulfil our home needs as well as export then what went wrong will the electronics industry? Can we rectify the wrong doings?

5) Do you think that we will be able to replicate the success of the likes of ISRO in our defence sector? If yes then how much time will it take to see ourself standing in league of other big players?

6)http://www.livefistdefence.com/2014/01/engine-hunt-begins-for-indian-civil-jet.html

your views?

regards
abhay

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: Fearful? DRDO has yet to come up with technology demonstrators for high-power lasers, be they for tactical applications (for use against ASCMs or PGMs) or for strategic applications like BMD systems.

To BUDDHA: They were all highlighted in the comments section of a previous thread sometime last year.

To Anon@1.55AM: Not movable at all. Completely static, just like the SBTF that the PLAN has established at the shore of the Bohai Sea across from Dalian and well north of Tianjin.

To VIKRANT: If you really want to go far deeper into Pakistan’s delusions ever since 1946, then you ought to read the book titled MAGNIFICENT DELUSIONS by Hussain Haqqani, Pakistan’s former ambassador to the US. In this day & age when long-range ballistic/cruise missiles are in vogue, aspiring for lateral territorial strategic depth doesn’t make any sense at all. That’s why all the traditional proxy entities raised since the 1990s like the LeT, LeJ, Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM), Jundullah & Sipaha-e-Sahaba have all been regrouped under two distinct umbrella organisations responsible for conducting irregular warfare: Difa-e-Baluchistan (defence of Baluchistan council) & Difa-e-Pakistan (defence of Pakistan council). The former is involved in Baluchistan & the latter in the Af-Pak region. That’s why the likes of Maulana Masood Azhar & Hafiz Mohd Saeed no longer make any TV/public appearances.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To VIKRANT: What is also true is that proxy/irregular war-waging forces in Pakistan were first raised in Pakistan as far back as 1948 when the Mehsud & Orakzai tribes from FATA/Khuber Pakhtunkhwa were mobilised as merecenaries for plundering J & K. Then in the mid-1970s, it was Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto who began fuelling the Afghan insurgency. What Gen Zia-ul-Haq did was to only carry this plan further. And resorting to terrorism in furtherance of securing political interests was again the brainchild of another member of the Bhutto family, i.e. Murtaza Bhutto, who created the Al Zulfiqar group in the late 1970s & began operating from Kabul & Damascus. It is therefore highly surprising that it was Benazir Bhutto who was instrumental in creating the Afghan Taliban with the assistance of her Minister of Interior, Brig Nasirullah Babar, who previously had served as IG of the paramilitary Frontier Corps.

Anonymous said...

https://medium.com/war-is-boring/ef345d4cf39c

Interesting read

-muttu

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To MUTTU: Iran's first armed MALE-UAV:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yDa1RjQiWGk

GOOGLER said...

Prasun,

I just re-read your post about the yello journalims around the AW-101 deal and all your points seem to be valid so why did the deal end up getting scrapped anyway??

And now what? As you have pointed out the -V5s are NOT a viable option long term and `I hope the news of them being used in this VVIP role is only temporary.

Do you think there is high chances the S-92 will be ordered under the FMS route with no open bidding this would be swift and above suspision lus the cabins are built by TATA in India.

Gessler said...

VMT for the replies, sir!

VIKRAM GUHA said...

Prasun Da ,

(1) When the Private sector defense companies in India selects an external consultant to help them with Strategy analysis , on what basis do they select them ?

(2) What are the technical challenges that DRDO is facing in the development of the Naval LCA ?

(3) Given the fact that barring L&T and Pipavav most Pvt Shipyards are facing severe financial crisis do these Pvt Shipyards have any future ?

(5) Does the DRDO need any technical knowhow from abroad pertaning to project SANGRAHA ?

Thanks & Regards,
Vikram

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Yes , Prasun Da you are correct . DRDO as usual blows it’s own horns before CAG holds a mirror to it’s face .
I feel even if India develops or procures DEW from abroad at best it can be used by the IN . TheBMD will still have to intercept IRBMs/ICBMs .

Also , the tactical use of DEWs for example to protect MBTs against hostile cruise missiles is not something that will happen anytime soon because vehicles will have to use massive batteries to store electricity .

Thanks ,

Sujoy

zubin said...

Ha ha Prasun...but in my line...Using is knowing ...but you do have phenomenal patience to answer everyone!! Thanx...I enjoy your blog everyday.

Vikrant said...

VMT for the reply and glad you referred to Mr. Haqqani and his book.I reckon it was my laziness that was preventing me from buying that book now that question is settled.
I hear Mr.Haqqani makes frequent visits to our "Hindu" nation(kidding) I wonder what that is for and also what has been Mr.Haqqani doing after memogate(apart from his dayjob)?

SOUBHAGYA said...

Dear Prasun,
I am always astonished when Iran creates some technology marvel like armed MALE-UAV. I don't understand what is repelling India from developing such technology. India suffers and takes lot of time to develop despite a quality pool of technocrats; but Iran does it simply. Can you tell me how much relaible the Iranian missiles, armed UAV etc. They have developed their own due to sanction. Is it possible for them to develop good quality arms without any outsiders help??? Plz tell me.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

Interesting read about Pakistan's parallel economy, run by the country's armed forces:

http://indianexpress.com/article/opinion/columns/the-sultans-of-pakistan/

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

This is the Indian company that has designed some of the vessels for both the ICGS & IN:

Smart Engineering & Design Solutions Ltd (SEDS)

http://www.marinedesigners.com/

F said...

Hello Prasun,

Do you know anything about the ScanEagle's being operated off the Sabah coast? It seems these were bought by CTRM and are leased out to the Joint Force HQ.

Do you expect Russia in the near future to re-establish some sort of military presence in Vietnam as a way of strengthening its influence in the region?

Do IN SSKs ever venture east of the Andamans?

Thank you.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To F: Apa jadi kawan? Kenapa lambah tak log-in sini? Pergi ke mana? Yup, about them as well as the coastal sea surveillance system that was quietly acquired from the US (fully US-financed) & deployed in East Sabah to guard against infiltration by the Abu Sayyaf from Mindanao. A similar sea surveillance system is now being supplied by the US to The Philippines. By the way, if you want to know how exactly the unarmed vessels belonging to China Marine Surveillance agency have been dissuading Filipino fishermen from approaching Scarborough Shoal by bracketing them from three sides, then do watch this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R28-b-nNtR0

Russia does not possess the kind of manpower it once had for sustained overseas power projection.

As for the IN’s SSKs, haven’t they already been to LIMA twice both in the previous decade & last year? They also routinely patrol areas around southern Sumatra.

Defense and Aerospace said...

