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Retired soldiers ready for battle in case war breaks out between India and Pakistan

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Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne (left) interacting with Air Vice Marshal Upkarjit Singh (right) (EPS | Sathya Keerthi)

HYDERABAD: They might have hung their boots in their service to the nation when they touched 60 but these retired officers of the Indian Air force are still ready to serve their country. The veterans who gathered for the 84th year celebration of the Indian Air Force (IAF) on Saturday, were ready to serve the country in case a war breaks out between India and Pakistan.

India had on Wednesday conducted a cross border “surgical strike” across the Line of Control bordering Pakistan attacking terrorists.

“I have asked the Air Marshal to consider taking me back to service if the need arises,” said Krishnavataram, a retired corporal from the IAF. The ex-officer had retired from service two years ago. In the wake of what is happening, we need more young people to join the forces. We old men have the enthusiasm to fight but our age won’t allow it,” said a retired sergeant VV Basu.

The retired personnel who gathered at the College of Air Warfare (CWA) held the offensive stand of the army in positive light. “This is a good response to them, we have always been on the defensive even though we have a better army,”said Krishnavataram.

Air Marshal GP Singh valued the service of the veterans and declined to comment on the situation at the border.

Pilots who were in service too were in agreement with the stand of ‘going on the offensive’ against Pakistan. “We have  better military capabilities than them, we have enough capability to carry out the needed operations. I whole heartedly support the surgical strike,” said an air force pilot who wished not to be named.

Technical hold on Azhar’s UN terror listing already extended: China

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Technical hold on Azhar's UN terror listing already extended: China
The Chinese technical hold was set to lapse on Monday, and had China not raised further objection, the resolution designating Azhar as a terrorist could stand passed automatically. Reuters file photo

Beijing, October 1

China said on Saturday that its technical hold on India’s move to get Pakistan-based Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Masood Azhar designated a terrorist by the United Nations had been extended by six months, days before its expiry.

The Chinese technical hold was set to lapse on Monday, and had China not raised further objection, the resolution designating Azhar as a terrorist could stand passed automatically.

“The technical hold on India’s listing application submitted to the 1267 committee in March, 2016 has already been extended,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said.

“There are still different views on India’s listing application. The extended technical hold on it will allow more time for the Committee to deliberate on the matter and for relevant parties to have further consultations,” Geng said.

On March 31 this year, China, a veto-wielding permanent member of the UN Security Council, had blocked India’s move to put a ban on the JeM leader, the person who is suspected to have plotted the attack on a military installation in Pathankot in January, under the Sanctions Committee of the Council.

China was the only member in the 15-nation UN organ to put on hold India’s application while 14 members other members of the Council supported it. India wants Azhar on the 1267 sanctions list, which would mean assets’ freeze and travel ban on the militant.

Geng said the 1267 Committee of the UNSC “organises its work as mandated by relevant resolutions of the Security Council.”

“China always maintains that on the listing matter, the 1267 Committee should stick to the main principles of objectivity, impartiality and professionalism, base its judgments on solid evidence and decide upon consensus among the members of the Security Council,” he said in a written reply to a question.

After the decision, the hold now has been extended in the midst of India-Pakistan tension over the Uri terrorist attack, which was blamed on the JeM group.

China’s technical hold coupled with its move to block India’s membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG) cast a shadow on the Sino-India ties. Both the countries have held several rounds of talks on the issues in recent months.

China’s move to extend the technical hold comes ahead of the expected meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping in Goa during the BRICS Summit on October 15-16.

In June last year, China had blocked India’s demand for taking action under the Council’s anti-terrorism resolutions against Pakistan for releasing Lashkar-e-Taiba commander Zaki-ur-Lakhvi – the mastermind of the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

Sources have previously said India is not alone in its bid to get Azhar listed as terrorist as the US, the UK and France had “co-sponsored” the resolution seeking Azhar’s listing.

India has repeatedly criticised the UN Sanctions Committee for its failure to designate terrorists for proscribing terrorist groups but not those heading them.

