Your Military Too Goes Through This

Is Military a different breed?

Courtesy: Brigadier(Retired) Mastinder Singh, Sena Medal, and his Network.

Revamping / Customization of RWA Sector 33

General

Sector 33 is maintained by Noida as per their plan(s). RWA Sector 33 enjoins it on the concept of ‘Bhagidari’ by providing faithful inputs to the Noida administration for general welfare of its residents as per the Sector Bye laws.

Sector 33 has a number of Pockets. Blocks A, B and C like other Pockets in the Sector are not linked. It therefore does not render itself into a cohesive Sector in various ways. We need to customize our RWA Working accordingly.

It is felt that Central Control should remain with the elected RWA MC. However, routine operations can be decentralized and delegated to the Blocks. Community Centre should continue to be managed by the RWA MC; being a major source of earnings for welfare activities of the Community.

Changes proposed in our routine operational methods are enumerated in the succeeding paras. These could be discussed widely, modified and adopted by the GBM if found suitable.

Customized Delivery to the Blocks of Sector 33

1. RWA to be managed as per the approved Bye laws. Community Centre to be exclusively managed by the RWA 33 MC whereas routine RWA activities be decentralized and bifurcated Block-wise.

2. A, B and C Blocks be seen as indep entities within the RWA, and managed as such.

3. The Blocks could have different Membership Fee structure, minimum being Rs 1800 per year as of now. This would help the Blocks in adding / maintaining enhanced service facilities in their Blocks at their own costs, if they so like.

4. 30% of the Blocks' Membership Fee in this arrangement/system can given to the RWA for common use, balance 70% could be kept with the Blocks for use within their Blocks, as laid down by Us in the Bye laws for other Societies in the Sector like NTPC, Rail Vihar, Vidhalaya Sanghthan.. This would also help in ‘right’ application of the Funds within the Blocks.

5. 70% Membership Funds be applied and accounted for by the RWA MC Members of the respective Blocks (ie 3-4 elected Members of the Blocks already elected for the RWA MC). This will strengthen ‘goodwill’ amongst residents and would reduce routine bickering. We have enough ‘social activists’ in the Blocks/Sector. These could help the Blocks.

6. Fee collected from Reddiwalas, Signage/Hoardings, Tent Walas, Exhibitions/Show/Display Stands, Training Classes in the Community Centre, etc, be judiciously handled and accounted for by the RWA MC in a transparent manner and in full knowledge of the GBM.

7. RWA should work on a concept of ‘Urban Panchayats’ for general welfare of the Community incl dispute resolution, etc.

8. Residents Social Responsibility (RSR) in the Sector, discussed elsewhere on this Blog, should be strengthened for quality delivery. All of Us individually can reach Noida Services directly.

Conclusion

These are some of the thoughts to help revamp RWA Sector 33. These could be discussed and adopted with majority approval in the GBM.

We just need to be honest and transparent in our delivery.

Sukhwindar

Consolidated FDI Policy India, Effective 01 Apr 2010

FDI in Defence Industry is permissible up to 26%, under Government route subject to Industrial license under the Industries (Development & Regulation) Act 1951 and the following conditions:

Licence applications will be considered and licences given by the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion, Ministry of Commerce & Industry, in consultation with Ministry of Defence.

Cases involving FDI will be considered by the FIPB and licences given by the Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion in consultation with Ministry of Defence.

The applicant should be an Indian company / partnership firm.

Government decision on applications to FIPB for FDI in defence industry sector will be normally communicated within a time frame of 10 weeks from the date of ack.

Consolidated FDI Policy India, 2010

Svipja Technologies

Crux of the Homeland Security Problem

"Terrorists, Divisive Forces and Naxals are on the prowl fomenting violence by exploiting and intimidating the poor and 'have-nots' and more particularly the tribal people," perspective shared by Home Minister P Chidambaram in Puducherry PCC Meeting on Apr 10, 2010.

This is the crux of our Homeland Security problem.

Coupled with Corruption and bad Governance, it becomes deadly to the Idea of India.

We must all, at least the Govt. Machinery including 'neutral security experts', move in unison on the issue w/o trying to score individual points, and partake in blame-game of any kind.