Prasun ,

Thanks for sharing the insight about this company Smart Engineering & Design Solutions Ltd .

It's interesting that they have won major contracts from the Indian Navy and Coat Guards .

Will you please shed some light on what's their USP ?

Thanks,

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To DEFENSE & AEROSPACE: It is primarily a company that was originally set up to train a cadre of naval architects & designers using TRIBON software (TRIBON is to ship-design what CATIA is to aircraft-design) & slowly it graduated on to designing vessels for the ICGS & IN. But this company has also had to face several incidents of its workforce acquiring all the necessary skills & then resigning from the company in search of greener pastures abroad, since such skills are in great demand there.

In fact, this whole week was ‘Maritime Week’ & therefore I’ve been camping in Delhi to take part in the various seminars & related expos (see: http://www.indiamaritimeweek.com/). Yesterday’s session focussed on India’s shipbuilding industry. Will shortly upload the principal highlights of this session as an extended comment.

F said...

Prasun,

Tidak pergi mana, tiada soalan nak tanya atau bincang:] The local defence scene is quite stagnant at the moment: not much happening.

The RN's First Sea Lord's recent visit to Lumut anf the PASKAL HQ -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lkZP3DaoTuI#t=165

Granted, Russia does not have the resources it use to have but I would expect them to at least re-open a SIGINT station in Vietnam or have docking arrangements for Vladivostock based ships that are on patrols in SCS. What would really annoy China if if Vietnam offers the US a base; which I would do if I was the Vietnamese leadership!

In recent months China Marine Surveillance have also been very active in Malaysian waters around the Spratlys; one theory is that they are there to distract the attention of RMN and MMEA ship fromChinese trawlers.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To F: Ini betul…. tak banyak kontrak-kontrak over the past two years after the LCS & EC-725 Cougar. Tapi, Panglima TUDM was in HAL’s Nashik facility last month to inspect manufacturing & MRO units of the Su-30MKI. Russia has no operational need for setting up any such facility anywhere in the SCS. It had a need for them in the 1980s when it had not yet patched up matters with the PRC. Today, Vietnam’s naval base at Cam Ranh Bay routinely hosts warships from the US & JMSDF & offers logistical/replenishment services to them on commercial terms (just like the RSN’s Changi Naval Base does), something Beijing has already noted. In fact, warships replenished from Cam Ranh can then immediately proceed towards Hainan Island for undertaking surveillance patrols around the PLAN’s Yulin Naval Base. As for China Marine Surveillance vessels venturing nearer the Malaysia-claimed shoals, atolls & reefs in the Spratlys, this will give the RMN’s Scorpene SSKs some good opportunities for honing their undersea warfare skills.

F said...

Prasun,

Malaysia is going out of its way to court China and not ''offend'' her; I really doubt that the Scorpenes patrol the Spratlys. In the past, the RMN Chief told a visiting Indonesian Parlimentary delegation that the Scorpene's would never enter Ambalat. BTW, France has offered the army 6 used Tigers and the army A-109 that crashed 2 days ago had an instructor from Aviation Legere de l'Armee de Terre [ALAT] on board. ALAT has been conducting courses for the army's Aviation Wing. which has sent pilots to France to convert on the Tiger.

An interesting read - http://cogitasia.com/malaysias-new-engagement-on-the-south-china-sea/

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To F: SSK patrols by their very nature are covert & therefore their patrol stations & areas of interest will NEVER be revealed by either the RMN or any other self-respecting navy. A Tigre attack helicopter procurement by the TDM's Aviation Corps makes perfect sense, as will the procurement in future of Aster-15 for GAPU, take it from me. If you remember, I had stated two years ago that all major hardware procurements of ATM will comprise Europe-origin systems & especially those originating from France for as long as Dato' Sri Mohd Najib Tun Abdul Razak remains the PM. Incidentally, his next-door neighbour at Taman Duta (a woman) has been the agent for Eurocopter since the early 1990s. Get my drift?

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To ABHAY JAIN: 1) Did that a few threads ago. 2) They’re all undergoing laboratory-level R & D at the moment. 3) It’s possible, providing India is led by a leader who can take difficult decisions without any difficulty. 4) It’s flourishing from a consumer-sales standpoint. How many of the existing automobile/motorcycle/scooter manufacturers have to date developed engines/gearboxes through in-house R & D? 5) It’s possible, providing India is led by a leader who can take difficult decisions without any difficulty. 6) This entire project is an utter waste of time & money, period. It will end up exactly like the SARAS, i.e. an aircraft by, of & for scientists only.

To VIKRAM GUHA: 1) They go primarily by the established track-record of such consultants. 2) Just the re-engineering of the tricycle landing gear & its implications for the entire airframe & on-board electronic systems. 3) They don’t, unless the Govt of India floods them with contracts for building vessels for the ICGS. 4) No.

To VIKRANT: Mr. Haqqani’s visits to India were primarily meant for publicising his book so that it could sell well. After all, that’s his main source of income nowadays.

To SOUBHAGYA: Where there is a will there’s a way. All Iranian military R & D programmes are 100% supported by their end-users. In India they aren’t & that’s why the DRDO frequently initiates R & D projects for mere technology demonstration. Consequently, one will see the DRDO one day exhibiting its home-grown R & D solutions like high-speed encrypted modems & airborne VSAT terminals & the next day the ADE or DARE will float global RFPs for importing these very items! Similarly, the Arjun Catapult was developed by CVRDE without even asking the IA for its GSQR for such a product. Likewise, the CVRDE has begun systems development for a FMBT without even receiving a definitive GSQR from the IA. Unless such dysfunctionalities are avoided, indigenous weapon systems will be hard to come by.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To F: Those A-109s are quite dangerous, be they for the TDM or Bomba. Their tail-rotor transmission assembly requires an inspection after every 75 flight-hours! In all other helicopters, such inspections are conducted only after logging in 500 flight-hours.

F said...

Prasun,

Yes you did mention a while ago that under Najib, most big tickets items will be sourced from France and the likes of BAE Systems will have a tough time. However, would you agree that Malaysia has a policy of not buying big ticket items that have already been bought by her immediate neighbours? Thailand already has the Gripen/Eriye combo and Singapore has ordered ASTER.

Vikrant said...

5Sir was trying referring to Mr.haqqani's new career as an author
.Funny Pakistanis curse him all day calling him a CIA spy while they cant see obvious commercial reasons behind his India visits
Btw it seems like Begum Zia has egg on her face with India,China and russia accepting hasina's government it seems all she can do is wait another 5 years and this time dont boycott

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To F: Not necessarily. Had that been the case, then Malaysia would not have acquired Hawks Mk108/208 or C-130 or Exocets or Su-30MKM. Hawks & Su-30s are also in service in Indonesia, while Vietnam also has Su-27s & Su-30s. At the end of the day, therefore, it is the money that does all the talking.

