Army needs choppers

By Lt. Col. Surendra Sharma

The Centre's decision to scrap the ongoing selection process for acquiring 197 helicopters for the Indian Army, a deal worth over Rs. 4,000 crores, following "major deviations in the approved parameters" of the helicopter and procedures, has dealt a severe blow to the modernisation plans of the Army.
The process of inviting fresh tenders and the short listing process which, as the Defence Ministry announced, will start shortly, cuts little ice as the wary military and civil bureaucracy will now be more cautious, which could lead to more delays. In fact, it is now feared that the major plan of acquiring helicopters for operations and maintaining logistical support in difficult terrains like the Siachen glacier, the world's highest battlefield, will now be delayed by another five or six years.
The Army was looking to purchase a rugged helicopter capable of flying at altitudes ranging from 18,000 to 24,000 feet, in all types of weather and with strong air currents. After learning about the discrepancies in the selection process, however, the government decided not to take any chances. The tenders were cancelled before the deal was inked.
The government had nearly reached the advanced stages of price negotiations with one of the two contenders-Eurocopter-when the cancellation decision was taken. More than seven years had been spent in trying to reach the current stage of negotiations.
There were indications that National Security Advisor M.K. Narayanan had expressed reservations about the selection process to the government, which led to the cancellation. The Defence Ministry, however, categorically denied these reports. Two helicopters-manufactured by Eurocopter (an European consortium of four countries) and Bell (United States)-were in the race for the big contract.
As per the original RPF, 60 helicopters were to be bought in "flyaway" condition, while the rest would have been manufactured by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) under a transfer of technology agreement. Each helicopter was expected to cost between Rs. 8 to 10 crores.
Why was the tender scrapped? The decision was taken because while Eurocopter had offered the AS 550 C3 model with an Arriel 2B engine in its RFP, it sent another model-the AS 350 B3 powered by the Arriel 2B1 engine-for field trials. The Defence Ministry had given permission for the trial of the former; no clearance was taken to try the latter model. In fact, such a deviation can be approved only by the Defence Minister after it goes through the Defence Procurement Board (DPB), which was not done in this case.
The procurement of a helicopter other than one approved by the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) is not permissible under the Defence Procurement Policy 2006 which specifies: "a technical offer once submitted should not be materially changed subsequently."
Once the discrepancies and deviations came to the notice of the Defence Ministry, it decided to refer the matter to the Central Vigilance Committee (CVC). The CVC concurred with the views of the Ministry in terms of both engines and platforms.
This is the second major defence deal to be scrapped this year. Earlier, the Defence Ministry had cancelled international tenders for a Rs. 4,000 crore deal to purchase 400 upgraded 155 mm .52 calibre guns for the Army.
The cancellation of the helicopter tenders saw the four European countries (including France) which form the Eurocopter consortium reportedly lodge a strong protest. The French President Nicholas Sarkozy, who was the chief guest for the Indian Republic Day parade was expected to sign the deal during his visit.
Experts closely monitoring the process of the selection of helicopters said the government was likely to haul up the military and civil bureaucrats responsible for the bungling. They said some officers connected with the selection process made foreign trips and the government was likely to seek an explanation from them about the nature of their visit.
The aggressive posturing of the US was also cited as one of the reasons for the scrapping of the process.
The Bell helicopter reportedly lost out to the European firm during technical trials, and used the services of a former top HAL official to lobby for them in the right quarters. INAV

