Address to the Students and Faculty Members of Defence Service Staff College, Wellington,coonoor, Tamil Nadu
Wellington, Tamil Nadu : 24-02-2007
Our Mission: Defence of the Nation
"Oh! Defenders of borders
You are great sons of my land
When we are all asleep
You still hold on to your deed"
I am indeed delighted to be here in the beautiful environment of Nilgiri Hills to address and interact with the students and Faculty Members of Defence Service Staff College, one of the prestigious military training institutions in the country. My greetings to all the Faculty Members and students of DSSC including the foreign students undergoing the staff course. Since I am in the midst of the Members of all the three wings of the Armed Forces I would like to share with you few thoughts on the Topic "Our Mission-Defence of the Nation". First I would like to talk to you about my experience of visiting the Indian Army's post located in the highest altitude in the nation, my journey in the submarine and my flight in the Sukhoi fighter.
Experience at KUMAR, 16000 ft in Siachen Glacier - 2APR2004
I would like to describe my experience on KUMAR in Siachen Glacier on 2 April 2004, when I visited the highest post held by the Indian Army. The post is located at 17,000 feet altitude. At that time, it was snowing and the temperature was minus 35 degree centigrade. When I reached the field station, three soldiers - Naik from Karnataka, Williams from West Bengal and Salim from Uttar Pradesh - shook hands with me. As soon as they shook their hands with me, it became Agni that transformed into warmth and penetrated me. This warmth gave me the confidence that our nation is safe in the hands of the soldiers defending in the difficult environment and terrain at the highest altitude with will power. They are giving the best part of their youth for the defence of the nation.
My rendezvous with Silent Force
On 13th February 2006, it was remarkable to have a journey underwater in INS Sindhurakshak. We cruised for about 30 minutes at sea level and went through a narrow tube with vertical ladder and climbed down to 10-12 meters to enter the high pressure zone compartment. Then the submarine started diving to a depth of about 30 meters from the surface and started cruising. Through a narrow hole of one meter diameter I entered the first compartment of the submarine which is the Instrumented Control Center. The crew explained the functioning of the submarine showing the maneuvering operations and buoyancy control methodologies with great enthusiasm. It was a thrilling experience for me as was the case for the young sailors and officers who were present with me in the submarine. During the review, the underwater communication system, target identification and launch simulation were shown. This was followed by the firing of torpedo/missile water-shod to simulate an attack, demonstrating the combat capability of our underwater silent force. The target location, signature analysis from the sonar data, torpedo launch and its homing were presented. I realized the complexities involved in under water warfare.
I moved on to the weapon storage compartment where the torpedoes are stored and this compartment connects to the front of the submarine where water is filled before launching the torpedoes. Next I moved on through various compartments to the rear part of the submarine to see the diesel engine based propulsion system and the electric drives. I met 90 officers and sailors in the vessel working like busy bees. Their job is not easy but they feel proud in their difficult life. We went to a small working room where seven people could be accommodated. We had a very delicious vegetarian lunch. I was given a presentation on the future of Submarine building plans for the next 30 years.
Now the submarine after completing its underwater journey for three hours was ready to come to the surface. The procedure started and the vessel came to the surface and moved in the direction of the shore. Then I climbed up the ladder through the narrow vertical hole and reached the conning tower. I saw the land and the ocean back. What a memorable journey underwater. Our Navy indeed is multi-dimensional - under water, on the water, above water and space. Definitely, the silent force submarine fleet is indeed a powerful force to defend the sea, particularly the economic zone.