To VIKRANT: They label Hussain Haqqani as a traitor because he is, plain & simple. It was he & his counterpart in Dubai that had together issued a total of 7,000 visas since 2009 for US intelligence agents like Raymond Davies (hailing from firms like Black Water, etc) without the consent of the ISI & Pakistan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Both the ISI & the Foreign Office had vigorously opposed this, but their objections were overruled by President Asif Ali Zardari. And when these agents arrived in Pakistan via Karachi or Islamabad, the then Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik had ordered the country’s Federal Intelligence Agency to switch off all their CCTV surveillance cameras at the immigration counters of these airports so as to not leave any visual evidence behind about the arrival of these personnel from the US.

Anonymous said...

Hello Prasun -

Wish you only the best and continued contentment on your birthday (belated).

To keep it brief (as i am being repetitive -:)Great article. I learn a lot.

Your article highlighted ALH Dhruvs dismal record as a ICGS SAR platform. Could you comment on the commissioning of INAS 322 with immense fanfare. Are then the problems of ALH as a naval SAR Heli behind us, even though they may still be incompatible for on ship SAR (light) and ASW (Heavy) operations?

Ashish

Anonymous said...

Also, to start CNY on a happy note - are there examples of any technologies/platforms or strategies that India gov-military-industrial-R&D quartet, envisioned, planned, executed and continued to deploy with effectiveness to clinical perfection. We could all do with some good news..no? Even a couple of examples would be nice....

Ashish

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To ASHISH: VMT & God bless. INAS 322 is a SHORE-BASED squadron that does not require Dhruv ALHs to be parked in its shipborne configuration, i.e. with its main rotor blades & tail rotor-hub in folded configuration. Dhruv ALH therefore can only be used for SAR if its is shore-based, & cannot be used for shipborne SAR by either the ICGS or IN since it cannot be stowed inside the shipborne helicopter hangar with fully deployed main/tail rotor-blades.

There are several examples, some of which I had posted in the previous thread. ISRO’s success story thus far is one of them. Development & usage of APSOH & HUMSA family of sonars is another. The on-going deployment of the coastal surveillance system chain is another—something that could well have been done since the mid-1990s itself. Then there’s deployment of military satellites like TechSAR/RISAT-2, RISAT-1, GSAT-7 & the on-going deployment of IRNSS family of satellites. Even when it comes to developing new-generation platforms like Tejas MRCA or Arjun Mk1 or S-2/Arihant or strategic ballistic missiles, the record isn’t that bad at all. Nothing ever comes developed with clinical perfection anywhere, even in developed countries. And like I had stated before in this thread, India has at least succeeded in designing & developing a main battle tank, albeit with sub-systems & components sourced from abroad. China on the other hand has yet to design & develop a main battle tank: all its existing tanks are medium battle tanks.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To ASHISH: By the way, even Russia till to date has been unable to develop what many refer to as a main battle tank. All its existing tanks are at best medium battle tanks.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To GOOGLER: Why was the AW-101 procurement contract prematurely terminated? Simply because politicians for their survival depend on only two types of banks: retail-banks & vote-banks. It is the latter that ensures the open-doors to the former. Therefore, when the Italian investigations & court hearings began, the human instinct for self-preservation took over & the UPA coalition govt, just months away from the next general elections, decided against all logic to cut its losses by being ‘seen’ to be taking the high moral ground through premature contract termination.

Now, if you read the contents of the two pieces of correspondence drafted by Christian Michel (including a March 2008 note), it becomes evident that all this talk of AgustaWestland trying to influence key Indian decision-makers is total hogwash. Why? Because the final say on the VVIP helicopter model’s selection was that of the SPG, & not of the IAF or anyone else mentioned on those two lists. And yet there’s not even a single mention of anyone from the SPG. In reality, when it had emerged by 2003 that only Eurocopter’s EC-725 Cougar had complied with the IAF-drafted ASQRs, it was with the late NSA Brajesh Mishra’s approval that the ASQR was diluted, meaning not only the AW-101, but also Sikorsky’s S-92 & Mi-17V-5 could now qualify for competitive evaluations. Are we then to assume that even Sikorsky & Russia’s United Helicopters JSC had spent some money for lobbying for their respective bids? Unlikely. Why? Because it had become evident by 2007 itself that a 3-engined helicopter offered the best survivability over twin-engined competitors. In other words, once the AW-101 had entered the fray, it was from then on a sole-source done-deal. Consequently, no one from AgustaWestland would even have bothered to engage in financial lobbying in favour of the AW-101. The question that then arises is why did Christian Michel write those two notes? The only plausible answer is that they were meant to throw a smokescreen over the money-laundering plot that was hatched internally by the then Chairman of Finmeccanica for the sake of paying off some Italian (not Indian) politicians for reasons related to the then prevailing Italian domestic political uncertainties & NOT FOR ensuring that India ordered the AW-101s. Now, in order to make this a legally acceptable financial transaction, help was probably sought & obtained from IDS Infotech in that IDS Infotech would receive money from AgustaWestland & declare it as being part of AgustaWestland’s industrial offsets commitment in compliance of the MoD-mandated regulations, while it reality it would receive the money at its offshore bank account & then re-route it back to as yet unnamed Italian political beneficiaries via Cyprus or Mauritius.

Cont’d below….

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

As a consequence of the above, it is clear beyond any shadow of doubt that at no stage were India-based politicians or officials ever meant to become the beneficiaries of this elaborate money-laundering scheme. There are also several other conclusions that can be reached. For instance, the MoD’s policy of accepting only direct industrial offsets as opposed to both direct & indirect offsets is deeply flawed since several OEMs have found practical difficulties in complying with direct industrial offsets & have therefore exploited loopholes wherever & whenever possible by making huge payments to India-based lawyers representing such OEMs & these lawyers then holding this money in escrow so that they can be used for other product market exercises. Very few companies have been honest about their activities. One such company has been Fincantieri which, after discovering that it could not implement its direct industrial offsets commitments related to the IN’s procurement of two fleet replenishment tankers, decided to unilaterally surrender back to the MoD funds amounting to 5% of the contract value (as stipulated under the MoD’s DPP).

