In keeping with the theme of the Function “Yeh Desh Hai Nao Jawanon Ka”; I thought it most appropriate to write on The Armed Forces as most of us have a very generic idea about the Armed Forces. I shall expose you to those facets that are not well known to the public. I was lucky to have had a stint with all the principal components of our Armed Forces; the Army, the Air-Force and a very short temporary spell with the Navy. It is the brave personnel of the Defence Services who have primarily preserved the homogeneity and integrity of our nation, despite intriguing pulls and pressures.A career in the Armed Forces provides solidity at the personal level, besides providing solidity to the society and the nation.
Though the main role of the Defence Services is to protect the nation against external threat and maintenance of peace and security within its borders; they are being increasingly used to tackle all natural or man-made calamities such as: earthquake, tsunami, cyclone, floods, avalanches, forest fires, bomb-blasts or children falling in bore-wells, etc. Depending on his rank, every officer serving in the Defence Services has a huge responsibility on his shoulders. For example, an Infantry battalion commander has under his command up to 1,000 personnel and a variety of very sophisticated and expensive weaponry.
Officers commanding a tank regiment or an artillery unit too have under their command requisite manpower and weaponry in terms of tanks and guns costing hundreds of crores. As far as Air-Force is concerned, a Base Commander has two to three squadrons on an air-base along with the necessary support services, variety of arsenal and requisite manpower of around 2,000 personnel. A squadron has 16 to 18 aircraft each costing between 100 to 200 crores. Depending on the mission, the aircraft carries missiles and bombs, each of which could be a crore worth.Similarly, a naval vessel costs anything from a 1000 crores (destroyers, frigates, corvettes) to 12,000 crores (air-craft carrier), has on-board weaponry worth several hundred crores and manpower assets of 500 or more.
Keeping in mind the manpower, material and financial resources that each officer has under his command, you can visualize the responsibility that he is entrusted with. In no other profession would you ever have such huge manpower, material and financial resources at your disposal.Further, on orders of their commander all personnel willingly put their lives at risk to uphold the sanctity of the mother-land. Kargil war was a glorious example of this. The terrain there was tortuous with impossible slopes, hostile climatic conditions of -10 degrees to -20 degrees and with winds howling at 30 to 40 nautical miles. The enemy was well prepared and had robust defences. No Army in the world could have dis-lodged the Pakis without the use of mini-nukes or chemical weapons. It was the brave officers and men of our Army who without caring a fig for their personal safety vanquished the enemy and ensured that our flag flew at Tiger Hill once again.
In no other career do you get to see such motivation, commitment and love for the nation as was on view at Kargil. Besides, in all other professions not even a peon or a sweeper would lay down his life on your orders.
It is most unfortunate that we continue to have yawning deficiencies of around 15,000 officers for decades in the ranks of Capts and Majs and their equivalents in IAF & Navy. Officers of this rank constitute the core cutting edge of our nation as well as its Armed Forces and invariably operate up-front. Such a large deficiency at the cutting edge is extremely worrisome and could seriously impact our operational capability and preparedness. For example large-scale deficiency of pilots would force our pilots to fly a minimum of three or more sorties daily over hostile territory whereas each of the missions by the enemy will be flown by fresh pilots. The cascading stress and strain after the first two to three days would be immense, particularly after some losses.
Similar stresses would be noticeable on land and maritime operations at sea. There are virtually no reserves available to replace casualties. Such deficiencies can be calamitous. And imagine our dilemma if we were to fight China and Pakistan concurrently. The Govt of India is primarily responsible for this state. However the civil society too is equally guilty. The Govt hasn’t given to the defence services their due importance. Its outlook and attitude are highly flawed. Major decisions are taken by babus who do not understand even the basics of warfare. This could cost the nation dearly if corrective steps are not taken without further delay.
As far as the civil society is concerned our youth are taking up easy-going careers preferring money and false pride over national security and national pride. This could sound the death knell of our aspirations to become a global power.
Our Armed Forces, by and large, have no children of any minister, politician, M.P or an industrialist in the Defence Services whereas in U.K and other nations, most of them including their Royals take pride in sending their children to the Armed Forces. In other words the principal beneficiaries of the security and stability provided by the Services have zero contribution in making the nation secure. Their children shy away from the dangers and hardships of the military profession. This does not bode well for the nation and we could be in serious trouble.
During the Falkland war Prince Charles and his younger sibling Prince Andrew participated in the war against Argentina. Similarly, Prince Williams and Prince Harry both saw action in Iraq as well as Afghanistan.Even a cursory glance at our pre-independence history reveals that for a full 1000 years we suffered the ignominy of defeat-defeat and defeat. India is the only nation of such huge size which was plundered, ravaged and savaged virtually at will by any number of raiders and a host of Western nations. Mohammad Ghazni came time and again with just a few hundred horsemen and took back with him tons of gold and silver. The menfolk were slaughtered, while our mothers and sisters were taken back for his harem and daily abuse. Our Armed Forces were weak and were roundly defeated each and every time. Our women committed jauhar again and again to save themselves from ruthless exploitation by the enemy. They were certain that their menfolk were incapable of protecting their honour.