Experience in Sukhoi-30 MKI
On 8th June 2006, I flew in a Sukhoi-30 fighter plane to make a sortie on the combat aircraft. Previous night, Wing Commander Ajay Rathore gave me lessons on how to fly. He was my friend and teacher who taught me successfully how to pilot the plane as well as handle warfare control of the fighter. It was a dream for me since 1958 when I became an engineer, to fly in a fighter aircraft. After our strapping on, Sukhoi-30 took off and sore to a height of 25,000 feet flying at a speed of over 1200 kms per hour. Wing Commander Rathore allowed me to turn the Sukhoi to the left and then to the right. I experienced 2.5g, of course with a g-suite. I could experience the banking of the Sukhoi to the left and right going up and down before landing. During the sortie I tried to understand various subsystem of the aircraft developed by Indian scientists which have been integrated with this aircraft. I was very happy to see the indigenously built mission computers, radar warning receivers, IFF and display processors in the aircraft. During the sortie, I was shown how to locate the target in the air and on the ground with the help of synthetic aperture radar. The flight lasted for over 36 minutes. I felt the fulfillment of a great aim and long cherished dream of my life. Above all, I realized how our air warriors are engaged in the defence of our national airspace and land.
A question that requires deep reflection
I have asked a number of people a question and did not get an answer. I must share with you this question which is bothering me. If you look from the time of Alexander, the great, our nation was regularly invaded. Of course he did not cross all the territories, but he wanted to invade this nation. Many people invaded one after the other. Even the Afghans invaded. Then the British came, the French, the Dutch, Portuguese and ruled us. Now, why India has always been invaded? On the other hand, during the last 2500 years, has India anytime invaded any nation? No, why? I have not got an answer to this question which I posed to many. This is something which you have to address yourself before evolving big philosophy, big strategy, big national plan. This is going to give you some sort of input as to what is your ambience, what is your thought process and what you are. We have to change probably, we have to reengineer our thoughts, concept and philosophy because history shows we have always been invaded.
Dynamics of Warfare
I would like to quote a para from the Future Warfare. This says "Among the things that move between the two poles, war alone permits and demands the commitment of all the faculties of man, the highest as also the lowest". This is not to advocate war but to show the brutality, ruthlessness, the courage, determination, the sheer power the strategy considered necessary for the conduct of armed conflicts. Literature, art, and games bear eloquent testimony to the same elemental factors. One important way in which man can attain happiness, freedom, joy, delirium and ecstasy is by not staying at home with wife and family, even to the point where often enough they give up their nearest and dearest in favour of war. This is Greek philosophy. Even Indian literature extols this virtue.
Let us see the different faces of warfare and how they have evolved. We had animal-based weapons, with which well-built people were fighting; next came mechanized warfare and now we are entering the era of automatic warfare, information warfare, satellite warfare and space warfare. Many people say that conventional warfare is no more there and non-conventional warfare (nuclear warfare) is here to stay. The next point is the present day ambience. There are three type of deterrent warfare - biological, chemical and nuclear, all in advanced stage. I have come across a study which says 300 kgs of sarin gas could kill about a few thousand people in an area of 0.2 sq. km, 1.5 kiloton TNT equivalent nuclear device could kill 50 to 100 thousand people in an area of 7.5 sq. kms 30 kg of anthrax, say in the form of a cigar, can kill 100 thousand people. This one is tremendously dangerous compared even to the nuclear weapon. Presently, there is a new dimension of low-intensity conflicts becoming more prevalent. It is already prevalent in developing world and it will spread to the developed world also, shaped by advances in Information Technology.
Along with the different types of warfare, the tools also changed. Initially religion was used as a tool, then came ideology and now in these days of economic competition control of market forces and essential items like energy will be the cause with high technology as the tool.
Though the US and its allies and Soviet Block accumulated vast quantities of nuclear, chemical and biological weapons there seems to be some sort of control on them due to international conventions and treaties. Though India is a signatory to the chemical and biological weapon convention/treaty, it has not signed the nuclear non-proliferation treaty since it is discriminatory.
In the next two decades antiballistic missile defence systems are going to be the major force, after which space systems and strategic military satellites will come in a big way, to guard against nuclear weapons attack. Despite the noise made against nuclear proliferation, the developed countries are not likely to reach the state of zero nuclear weapon under the NPT. As far as technology control regimes are concerned, the only answer is through self-reliance in critical technology area. The motive behind technology denial and NPT and MCTR is to control the market forces and gain domination.