India accused UN sanctions committee for taking a “selective approach” in tackling terrorism when its application was put on hold. — PTI

Brigade Commander shifted in Uri attack aftermath

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Brigade Commander shifted in Uri attack aftermath
The attack had led to a public outrage. PTI

Srinagar, October 1

The Army has removed the commander of Uri Brigade, which was the target of the deadly terror attack on September 18 that claimed the lives of 19 soldiers and left several others injured, defence sources said.Brigadier K Somashanker has been shifted out of the sensitive brigade, sources said.

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They said an officer from the 28 Mountain Division of the Army is scheduled to take over as the Uri Brigade commander.Army officials did not respond to calls seeking comment on the development. PTI

My HQ Was At Uri, The Attack On It Has Thrown Up Institutional Defects We Have Grown To Live With

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My HQ Was At Uri, The Attack On It Has Thrown Up Institutional Defects We Have Grown To Live With

SNAPSHOT

It is about time the Army stated unequivocally that the nation will get the security it pays for and no more. Don’t expect ‘jugaad’ to bail us out.

Uri was not the failure of those who managed its security on 18 September 2016 although many old timers will disagree with my statement. It was an institutional weakness which brought the situation on us and this is a harsh reality. Reality checks need to be brought into the open to allow the government, citizens and even many uniformed personnel to be better sensitized about national expectations versus national willingness to part with more resources for defence and security.

Intelligence alerts are fine. Such alerts exist for 300 out of 365 days in a year. This piece is not an attempt to bail out the defenders of Uri but rather to breathe reality and speak what is usually taken for granted. It is not for the lack of guts that people in the Army at all levels do not speak up. It is because they have grown used to a certain apathy which is just accepted as the way of life.

Will anyone in the Army speak up to say that the Uri base probably never had a single thermal imager (TI) to do surveillance of the route coming up from Salamabad Nala? If a senior commander was informed that the garrison had kept a few imagers for its protection it would have been considered an act of sacrilege as per our philosophy. It has to be the LoC which has to be fully secured; that is the gospel truth but the infirmity lies here too, at the administrative base. In other words a balanced deployment, one of the basics of defense, appears violated. Let me admit, I too am not a holy warrior and I would have done exactly what was done by the current breed of officers and men because I have been brought up on a diet that he who serves up in front needs it all.

The TI equipment acquired in 2001 has reached the end of its life and remains functional on life support systems through Indian ‘jugaad’. The local batteries sometimes hold life for two to three hours while a LoC ambush is deployed for eight to ten hours. This has been stated in every briefing of HQ 15 Corps but not forcefully enough because we have got so used to being ignored in response.

The LoC fence was strengthened extensively over the years, once again through the ingenious system of improvisation. However, any system has its limitations. The observation over the last season is clear that the adversary has found ways of neutralizing the LoC fence. To reach Uri base the fence had to be breached somewhere.

Is this why the pattern of terrorists killed is more often well inside our territory and not at the LoC fence itself? The contact pattern reveals maximum engagements with infiltrating terrorists well after they have breached the obstacle. The obstacle was always supposed to be a trip wire, something on which to base the alignment of our ambushes, with response from the flanks and depth if an encounter initiated. Systematically the dearth of thermal imagers, the erosion of their effectiveness and the counter-measures adopted by the terror groups has marginalized the effectiveness of our major force multiplier making infiltration easier.

The system of permanent assets in terms of habitat and fighting infrastructure, to include hardened bunkers, weapon emplacements, trenches with measures to prevent collapse, living structures, lighting conductors, toilets and cooking facilities, all come under the generic head of operational works. This is different to the works budget which is used for infrastructure in the hinterland and peace stations. The budget for operational works is so limited that it will take another fifty years before our defenses at the LoC are sufficiently hardened. The rate of construction is much slower than the rate of deterioration because climatic conditions and rugged usage have their effects. The state of toilets, cooking facilities and accommodation in general, at the LoC, remains at best pathetic. However, we have got so used to limited allocations that no one thinks of demanding more.

