Indian Army: News & Discussion

[ASPuar]

http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news ... SC/747109/

[ticky]

Reminiscence of an Old Soldier - an article by a former army engineer
I found it quite interesting.
http://thesangaiexpress.com/fullstory.php?newsid=3465
http://thesangaiexpress.com/fullstory.php?newsid=3494

[ramana]

Indian Army has two new mountain divisions in northeast http://www.sify.com/news/indian-army-ha ... iieaj.html

Indian Army has two new mountain divisions in northeast
2011-02-07 14:20:00
Last Updated: 2011-02-07 15:16:55

New Delhi: With an eye on China's growing military strength in Tibet, India has 'fully raised' two new mountain divisions with 30,000 troops in the northeast as a counter-measure and to shore up its mountain warfare capabilities.

'We have now fully raised the two new mountain divisions in the northeast. They are fully functional. Only some support elements may join them soon,' a senior officer at the Army Headquarters here said.

The two new mountain divisions, raised at a cost of Rs 700 crore/ Rs 7 billion each, will be under the command of the Rangapahar-based 3 Corps in Nagaland and the Tezpur-based 4 Corps in Assam of the army's Kolkata-based Eastern Command.

The two divisions with 15,000 personnel each will further enhance the tactical strength of the Indian Army in the strategically important areas along the borders facing its traditional rival China, which claims the whole of Arunachal Pradesh as its territory.

The new mountain divisions have come up at a time when India's security top brass is warily watching the massive upgrade of Chinese military infrastructure along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control (LAC) - the ceasefire line as there is no demaracated border - in all the three sectors - western (Ladakh), middle (Uttarakhand, Himachal) and eastern (Sikkim, Arunachal).

Indian Army refloats tenders for heavy guns

The other China-specific plans include the raising of the 'Arunachal Scouts' and 'Sikkim Scouts' that was given the nod last year.

India has also deployed a Sukhoi SU-30 air superiority fighter jet squadron in Tezpur as one of the aerial offensive measures apart from upgrading airfields and helipads in the northeast.The Cabinet Committee on Security had approved the raising of the two new divisions in early 2008 and preparations for raising the offensive infantry formations began the same year.

The army, out of its 35 divisions, already has 10 divisions dedicated to mountain warfare and another infantry division earmarked for high altitude operations.

Though the plan for raising the two new formations was to be in two phases over five years, the army has compressed timelines to have them in place within three years, primarily in view of the defence ministry's focus on building military strength in the northeast, the officer, who did not wish to be named, said.

Under the first phase, the two new divisions' headquarters, along with a brigade each, have come up, including the headquarters' support elements such as signals, provost, and intelligence units. Implementation of the second phase will be completed in the first half of this year to make them operationally ready.

The divisions have been armed with state-of-the-art technology such as heavy-lift helicopters capable of carrying 50 troops each; ultralight howitzers that can be slung under the helicopters for transportation; missile and cannon-armed helicopter gunships; utility helicopters and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs).

India is already in the process of purchasing 140 M777 ultralight howitzers worth $647 million through the foreign military sales route from the US under its Rs 12,000-crore ($2.7-billion) artillery modernisation plan.

The air assets, such as the helicopter gunships and attack helicopters, will provide the two divisions capabilities to carry out manoeuvres for countering the terrain impediments.

'The gunships and attack choppers will be necessary for providing the two formations firepower in a mountain terrain, as the army will not be in a position to deploy tanks and armoured vehicles,' the officer pointed out.

The firepower in the third dimension (air) was required due to difficulties the army would face in using artillery guns in an operation over a mountainous terrain.

Rohitvats isn't this armament plan from Sunderji's time? helicopters lift and attack, howitzers all integral to the unit.

[rohitvats]

<SNIP>

Rohitvats isn't this armament plan from Sunderji's time? helicopters lift and attack, howitzers all integral to the unit.

True words,Sir.

I don't know how many of BRFites know this but in 1985-86 (prior to Op Brasstacks), the Hyderabad based 54 Infantry Division was christened as 'Air Assault' Division. But like everything else, nothing became of this Sundarji plan. And integral air assets for Mountain Divisions also date to mid-80s.

As for the Mountain Divisions, the entire NE theater under Eastern Command has been rationalized (with give and take between Corps of Divisions) and AORs have been accordingly redefined.

[ParGha]

I don't know how many of BRFites know this but in 1985-86 (prior to Op Brasstacks), the Hyderabad based 54 Infantry Division was christened as 'Air Assault' Division. But like everything else, nothing became of this Sundarji plan. And integral air assets for Mountain Divisions also date to mid-80s.

The Soviet-Afghan War. The Paks ramped up their point-air-defense capabilities rapidly after witnessing the Soviet use of air-borne and air-assault forces in conjunction with their motorized rifles formations. It, along with SPA, is still one of their relative strengths.