Mulayam- Lalu patch up

By Kalyani Shankar

With speculation rife over the timing of the Lok Sabha elections, political parties are emitting confused signals. This is the time when foes turn friends and friends become foes. What should one make of the recent meetings between Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and the Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav? The meetings are significant as the Yadav chieftains, who have in recent years gone out of their way to harm each other in the Hindi heartland, are making efforts to patch up. The fallout may soon be felt in U.P and Bihar. Similarly, what should one make of the news that Mulayam is warming up to the Congress, which is also in search of new friends ahead of the elections?
The immediate fallout of the Yadav patch-up is the relevance of the UNPA consisting of smaller parties like the INLD, AGP, Marandi's party in Jharkhand and TDP. Mulayam Singh is the UNPA chairman. And the signals of his getting closer to the Congress via Lalu seem to have upset his UNPA partners like INLD and Telugu Desam for the simple reason they are anti-Congress.
The UNPA was already under strain when the AIADMK moved out some time ago. Now the BJP has opened up a channel with Chautala to break the UNPA. The BJP is also talking to the AGP. Some BJP leaders in Jharkhand are working to get Marandi back in BJP. If the BJP succeeds in its efforts, the UNPA would prove a non-starter.
As for the supporting left parties, they have been blowing hot and cold, and talk of a viable third alternative. The left parties have begun agitations against price rise and the UPA Government's economic policies. They have even joined the UNPA rallies lending support to the new front. At the same time, they are also aware of the need to keep the Congress on their side. The Congress too does not want to annoy the left beyond a point, keeping its options open for a post-poll scenario. If one goes by the left insiders, they fear that there is the danger of the BJP improving its position in the upcoming Assembly elections. The party congress of both the CPI and the CPI-M later this month will discuss this situation. But one thing is certain: they want to check the BJP's growth. A clear picture will emerge only in the first week of April. Meanwhile, the left and the UPA have managed to avert a showdown on the Indo-US nuclear deal by deferring the next meeting to April.
The Lalu-Mulayam patch up is not surprising because there are no permanent enemies or permanent friends in politics. Both have come from the socialist movement. The duo seem to have realised that they do not lose anything by being supportive of each other while protecting their turf. The 'no-encroachment' deal chalked out by the two leaders aims at improving their political fortunes in the coming Lok Sabha polls.
After all, Mulayam Singh's main agenda is to check UP chief minister Mayawati. It will be difficult for him and his party to survive fighting both the Centre and the state. It stands to reason that he has decided to make common cause with the Congress to check the growth of Mayawati. The Congress too is willing to use the SP to contain Mayawati.
The Rajya Sabha polls give evidence of the new warmth developing between the Congress and the Samajwadi Party. The SP has, in fact, promised its eight votes in Madhya Pradesh to the Congress-sponsored candidate, Mr. Vivek Tankha, in the Rajya Sabha biennial polls to be held on March 26
RJD chief Lalu is worried about the popularity of Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar and the weakening of his party. Lalu has to make sure that he regains his base in the next elections. So what better way than to show off the Yadav unity against the strong grouping of Kurmis? Lalu and Mulayam want to experiment the MY (Muslim Yadav) combination again to improve their position. The idea is to get JD(U) president Sharad Yadav also into the new grouping.
Another interesting development in Bihar is the move by Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan to get JD(U)'s surplus votes for his candidate, Ranjan Prasad Yadav. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar played along because Ranjan is a red rag to Lalu. Once extremely close to Lalu, Ranjan had fallen out subsequently. Lalu has never forgiven his UPA ally Paswan for "co-opting" Ranjan in LJP. With UPA chief Sonia Gandhi's intervention, Shabbir Ali's name was proposed with the full backing of Lalu.
To add to the confusion, AIADMK and Trinamool Congress are keeping their options open for a post-poll scenario. The denial of support to Trinamool Congress candidate Dineshbhai Trivedi may drive Mamata back into the arms of the NDA; but for the present, she claims to be neutral. The BJP has been talking to Jayalalithaa but so far she has not revealed her mind on joining the NDA. Congress is keeping its cards close to the chest. But getting close to the SP is a good move as the party can improve its position in UP.
In a coalition era, the role of the national parties is gradually decreasing while the regional satraps are on the upswing. With the prediction that the next elections may result in a more fractured verdict, both the national parties have to keep the regional players on their side and see who wins in the final round. (IPA)

