- Note: This section is a rough draft that attempts to implement the consensus obtained from the RfC section of Talk:Indian_Armed_Forces#Request_for_Comment:_Criticism_Section. it is, by no means, complete, and all involved editors are requested to contribute towards a final version. The attempt is to merge the three sections, Today, Criticism, and Future into one, implementing due weight to each topic.
Current
editThe headquarters of the Indian Armed Forces is in New Delhi, the capital city of India. The President acts as de jure Commander in chief of the Armed Forces.[1] while de facto control lies with the executive. The Ministry of Defence (MoD) is the ministry charged with the responsibilities of countering insurgency and ensuring external security of India. General Bikram Singh is the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS), Admiral Devendra Kumar Joshi is the Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) and Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne is the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS).[2] The Indian armed force are split into different groups based on their region of operation. The Indian Army is administratively divided into 7 tactical commands, each under the control of different Lieutenant Generals. The Indian Air Force is divided into five operational and two functional commands. Each Command is headed by an Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief with the rank of Air Marshal. The Indian Navy operates three Commands. Each Command is headed by a Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief in the rank of Vice Admiral. There are two joint commands whose head can belong to any of the three services. These are the Strategic Forces Command and the Andaman and Nicobar Command. The lack of an overall military commander has helped keep the Indian Armed Forces under civilian control,and has prevented the rise of military dictatorships (unlike in neighboring Pakistan)[3].
The Armed Forces have six main tasks;[4]
- To assert the territorial integrity of India.
- To defend the country if attacked by a foreign nation.
- To send own amphibious warfare equipment to take the battle to enemy shores.[5]
- To follow the Cold Start doctrine, meaning that the Indian Armed Forces are able to quickly mobilise and take offensive actions without crossing the enemy's nuclear-use threshold.
- To support the civil community in case of disasters (e.g. flooding).
- To participate in United Nations peacekeeping operations in consonance with India’s commitment to the United Nations Charter.
The code of conduct of the Indian military is detailed in a semi-official book called "Customs and Etiquette in the Services", written by retired Major General Ravi Arora, which details how Indian personnel are expected to conduct themselves generally.[6] Arora is an executive editor of the Indian Military Review.[7]
The major deployments of the Indian army constitute the border regions of India, particularly Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh, and the Northeast India, in order to engage in counter-insurgency and anti-terrorist operations. The major commitments of the Indian Navy constitute patrol missions, anti-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia, the 'Singapore Indian Maritime Bilateral Exercise' with the Republic of Singapore Navy in the Straits of Malacca[8], maintaining a military presence in Southeast Asias waters, and joint exercises with other countries, such as Brazil, South Africa[9], the United States and Japan[10], France (Varuna naval exercises), People's Republic of China[11], the Russian Navy (INDRA naval exercises), and others.
India currently maintains the 7th largest defence budget in the world. In 2011 the budget stood at $48.9 billion ($112 billion PPP), this represented 2.5% of GDP.[12] Additional spending is provided separately by the government to be spent on infrastructure in border areas and for paramilitary organizations.[13] A considerable portion of India's defense budget is allocated to the modernization of the country's armed forces, over the period 2007-2012 India was expected to spend about $50 billion on new equipment.[14] In 2009 India increased defence expenditure by 21%.[15]
Contemporary criticisms of the Indian military have drawn attention to several issues, such as lack of political reform [16] , obsolete equipment [17], lack of adequate ammunition[17], discipline problems[18] and inadequate Research and Development due to over-reliance on foreign imports[19]. The London-based Economist claims a lack of 'strategic culture' among the political class in India hinders the effectiveness of the Indian military.[3] These issues are believed by critics to hobble the progress and modernization of the military. However, analysis of the Central Intelligence Agency indicates that India is projected to possess the fourth most capable concentration of power by 2015.[20] According to a report published by the US Congress, India is the developing world's leading arms purchaser.[21] India is investing ₹99.7 billion (US$1.2 billion) to build a dedicated and secure optical fiber cable (OFC) network for exclusive use of the Army, Navy and Air Force. This will be one of the world's largest closed user group (CUG) networks.[22] Finally, the Indian Armed Forces have been the target of deliberate manufactured attacks and reputational assaults.[23]
References
edit- Citations
- ^ "Welcome". Government of India. Retrieved 18 January 2011.
- ^ http://www.ptinews.com/news/257178_Gen-Kapoor-is-new-head-of-Armed-Forces-Chiefs-panel
- ^ a b "India is poised to become one of the four largest military powers in the world by the end of the decade. It needs to think about what that means."
- ^ "Redoctrinisation of the Indian Armed Forces". Slideshare.net. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
- ^ "Indian armed forces are now ready with their own amphibious warfare doctrine to take the battle to enemy shores". IndiaDaily. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
- ^ "Book on Customs & Etiquettes in the Services Released". Press Information Bureau, Government of India. 3 September 2007. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
- ^ "About Us". Indian Military Review. Retrieved 10 March 2011.
- ^ Press Information Bureau, Government of India
- ^ India-Brazil-South Africa ‘Tango’ at Sea | Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses. Idsa.in (16 May 2008). Retrieved 6 January 2012.
- ^ Anil K. Joseph Indian Navy holds joint drills with top naval powers. The Tribune. 17 April 2007
- ^ India to take part in China's International Fleet Review. The Hindu. (20 March 2009). Retrieved 6 January 2012.
- ^ "India's Defense Budget 2012-13". SIPRI. Retrieved 15 May 2012.
- ^ Broadsword (11 March 2008). "Ajai Shukla: How much is the defence budget?". Business-standard.com. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
- ^ India's arms spree on fast track - Asia Times
- ^ China, India boost defense as crisis takes toll on West
- ^ Cohen, Stephen P. and Sunil Dasgupta, "The Drag on India's Military Growth", The Brookings Institution, September 2010.
- ^ a b India's military weakness
- ^ Indian army suicides blamed on 'poor leadership'
- ^ Defence Budget: HIGH ON RHETORIC, WEAK IN MODERNISING
- ^ INDIA IN THE INDIAN OCEAN by Donald L. Berlin Naval War College Review, Spring 2006, Vol. 59, No. 2
- ^ "India's navy in .8bn sub deal". BBC News. 12 September 2005. Retrieved 5 May 2010.
- ^ Shalini Singh (22 August 2009). "Govt plans Rs 10,000cr dedicated telecom network for armed forces - India - The Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
- ^ http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2010/dec/09/pakistani-newspaper-fake-leaks-india
^ Does not include members of the Indian Police Service
- Bibliography
- International Institute for Strategic Studies; Hackett, James (ed.) (3 February 2010). The Military Balance 2010. London: Routledge. ISBN 1-85743-557-5.
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