[chackojoseph]

Blast-Proof Boxers hit India

To help save Indian soldiers’ privates, BCB have developed 'Blast Boxers', a pair of protective shorts made of a special comfortable Kevlar fabric. Extensive trials and ballistic tests have shown that the Blast Boxers provide significant protection of the groin against blast and fragment injuries from an IED.

[Singha]

imho the pakis VSHORAD stuff like crotale, anza , rbs70 has seen little if any change from their heyday in mid 80s till date?

the chinese do not seem to have a good medium range area defence system of the Buk, Tor, Akash or PAC3 mould either. I think they depend on the "small missiles" of their 200-300 S300 launchers to cover that angle but pakis are nook nanga at anything beyond 5 km LOS in good weather ?

[Surya]

The howitzers are still a pipedream so for now what are the arty assets???

[putnanja]

Given the sensitivity of Bofors, could the army have compromised on its trials a bit and selected a different system with less political risks? I am asking a genuine question here and not bashing anyone. Isn't some artillery guns better than no guns at all? Wouldn't it have been better to get BEML or some other PSU to tie up with some foreign company and manufacture/assemble it in India and deploy it by now?

[Surya]

Aroor had posted the arty trial comparison sheet

If you see the bofors perf its hard not to want it

But looking at where we are now

any thing is fine

[rohitvats]

The howitzers are still a pipedream so for now what are the arty assets???

PA has had constant infusion of SP Arty (M109AX) over the years.....my guess is that ARN and ARS (the armored as well as mechanized divisions) have high SP Arty component.

[Aditya_V]

Given the sensitivity of Bofors, could the army have compromised on its trials a bit and selected a different system with less political risks? I am asking a genuine question here and not bashing anyone. Isn't some artillery guns better than no guns at all? Wouldn't it have been better to get BEML or some other PSU to tie up with some foreign company and manufacture/assemble it in India and deploy it by now?

That was the thinking before the DENEL deal was cancelled, no further news after that.

[nachiket]

The howitzers are still a pipedream so for now what are the arty assets???

PA has had constant infusion of SP Arty (M109AX) over the years.....my guess is that ARN and ARS (the armored as well as mechanized divisions) have high SP Arty component.

rohitvats, I think Surya was talking about our assets for the new mountain divisions. Considering the severe shortage of tube artillery in the IA, the new divisions could very well be arty-nude till the M777s are procured.

[ParGha]

... about our assets for the new mountain divisions. Considering the severe shortage of tube artillery in the IA, the new divisions could very well be arty-nude till the M777s are procured.

Divisional artillery brigade is usually a mix of light, field and medium regiments. Whatever the M777s end up being classed as, the other regiments will still be equiped with other guns... some will be newly raised, others will be transfered from other formations.

[rohitvats]

rohitvats, I think Surya was talking about our assets for the new mountain divisions. Considering the severe shortage of tube artillery in the IA, the new divisions could very well be arty-nude till the M777s are procured.

How do we know that there is severe shortage of Arty in the IA? Yes, we lack newer 155mm howitzers and have limited Bofors stock, but acute shortage of other types? No, I don't tink so. Also, the Arty Division will take some time to form up...and will have components from Rocket Artillery and may hold the Brahmos Regiments as well.

[PratikDas]

US Howitzer field trial report leaked, Army seizes computers in probe

For the love of God, who gives a damn? Just order the damn things already! Investigate later!

[suryag]

The General's view with Gen.VkSingh being telecast on Undi

[ramana]

What does he say?

[abhishek_sharma]

Ceasefire violations near international border serious: Army chief

http://www.ndtv.com/video/player/news/c ... ief/190986

[abhishek_sharma]

The Chief of Army Staff, Gen. V.K. Singh receiving the Head of the Japan Ground Self-Defense Force, Gen. Yoshifumi Hibako, in New Delhi on February 14, 2011.

http://pib.nic.in/release/phsmall.asp?phid=33711

The High Commissioner of Canada, Mr. Stewart Beck called on the Chief of Army Staff, Gen. V.K. Singh, in New Delhi on February 14, 2011.

http://pib.nic.in/release/phsmall.asp?phid=33714

Any paanwaala reports about these meetings?

[abhishek_sharma]

Pretty good interview of Gen Singh (posted above), 40 min long

[SriSri]

Upgraded Arjun MBT Mark-II Serial Production to Begin in 2014

* Not really Army specific but don't know where else to post this..

[Rahul M]

^^
armoured vehicles thread. and thanks for the good news.

[SriSri]

Over 8000 Kashmiri Youth Throng Indian Army Recruitment Rally

[Austin]

Gunned Down
Sandeep Unnithan

Germany and Austria have refused to give export licences to their weapon manufacturers wanting to sell to certain Indian states which they believe have a poor human rights record.