Echoes of ‘dynastic’ democracy in J&K

By Dr. Jitendra Singh

People's Democratic Party (PDP)'s former leader Ghulam Hassan Mir's banner of revolt against dynastic rule in democracy triggers interesting connotations. Mir describes PDP as a ‘‘Mufti fiefdom’’ making it in no way different from National Conference (NC) which according to him was the earlier version of family fiefdom that people had sought to get rid of. Even more interestingly, Mir's outrage directed against what he describes as ‘‘father-daughter’’ party PDP and ‘‘father-son’’ party National Conference has received a rejoinder not from Mufti Sayeed or Mehbooba Mufti who were his initial targets but a rejoinder has come from Farooq Abdullah who was the implied target.
Technically, Farooq Abdullah has a point in arguing that what is wrong in a Chief Minister's son becoming a Chief Minister or a minister' son becoming a minister when we have instances of actor's children becoming actors in Bollywood or a businessman's children taking over family business. One, however, hopes that the astute NC patron's postulation does not imply that just as a chief minister's son is destined to become a Chief Minister, a thief's son is doomed to grow up as a thief and a racketeer's son enjoys prerogative to turn a racketeer. But, is this the essence of democracy that our founding fathers had so effacingly fought for while envisaging an end to British rule and at the same time doing away with feudal dynastic rule of ‘‘Maharajas'' and princes in different Indian States ? Is is the vision of democracy that Mahatma Gandhi had in mind when he gave the call for ‘‘Purn Swaraj’’ ? Is this the reason for which the NC founder, Late Sheikh Mohd Abdullah had so vehemently led a public campaign against Maharaja Hari Singh's family rule in Jammu and Kashmir ? These are some of the questions which are left conveniently unanswered .
To be fair to Muftis, Abdullahs and others of the ilk across the country including the Thackerays in Maharashtra or the Karunanidhi clan in Tamil Nadu, it was none other than Indira Gandhi who actually pioneered the propagation of family rule most aggressively and effectively setting an example for others to emulate. So determined was Indira to pass on the mantle to her progeny that she refused to relent even after she lost her younger son and heir-apparent Sanjay in a tragic air crash. She pulled out her other son, an Airlines pilot, Rajiv from his cockpit before anybody else could come forward to occupy the slot which she was convinced belonged to the dynasty.
It is a strange contradiction, that after having struggled for centuries to free themselves from dynastic rule of erstwhile Maharajas, Nawabs and princes, the people of subcontinent are now reconciled to be ruled by dynasties in the garb of democracies. Is this not amusing that the maximum number of elected dynasties have emanated from the Indian subcontinent..... be it the Nehru- Gandhis in India or the Bhuttos in Pakistan or the Bhandaranaiks in Sri Lanka or the Zias in Bangladesh ? Or, is this still a stage in evolution wherein the people of subcontinent are yet to fully get over the feudalistic hang - over of an earlier era ? And, if that is so, the sooner the common man learns to look for options other than Nehru-Gandhis in Delhi or Muftis and Abdullahs in Srinagar, the better it will augur for him. Till then, Umapathy will continue to be a victim of poetic predicament described as ‘‘Khuda Maaf Kare Hum Gunahgaron Ko, Buton Ke Aaage Sar Jhuka Liya Humne !’’