Therefore, this AW-101 fiasco should serve as a serious warning to the MoD to revisit its industrial offsets regulations & make the necessary amendments. What must also be noted seriously is that if, despite the MoD’s iron-clad regulations, foreign OEMs can still engage in unfair practices (like Finmeccanica has done) & if the MoD reacts by prematurely terminating contracts, then a day will come when hardly any OEM will bother to respond to MoD-issued RFPs—something which no Indian political party has bothered to reflect upon since they’re all deeply engrossed in trying to fix the blame instead of first fixing the problem! Contract cancellation/termination should NEVER be an option, period. Instead, measures ought to be taken to get to the truth & recover through punitive penalties (like liquidated damages) any loss that has been caused to the Indian exchequer—exactly like what Taiwan successfully achieved against THALES through international arbitration.

And contrary to what many people say about Ahmed Patel, it was he who had first given the news to Narendra Modi about TATA Motors’ decision to move out of Singur, WB & locate the Nano’s production facilities elsewhere. Not only that, it was Patel who urged Modi to seize the initiative & make an unsolicited offer to TATA Motors for hosting such facilities in Gujarat. Politicians indeed make strange bedfellows (LoLzzz!)

Jainal said...

Kenapa tidak panggil Faris dengan namanya? Lol

Anonymous said...

prasun,
serious things getting unfolded

http://www.dawn.com/news/1084328/the-return-of-masood-azhar

your views pls

Pintu said...

Prasun Da, a good development as it seems :

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/science/Isros-Mahendragiri-centre-elevated-gets-more-powers/articleshow/29681520.cms

Kindly share your views, thanks in advance.

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Prasun Da ,

The MIG 29K uses the Zhuk ME radar which is a electronically scanned slotted planar array .

In the future if the IN desires to upgrade it can it go for a European or American AESA radar ?

Thanks,

Sujoy

RD said...

Prasunda,
This time its the turn of a LST-
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Navy-warship-runs-aground-off-Visakhapatnam-coast/articleshow/29779763.cms

Atlast leading dailies have started highlighting ur suggestions about port dredging-
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/navy-may-have-itself-to-blame-for-series-of-recent-accidents/article1-1179316.aspx

What is the present status of the 84(phase I-II) coastal security radars under national AIS (automatic identification system) as far as testing & installation concerned.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To JAINAL: Kenapa? Saya mesti nak bodeh dia lah! (LoLz)

To Anon@12.34PM: The writer of that report, ZAHID HUSSAIN, is an internationally respected journalist & specialist when covering such issues. There are other renowned ones as well, like Imtiaz Gul & Ahmed Rashid. The latest developments are part of the present-day PML-led federal govt’s strategy of civilian pacification inside that part of POK that is referred to as Azad Kashmir, since internal resentment there is extremely high due to the ineptitude of the local administration there & therefore the federal govt is looking at exploring all possible alternatives aimed at deflecting public attention. On the whole, the feeling inside Pakistan is that this PML-led govt has caused far more loss to the country than the five years of the PPP-led govt since 2008. Electricity supply hasn’t improved at all, inflationary pressures remain high & there’s no need to urban terrorism or sectarian strife across the country. On the other hand, matters in J & K are improving thanks to improvements in the transportation sector. No wonder the folks in Gilgit/Skardu want road connectivity restored with Kargil ASAP so that they can acquire essential supplies from India.

To PINTU: This is undoubtedly good news, since managerial autonomy, coupled to financial autonomy, always results in encouragement of result-oriented innovation & also accountability.

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: The best upgrade option will be the Zhuk-AE AESA-MMR from Phazotron JSC, since this will drastically reduce the risk-factor when implementing such upgrades, which in turn will greatly facilitate the airworthiness certification effort for this new system as well.

To RD: Shit happens (sigh!). Actually, if you see the GoogleEarth image that I had earlier uploaded above, you will notice that while dredging in the area outside the north & south breakwaters is easily done, the most complex part is that area inside the naval base where the SSKs are normally berthed alongside. And this is because of the presence of the submerged INS Sindhurakshak. The area around this SSK cannot as yet be dredged for fear of setting off an accidental detonation inside that wrecked SSK. Unless & until this SSK is salvaged (which won’t happen until this June), it will be impossible to undertake dredging in this area, thereby resulting in excessive silting along the navigable channels leading to the SSKs’ berthing locations inside the base.

As for Phase-2 of the CSS, work on it has not yet begun. Only phase-1 is under implementation. AIS is fully operational around only those ports that have operational VTMS. Most of the privately-owned Indian fishing boats/trawlers don’t have AIS transponders installed on them as yet.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

What the MQM-led Mohajirs have been up to in the UK:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nwh2NiexG68

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-YE7oWUtlz4

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Prasun Da,

I was going through the Modernization’ and ‘Other-than-Modernization’ Budget Heads of the Indian Navy and it looks like they need huge amts for Aircrafts and Aero Engines ;Naval Fleet and Naval Dockyard/Projects

http://idsa.in/system/files/8_1_2014_AssessingModernizationoftheIAF.pdf

Will you please explain what type of modernization are they talking about w.r.t Aircrafts and Aero Engines ;Naval Fleet and Naval Dockyard/Projects .

VMT

Sujoy

SOUBHAGYA said...

Dear Prasun,
Who is the winner in 1971 Indo Pak war??? IAF or PAF???

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: The modernisation being talked about is about hardware acquisitions (new as well as product-support for existing hardware) & air base infrastructure developments, i.e. all this coming under the capital accounts section of the IAF’s annual budget. Same applies to the IN as well.

To SOUBHAGYA: In the eastern front, the IAF was the clear & undisputed winner after having secured air supremacy over the skies of East Pakistan. In the western front, it was a savage war of attrition in which the side with quantitative superiority, i.e. India would have won decisively had the war dragged on for another week.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

Watch the rise in Sindhi nationalism in Pakistan & also feast your eyes on a few Sindhi ‘thangachis’ (damsels):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u-g9zZkG-qs

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=orDl2f3hN4A

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

Interesting read:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/business/economy/the-end-of-the-tank-the-army-says-it-doesnt-need-it-but-industry-wants-to-keep-building-it/2014/01/31/c11e5ee0-60f0-11e3-94ad-004fefa61ee6_story.html

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

Watch the convoluted rants of this ‘desi’ journalist:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=petnYruAK2I

What this ‘desi’ journalist obviously can’t figure out is that it was Finmeccanica—not AgustaWestland--
that dished out the sum of 51 million Euros. Instead, he ‘ASSUMES’ that AgustaWestland paid out this sum. What he can’t figure out (since he’s obviously unaware of the EU’s law-enforcement rules/regulations) is that had AgustaWestland made such payments, then by now the Italian prosecutors would have demanded that AgustaWestland’s CEO & CFO too testify in the Italian court, while the UK’s Serious Fraud Investigations Office too would have jumped into the fray in order to map out the money-trail.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

http://www.business-standard.com/article/economy-policy/samtel-general-dynamics-sign-rs-500-cr-agreement-114020300019_1.html

The vehicle-mounted AMLCD displays are reqd for operationalising the F-INSAS, BMS & BSS systems, all of which the 'desi' journalists has conveniently forgotten to report.

