Looking to modernise the armed forces, Defence Minister A K Antony today reviewed the preparedness of the army in a meeting where the deficiencies and requirements of the force were discussed.
During the over 90-minute meeting, Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh presented the army's perspective with regard to capital procurements, development of infrastructure and requirements of ammunition, Defence Ministry officials said here.
The meeting was held to give a thrust to modernisation of the army, Defence Minister A K Antony said.
In his presentation, the Army Chief highlighted the requirements of ammunition and other critical equipment required by the force, the officials said.
He also emphasised on the requirement of air combat support in form of attack helicopters over which the army and the air force have differed in the past.
The Army has demanded for its own assets, whereas the IAF has been stressing on continuing with the control over the Russian-origin Mi-35 attack helicopters and the future acquisitions in this regard.
On delays faced by Army in procuring critical equipment, Antony asked the force to carry out systemic changes required to achieve the desired output in a short time-span.
He asked Army to fully utilise its allocated budget towards capital procurement as it could manage to spend only Rs 900 crore in this regard last year.
The Defence Minister also asked the army to prioritise and focus on procurement of critical equipment and weapon systems.
Focusing on the northeastern sector and the requirements along the border with China, Antony also reviewed the force accretion and infrastructure development in the region. |