Water harvesting

By Aamir Ali

The State is marked with snow- capped summits, complex geological structures and rich flora and fauna. Kashmir Valley situated between the Pir Panjal and Zanskar range has an area of 15220 sq. kms, with mountains bound on all sides. The climate varies from tropical in Jammu plains to semi-arctic cold in Ladakh with Kashmir and Jammu mountainous tracts having temperate climatic conditions. The annual rainfall also varies from region to region with 92.6 mm in Leh, 650.5 mm in Srinagar and 1115.9 mm in Jammu.
Forests are one of the most important resources of our State requiring abundance of moisture in the soil and are mainly found where annual rainfall is about 100 cms. However, scrub forests are found, where rainfall is even less than100 cms.
The thick undergrowth in the forests stores rain water and allows it to flow slowly and that is why rivers that have their sources in the forests do not run dry in the dry seasons and check floods during the rainy season.
Large population lives in the arid and semi-arid belts of the world where rainfall is limited and very irregular. Agriculture in these areas produces satisfactory yields; however reduced rainfall or prolonged dry spells lead to crop failure. Irrigation would be the logical solution, but water scarcity and high cost of irrigation infrastructure are major handicaps. Surface water is inadequate to meet our demand and we have to depend on ground water. Alternative solutions need to be found to increase the quantity of water for farmers' fields.
Rain is the primary source of water for us. Rivers, lakes and groundwater are all secondary sources of water. We depend entirely on the secondary sources of water. In the process, it is forgotten that rain is the ultimate source that feeds all these secondary sources and we remain ignorant of its value. Water harvesting means to understand the value of rain, and to make optimum use of the rainwater at the place where it falls. Water harvesting is a proven technology to increase food security in drought-prone areas. Erosion control and recharge of ground water are additional advantages of water harvesting techniques. Rain water harvesting traces its history to biblical times. Rain water harvesting methods existed 4000 years ago in Palestine and Greece. In ancient Rome, residences were built with individual cisterns and paved courtyards to capture rain water to augment water from city's aqueducts. In the third millennium BC, farming communities in Baluchistan and Kutch harvested rain water and used it for irrigation dams. Water harvesting means capturing water usually rain where it falls or capturing the run-off and taking measures to keep that water clean by not allowing pollution to take place in the catchments. This happens naturally in open rural areas, but in congested, over-paved cities, we need to create methods to capture the rain water. Due to rapid urbanization, infiltration of rain water into the sub-soil has decreased drastically and recharging of ground water has diminished. Construction activity in and around the city is resulting in the drying up of water bodies and reclamation of these tanks for conversion into plots for houses. Free flow of storm run-off into these tanks and water bodies must be ensured.
The system of harvesting water from rooftops is useful mainly for drinking water purposes. In this system rain water falling on the roofs can be collected through a system of pipes and semi circular channel of galvanized iron or PVC and is stored in tanks in a suitably sized storage tank for providing sufficient water for reasonably long duration. On the rooftop, as well as at the entry to the tanks, simple filters are placed to remove dust and other particles. A simple diversion system is provided to keep out dirt from season's first rain, or rain after a long gap, which may bring along accumulated dirt from the roof.
Depleting water resources are manifest in the form of thinning/retreating glaciers, sedimentation of water harvesting structures, etc. The economy of these regions is based primarily on agriculture, but the cultivation period in these regions is very short as the areas are snow covered for a little less than half-a-year. Water for irrigation comes almost totally from glacier-melt transported over long distances through small channels, locally known as Kuhls. However, the high levels of seepage loss in the process, inadequacy in numbers, uneven distribution has brought down the irrigation efficiency to 50-60% and has led to diminishing land utilisation and crop productivity.
Despite the existence of indigenous water management techniques, these have become grossly inadequate for present needs. Snow water harvesting can play an important role in the mountains as a delicate reserve, by development of artificial glaciers. For this mapping the harvesting potential of the area, documenting the traditional knowledge and practices of water sharing in the community is required, followed by making the community aware of the best management practices. Designing and introducing appropriate technologies for snow water management through artificial glacier construction, as well as use of Hydrams for the region. Harvesting snow water in cold desert regions is not merely a way to rehabilitate the land for crop growth, it is also a way to bring cultural identity to a people in between the ancient times and the rapid pace of a global world. Snow water harvesting can bring life to cold deserts and renew traditional heritage as an example of sustainability that all of us can learn from, globally.
We need a community-based, region-specific strategy for water conservation. Panchayats have to be actively engaged in ground water recharge and the renovation and maintenance of water bodies. Director Rural Development department and his competent team of officers and staff have a crucial role to play in this regard. Under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act Programme (NREGA) a unique opportunity can be provided to mobilize people for this purpose and activate interest in utilizing these resources for water management, conservation and utilization. Education and awareness have a useful role with people's popular and voluntary participation in ground water conservation strategies being of critical importance. Panchayati Raj Institutions, NGOs, educational institutions, cooperatives, housing societies, welfare organizations, students and youth movements and all other stakeholders have a vital role to play in spreading awareness and promoting water saving policies.
There is a paradigm shift from Disaster Management to Disaster Mitigation, therefore we need to make genuine and wholehearted efforts to conserve water, and adopt measures both individually and collectively, as a family, as a community and as a village and locality. We need to do more to replenish, conserve and safeguard our sources of water supply. Water, especially potable water is recognized as a finite and a vulnerable resource. Every living being has the right to potable water since water is life. Today mankind faces danger of human conflict based on our need for water; however, we have the wisdom and the foresight to deal with this challenge. We need to save our water resources now for our future generations……