Comments & Briefs

Budget is not just all about figures but also a statement of policy. The Defence Budget for 2017-18 contains no hint of any intention of the government to bring about a paradigm shift in the defence policy.

If the defence expenditure relationship to the GDP of 1.65 per cent is maintained, we may see a budget estimate (BE) for defence expenditure of Rs. 285,000 crores, against the current year BE of Rs. 249,099 crores.

While the New Year attack in Istanbul underscores Turkey’s endemic vulnerabilities, India too needs to be on guard. Messaging by the ISIS is often followed by action.

There is a need to go beyond stale issues and have a more meaningful and dispassionate discussion on how to make the best use of the allocations made for defence.

There is a need to rework the Outer Space Treaty and contemporize it to deal more directly with issues of the current era.

The presentation of the Union budget on February 1 is expected to ensure full utilisation of allocated funds and will ensure that ‘New Schemes’ can be processed, approved and contracted from April 1, 2017.

The BEML model of disinvestment needs to be applied to the rest of the Defence Public Sector Undertakings as well as Ordnance Factories.

Through this white paper, China has affirmed its regional ambitions and aims to shape the regional security agenda in the Asia Pacific on its stated terms.

While the Cuban armed forces are but a shadow of their former self with unserviceable equipment and massive reductions in personnel strength, the country still retains combat capabilities far in excess of any of its Caribbean neighbours.

With some innovative thinking, on-line arrangements with suppliers, including the Canteen Stores Department, could reduce the cost of storage and distribution and, more importantly, help in maintaining a high satisfaction level among troops.