NEW DELHI: An Indian defence team headed by joint secretary defence Amitabh Pandey is at present in Europe shopping for defence spares in the former Warsaw pact countries.
According to information available here, the team which also includes representatives of the Indian Army and the Air Force has power to make spot payments in hard currency up to a maximum of Rs 5 crore for every individual spare.
The team has instructions to lift whole factories manufacturing such equipment’s as tanks and armored personnel carriers from Russia because that country owing to domestic turmoil is unable to live up to assurances of supplies.
A senior officer has been quoted as saying The panic resulting from an acute shortage of spares is similar when hardly 13 out of 200 Vijayanta tanks were combat worthy and the country had to send Gen Manekshaw himself to certain countries for spot purchases.”
It is said that the operational preparedness of the Indian armed forces has been seriously affected as a result of the failure of the Commonwealth of Independent States to maintain supplies of critical spares. While the field spares back-up of frontline army and air force equipment has reached critical levels, the lack of assembly kits is threatening closure of defence factories manufacturing cutting-edge equipment, according to highly-placed Indian sources.
Article extracted from this publication >> July 3, 1992
