Capital Budget Of Indian Army Should Be Raised: Parliamentary Committee

A parliamentary commission has recommended that the Indian Army's capital budget be increased in order to improve its deterrent capacity in the face of challenges from two “hostile” neighbours, presumably Pakistan and China.

The committee praised the Defence Ministry's efforts to indigenise military platforms and hoped that the nation would see “100 per cent contract value” going to Indian vendors in the coming years.

The parliamentary standing committee mentioned proxy conflicts in reference to the Army's challenges, an apparent reference to Pakistan-backed cross-border terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir.

The committee believed that money allocated for military modernization should always be incremental.

“The committee also desired that committed liabilities and new schemes be allocated separately under the modernisation/capital budget,” it said.

The panel's report was presented in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday.

“Our expenditure should be in proportion to the rise in military spending of our neighbours. As a result, the committee suggested that the Army's capital budget be raised to have a deterrent capacity to ward off at least two hostile neighbours,” an indirect reference to Pakistan and China.

The committee observed that the Navy's capital outlay for 2023-24 was estimated to be Rs 52,804.75 crore.

“In comparison to this projection, the committee determined that this year's allocation is pragmatic and supportive for the Navy, as the ministry allocated the same amount as projected, despite the fact that this projection is Rs 14,818.21 crore less than the projection it made in the fiscal year 2022-23,” it said.

“This also suggests that the requirements of the Navy for the new scheme have decreased, and gone down which may impact its modernisation drive. The committee recommended that the reasons for the lower projection in comparison to last year be disclosed,” the panel stated.

The committee recommended that beginning next year, a separate statement of the net budget be given after accounting for inflation, observing that it is a recurring and unavoidable phenomenon in all aspects of economic theory, including the Navy.