Adequate Spectrum vital for national security: General Kapoor

[New Delhi, 14 April,2009] Ensuring sufficient availability of radio frequencies or spectrum for setting up an optimal battlefield management system is essential for the Indian security forces which are today upgrading their legacy communication systems, according to Gen Deepak Kapoor, Chief of the Army Staff.

Addressing the 2nd international seminar on a 'Paradigm Shift in Communication to Support Battlefield Management System' here today, Gen Kapoor said that the government would have to suitably prioritise spectrum availability with national security needs. "More importantly, we have to ensure suitable networking between the communications systems of various security agencies that will ensure availability of real-time data in real-time situations."

According to Gen Kapoor, technology would form the backbone of all future wars, "which would of a shorter duration but probably more lethal and therefore it was important that we empower the last man at the post." This was also important because of the role that technology could play in the case of asymmetric warfare.

The two-day seminar is being jointly organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and the Indian Army's Directorate General of Information Systems (DGIS).

In his theme address, Lt Gen P C Katoch, Director-General, DGIS, said that given the dynamic changes taking place in communication technologies, it was important for the Indian Army to develop suitable linkages with the private sector. "Technology can be the force multiplier that can give our security forces the cutting edge," he added.

Gen Katoch said that the Army recognized need to suitably develop network centric warfare capabilities. "The existing legacy systems do not allow the soldier on the ground to take advantage of information services like video, graphics data and imagery. For this, it is important that the Indian security forces take advantage of the strengths of the domestic IT industry."

In his welcome address, Mr Ajai Chowdhry, Chairman, CII National Committee on Technology and CEO, HCL Infosystems Ltd, pointed out that action in today's battlefields depended as much on one's information systems as much as they do on weapons systems. "Developing a suitable battlefield management system for the country was a challenge that Indian IT industry was today well-placed to meet."

According to him, the time was right to foster greater private-defence sector linkages, with the policy structure already in place and "the security forces also ready to make IT an inherent part of its strategy and action plans."

In his vote of thanks, Mr Gurpal Singh, Deputy Director-General, CII, said the defence sector offered an immense opportunity for the small and medium enterprises (SMEs). "In fact, the offset policy that makes it mandatory for all foreign equipment suppliers to source at least 30 per cent of any contract value exceeding Rs 300 crore from India has seen a number of global majors entering into partnerships with domestic players", he added.

According to him, rising defence procurement, especially of communication and IT equipment, presents an exciting opportunity for the Indian industry to upgrade, since the offset policy does not differentiate between the private and public sectors.

New Delhi
14th - 15th April 2009