Indian Army to cut 150,000 jobs as force plans to go ‘lean and mean’
New Delhi, Sept 10: The Indian Army is likely to cut over 150,000 troops over the next four to five years under an overarching cadre review that seeks to sharpen the force’s effectiveness and prepare it for future wars, two officers familiar with the move said on Sunday.
The cadre review, ordered on June 21, covers wide-ranging issues including cutting the personnel strength of the 1.2-million strong force and merger of different verticals to optimise its functioning, as reported by HT on August 13.
An 11-member panel, headed by the military secretary Lt Gen JS Sandhu, is carrying out the review and is expected to make its preliminary presentation to army chief General Bipin Rawat by the month-end before submitting its final report in November.
“Merging of some verticals and rationalising roles are likely to result in cutting 50,000 troops over the next two years. A reduction of 100,000 more personnel may be possible by 2022-23. But all this is in the study phase right now,” said one of the officials cited above.
The troop reduction is likely to be achieved through revamping different verticals including directorates at the army HQs, logistics units, communications establishments, repair facilities and other administrative and support areas, the second official said.
The cadre review order flagged concerns about how multiple verticals of the army had expanded over the years, despite technology infusion into the system.
“The line between verticals has got blurred, resulting in duplication of charters and associated manning. There is a definite case for reviewing the number of verticals with the aim of restructuring within the vertical as also merging where necessary/possible so as to arrive at economies of scale,” said the order, which has been seen by HT.
Drawing attention to the army’s archaic equipment and critical gaps in capabilities, former Northern commander Lieutenant General BS Jaswal (retd) said downsizing of combat forces has to be offset against induction of highly sophisticated technical equipment.
“As far as overlapping duties in logistics departments is concerned, there has to be a structured analysis to see if duplication in functioning can be streamlined into lesser number of modules,” Jaswal said.
“Theoretically, a lot of things may seem possible but you have to get into the realm of practical applications,” he added.
Apart from downsizing, the review covers an assessment of the army’s future needs, career progression of officers, deficiency of officers in units, career management of non-empanelled officers, provisions related to leaving service, and improving the efficiency and morale of officers.
The ongoing review is examining the possibility of abolishing the rank of brigadier to ensure smoother career progression and also contemplating replacing division headquarters with integrated brigades.
Revamping force levels to improve the army’s tooth-to-tail ratio -- the number of personnel (tail) required to support a combat soldier (tooth) -- has been a work in progress.
In August 2017, the government announced an extensive restructuring of the army to redeploy 57,000 soldiers in combat roles to sharpen the force’s fighting edge.
This was done following the recommendations made by the Shekatkar committee on enhancing the army’s combat potential and trimming its revenue expenditure.
The committee had listed out measures to bring down the budget for meeting day-to-day expenses and making more money available for weapons and equipment.
Courtesy: www.hindustantimes.com
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Rupee rises 10 paise to 92.41/USD; faces risks from rising global tensions
Mumbai (PTI): The rupee appreciated 10 paise to 92.41 against the US dollar in early trade on Friday, even as the USD/INR pair faces risks from rising global tensions, especially the US-Iran conflict.
Forex traders said the rupee is likely to see high volatility intra-day as the deadline for RBI's instructions to banks to curb their overnight positions to USD 100 million closes today.
At the interbank foreign exchange market, the rupee opened at 92.58 against the US dollar, then gained ground to touch 92.41 against the US dollar in initial trade, registering a gain of 10 paise over its previous close.
On Thursday, the rupee settled with a marginal gain of 3 paise at 92.51 against the US dollar.
"An estimated 80–85 per cent of these positions have already been unwound, which means the bulk of this supportive flow is now behind us. In simple terms, the cushion that held the rupee steady is beginning to thin, and this is where the story starts to shift," CR Forex Advisors MD Amit Pabari said.
Pabari further noted that looking ahead, the picture for the rupee appears to be changing. "With most of the NOP-related support now fading and global uncertainties still elevated, the scope for further strength seems limited. USDINR is likely to find a base in the 92.20–92.50 zone, with a gradual move higher towards 93.50–94.00 levels," he said.
Meanwhile, the dollar index, which gauges the greenback's strength against a basket of six currencies, was higher by 0.07 per cent at 98.69 as the safe-haven demand has come down after the ceasefire, but as the ceasefire is fragile, the US dollar is getting bids at lower levels.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, was trading higher by 0.51 per cent at USD 96.44 per barrel in futures trade, as the ongoing uncertainty over the Strait of Hormuz opening is keeping the oil trade well bid.
Pabari further noted that just as domestic support begins to fade, the global backdrop is turning uneasy again. "The World Bank has flagged that India's growth for FY27, expected at 6.6 per cent, faces risks from rising global tensions, especially the Iran conflict," he said.
According to Pabari, India continues to have strong buffers in the form of forex reserves and a stable banking system, but pressure points are slowly beginning to build.
On the domestic equity market front, the stock markets witnessed a rebound in early trade. The 30-share Sensex jumped 630.08 points to 77,261.73, while the Nifty climbed 203.6 points to 23,978.70.
Foreign Institutional Investors offloaded equities worth Rs 1,711.19 crore on Thursday, according to exchange data.
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