Operational preparedness to fight conventional war with Pakistan and China, security situation in Jammu & Kashmir and the North-East and status of Mountain Strike Corps to face any threat from China will figure prominently during the five-day Army Commanders’ Conference starting April 25 in New Delhi.
Besides these issues, the top echelon will also review issues like delay in procuring long range artillery guns as the Army has not acquired a new gun for the last 30 years in the wake of Bofors gun controversy. Moreover, the Army is yet to replace the standard issue INSAS rifle with state of the art rifle thereby hampering operational efficiency of soldiers engaged in counter-insurgency operations and guarding the borders.
As regards Pakistan, the Army brass will take stock of its capability to fight a conventional war as the western neighbour is rapidly modernising its Army, officials said here on Friday. Moreover, Pakistan’s continuing support to militancy in Jammu & Kashmir is another cause of concern for the Army as it is engaged in fighting terrorists there.
On the issue of China, officials said rapid improvement of infrastructure across the line of Actual Control(lAC) in the Tibetan plateau poses grave threat to India as it lacks suitable infrastructure to provide logistical support to troops guarding borders in States like Arunachal Pradesh, ladakh and Sikkim.
While China has constructed all weather roads right up to the lAC besides nearly 5,000 km or rail network in Tibetan plateau and at least full-fledges airfields there, India is poorly placed in this regard. In fact, troops at many places in Arunachal Pradesh and ladakh have to trek for three to four days from the nearest road head to reach the front.
The five-day meet will also review the progress of raising Mountain Strike Corps to meet any challenge from China. The nod for this Corps having more than 50,000 troops was given two years back with an overall budgetary provision of Rs 80,000 crore spread over seven to eight years. The Corps will be trained to fight in mountains and therefore equipped with weapons like howitzers and lighter artillery guns.