THE ROTTING ONION: ARMED FORCES
by Pankaj Bhagwati
It is while the sitting in the MH besides my mother, did I decide to write this WhatsApp article. I have deliberately put my name on the article as I am fed-up with anonymity.....makes me feel like a coward!! 21 years in the Army and having had the good fortune of facing bullets and Near-death experiences several times in life.... should I logically be scared of the Army hauling me up for voicing the truth?
Being down with fever and severe vomitting, I admitted my mother into the Airforce Command Hospital in Bangalore. As I saw nurses scurrying with alacrity doctors diligently tending to her, I admired their professionalism and thanked the fact that atleast in the Forces the doctors would not intend to fleece the patient. I saw them methodically doing their job..... handling patient after patient in numbers far greater than what they were intended to do, I wondered where on earth did we as an organisation go wrong!!!
If I were to believe our generals then it was all the fault of the middle and junior officers who did not do their job properly. That the young officers lacked character, fibre, professionalism, physical fitness and military acumen was a narrative that I had heard before. These were the same slogans being touted when the Kargil debacle happened. Kargil happened not because Young Officers did not carry out patrolling....but because the senior officers refused to believe in the intelligence inputs. Kargil was also won due to the grit, bravery and sacrifice of the same incompetent junior officers who delivered an impossible victory. We died and bought casualties not because the enemy was a great fighter, but because with hopes of getting a fast victory, attack after attack were initiated by the generals without artillery fire support and along suicidal approaches, as the political masters had to be appeased ( they had said not to cross the LC). Only those who have actually divorced reality and compassion for the men they command can propose and accept such unmilitary advice. Many others died due to poor logistic handling, again overseen by Generals with such heavy shoulders. I state 'heavy', as they carry the weight of so many maimed and martyred souls.
Op Parakram was another ridiculous military adventure, where we lost more lives without firing a single bullet, in de-mining process. Yet again it was the incompetence of Young Officers which was cause. Why we did not embark into operations is known to all....yet our generals parrot the slogan "We are ready for war".....and now the new one "We are ready for a two-front war". Tell me brothers.....how can we believe such horse-shit. Even now the humble infantry soldier does not have a decent boot to wear...... The whole Indian army had no water-bottle to carry his water....our kit is riddiculed in international forums such as the UN.......every equipment is non-operative due to unavailability of spares.....there is hardly any ammunition even to train.....there are no ranges to fire.....but the Armed forces are ready!!!! Really ???
Lately the focus has been on Young Commanding Officers. The are the dart-board for all that ails the Forces. If a soldier meets with an accident at home on leave, he is at fault. If there is a marital discord in the unit, he is responsible. He is responsible for officers passing exams, Swatch Bharat, Sadhbhavana, all under the sun. But then who is responsible for providing only a fifth of the officers he should have, attaching half his manpower in guards and duties...and station facilities.....who is responsible for giving him untrained clerks, for fleecing off every asset (even chefs and tradesmen) the the poor man has under him.....and worst, denying him any time to train his men. Who is responsible...if not the generals???
Never has there been a more ideal example of passing the buck.
It is not the BABUS (they do not have the gumption had it not been for the pusillanimous generals).
Our chief speaks of leadership....we saw it when the veterans at Jantar Mantar were lathi-charged....when the Brigade Commander in Delhi was sacked after his men stopped the vehicle of an IAS officer's son coming in the opposite direction in a one-way street.....when rations were revoked....when cantonments were thrown open.....the list is endless.....
Today the new mantra is reorganization.....but I have learnt that reorganization is not merely changing the structure....it has also lots to do with the equipment and the method of fighting. How can one reduce the troops on the LoC without incorporating substitutes for the reduction..such as UAVs, surveillance devices, firepower. Composition Brigades are nice, but what about the associated hardware? We are yet to even get assault rifles, despite tenders having floated, accepted, rejected and refloated.....
Today there is deep demoralisation within the Army. The best of the officers and men are putting up their resignations....
The Generals lost the war in 1962 with their incompetence....they are bound to lose it again. And the blame will once again be on Junior Leaders.
I do not want to end this article on a sad note. Our country has existed for thousands of years....it will still survive (may not be in the same form though). But still there is a change underway. Behavioral changes are happening in our organisation. The facade of the Generals have been exposed to all in the environment. What we need to do is to keep the officer credo alive. Do whatever changes you can for the men below you. Say the truth and do not shy away from pointing out the wrong. The mantle of saving the Armed Forces and the Nation is upon us in equal measure. The title says "Rot of the Onion"....the peripheral layers may have rotten away, but the internal layers are still healthy to quite an extent. Maintain the core. Let the men continue to repose their faith in the officer cadre. We may have lost the high standing as a class, but nothing prevents individual brilliance.
God bless our nation and save our Organisation.
Jai Hind
Col Pankaj Bhagwati
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