An issue that is for all to know is that in thirteen years of ceasefire we have lost an opportunity of hardening the permanent defenses. Given the kind of tinderbox environment the ceasefire could be a casualty very soon. Despite our limited infrastructure we always got the better of Pakistan in LoC exchanges. We also had the opportunity to construct protective infrastructure for the villagers. In 2003, I recall how Rs 2 crore from state government funds was allocated for community protective bunkers for civilians of the Uri salient. We had the design in place and would have completed construction in a year but the scheme was withdrawn as soon as the ceasefire was in place. Once again it was apathy and refusal to look at the future.

Let me illustrate the entire issue of mindsets with a humorous but true story. Many years ago when the Indian Army started subscribing to the UN missions one of our largest missions was in Somalia (UNOSOM). The MI Directorate started a system of franking of some of the mail coming in from the men and officers in the mission area to their families. The idea was to gauge morale and ascertain if there was any undesirable influence on the personnel in an international environment. The first few days after the franking commenced, one of the conclusions reached was that much against any compromise in their integrity our men were a little shell shocked by the quantum of supplies of everything including stationery. One such soldier wrote that he had exaggerated his demand for some items in the hope that he would get the bare minimum needed for office use. Instead he received double the quantum he demanded. So accustomed to being always treated with deficiencies, the men and many officers could not get over the surplus that was made available to them. That is the unfortunate case of our mindset. We are so used to being miserly in our approach and so niggard is the system which demands fullest security at the cheapest rate that it has seeped into the personality of our officers and men. They just accept it at face value and efforts towards garnering their rightful share are never even considered.

Uri had been warned. And I personally warned them too, Uri being my old headquarters. But they could have done sweet little with the kind of assets they held. In 2003, similar threats were received. I remember often remaining awake with the entire garrison at night for some days but that could not go on forever. It is easy to condemn and say that their alarm system and security posts were all negligent. There is a transitory man power at the base and the HQ has never pulled in more manpower from units for its own protection. What it desperately needed was a security wall which could have ensured that such a simple entry would not have been possible. I initiated the case for a security wall in 2003. I am sure the preceding commanders would also have similarly demanded and initiated one. In 2007 I returned to command Dagger Division and found that the wall had not materialized. We reinitiated it, only to return in 2010 to reinitiate it a third time. With a security wall, a couple of raised security bunkers towards the Salamabad side, thermal imagers and assured lighting, the possibility of such a raid could largely have been reduced.

I am quite certain that the nation, and many uniformed personnel too, are unaware of the kind of robustness needed to serve in such areas. I love to inform my stunned audiences in the corporate world that they may have heard of financial management, energy management and resource management but never of sleep management. Quite honestly a jawan in the LoC environment does not sleep at night almost continuously at least five or even six days a week. He catches a few winks by day but the kind of chores required at LoC posts and picquets hardly permits even this. The stress of possible enemy actions during patrolling, logistics movement and post protection is a constant baggage on the mind. The stress is palpable.

The system is not all bad. There are massive pluses brought on by the ethos of military camaraderie and concern for subordinates. Pilots of the Army Aviation Corps will fly under the most threatening conditions to evacuate a sick officer or jawan at severe risk. Caution will be thrown to the winds where a lifesaving effort has to be executed; whether it is a uniformed comrade or a civilian is immaterial. It is in the spirit of such camaraderie that people at the rear will sacrifice their bit for the people serving up in front and in more threatening conditions.

That the adversary found a chink in our armor is unfortunate but the armor is getting eroded for all the reasons just revealed. It is about time the Army stated unequivocally that the nation will get the security it pays for and no more. Don’t expect ‘jugaad’ to bail us out; the Army will always do it. It will work effectively nineteen times but the twentieth time when it fails do not find fault with our officers and our men who are paying the price of the nation’s niggardliness and inability to provide us the basics we need to keep the nation secure.