Vikrant said...

Sir
1)Is INS Chakra berthed at HSL since May 2012?
2)How would you rate our upgraded Kilos as of today?when will the scorpene's join in?
3)With Mig-29Ks in our fleet air superiority over the Arabian sea shouldn't be a problem?

Pintu said...

http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/next-kargil-could-happen-in-the-andamans_908724.html

Prasun Da, as per the report above mentioned and in the light of the circumstances,as you have drawn perfectly in your thread, is there any chance at present of repeat of Kargil type intrusion in Andamans ?

Siddharth said...

Which one is better as of now?

PAK-FA or J-20 - seeing the specifications available on internet.

Siddharth

raw13 said...

You have said many times that pakistan has 10 nukes, under chinese control. Lets assume you are correct.

If someone in your capacity can figure this out, IA, RAW, etc will also have come to the same conclusion. Just as importantly some of the decions maker in pakistan will also know this.

So this begs the question, why build 4 reactors in Khushab? Especially if we say they want to fool the indians, the grass eaters in pakistan. They could do this with one or two but surely 4 is a massive overkill.

raw13 said...

Hi Prasun,

With regards to azad kashmir, GB and their inhabitants desire to be part of india as you claim. Have you ever been there? If not goto Birmingham/Bradford, ask them what they think of india (they are from AK and Balistan). Infact ask the children of indians in the UK what the pakistani children think of them. And you think they want to be ruled by indians...you are seriously mistaken my friend!

What the IA does in kashmir is well known, just have to google it?

Millard Keyes said...

It appears that there indeed are 2 raw13s, one coward naturally hiding under a borrowed alias of the other. Can the real raw13 if he has the courage please get a blogger ID so this doesn't happen? Today anyone can google anything and find it - for instance type in is shaving a sin and you will see some guy started a Q&A site saying if people shave their pubic areas smoothly it is not a sin but leaving the stubbles is because in the Bible God said He will blow the enemies away like a stubble! If you don't believe Google it! so don't annoy others saying crappy things because a nation that came out of a politically motivated division now claiming not part of the mother country is a sign of mental derangement.

DAshu said...

ha ha ... raw 13 is indeed a zaid hamid disciple

Raman said...

while reading your post.....one thought repeatedly struck me..........just look how much effort/time/money/manpower etc is going into all this...........and all mainly because of one country ..Pakistan...amazing, really......and, the excuse is Kashmir (!!??).....very cost-effective for Pakistan (as long as it is supported by China/Saudi).....the money could have been better spent on education, healthcare....

sometimes, in sheer frustration, I wish we could do another 1971 and save ourselves some longterm grief !!!!!

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To PINTU: No, that’s no longer possible in either A & C chain or in Lakshadweep, thanks to the CSS network in place.

To SIDDHARTH: The T-50 PAK-FA is at a far more advanced stage of development compared to where the J-20 stands as of now.

To RAW13@3AM: Not 10, but 12. It was reduced from 12 to 10 after the two tests at Chagai, but it has now gotten back to 12. All four PHWRs at Khushab are totally closed down for four months every year from January to April, & become operational only by June, thereby leaving each of these PHWRs operational for only 6 months per annum. Secondly, it ceases to be an overkill when one considers that ‘Islamic’ WMDs aren’t just meant for Pakistan. In other words, China needs the fissile materials from these PHWRs for fabricating WMD warheads for ‘other’ Islamic countries like the KSA. After all, will any sane individual ever use DF-21B MRBMs armed with conventional warheads? Therefore, what better option that cite the PHWRs in Pakistan for reasons of plausible deniability & tell the world that all WMD warheads for the DF-21Bs originated from Pakistan, i.e. one Islamic country sharing its nuclear umbrella with another Islamic country.

To RAW13@3.16AM: If you’re referring me to the Pakistanis of Birmingham/Bradford, then I will refer you to the Pakistanis of Norway & Sweden. Kindly ask them what they feel about Pakistan & the proxy war between Iran & Saudi Arabia that’s been underway there since the early 1980s. Regretably, you have a far bigger worry on your hands than preaching about googling on the IA’s role/s in J & K. Judging by the rate at which polio vaccination workers are being shot & killed throughout Pakistan, the day is not far when Pakistan will gain the unique distinction of becoming the world’s the first Islamic country to be barred from sending its citizens to Mecca & Medina for their annual Haj & Umrah pilgrimages.

To RAMAN: It’s not just about Kashmir. Nothing is farther away from the truth. Don’t think even for a single moment that Pakistan will adopt the path of nuclear disarmament if India does so first, or if the J & K issue is resolved to the satisfaction of Pakistan. The problems are far more deep-rooted. For, don’t forget that Pakistan has always referred to its WMD arsenals as weapons destined for the defence of Islam & as such are Islamic WMDs. Consequently, after issues have been settled with India, Pakistan will then move the goalposts & claim that its WMDs are meant for protecting Mecca/Medina/Jerusalem, for empowering the Palestinians in their ‘jihad’ against the Israeli Jews, for protecting the Sunnis against the Shia, etc etc. The list will go on & on, rest assured.

Gessler said...

Prasun ji, check out this article -

http://ibnlive.in.com/blogs/sauravjha/2976/65064/a-new-year-for-drdo.html

Lots of info. Can you point out any false news/incorrect reporting if any?

VMT in advance!

Rajeev Chaturvedi said...

Prasunda,
Its pretty unsettling news.

http://www.vice.com/read/why-are-indian-authorities-ignoring-the-deaths-of-nuclear-scientists

Are we really so callous and complacent? Are these incidents actually conspiracy and sabotage or something else?

Thanks

kckock said...

I am one of those pakistanis from Norway. I will be happy to invite you to share a kebab with me. By the way most of the pakistanis in Norway are from Kharian, mandi bahauddin and Gujrat districts in Punjab. We are very proud of our roots and our nation:

Here even your paper covered us:

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-08-07/india/29861216_1_indian-diplomats-norway-immigrant

Pintu said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Pintu said...

In my opinion, this is called pre-planned trolling in between healthy discussion(s), i.e. to assume or operate under the single user handle(as I have experienced in past of one ajtr, in certain defence-forums, as here RAW13), make one sensible and another dumb-ass flame one after another, and then,checking-in with another user name supporting that very same moronic sub-standard post, (here chipped in another junk already) using same IP, or two different one(s),better option is to delete the post concerned or limit the posting right of that handle rather going for IP Ban, sorry for getting off-topic, but the POV from an ex-Mod.

sachin_sathe said...

http://ibnlive.in.com/blogs/sauravjha/2976/65064/a-new-year-for-drdo.html

the blog above seems to have some interesting pics especially Rustom MALE UAV & the the replacement or evolution of INSAS 1B1 your thoughts?

