The planned roll out of Integrated Battle Groups (IBGs) has been delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic, Army Chief Gen MM Naravane said, noting that a comprehensive “test-bedding” of the proposed structure has already concluded for its introduction.
TheArmy planned to introduce the IBGs, comprising a mix of infantry, artillery,air defence, tanks and logistics units, by first half of 2020 as part of a farreaching revamp of its war fighting capability, particularly along the borderswith China and Pakistan.
“Theroll out of the IBGs has been delayed due to the outbreak of the pandemic andthe need to divert critical resources towards containment efforts,” theArmy Chief told PTI.
“However,I can assure you that we will roll out the IBGs in the requisite time frame asthe conceptual groundwork has already been laid out and extensive test-beddinghad already been carried out prior to the outbreak,” he said.
TheArmy Chief also said that there could be some disruptions in defence productionand procurement in the wake of the pandemic, but it will be a “temporaryphase”.
Afteryears of deliberations, the Army decided to raise the IBGs along the borderswith China and Pakistan that will help it carry out swift strikes in case of awar. Each IBG will be headed by a Major General and comprise around 5,000troops.
Aheadof Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit to India in October, the Indian Armycarried out the “Him Vijay” exercise in Arunachal Pradesh primarilyto test the effectiveness of the IBGs in mountain combat exercise.
EachIBG would be modelled on specific operational requirement considering thetopography as well as threat perceptions.
Askedwhether the financial burden triggered by the pandemic will have a bearing onthe Army’s long pending military procurement programme, he said it may havesome impact in the short term.
“Defenceproduction and procurement are elaborate and long drawn processes involvingintegration of various systems and subsystems and dependent on global supplychains. Due to the pandemic, there could be some disruptions, but I see this asa temporary phase,” he said.
Atthe same time, Gen Naravane said there have been “numerous buffers”which will be leveraged to fast track production once the situation normalises”as it is a matter of when and not if”.
Thoughindigenous manufacturing will be impacted, he said, its magnitude will be muchlower.
“Weare therefore reviewing our contracts and procurement plans in detail to ensurethat delays are minimised and local vendors are not affected greatly and are incontinuous dialogue with all stakeholders,” the Army Chief said.
Hesaid the Indian Army has invested heavily in indigenisation of supply chainsand inventory over the last few years.
“So this crisis will not affect us as adversely as other countries. Most of our ongoing procurement are under ‘buy Indian’ categories from Indian industries which retain adequate reserves of assemblies/sub-assemblies from foreign suppliers to cater for contingencies,” Gen Naravane said.