Svipja Technologies
http://www.svipja.com/

Corruption, Governance, and Maoists

A number of ‘national debate(s)’ on the Maoists have been orchestrated in media in last few days, post massacre of our CRPF Men. Unfortunately these are laced with petty party politics, and ‘cover-up syndrome’. We should get clear of it. We need to answer the following:

1. Is Maoist Movement indigenous, or sponsored and funded by Agencies interested in destabilizing India?

2. Have we provided ‘breeding ground’ for this movement with utter neglect of the development of the Regions?

3. Factors like Governance and Corruption are to be simultaneously tackled. How much discontent or disharmony these spread in our routine social lives? Are we really able to reach ‘Idea of India’ through mis-governance and corrupt practices?

4. Are the killings by Maoists purely their operational objective, abetted and supported by nations/agencies inimical to India, or just a ‘revenge’ of the sort? We need not support killings by Maoists , but see the reasons clearly to chart long-term strategy.

5. Are we reaching-out to our countrymen, the Maoists, shedding our ‘State Ego’? We have build expertise since Independence in alienating our communities somehow.

6. We must answer, how much ‘personal stake’ we have in such-like field operations?

------------------ And Much More.

Finally, are our PMFs designed to tackle ‘self-motivated’ insurgent groups? We have models at hand like NSG, RRs, Assam Rifles, etc, to emulate for CRPF too. Develop them into a hard-hitting independent force with all arms & services suitably integrated. No sacrifices or investments are very heavy to make the ‘Idea of India’ flourish. But, let Us not create more Maoists or Terrorists in the process.

‘Development of the Regions’ and ‘Punishing the Maoists’ need to be concurrent elements in our strategy.

We have the desired expertise to develop a customized Homeland Security Mechanism. We just need to focus, and be honest to ourselves.

Svipja Technologies

DRDO Launches Aero Programmes With Civil Industry

Gas Turbine Research Establishment (GTRE), HQ Bangalore, a DRDO lab, is the nodal agency to spearhead Rs 100 Crores initiative to fund R&D projects in the area of gas turbines. Under this venture, aero R&D projects for investments of Rs 50 lakhs to Rs 5 Crores would be considered for funding. Rs 78 Crores have already been sanctioned. GRTE would support 40 to 45 such projects.

The initiative is expected to fuel "coherent directed research" in the area of gas turbines, DRDO said.

DRDOs Approach takes into account futuristic national programmes. It would support, encourage, nurture, monitor and exploit the design, research, development and manufacturing capability of academic institutions and R&D establishments, industries and other think tanks to carry out frontline work in bringing out next generation gas turbine engine system.

The programme envisages participation of 100 R&D Centres and 1,000 scientists, engineers and technicians.

High-Tech MSMEs should come forward to join the programme.

Svipja Technologies

‘State Ego’ in a Democracy

India has fissiparous tendencies. In such a situation, to propagate and maintain the ‘Idea of India’ assumes special significance. It is not the aim to go into details of this hypothesis at this stage.

This makes the Government exert its will on its citizens in the process of Governance. This aspect may have been rooted in our psyche because of hundreds of years of foreign occupation of our land. If the Democracy is ‘for the people’ and ‘by the people, our Governance philosophy ought to be citizen-friendly.

We must refrain from tit-for-tat policy and instead take a conciliatory approach for any conflict resolution with our citizens; conflict need not always be met by force. Is it the ‘State Ego’ in its unpleasant form that tends to create situations leading to insurgency or terrorism? We need to mull over it as a democracy. Of course, all this is to be within our Constitution.

Our Leaders should not stand on ‘State or Personal ego’. Get on the table earliest through Track 1, 2, ---- n, methods. That creates a win-win.

Sukhwindar
Svipja Technologies

CRPF Men 'Shot Dead' by Maoists in Chhatisgarh

It is difficult to comprehend loss of over 70 CRPF Men to the Maoists in Chhatisgarh without any casualty to them. There is no flaw in planning LRP Operations continuously for four days by a sub-unit. LRPs are known to go far beyond four days. Execution of the operations and ‘Conduct of the Company in the LRP’ needs to be put under scrutiny if we have to avoid such 'massacre' in future.