Also this seems to be the first time any details of a workable DEW (Directed energy weapon) have emerged ur thoughts?

Iceman said...

sir,
1.will Indian navy go for FREMM class frigates?
2.are there any hypersonic missile developments in india besides Brahmos 2?
3.does indian army is fully bulletproof?
4.is indian navy planning to junk the p75i subs and go for Indigeneous SSK's and SSN's?
5.when will the LCH be inducted?

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Prasun Da ,

India's DPP considers all vendors meeting SQR at par. Superior performance is of no consequence and earns no extra credit. The services can neither indicate their preference nor can demand better performing equipment. The lowest bidder (L1) is selected for signing the contract.

Therefore , how can the Indian Armed Forces get hold of a better weapon system ?

Thanks,

Sujoy

Anonymous said...

gessler u asked what even i wanted to know... pls share your view prasun....
VMT in advance

Amol

Defense and Aerospace said...

Prasun ,

Did SAAB win the contract for the CSS because it was the lowest bidder or was it because it provided a system superior to those that were on offer ?

Thank You

Anonymous said...

I have observed so man times. raw13 deviates the discussion and mr.heberian comes to his rescue everytime. Just an observation..

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To GESSLER & SACHIN SATHE & AMOL: Just hold on for another 48 hours & everything will become clear after the DRDO’s pavilion exhibits are displayed. But Divya Dhrishti is a completely passive surveillance system & neither beams any signals to any satellite nor receives any from a satellite. That much I can confirm. Can also confirm that the Dhanush 155X45 towed howitzer uses SAGEM's SIGMA 30 RLG-INS-based land navigation system, same as that on the Pinaka-1 MBRL.

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: Not just L-1 status, but also life-cycle costs are now factored in, which in fact nullifies all the advantage of an L-1 bid from such an acquisition costs standpoint.

To DEFENSE & AEROSPACE: Both, actually.

Sujoy Majumdar said...

Thank You Prasun Da .

In that case it's senseless for the armed forces to un necessarily go in for a competition like in the MMRCA case .

Simply figure out which aircraft , ship , tank is the best option from a Life Cycle Cost perspective & then buy it .

Thanks again ,

Sujoy

F said...

Prasun,

Something just occured to me: with non-wire guided ship launched torps like the Whitehead A244S there is no ability to self destruct the torp, thus wouldn't it be dangerous to fire at a contact if a friendly sub was nearby? Am I correct in assuming that wire guided torps like the Blackshark can be self-destructed?

The A-109 is a matured design that has been around for ages and has many operators; why haven't its designers extended the inspection period for the tail rotor assembly? In the 1st place, why does it have to be inspected after only 75 hours?

What is your prediction on the RMN's future MRSS? DCNS again or perhaps the cheaper and faster solution of going with a South Korean yard? Are you aware that the RMN has been officially offered the USS Denver?

You mentioned the possibility of Pkistani pilgrams being barred from Mecca? Wasn't Iran the 1st to achieved this dubious distinction in the 1980's?

Fariz.

Anonymous said...

Mr Prasun K Sengupta
or Should i call you "Videshi" Journalist ?
As you fondly call all other Journalists "Desi" with a not so hidden feeling of derision...so i safely presume that you must be considering urself a somebody special with a knowledge bordering on exceptional expertise in Defence Technologies.

This trend of mocking others i noticed over a period.

Though i like the fact that you dig up great many facts and present a good analysis yet i strongly believe that you have no such right to mock others...

May be you consider yourself such a knowledgeable person that you don't need any lessons in Journalistic Ethics, Professional Ethics...and perhaps even in basic humility and modesty ....ur aim in most posts is to find fault with others and then show ur superior knowledge...

The Fact is you too belong to the same breed of Desi journalists who reproduce others (read actual Defence Technologists and Analysts) technical work.Sometimes i feel that you are no different from that lal Topi idiot "Zaid Hamid" of Pakistan....

May i ask what is your original contribution to the field of Journalism and not just the Defence news reprinting?

Can you claim to be a P Sainath's Equivalent of Defence and Security?

Frankly i dont think so ? Coz snaping Photos from Defence expos and Putting them on ur blog, babbling about other Desi journalists ...dosent makes you so..

PS : Will you publish this comment so that others too can read it coz this letter is my version J'accuse of Emile Zola..

Sparsh

Millard Keyes said...

Pintu is absolutely right. For example the so called Pakistani from Norway is none other than the originator of the issue!That's why you will never see a blogger handle as one can be a number of personalities like Fletch Lives movie.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR: You’re absolutely right. There’s no use conducting competitive evaluations & coming up with a shortlist & the determining from the shortlist which party is L-1. Far better therefore to do away with this L-1 criteria in the very first place. To the best of my knowledge there’s no other country that conducts competitive biddings/evaluations in a two-phase manner, i.e. developing a shortlist bases on technical parameters & then beginning the hunt for the L-1 bidder.

To FARIS: Lightweight torpedoes like Whitehead are like point-defence systems & therefore don’t need to loiter looking for their targets. The heavyweight wire-guided torpedoes with ranges greater than 20nm present the risk that you’ve referred to & that’s the very reason they’re wire-guided for the sake of avoiding friendly casualties/blue-on-blue engagements. As for the A-109, the problem is with the A-109P version—the same version that causesd the death of the late Tan Sri yahya, if you recall. This very same version is also operated by the BOMBA & PTUD. After the Tan Sri &Yahya crash incident, Agusta SPA had issued an airworthiness directive mandating the 75-hour inspections. That directive still remains valid & Agusta SPA hasn’t withdrawn it to date. For the RMN’s MRSS, there’s no way DCNS can bid lower than any existing South Korean shipbuilder. The Iranians were temporarily barred in the early 1980s in Mecca & Medina.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To SPARSH: Rest assured, for this blog remains the only one that’s owned by an Indian & that’s not subjected to comments moderation (all the other ‘desi’ journalists have the dubious distinction of moderating & editing their comments section & I’m sure you know very well why). Secondly, since assumption is the mother of all fuck-ups, you have fucked up big time on several counts. Kindly allow me to elaborate: Firstly, never have I claimed to be a journalist, leave alone a desi or videshi. If highlighting errors for the sake of presenting the facts tantamount to mocking for you, then so be it. Thirdly, if my presentation of the facts results in the trishul (trident) being shoved up your arse, you have only yourself to blame. Pictures are always worth a thousand words, so why waste time explaining what the images show, unless there’s a specific request by a well-meaning blogger to do so? Why assume that all others are too dumb to make sense of the photos/illustrations? But, I guess you still don’t get it because you’re obviously one of those who believes in dragging the horse to the pond & trying to force the horse (in vain) to drink water from that pond. If that’s your mindset, the not even the gods of yore can come to your assistance.