Today China has virtually surrounded us from both land as well as the sea and has put in place a world-class infrastructure along our borders in terms of rail, road and aerial lines of communications. The road cum rail network on our side is simply pathetic; the consequences of which could be disastrous for the country. If we fail to upgrade our infrastructure and modernize our forces with rapidity, the Chinese could be tempted to test our resolve once again. And should we be found wanting this time, it will be the death-knell of our global aspirations for all times to come.
A career in the Defence Services provides you an opportunity to see, understand and experience the amazing beauty of India. You will be privileged to operate in areas which were traversed by colossal like Guru Nanak Dev, Swami Vivekananda and Shri Aurobindo. Their pristine beauty lifts your soul; the mountains literally talk to you and share their secrets with perceptive minds. It was in the Himalayas that they got the inspiration, through which they impacted human kind for all times to come.
Defence Services are like one big family where people of all caste, creed and religion live and operate happily. Their mutual love and trust is to be seen to be believed. In a world that is increasingly being torn asunder because of religious differences, The Indian Armed Forces stand out as a shining example of secularism and harmony. Whether you are an officer or a jawan, each will go flat out to protect the life of the other even at the cost of their own lives.
While serving with the Armed Forces you get ample opportunities to serve on United Nation’s peace-keeping missions or participate in joint training exercises with other countries. These not only expose you to the culture, the value system and military traditions of other countries but you begin to realize the rich-ness of your own culture, ethos and value system. Once again no other career exposes you to such range of opportunities or experience.
Ours is a voluntary Army where all officers and personnel come in of their own volition. Pay and perks after the sixth pay commission are pretty good though they continue to be less than the pay and perks in the corporate world. In stark contrast to the other professions, Army is a way of life; which cannot be measured in terms of Rupees and paise. It cannot be compared with the life of civilians as it entails a kind of discipline and commitment that is sacrosanct and unquestionable. It requires dedicating your life to the cause of the nation.
It is a profession whose principal virtues are image, respect, camaraderie and mutual trust. It would be unfair to ascribe monetary value to a profession which is beyond compare. In this career enrichment of your personality, confidence and self-image is an on-going process.
Defence Services give you ample opportunities for enhancement of your qualifications and skills. When I joined the NDA my qualification was Senior-Cambridge. I did my BSc and MBA through the Armed Forces. I attained such instructional skills through the Services that I went on to train officers of several countries, besides our Army. Post retirement these skills have helped me in reaching out to lakhs of students across India.
This is the only career wherein an Army Officer can become a pilot and a deep sea diver. It offers you a whole range of adventure activities such as: para-jumping, para-sailing, river-rafting, sailing, wind-surfing, sea surfing, mountaineering etc. Not only this if you are very good the Armed Forces help you train for the National’s as well as the Olympics. In the recently concluded Olympics 14 sportsmen were from The Defence Services.
In this career even after your retirement you continue to be respected and regarded as a family member and most of the perks remain applicable, such as the canteen facilities and medical. An Officer’s responsibility towards his Men, unlike in other professions, does NOT end with his retirement; it is a lifelong commitment. Officers owe it to their Men, for having had the honour & privilege of leading them, while in service.
In this career officer’s wives too make a huge contribution in improving the capabilities and prospects of jawan’s families. Such a support system is non-existent in any other profession. Incidentally, 14 Miss India’s hail from defence background including Navneet Kaur Dhillon. They are: Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta, Celina Jaitly, Neha Dhupia, Sushmita Sen, Pooja Batra, Gul Panag, Manpreet Brar, Nikita Anand, Ankita Shorey, Kanistha Dhankar, Hasleen Kaur and Sobhita Dhulipala. Let’s see what they had to say about the Defence Services. Sobhita said, ‘The defence background gives people multi-dimensional personalities. My dad was in the Navy. I travelled to many countries and imbibed bits of their culture, which have added to my growth from an early age. She was the first runner-up in 2013.Gul Panag (2002) had this to say; ‘As an Army kid, you learn to adapt to any new environment with ease. It’s one of the major traits that make you stand out as a winner. We have grit and determination to be out there and get what we want. We are confident of our turf.” All others said the same things; but in so many different words.
In the ultimate analysis, Defence services make you capable of taking on positions of responsibility, authority and power. To exemplify this statement, 31 of the 44 US Presidents were from the Armed Forces: George Washington, Eisenhower, Roosevelt and Truman etc. Similarly many an officer from the Armed Forces went on to become Prime Ministers of their countries; Sir Winston Churchill being the most widely known.
Defence Services officers have been the Heads of the corporate world, the industry, chancellors and vice-chancellors of universities and research institutes of great repute. What is interesting however is that no civilian or a Babu has ever been considered competent enough to command even the smallest of the sub-unit of Air Force, The Navy or The Army in battle irrespective of his status, experience or expertise?
I can continue writing about the Services but I am hanging up with the firm conviction that some of us or our children or grand-children would definitely join the Armed Forces and ensure that India becomes a military super-power in the next decade or so. The Generation next would be the ultimate arbiters of this nation’s destiny. I have full faith that they will live up to India’s expectations.There is a need to bring about a change in national thinking and education on the nuts and bolts of defence as a tool for strength, if India has to emerge as a power to be reckoned with.