The Comptroller and Auditor General has issued a stinging report that harshly criticizes India's military vulnerabilities.

According to CAG, the country remains exposed to hostile aerial attacks due to its reliance on outdated 1970's radar technology.

"The process of induction of radars began in 1991, but we were not able to provide the necessary air defence equipment due to diverse reasons. We are facing problems even now. New radars have been inducted, but it will take time to tide over the shortcomings," conceded Defence Minister AK Antony.

The report also criticized the government for failing to approve the IAF's extensive modernisation plans even though it faces a "growing magnitude of potential aerial threats." In addition, CAG expressed concern over the Indian Navy’s ageing submarine fleet.

"At present, the navy holds just 67% of the force level envisaged in its 1985 plan. Due to ageing fleet and prolonged refit schedules, the average operational availability of the submarines is as low as 48%," noted the CAG report.

Despite the above-mentioned CAG report, New Delhi has initiated a series of critical steps designed to bolster its aerial and naval capabilities. As IT Examiner previously reported, the IAF recently inaugurated an integrated command and control system that facilitates the real time networking of all military and civilian radars in southern India.

"The [C&C]  will help in carrying out real time networking of civil and military radars and will act as a force multiplier for the IAF in the southern peninsula," explained Air Marshal S. Radhakrishnan.

The system integrates air foce, naval and civilian radars in the southern peninsula via a multi-radar data fusion application. The new C&C also supports air defence functions such as automatic surveillance, identification, threat evaluation, interception and recovery.

It should also be noted that the Indian Navy has increased its efforts to acquire a number of advanced diesel submarines.

The six subs are slated to be equipped with advanced air-independent propulsion (AIP) systems, granting the vessels a high degree of stealth. Indeed, conventional diesel-electric submarines are forced to surface every few days to replenish their oxygen supply and recharge depleted batteries. However, AIP systems will allow the underwater vessels to remain silently submerged for extended periods.

The new diesel submarines will reportedly be manufactured in Indian shipyards under the auspices of a Rs 30,000 crore budget.

A defence ministry source told the Economic Times  that RFIs (request for information) have already been issued to Russian, French and German firms. Two rounds of discussions were held, with a third scheduled for the end of October.

The Indian Navy currently maintains a fleet composed of 16 Russian Kilo and German Shishumar vessels, but plans to purchase 30 submarines over the next few years. The latest procurement will follow a previous order of six Scorpène subs currently under construction by the French DCNS at the Mazagon Dockyards Limited (MDL) in Mumbai. X

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