Raman said...

Agreed/your reply makes sense....Kashmir is just an excuse ("water" has already started......) to keep themselves from breaking up....stroking so called "national" issues....

I am sure most sensible/civilized nation states realize this(Headache of the world/most dangerous place etc) .......then why do they not do something about Pakistan ??.......there must be some short term/long term solutions.......take away the wmd's (Chinese ??) and then Balkanize it......

Look at the money/manpower/energy/time that would be saved and put to use to make the world a better place......rather then cater to the tantrums of a failing state that's trying desperately to stay alive by negative means....

or is the world just waiting for it to implode ?? or rather like avoiding a piece of shit lying on the road - better to avoid/bypass...then mess your shoes........

Oh ! boy !!.......sorry for being so negative so early in the morning !!!! but, it gets my goat when I see so much effort/money etc being spent just to fence ourselves against the state terrorism from Pakistan.......

Millard Keyes said...

et... C'est ma réponse à votre foutre dans la merde monsieur - should be an addition to your response Prasun.

Sujoy Majumdar said...

@ Sparsh ,
Listen to what you say . You are accusing Mr.Prasun Sengupta of exactly the same thing that you yourself are engaged in – baseless accusations . Have you set forth facts to support your claim ?
Journalism is like every profession. Some of it's good, some of it stinks. But for it to be good, it has to be unflinching. And that’s what Mr.Sengupta does in his blog .

I feel bad for the people that surround you.

-Sujoy

raw13 said...

Some of you indians are very sensitive and seem to think i am trying to be-little you, that was not my intention.

In fact i just wanted to reply to what Prasun had said wrt azad kashmir, GB peoples love for india.

What he wrote was pure fantasy, not based on facts or reality.

What the indian in UK wrote about 8yr old kids, confirms this. The two people have no love for each other.

AK said...

Prasunda,

1. Is the range of Sea Hake HWT more than 140km? When subs can see only till 50 km in line of sight, will the sub have to pop up to track it? Is it better than Black Shark of WASS?

2. What is the power rating (MW) of Virginia Sub's nuke reactor and Gerald Ford's reactor?

3. Reports are coming up that DCNS is bringing its Barracuda for defexpo. Can they offer the design expertise to India? Will it not violate some international treaty on nukes, whichever?

4.Has India authorised the construction of SSNs? Will they have any feature of Akula class as Russian amb Kadakin mentions? Does India have licence to build them?

5. Russian shipyards are selling kilo-class for 250 million a pop. How come P75i is being considered a 12 billion dollar deal, meaning 2 billion a pop? That too a diesel submarine with no deep ocean capability, in a Indian shipyard?

6. How important is the AIP? Does it increase the efficiency of a submarine considerably on a combat level? Running on a battery at 5 knot is dangerous too, as a ASW ship can easily outrun it so what explains its need?

7. Why are Soryu class subs rated always as the best in the world. I read about the fact that leaf coil shape is better than cigar shape ones, but no explanation. How come all subs of USN and French Navy have ciagr shape and are still considered the best?

8. India refused to buy MH-60R helos in a US FMS deal. Is their any difference in EULA on FMS deal and bid based ones?

Please explain.
Thanks and best.

abs said...

@prasunda
Could this be true?
http://www.ibtl.in/column/1402/the-truth-behind-the-west-bengal-gang-rape
It appears that the recent accusation of the tribals if rape, were not rape at all!!

Reddy said...

Dear Prasun,

Why does not India buy the designs of traditional technologies from Russia such as Submarine/ Ship Building etc OR

Why does not India delegate these activities (Submarine/ Ship Building etc) to Russia or some other countries or to Indian Private companies and Concentrate on High End Technologies???

We can over the time slowly build these capabilities as these kind of things such as ship-building are one-off activities.. Once we buy 10 Chakras we do not need to bother for another 25 years...

India can buy all the submarines from Russia (say 10 Billions for 10 INS Chakras or some AIP enabled subamrines etc) and have a clean plate so as to concentrate on cutting edge R&D.

I wish Indian Agencies such as DRDO purely concentrate on R& D and pass ALL the manufacturing and maintenance activities to private companies for a clean and stable tech base to build which is win win for Indian Tax payers, private firms and end users such as armed forces.

Your views pls..

Anonymous said...

To SPARSH: Rest assured, for this blog remains the only one that’s owned by an Indian & that’s not subjected to comments moderation
(all the other ‘desi’ journalists have the dubious distinction of moderating & editing their comments section & I’m sure you know very well why).

@Mr Sengupta : O Really...will you please back up your accusations with some proofs that other Desi Journalist do resort to such moderations and
editing when comments criticise them because my experience with two other blogs namely BROADSWORD and LIVEFIST differs from the lies you are
spreading here.When i accused you of being arrogant there is ample prrof in your blog Posts.
And what does that mean that your's is the only blog that is owned by an Indian ? Do you mean to say BROADSWORD or LIVEFIST or TARMAK or any other
Defence blogs are run by Pakistani/Chinese/American Citizens? ..again a wild accusation w/o any Proof coz as far as i know Shiv Aroor ,Ananth Krishnan
and Colonel (Retd) Ajai Shukla are Indian Citizens.



Secondly, since assumption is the mother of all fuck-ups, you have fucked up big time on several counts. Kindly allow me to elaborate:
Firstly, never have I claimed to be a journalist, leave alone a desi or videshi.

@Mr Sengupta...If you are not Journalist then please share your credentials and i do hope to find that your credentials are so much impressive that
they allow you to mock others.


If highlighting errors for the sake of presenting the facts tantamount to mocking for you, then so be it.
@Mr Sengupta.. if after reading my comment you are not able to grasp its gist then what can i say ..i only have to blame our education system.
The Gist of my comment was that criticism are always welcome coz it leads to advancement of knowledge but they should be constructive
and not with derisive tone. As i had pointed out that you almost rejoice in fault finding activites.
Tell me how many journalists/writers do that ? Only few and those who do that are'nt worth remebering.....