The key to becoming strong nation is to have economic and military strength. India is capable of technological advancement. Starting with the Pokhran explosion in 1974 and the Green revolution we have developed expertise in launch vehicle technology, remote sensing satellites, communication satellites, meteorological satellites, strategic missile systems, battle tanks, electronic warfare systems, light combat aircraft, naval systems and state-of-the art C4I systems. There is a need to integrate all the technologies and build indigenous systems which will meet the needs of the Defence services of the country.
Future Warfare
The future officers of the Armed Forces, particularly young officers have an important role to play. The new role is to equip ourselves to combat the technology driven warfare. The whole war environment will be a network centric warfare and it could be electronically controlled combined with space encounters, deep sea encounters, and ballistic missiles encounters. The winner of future warfare will be the officers, who can visualize the strength of the enemy, not based on the previous war but based on the current capabilities, and technological advancements in the global scenario.
Our Armed Force officers will have to get trained in virtual reality based simulated warfronts of all the terrains and all extreme conditions of warfare. Walk through during a space attack, chemical attack; nuclear attack and electronic encounters need to be visualized and proper counter measure needs to be practiced. The future battle field would require a synergized team work with joint services operation and use of land, aero space and ocean as important war theatres. Future soldiers will be knowledge workers.
Above all, winners will be soldiers in the frontlines carrying maximum payload of weapon, life support systems and communication kits with minimum weight. We should remember that every gram of weight saving of soldier's payload will add to the physiological and psychological capability of the soldier. Electronic Warfare - Computers with intelligent software will fight in the place of many strategic systems. They will be more powerful - which will travel at the speed of light - to destroy the economic capability of the country exceeding the power of nuclear weapons. Dear young officers, I am sure, you will, definitely, have an opportunity to witness this type of technology intensive battle during your service. May I request you to develop all round capabilities in all your assignments so that Armed Forces of India can emerge as the best and most powerful Armed Forces in the world.
Conclusion: Components of National Security
Dear friends, I would like to share with you an important aspect of national security. National security is born out of two important components. One is the economic growth and prosperity; second one is the capability to defend the nation against all types of threats. India is progressing on both fronts and you have roles in both. There will always be a dynamic environment along our borders needing eternal vigilance by all the wings of the Armed Forces. You should remember that the national development and national security have to go together and you should set an example as a good human being to our brethren. Thus you are a partner in all the national development missions. My best wishes to all the students and Faculty Members of the Defence Services Staff College for success in their mission of developing enlightened officers for the Indian Armed Forces and other friendly armed forces of the world.
May God bless you.
Question and Answer Session
1. India has traditionally been an agrarian society with 60% population still living in rural areas. Does ?India 2020? have a vision specially for our rural population engaged in agriculture?
- Maj K.S. Gill
Ans: As you are aware, 700 million of our people live in six hundred thousand villages. Keeping this in mind, we have suggested creation of 7000 PURAs clusters in the whole country. The aim of PURA is to provide three connectivity namely physical connectivity, electronic connectivity and knowledge connectivity leading to economic connectivity. This is essential to improve the quality of life of our rural population by providing good habitat, nutritious food, clean water, sanitation facilities, education, healthcare and above all employment opportunities. There are number of operational PURAs in different parts of the country. In Tamil Nadu, Vallam in Thanjavur district has a PURA covering 65 villages and one lakh population.
2. India would be an effective economic power by the year 2020 and it is important that an economic power has a strong military to preserve peace. What in your view would be the enhanced role of Indian defence forces in India of 2020.
- Maj Ajay Serohi
Ans: I would like to share with you important aspects of national security. National security is born out of two important components. One is the economic growth and prosperity; second one is the capability to defend the nation against all types of threats. India is progressing on both fronts and you have roles in both. There are however forces operating to derail this process. They do not want India to succeed economically and become self-reliant in military capability. There will always be a dynamic environment along our borders needing eternal vigilance by our Armed Forces. When you young officers are posted to various units, you should remember that the national development and national security have to go together and you should set an example as a good human being to our brethren. Thus you are a partner in all the national development missions.
3. Today India is on the verge of being are regional power and an important global partner, but, its neighbours like Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh are not yet fully stable both politically and economically. In your view what role can India play to bring these countries at par in terms of development and what role do you foresee for India in the development of the larger South Asian Region?