We may never have stated it because of the spirit of ‘we will fight with what we have’. The basic consciousness of being the last resort of the nation has driven a different kind of spirit. That spirit may just have seen the beginning of erosion after Uri.

Blood and water cannot flow together: PM on Indus treaty

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Blood and water cannot flow together: PM on Indus treaty
Deliberations in progress. PTI

New Delhi, September 26

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday said “blood and water cannot flow together,” as he chaired a review meeting of the 56-year-old Indus Water Treaty during which it was decided that India would “exploit to the maximum” the waters of Pakistan-controlled rivers, including Jhelum, under the water-sharing pact.

Held amidst heightened tension between India and Pakistan, the meeting also decided to set up an inter- ministerial task force to go into the details and working of the treaty with a “sense of urgency”, government sources said.

Attended by National Security Adviser Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, the Water Resources Secretary and senior PMO officials, the meeting also noted that the meeting of Indus Water Commission could “only take place in an atmosphere free of terror”. The Commission has held 112 meetings so far.

“Prime Minister Modi’s message at the meeting was that ‘rakt aur paani ek saath nahin beh sakta’ (blood and water cannot flow together),” sources said.

Apart from deciding to exploit to the maximum the capacity of three of the rivers that are under Pakistan’s control— Indus, Chenab and Jhelum—in the areas of hydropower, irrigation and storage, the meeting also agreed to review the “unilateral suspension” of the Tulbul navigation project in 1987.

Sources asserted that the decision to maximise the water resources for irrigation would address the “pre-existing” sentiment of people of Jammu and Kashmir, who had complained in the past about the treaty not being fair to them.

The meeting came as India weighed its options to hit back at Pakistan in the aftermath of the Uri attack that left 18 soldiers dead, triggering demands that the government cancel the water distribution pact to mount pressure on that country.

Under the treaty, which was signed by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistan President Ayub Khan in September 1960, water of six rivers—the Beas, Ravi, Sutlej, Indus, Chenab and Jhelum—were to be shared between the two countries.

Pakistan has been complaining about not receiving enough water and gone for international arbitration in a couple of cases. PTI

PM chairs meeting to review Indus Water Treaty

New Delhi, September 26

Prime Minister Narendra Modi today chaired a meeting to review the Indus Water treaty with Pakistan amidst heightened tension between the two countries.

National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar, the Water Resources Secretary, and senior PMO officials are present at the meeting.

The review is being undertaken as India weighs options to give a befitting response to Pakistan in the wake of the Uri attack that left 18 soldiers dead.

There have been consistent calls in India that the government scrap the water distribution pact to mount pressure on Pakistan in the aftermath of the terror attack.

Under the treaty, which was signed by Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and Pakistan President Ayub Khan in September 1960, water of six river – Beas, Ravi, Sutlej, Indus, Chenab and Jhelum – were to be shared between the two countries.

Pakistan has been complaining of not receiving enough water and gone for international arbitration in couple of cases.

Jammu and Kashmir Deputy Chief Minister Nirmal Singh had said last week that his state will fully support whatever decision is taken by the Union government on the 1960 agreement.

“The treaty has caused huge loss to Jammu and Kashmir” as the people of the state cannot fully utilise the waters of various rivers, particularly Chenab in Jammu, for agricultural and other activities, Singh had said.

“The state government will support whatever decision is taken by the central government on Indus Waters Treaty,” he had said.

India had last week made it clear that “mutual trust and cooperation” was important for such a treaty to work. PTI

Avoid Knee Jerk Reaction::—————– Syed Ata Hasnain

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Any response to Uri must combine diplomatic and military domains, be well thought through
For almost four days now India is looking at its potential response to the grave provocation by Pakistan through the premeditated sneak attack Fon the Uri garrison which led to the death of 18 soldiers. The surmises which have emerged after deliberations of experts and government are important to recount.First, there must not be any knee jerk reaction because that will pay no dividend and could force us to do exactly what the terrorist leadership or Pakistan’s deep state wishes. Second, we must respond with a clear cut strategic aim at a time and place that we choose, and not be forced to do so. Third, the use of both the diplomatic option to isolate Pakistan, exploiting the ongoing UNGA session and the military option with a choice of actions from a given spectrum, has to be part of India’s strategy .

