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Teluguhero Side Hero Username: Teluguhero Post Number: 2112 Registered: 04-2008 Posted From: 50.156.143.166 Rating: |
http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-10-27/modi-seeks -shoot-to-kill-hardware-in-military-modernization Modi's Looking to Buy the Indian Army 185,000 Deadly Assault Rifles India’s armed forces have embarked on a shopping spree for modern assault rifles, body armor and helmets, providing a potential boost to global arms suppliers. The 1.3 million-strong military is abandoning its two decade-old Indian made rifles and seeking to outfit its infantry with more up-to-date equipment, scouting for a new model on the global market for 185,000 assault rifles. The Ministry of Defence also needs to buy hundreds of thousands of helmets and tens of thousands of bullet proof vests. The moves are part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s $250 billion push to modernize India’s armed forces, as infantry continue to face the brunt of deadly attacks in disputed border areas such as Kashmir and the north-east. Plans to buy new equipment from overseas, however, have been held back by bureaucratic delays and the military’s desire to balance the needs of troops against efforts to have equipment built domestically under Modi’s "Make in India" program, a key plank in his drive to boost local manufacturing. "It’s encouraging that they’re going ahead with this, but it’s discouraging that it’s not made under ‘Make in India,’ " said Anit Mukherjee, a former major in the Indian Army and assistant professor at Singapore’s S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies. "The fact that it took 10 years for Indians to go ahead and say, ‘we’re importing’ means the bureaucracy is still holding back modernization of the armed forces. That’s problematic." Local Rifles The army currently uses the INSAS, or Indian Small Arms System, rifle, introduced in the late 1990s and built by the state-owned Ordnance Factory. Yet the Indian and Nepalese soldiers issued with the guns complained the 5.56mm rifles were unreliable, prompting the ministry to go to the global market for their replacement. To identify possible vendors, the ministry last month issued a request for information. It said it wants a larger, more deadly 7.62mm model that will "shoot to kill." India needs 65,000 rifles within 28 months of signing the contract and has asked global manufacturers to reply by November 7, the ministry said. India plans to issue a tender for procuring rifles in April 2017. This is India’s second attempt since 2011 to procure assault rifles for its infantry. The 2011 tenders were issued to Colt’s Manufacturing Company LLC, Italy’s Fabbrica d’Armi Pietro Beretta S.p.A., Swiss Sig Sauer Inc., the Czech Republic’s Ceska zbrojovka and Israel Weapons Industry Ltd. But it was canceled in 2015 after the rifles offered up by the global manufacturers did not meet the multi-caliber requirements of the army. Procurement Delays Apart from assault rifles, the army also sought to buy light automatic rifles and machine guns, as well as sniper rifles. Initially, it planned to buy 43,000 carbines off the shelf from international companies and build 120,000 others at ordnance factories in India. But a tender issued four years ago to buy the carbines was canceled earlier this month over procedural issues, according to a senior army officer who asked not to be identified discussing information that is private. The rifle procurement is part of the army’s efforts to modernize personnel equipment, including body armor and helmets. It needs over 350,000 bullet-proof vests, and earlier this year decided to buy 50,000 units of body armor to meet emergency requirements. The army has also inched closer to procuring 150,000 lightweight helmets. Delays in procuring basic equipment should concern policy makers as infantry troops take on the brunt of India’s current operations, according to Srinath Raghavan, a former infantry officer and senior fellow at New Delhi’s Centre for Policy Research. The "Make in India" program, where foreign firms team up with local ones, is helping to address that, he said. But there were still tensions between the army’s urgent requirements for modern equipment and the slow pace of defense sector joint ventures, meaning at least some equipment must be bought "off the shelf". "The fact that you can’t even design your own small arms system reflects very poorly on the military ecosystem in India," he said. "The military innovation cycle is dysfunctional and broken down and it should be a matter of huge concern." | ||
Teluguhero Side Hero Username: Teluguhero Post Number: 2111 Registered: 04-2008 Posted From: 50.156.143.166 Rating: N/A |
http://www.ndtv.com/india-news/china-warns-boycott-of-its-go ods-with-impact-india-ties-investments-1538427 China Warns Boycott Of Its Goods Will Impact India Ties, Investments Amid calls from some quarters for boycott of Chinese goods in ongoing Diwali season, China today said any such move will negatively impact the India-bound investments from its enterprises and also the bilateral cooperation between the two countries. China also asserted that any such boycott would not have much impact on its exports, but "without proper substitutes, the biggest losers of the boycott of Chinese goods will be Indian traders and consumers". In a statement issued in Delhi, the Chinese embassy said China is the world's largest trading nation in goods, with its exports in 2015 amounted to USD 2276.5 billion. "The exports to India accounted for only 2 per cent of China's total exports and India's boycott of Chinese goods will not have much impact on China's exports. "China is more concerned that the boycott will negatively affect Chinese enterprises to invest in India and the bilateral cooperation, which both Chinese and Indian people are not willing to see." Amid rising tension in Indo-Pak ties, there have been calls from some fringe entities, including through social media platforms, about boycott of Chinese goods to protest against China's support to Pakistan. Top traders body CAIT (Confederation of All India Traders) recently said the sale of Chinese products may decline by 30 per cent this Diwali. India is a big market for Chinese products and over the years import of toys, furniture, building hardware, crackers, lighting and electric fittings, furnishing fabric, office stationary, electronic appliances, consumer electronics, kitchen equipment & appliances, gift items, watches etc. from China has increased to a great extent. Chinese products are generally low-priced which is the root cause of infiltration of Chinese goods in the Indian market, CAIT had said. In its statement, Chinese embassy referred to reports that local sellers in Sadar Bazaar, the largest wholesale market of household items in India, have complained about their Chinese goods sale dropping by at least 20 per cent. "The boycott effect will not limit to Diwali related products, but extended to other Chinese products that are not related to the festival. In the long-run, boycott will not only hurt Chinese goods sale, but also cause negative effects to consumers in India," it said. The Embassy further said China-India trade cooperation has deepened over the years and the bilateral trade has grown 24 times in 15 years, from USD 2.9 billion in 2000 to USD 71.6 billion in 2015. "China has become India's largest trading partner, source of imports and fourth largest export market. Moreover, India is the China's largest trading partner in South Asia and ninth largest export market in the world," it said. According to the statement, the distinct features of China-India trade are mutual benefits and growing inter- dependence, which contributes to the full use of factors of production and maximization of the benefits to all the people. "In 2015, China has imported 2 billion dollars' worth of cotton and more than 100 million dollars' worth of black tea from India, bring benefits to 1.2 million cotton growers and 50000 tea farmers and sellers in India. "Moreover, 60-70 per cent of Indian APIs for its pharmaceutical industry are from China. China has played an important role in Indian pharmaceutical industry's march to EU and America market. "China also exported a lot of electronic and household products which are attractive both in price and quality. Chinese products not only lowered India's inflation rate, but also fulfilled Indian ordinary people, especially the low- income people's daily needs, greatly improved their life quality." |