- Maj PCL Gunawardana, Sir Lanka
Ans: We have reiterated our full support to the restoration of multi-party democracy in Nepal and the success of the peace process. As a friend and neighbour, India is interested in a democratic, stable and prosperous Bangladesh. We have conveyed at high political levels to Sri Lankan leaders the need for a negotiated, political settlement to the ethnic issue that is acceptable to all sections of Sri Lankan society. India is willing to support its neighbour whenever they are in difficulty. We would definitely like to share our experiences in economic development. I have been suggesting that we can definitely share our experiences in creation of PURAs in rural areas. This will definitely be useful to our neighbour who are in similar agro-climatic condition. In addition, I am suggesting the creation of enlightened citizenship which has three components i.e. (a) provision of value based education to the youth of the nation (b) religion transforming into spirituality and (c) removal of poverty through systematic national development. I am sure these measures will lead to creation of prosperous, happy and peaceful society. For global harmony, it is essential that all the countries are equally prosperous, happy and peaceful.
4. India is perceived to be a major economic power by 2020. What in your view is the greatest threat to achieving this status and what measures do you recommend to tackle the same?
- Maj Robert Horne, USA
Ans: Though we are happy that our economy is in the ascent phase and our GDP is growing at nearly 9% per annum, we have a suspicion that the economic growth is not reflected in the quality of life of large number of people, particularly in the rural areas and to some extent in urban areas. Hence, we have evolved what is called "National Prosperity Index" (A); which is a summation of annual growth rate of GDP (a); plus minimum level of quality of life for the citizens of the country (b); plus the value system derived from our civilizational heritage (c); which is unique to India. That is A=a+b+c. Particularly, 'b' is a function of availability of housing, good water, nutrition, proper sanitation, quality education, quality healthcare and employment potential. 'c' is a function of promoting joint family system and creation of the spirit of working together and above all leading a righteous way of life. Our corrective measure will be focus our mission in improving the National Prosperity Index. Other areas of concern are terrorism and low intensity warfare. We are promoting faster pace of development as an antidote to these problems.
5. DRDO and other such organizations have shown that the gestation period is excessively long for Weapon systems being designed by them. This has two fall outs, first the equipment is obsolescent before induction, the second, it results in a large investment of national resources. Would it not be better to first go in for collaboration, case in point is the BRAHMOS project, than going in for pure indigenous production and design?
- Wg Cdr V Samyal
Ans: I have recently addressed the DRDO Directors' Conference. There I have suggested a vision for the DRDO and the organizational structure needed by them to provide the weapons platform and sensors needed by the services in time and at an affordable cost. You may like to visit my website for the detailed strategies for this task.
6. The national economy is growing at about 9 percent. However, the agricultural sector, providing employment to more than 50% of the population is growing at about 2.5%, as compared to the inflation rate of 6%. How should the nation address this imbalance?
- Wg Cdr (Ms.) Neeraj Charak
Ans: Government is seized of the problem and they are trying to bring the inflation down. Also, the rural development plan particularly envisages provision of employment to the families in the non-farm sector. Also, we are working on projects like "one village: one product" which can be marketed in international market. This type of export opportunities will enable the farmers to realize the benefits of growth and have reasonable improvement in quality of life.
7. The President in the address on the golden jubilee of ONGC had indicated that it is time to move from ?Energy Security? to ?Energy Independence? as we transit from an emerging economy to a developed one in the current century. The dependence on fossil fuels will have to reduce with initiatives on alternate fuels and sources of energy. What would be the impetus that is required for translating the necessary research work to its practical form within a time frame to make the nation, energy independence?
- Cdr P Sugunakar
Ans: India has already commenced work to increase the renewable energy sources such as solar energy, wind energy and bio-mass. As you are aware, we are working towards generating 50,000 megawatts from solar, 64,000 megawatts from wind and over 20,000 megawatt from bio-mass. Simultaneously, our nuclear scientists are working towards generating 50,000 megawatts of power from nuclear power plants through thorium based nuclear power plants. In the transportation sector adequate emphasis is being made both for ethanol and bio-diesel. What is needed is a mission mode operation to realize end energy independence.