Interestingly some issues on the above strategy have arisen in the process of detailing it. Can there be a purely military retribution to punish Pakistan without having to mix it with a diplomatic offensive? After 26 years of proxy militancy terror why hasn’t our diplomacy given us the dividend of seeing Pakistan isolated and under sanctions?
This needs an explanation of both Pakistan’s notoriety and strategic significance. Little is it realised that the territory of Pakistan is one of the most important strategic real estates of the world. It is the confluence of five civilisations; Indian, Chinese, Central Asian, Persian and Arab. Each of the regions making up these civilisations has a strategic interest connected with Pakistan.Big power interests also abound.

India’s military actions could adversely affect any of these powers. China for instance is inextricably linked to the China Pakistan Economic Corridor. The support of Afghanistan is an imperative.Iran’s guaranteed neutrality robs Pakistan of its perceived strategic depth. The US, perhaps the most important player in the game is also the most helpless. Its interests in Afghanistan have to be retained through Pakistani guarantee. Fifteen years of effort must witness a conflict termination on terms advantageous to the US and not to the Taliban.

The Russian diplomatic angle cannot be wished away . Recalling 1971 would reveal Indira Gandhi’s prudence in signing the Indo-Soviet Treaty and the diplomatic offensive she undertook to shape the situation in India’s favour. That facilitated the strategy to win the war.

Hybrid warfare is the flavour of the day in conflicts around the globe; it is what Pakistan is using to good measure against us. Our retribution should examine every component of the spectrum and the mixing should afford us flexibility . The game of diplomacy is crucial in this.

There is no ready answer to why we failed for 26 years to get the international community to label Pakistan a rogue state. Perhaps we underplayed it, or focussed our efforts at the wrong forums. We need to make amends for that especially when most major countries are concerned about the ease of movement of terror resources, finances and narcotics. Accompanied by a credible military threat and a potential nuclear exchange, the international community must be jolted into being interested.

It is perceived that employing the diplomatic option alongside a potentially robust military action could mean playing into the hands of Pakistan which essentially seeks the internationalisation of the J&K issue. There are two separate dimensions to this. The internationalisation of the boundary issue related to Kashmir is surely not in India’s favor as it would annul the Shimla Agreement.However, the issue of cross border terror and proxy war is a domain in which India needs to pull out all the stops, as internationalisation helps in the naming and shaming of Pakistan.

While public excitement and passion exist for a military option precious little has ever been done regarding sensitisation about the effects of all out or even calibrated conflict. The public remains oblivious of the adverse economic effects and dangers of nuclear escalation.But even more important is that contingency planning seems to be underway once the contingency has arrived and is well on the way to passing over. Such planning must be done well in advance and updated through yearly war games.

At the operational level no doubts exist. It is at the strategic level that there is little energy for a national level war game involving the political, diplomatic, military and bureaucratic fraternity .

The information and communication domain remains the weakest link in our strategy . Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s reference to Balochistan and his ardent efforts towards focussing on issues concerning transnational terror, both at G-20 and Asean summits, are the first real efforts at communication by an Indian leader in years.

Prudent and effective national strategy sandwiches the military options between two layers of the diplomatic campaign, preand post-launch.

Lastly response to instigated proxy conflicts of the low intensity variety usually must lie in the dimension of comprehensive national power. Since the response is calibrated, diplomacy and military power can alternate in primacy to achieve the common goal. It needs reiteration that public passion and interest, though important motivators, must not become the main trigger for action.

(The writer is former GOC of Srinagarbased 15 Corps and commanded the Uri Brigade)

Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif a puppet in the hands of pale military, terrorists: Congress

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y: ANI | New Delhi | Published:September 23, 2016 2:10 pm

burhan wani, nawaz sharif, burhan wani killing, kashmir issue, kashmir unrest, kashmir curfew, kashmir violence, unga, nawaz sharif at UNGA, Kashmiri Intifada,Hizbul Mujahideen, india news, latest newsPakistani prime minister Nawaz Sharif  (AP Photo)

The Congress party said on Friday that Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is forKashmir rant and glorification of militant Burhan Wani at the UN is a clear sign that he is a puppet in the hands of military establishments and terrorists.