Let ‘truth’ be known to the Planners!

It is distressing to hear ‘mass killings’ of uniformed personnel in the Operations. No ‘plain’ reasons stand to justify the incident. No ‘cover-up’ are to be encouraged.

Sukhwindar
Svipja Technologies

Svipja Civil-Military Relations (CMR) Chair

Some excerpts from the Article of Lt General Vijay Oberoi, PVSM, AVSM, VSM, Former VCOAS, are given below which have CMR Implications in the Indian Context:

“The deteriorating civil-military relations do not bode well for the safety and security of the nation. And the regional security environment is cause for concern. The status of army personnel is dwindling continuously, adversely affecting the morale of the rank and file.”

“In democracies the world over, the political leadership makes national policy and the national security strategy, with the active participation of civil and military officials of the country. However, in India, the military has been deliberately kept out of the policy formulation loop and even after over six decades of loyal, patriotic and dedicated service to the nation, it is obvious that it is still not trusted!”

“The military also needs to modify the concept of being apolitical. The army’s long standing stance of keeping a distance from the leaders of political parties other than those of the party in power needs to be modified. In a parliamentary system like ours, policy is formulated by all parliamentarians despite differences of the opposition. After all, the Parliament Standing Committee on Defence and similar other committees are all-party bodies. Consequently, though remaining apolitical, the army needs to apprise and discuss its concerns with the political leadership across the board. This would not reduce the apolitical nature of the army, about which it is justifiably so proud.”

“Civil Control implies the supremacy of the political leadership over both the military as well as the civil bureaucracy.”

Click: Challenges Before the New Army Chief for the full Article.

Svipja CMR Chair

National Security and Civil-Military Relations

One of the cornerstones of a democracy is a healthy civil-military relationship (CMR). India stands out as a success story in civil-military relations amongst developing nations of the world. The nation and its military are rightfully proud of it. We need to maintain this right ‘balance’.

Should the discourse on civil-military relations remain confined to the facts that in our country there have never been open criticism of the government’s policies on military affairs, never any combat refusal, or anything like a threat of military takeover? Unfortunately, most of our experts and the media are content to focus on the presence or absence of civilian control, politicisation, military discontent and discipline as the only considerations worthy of attention. Little attention is paid to the dynamics of politico-military strategies and civil-military discourse and its impact on military capabilities, and doctrines to safe-guard security of our nation.

Article of General (Retired) VP Malik, PVSM, AVSM, Former COAS, in The Tribute recently covers certain aspects of National Security and related issues.

Click: Beyond Narrow Boundaries

Sukhwindar

India's Think Tanks

Firstly, Think Tanks should in the normal course aim to influence targeted audience for getting their ‘mind share’. It should take a ‘systems approach’ to an issue with the ultimate objective of sound implementation to achieve the desired outcome. It is not correct to say that the Policy Makers or Others may not ‘heed to the advice, or may not be influenced’ by the Think Tanks. It does in a way. If not, these are not Think Tanks then - their research results may be ‘tainted’, not in line with the democratic values, or totally out of context. Think Tanks need not work in ‘vacuum’ of any kind and should relate to the existing or future course(s). That much for the concept.

Secondly, Think Tanks need to be staffed with practicing managers/researchers and academia of the right kind to tackle real-life situations, and not be pure ‘philosophic’. These should relate to our ‘own’ environments. This would help in looking at their findings from ‘Policy Angle(s)’. Who funds it may not be very important in today’s intellectual scenario; system sees it through and places credibility on the Think Tanks accordingly. There may be hundreds of them but a few are creditworthy.

Thirdly, the subject matter to be tackled could take the form of a 'Chair’, for long life. The Chair could be established in Corporates, Universities, Foundations, etc, provided they operate under the Charter of Think Tanks. Intellect is widely dispersed.

Mr Kanti Bajpai’s Article in today’s TOI on ‘ Think Tanks in India’s Democracy’ puts the subject issue in a perspective, but the 'common notion'.

Click: Think Tanks in Democracy

'Svipja Civil-Military Relations (CMR) Chair' be seen in this context, a faithful delivery to the Indian Democracy and its People in CMR.

Svipja Technologies