Thirdly, if my presentation of the facts results in the trishul (trident) being shoved up your arse, you have only yourself to blame.
@Mr Sengupta...this line tells me what kind of character you possess and it confirms that you are very arrogant Person equating your so called
superior knowledge with the right to mock others. Let me tell you a hindi Proverb which suits for people like u..
"Vriksha pe jitne jyada fal lagte hain woh utna hi jyada jhuk jata hai "....
that's a sign of humbleness and modesty which i think is beyond you...


Pictures are always worth a thousand words, so why waste time explaining what the images show, unless there’s a specific request by a
well-meaning blogger to do so? Why assume that all others are too dumb to make sense of the photos/illustrations? But, I guess you still
don’t get it because you’re obviously one of those who believes in dragging the horse to the pond & trying to force the horse (in vain) to
drink water from that pond. If that’s your mindset, the not even the gods of yore can come to your assistance.

@Mr Sengupta..thanks for wonderful advice but in the end its again babbling....


Sparsh

Anonymous said...

@Sujoy Majumdar...
My dear friend ..pls look into my comment and try to understand what i am trying to say.
As far as proofs of my accusatiosn are concerned then you only have to look at Mr Sengupta's posts...

and i suggest you pls take note of my reply to Mr Sengupta Line-by-Line.


Thanks
Sparsh

Anonymous said...

Messenger,

The 8yr old was being polite. He just wanted to confirm weather you were bengali or indian. But it shows you the confidence of the 8yrs old? Even the british indians feel ashamed when they see indians like you from india in the UK.

sntata said...

Dear Prasun,

"http://idrw.org/?p=33053"

Is the missile shown in the picture Nirbhay?

the worthy duck said...

http://drdo.gov.in/drdo/labs/DLRL/English/index.jsp?pg=AreasWork.jsp
Divya Drishti is a joint SI Dte – DRDO programme, with the aim of interception, monitoring, direction finding and analysis (IMDFAS) of communication signals. The system will be installed at various locations on static and mobile stations. All stations will be connected through a satellite communication network. The system caters to the mission of building aircraft flight profile (Mission Analysis).

Anonymous said...

@Sparsh...

Since the blog belongs to Mr. Sengupta i guess he has the absolute right to decide what he post or not.
Some stuff still you are not getting...as of I know (from the blog owner himself, told earlier) that Mr. Sengupta is not a journalist but an enthusiastic person with very impressive knowledge on technology. He has told earlier himself that he is in Aviation business (the business firms name i know but i leave it to the blog owner whether to let you know the name). Instead of giving a ones off a visit and troll, it may do better to be a regular visitor and counter him logically or with evidence. As a disclaimer i am not a stooge or supporting his arse but as a regular visitor i owe the owner this much for very impressive explanation to the laymen like me.

Sreenivas R

Sujoy Majumdar said...

@ SPARSH - I went through every single accusation that you make . Obviously Mr.Sengupta can answer you better but as a regular poster in this blog this is what I can say :

You said – “Though i like the fact that you dig up great many facts and present a good analysis yet i strongly believe that you have no such right to mock others
You did hear about the Radia tapes ? Or those reports in the Indian Express that said that Gen V K Singh intends to carry out a coup . Or a certain journalist who is more often than not found in Elevator . Was that decent journalism ? Truth is the Indian media is running who can be more corrupt race against the political parties . The journalists that you accuse Mr.Prasun Sengupta of mocking have time and again accused innocent individuals in return for a few pennies.

You said – The Fact is you too belong to the same breed of Desi journalists who reproduce others (read actual Defence Technologists and Analysts) technical work
Mr.Sengupta is not a journalist , neither does he claim to be one . Every journalist reproduces technical work that they secure from Defense companies . They themselves are not experts . Do you have any evidence of copyright violation on the part of Mr.Sengupta ?

You said O Really...will you please back up your accusations with some proofs that other Desi Journalist do resort to such moderations and editing when comments criticize
Can you prove that they don’t ? In my experience ,my comments have been deleted from LIVEFIST as have been the comments of other individuals who have posted there as they often stated themselves in that blog that their comments get deleted .

You said – If you are not Journalist then please share your credentials and i do hope to find that your credentials are so much impressive that they allow you to mock others
Is it necessary to have great credentials to mock someone ? Or do people with good credentials do NOT mock others . Modi has been called a Chai Wala by a number of politicians , apparently with great credentials .

You said – Let me tell you a hindi Proverb which suits for people like u..
"Vriksha pe jitne jyada fal lagte hain woh utna hi jyada jhuk jata hai

Let me tell you a Hindi Proverb . Aap Aam Khaeya , Per Kyun Gentey Hain “ . If you get value from this blog why bother about the blog owner’s style .

Regards,
Sujoy


the worthy duck said...

check out Divya Drishti from 5:36 minute mark onwards.

Divya Drishti sat connectivity

prateek said...

@sparsh - 7:10pm

dude get a life and atleast learn to interpret simple english before you go barking and bitching around..

prasun sir says "this blog remains the only one that’s owned by an Indian & that’s not subjected to comments moderation"..
by this he means that trishul-trident is the only indian defence blog owned by an indian where comments are not moderated..
at no point does he mean that the other blogs are owned by foreign citizens..

2) you are nobody , an absolute non-entity to demansd credentials ...

3) & is prasoon sir arrogant..??
well i would say had i been in his position and possess even half his knowledge i wud hv been mighty arrogant..a complete cock..

i didn't through your entire comment..only post to this blog if u have something worthy to share..

DAshu said...

sir it seems you really exposed them with fact .see their reactions.
Am sure if they spend some time at your blog they will realize who is wrong and who is spreading what .

A day will come when they will ask you to do proof reading only to avoid such humiliations .
As you use to say Shit happens!!! .ignore them and you carry on with this noble work.

Prasun K. Sengupta said...

To: THE WORTHY DUCK: The SATCOM uplinks & down-links you’re referring to are for the nodal JIOCs that are equipped with signals fingerprinting systems which will receive data from both air-defence/airspace surveillance radars & passive surveillance systems, i.e. integral components of IACCCS. This was already highlighted in the thread dealing with IACCCS sometime in 2012.

To SUJOY MAJUMDAR, SREENIVAS R, PRATEEK & DASHU: It’s no use trying to argue with a whining egghead like SPARSH. As MESSENGER had observed a few times before, ‘Never argue with an idiot’. If SPARSH indeed had a point to make, he/she would have conclusively proven that the performance parameter shortcomings of the US Navy’s P-8A were also afflicting the Indian Navy’s P-8I, or that it could be proven beyond reasonable that it is possible for a FFG like INS Talwar to be ‘jinxed’. Since these counter-narratives haven’t been posted as yet, it will be safe to conclude that this blogger (SPARSH) suffers from some serious congenital deficiencies. Let’s leave it at that.

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