“Whatever the Prime Minister of Pakistan says, he is just a puppet in the hands of the military establishment and terrorists,” Congress leader Tom Vadakkan said.

“It is an established fact globally that terrorism is bread ,spread from Pakistan. Factories are manufacturing terrorists exist in Rawalpindi,” Vadakkan told ANI.

“These(terrorists) are people who infiltrate civil society, both in India and globally, and create not just terrorism but commit huge human rights issues,” he said.

“When we talk about human rights, lets flag terrorism as an important factor,” he added.

Vadakkan said India has taken up the issue internationally and should give fitting reply to Pakistani designs. During his nearly 20-minute speech at the 71st UNGA session on Wednesday, Sharif described the unrest in Kashmir as an “indigenous uprising” and an “intifada” (uprising) and accused India of “brutal suppression” and “gross and systematic violations of human rights”. He also referred to militant commander Burhan Wani, whose killing sparked the unrest, as a “young leader murdered by Indian forces”.

A bill was introduced in the US House of Representatives earlier this week to designate Pakistan as a state sponsor of terrorism. If enacted, it would cut off all financial aid and sales of military equipment to Pakistan.

Ex-servicemen can be engaged for disaster management

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Ex-servicemen can be engaged for disaster management
Major Rahul Jugran (retd) Manager, Disaster Mitigation and Management Centre, Uttarakhand

UTTARAKHAND has a large population of servicemen and ex-servicemen. The armed forces in our country have traditionally been the first responders to any major disaster. This may be attributed to the fact that they can react quickly in an integrated and self contained manner. They have the core competence to operate under adverse conditions with a range of resources and capabilities at their disposal. The armed forces are equipped with the emergency search and rescue capabilities and they have been providing medical aid, communication, food, shelter and necessary infrastructure to disaster victims.The large number of ex-servicemen, who have the background and vast experience in engineering, medical, communication and signals, can be organized into a disciplined and trained workforce. This voluntary, trained, experienced and dedicated group can play an important part in search and rescue operations and also in providing medical aid at times of major disasters. Also, since most of the Army men retire at a young age between 30 and 40, their services can be fully utilised for disaster management and civil purposes as well.There are 123,113 ex-servicemen registered with Zila Sainik Boards in the state: Almora (9854), Bageshwar (7934), Chamoli (10759), Champawat (3416), Dehradun (22753), Haridwar (4240), Lansdowne (14891), Nainital (10389), Pauri Garhwal (6954), Pithoragarh (16522), Rudraprayag (3258), Tehri Garhwal (4826), Udham Singh Nagar (6584), and Uttarkashi (733). 

Dedicated organisation

In a post-disaster scenario, the first priority is extending immediate rescue and relief aid to victims, who need medical care, food and shelter. However, in the absence of a dedicated organisation, disaster relief tends to be ad hoc and leads to ‘crisis management’. A coordinated and synergistic approach at all levels to handle the resources available, along with an efficient communication and logistics network, is vital to post-disaster relief. It is here that a need exists for an organisation which has the required expertise, dedication and resources to handle this task.The potential for utilisation of disciplined and trained ex-servicemen for such situations has remained untapped due to lack of an organisational framework.  An Ex-Servicemen Disaster Management Unit (ESDMU) comprising primarily of retired defence officers, members of paramedical staff of Army Medical Corps, Military Nursing Services (MNS), engineers, signals and Ordnance Corps could play a vital role in preparedness for disaster management and relief works.Bihar has raised unit of retired soldiersUttarakhand cannot depend on the Central government for its forces all the time. Therefore, the state government must have a plan to recruit ex-servicemen and form ESDMUs that will not only effectively provide employment to an experienced, trained and disciplined force of ex-servicemen but will also utilise their services at the time of a disaster. The widespread presence of ex-servicemen in Uttarakhand will take care of reaching necessary assistance to the remotest places at the time of a disaster. The Bihar government has taken a decision to raise a separate unit of Special Auxiliary Police (SAP) to deal with disasters in that state. Ex-servicemen, who have been inducted into the SAP to fight the growing Naxal menace in the state, have also been proposed to be better utilised to effectively tackle the challenges arising out of calamities.

