Army chief’s concerns will be addressed: Ministry

March 28, 2012
http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/article3253952.ece

Accepting that there are gaps in the capability of the armed forces, the Defence Ministry on Wednesday said that it will take cognizance of the concerns expressed by Army Chief General V.K. Singh and will address those issues.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a function here, Minister of State for Defence M. M. Pallam Raju said the acquisition policy is also being changed to ensure faster procurement of the needs expressed by the forces.

“Definitely gaps are there and government is serious in addressing them as quickly as possible. We are fine tuning the acquisition process,” he said. The government had been very responsive to the needs of the armed forces.

Asked to comment on the letter written by the Army Chief to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh expressing concern over the state of preparedness of the Army and availability of ammunition, he said the government will take cognizance of it. Later, talking to reporters outside Parliament, Mr. Raju said the Army Chief has his own “anxieties” and the matter is not for public debate