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Indian army for greater share of national budget

NEW DELHI: The Indian military is pushing for a larger share of the upcoming national budget, arguing that the government should slash revenue-guzzling subsidies in the interests of national security.

Defence Minister George Fernandes is campaigning for a hike in military spending in the fiscal year ending March 2001, from the current 2.3 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to three percent.

Fernandes also wants 32 billion rupees (754 million dollars) in immediate extra-budgetary funding, apparently to cover the cost of increased security requirements in Kashmir.

Ministerial competition for funds will be intense as Finance Minister Yashwant Sinha, who will unveil the budget on February 29, has made it clear that public spending must be brought under control.

India increased its defence spending by 11 percent to 10.6 billion dollars in the last budget, but the military, the world's fourth largest, grumbled that the rise was not enough to meet pressing modernisation plans.

"The increase will not take our military spending beyond three percent of GDP," she said.

According to Army Chief V P Malik, the current "era of strategic uncertainties" require India to be operationally prepared "for the entire spectrum of conflict Ñ from proxy war to limited war and even beyond".

The latest armour, howitzers, rockets and smart weaponry are all part of the army's inventory, Malik said.

Navy Chief Admiral Sushil Kumar said national purse-strings would have to be loosened to meet India's policy on "preventive deterrence".

"The government has to catch up with the obsolescence of 10 years but there is little room for manoeuvre as it has to keep the fiscal deficit at four percent and cannot touch politically-sensitive subsidies," said Uday Bhaskar of the Indian institute of Defence Studies and Analysis.

Former army chief Vishwanath Sharma said, Vajpayee's government would have to stem wasteful expenditure to fund the military's modernisation needs. "The subsidies which are meant for the poor are eaten by the rich," Sharma said.

"We have done serious damage to our army because today terrorists are better armed and equipped than Indian soldiers. People will have to sacrifice for national security..... There is no other option," he said.

Former foreign secretary S K Singh said, New Delhi should not be deterred by foreign concerns over military spending hikes. "As the economy is now moving ahead and stock markets are buoyant, New Delhi must restore some of the original cuts in military spending," Singh said.

"It will not worry people except for India's professional critics in the West," Singh said, adding that Pakistan's defence budget stood at seven percent of GDP while Chinese military spending was at 4.8 percent. AFP