Planning considerations

The organisation of an ESDMU could be based on the concept of the Territorial Army. Only a nucleus staff could be employed on a permanent basis and the remaining voluntary force could be embodied periodically on as required basis.In Uttarakhand, the ESDMUs could be raised in Garhwal and Kumaon divisions with a unit in each district under the control of Zila Sainik Kalyan Board. The specialty of each divisional unit will be flexibility in terms of personnel (may do with whatever manpower is available) and response (depending upon the magnitude of the disaster).A databank of ex-servicemen, who volunteer for ESDMU services, can be maintained centrally at the Rajya Sainik Kalyan headquarters, and in each divisional headquarters. The requisite manpower for an ESDMU will be made available at short notice from this databank.The ESDMU can be tasked with creating public awareness, making disaster management plans with community involvement at the village level, carrying liaison with Army and paramilitary units deployed in remote places and organising medical camps throughout the year in association with the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and the Red Cross.During any disaster, the ESDMU will be mobilised along with technical and supporting elements to the disaster site. The medical group within the ESDMU will comprise small disaster medical teams carrying expendable and non-expendable medical stores. An ESDMU will thus be significant in filling the gaps for the National Disaster Relief Force (NDRF) and the State Disaster Relief Force (SDRF) that cannot be present throughout the state, especially in remote places. Moreover, their presence in the community will be useful as the majority of ex-servicemen are natives of those places.  

Mobilisation

On receiving a request for assistance from the state government or the district administration or in anticipation of such a request, the ESDMU will inform the unit headquarters. And after obtaining permission from the headquarters, it will proceed to contact its volunteers by the fastest available means, including mobile phones, print media and television, requesting them to report for duty. The coordination of disaster relief operations will have to be maintained between the civil authorities, armed forces and the ESDMU at all levels through a joint operation centre. The services of ESDMUs can be utilised for disaster management on the Char Dham Yatra routes and the Hemkund Sahib yatra as well as in the event of accidents and natural catastrophes such as landslides, cloudbursts and earthquakes.The services of ex-servicemen can be used for setting up post-disaster infrastructure and makeshift arrangements for affected people. The task of navigating obstacles, clearing approach roads and debris, rebuilding bridges and roads, restoring electricity, water and making disaster relief shelters can be  effectively done by engineers with the available expertise and resources in the post-disaster scenario. Ex-servicemen capable of handling communication equipment can be trained for civil equipment. They can be very useful especially in remote and far flung areas in Uttarakhand. The signals group of an ESMDU can maintain and strengthen the emergency communication between the disaster site and the divisional headquarters through satellite. It can also set up a high frequency communication system. They are also trained in administering first aid, casualty evacuation and handling trauma cases.

Training

Disaster management requires continuous training and awareness. Selected officers and men of ESDMUs can be trained at the Disaster Mitigation and Management Centre. Search and rescue training or refresher courses could be organised for them in different institutes of the state through the ITBP, National Institute of Mountaineering (NIM) or the SSB.Ex-servicemen by virtue of their services in armed forces are well oriented and trained in the incident response system. The services of ex-servicemen will be utilised in turn for training volunteers of ESDMUs and organising welfare activities (medical camps) in remote areas.

Medical services

Ex-servicemen are also capable of handling transport, distribution of food and medicines and other essentials in remote areas. They are available in all populated villages in the state. Ex-servicemen with medical background or those belonging to the Army Medical Corps (AMC) can be identified and trained. They can help fill the shortage of employees in healthcare facilities, especially at places where they are residing. Medical officers, who had retired from the AMC, can be hired (region specific for consultation or floating services) for handling health services to provide specialised services to hill people and tide over the shortage of specialised medical staff.They can be tasked with distribution of medicines and contraceptives, taking blood samples and testing and health awareness and anti-AIDS drives.

Reverse migration

The government can evolve policies to encourage ex-servicemen to settle in their native villages. This can be done by offering them gainful employment through ESMDUs and through other schemes. Their services can be utilised in the tourism sector and promoting entrepreneurship. This way the government could check migration and at the same time ensure reverse migration. A few success stories could lead to an optimistic scenario in future.

Recommendations

  • The government can involve ex-servicemen by creating 40 to 50 ESDMUs to start with. The ex-servicemen will be well dispersed in district, tehsils, blocks and villages. This will contribute to effectively augmenting public awareness and training search and rescue teams at the village and community levels.
  • The government will have to provide minimal remunerations for ex-servicemen employed and finances for raising such units.
  • Such units will not only be useful in pre and post-disaster management and response, but also for creating awareness and a provision of health services to people in remote places.
  • Ex-servicemen can also effectively liaise with units deployed in far-flung areas. Such initiatives have borne good results in states such as Jammu and Kashmir, Mizoram and Nagaland.
  • Regular Army units deployed in remote places along with district units of ESDMUs can do a lot for local development.
  • Ex-servicemen can fill the gaps with respect to manpower, remote accessibility, distances and infrastructure and their associations that function at the district level.
  • They can work as semi-government representatives for coordination with regular units of armed forces in remote areas.
  • They can be trained considering their existing skills and given responsibility of coordination from village to village.
  • Ex-servicemen can also be made area specific nodal officers for conducting the affairs of ex-servicemen as well as local people with regard to health care

Veterans fume over Uri terrorist attack

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Veterans fume over Uri terrorist attack
Lt Gen GS Negi (retd) vents his anger as he addresses a gathering of ex-servicemen in Dehradun on Tuesday. Tribune photo: Abhyudaya Kotnala

Tribune News Service

Dehradun, September 20

Retired defence personnel expressed serious concern over the terrorist attack in the Uri sector of Jammu and Kashmir in which 18 soldiers were killed two days ago. Ex-servicemen said the Indian government should judiciously respond to avoid repeat of such incidents. They said “what went wrong” in security should be thoroughly examined before jumping to any conclusion.Lt Gen GS Negi (retd) said the Indian Army should potently reply to Pakistan so that such an incident does not repeat. He added the Indian Army had many options to react to the Uri incident, and the best possible reply should be given to terrorists.Gen Negi said a quick retort against the Uri terrorist attack by the Indian Army would boost the morale of the India troops. “On the basis of information from different sources, it has now been established that there are many terrorists living in camps in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK) and have been continuously infiltrating into Indian territories,” he said.Brig KG Behl (retd), patron of the Dehradun Ex-services League (DESL), said the government should avoid a hasty reaction to the Uri incident. He said patrolling should be increased and security measures should be stepped up along Line of Control so that terrorists could not sneak into Indian territory. He said apart from keeping a diplomatic talk option open, the government should respond to this attack.Brig RS Rawat (retd), president, Uttarakhand Ex-services League, said the Indian Army should strictly avoid taking any steps in haste as it would damage further to nation. He said top brass of the Army should deeply analyse on “what went wrong” before reacting to Uri incident. He said the Indian Army was fully capable of tackling any kind of external aggression or to repulse terrorist attack in any part of India.Col PL Parashar (retd), who had served in the Uri sector in 1968, stressed on the need of tightening security along the LoC to avoid repetition of such incidents in the future. He favoured that the Army should strictly react to this incident after considering every aspect. Parashar said the Indian troops must chase and kill infiltrators if they try to cross over or are seen indulging in such actions to enter India or running back to Pakistan. He said such action would teach Pakistan a lesson and make them stop making efforts for infiltration.