[abhishek_sharma]

Gender bias exists in Army: Officer to SC

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 529169.cms

[Viv S]

Gunned Down
Sandeep Unnithan

Germany and Austria have refused to give export licences to their weapon manufacturers wanting to sell to certain Indian states which they believe have a poor human rights record.

Why is it that R&D in firearms remains the exclusive preserve of the OFB? I can understand (though not sympathize with) the private sector not being roped in wholeheartedly in complex projects like the Tejas and Arjun, but I'm willing to bet my paycheck - if the MoD were to open a domestic competition between say... Tatas, L&T, M&M and maybe Ashok Leyland, you'd have a testing prototype of a first rate rifle/carbine within an years time, productionalized within the next year.

But since the brass at the OFB are close relatives to the bureaucracy at South Block, its still best to beseech and plead with the Germans and Austrian for the most basic of small arms.

[Gaur]

Gender bias exists in Army: Officer to SC

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/indi ... 529169.cms

This is really amazing! Not to sound as sexist, but some women in Forces want all the equality that suits them and cry foul at other equalities which are inconvenient to them.
Women want equality? Why only demand about PC in Officer category. Why not also demand for the right to get enlisted as a jawan? Why not demand for the right to have the same physical standards for entry? Why not demand to be put through the same physical rigors as their male counterparts? Why not demand to be posted in Siachen at 20K feet? Why not demand to get shouted at by CO like he would when a Male Officer commits a mistake?

By god, how many times have I heard of female AMC Officers resisting against temporary duty on "compassionate grounds". Where was the equality then?

Mind you, its not like all Women Officers are like that. Most are disciplined and hard working but there are a few who take advantage of their "inequality" to intimidate IA.

[Singha]

tata lnt mm will also make small arm frm foreign partner but their factory nd qc wud be better. None of them have rnd in small arms.

[chackojoseph]

Indian Army personnel to get enhanced life insurance cover


Under the new scheme, the officers will now avail coverage of Rs 40 lakhand Jawans will avail Rs 20 lakh. The premium amount payable by the soldiers has also been increased accordingly. The officers will pay Rs 4000 instad of Rs 2000 earlier. Jawans will have to pay a minimum of Rs 2000 instead of Rs 600 to Rs 1000 they paid earlier.

[Brando]

Gunned Down
But since the brass at the OFB are close relatives to the bureaucracy at South Block, its still best to beseech and plead with the Germans and Austrian for the most basic of small arms.

The public sector companies like the Ordinance Factories are perhaps one of the worst companies in the world. Even the goat-herders in the mountains of Afghanistan make better guns, bullets and everything else better than the Indian Ordinance Factories. As a private gun owner, this is especially true with regards to the ammunition and handguns made in these sorry excuses. I would rather buy ammunition for my .32 from a drug crazed Afghan goat herder than anything the Indian ordinance factory would produce any day of the week, they are without a doubt THAT bad.

The government in its infinite madness has not allowed the private sector companies to produce even ammunition that is being manufactured hand over fist illegally from the hundreds of different insurgent groups to the small time "criminal" gun-smith. Hence you have very poor quality ammunition that often fails to fire and often fails to carry the distance expected.

We wouldn't need the permission of German and Austrian peace-niks if the Government just allowed these companies to manufacture weapons in India by giving them 100% FDI or at the very least sell off the OFBs to the private companies to bring them somewhere close to actually being worthy of being called a "factory".

Anything the government builds, the Indian people and private companies can build better.

[Surya]

Gunned Down
Sandeep Unnithan

A non article if any.

going the Aroor way

[VinodTK]

Soon, Indian soldiers may don sci-fi gear

The defence ministry has now floated a global RFI (request for information) for procuring " integrated computer and communication systems (ICCS)" for infantry soldiers, who constitute well over one-third of the 1.13-million strong Army.

[abhishek_sharma]

The Defence Minister, Shri A. K. Antony visits the unique Boy’s Hostel Disha being run by the Army, in Leimakhong, Manipur on February 19, 2011.

http://pib.nic.in/release/phsmall.asp?phid=33814

[ASPuar]

Sad.

http://week.manoramaonline.com/cgi-bin/ ... IAL&BV_ID=@@@

Rejection. Resurrection


Naib Subedar Balu Ram Nehra / Photo: Sanjay Ahlawat
SPECIAL REPORT

Neglected by the Army and the government, these war-wounded are converting anger into hope

By Ajay Uprety

They fought the enemies at our gates. Today, disabled, they are fighting corruption, apathy and red tape to get what is rightfully theirs. Reports say about 30,000 disabled Indian soldiers are waiting for proper rehabilitation. A soldier, they say, does not choose between missions. He just obeys orders. The soldiers THE WEEK met said the government seems to rate operations differently. Most Kargil veterans have been honoured suitably, but those injured in low-intensity conflicts and even in the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) are still running from pillar to post.
The War Wounded Foundation, a non-profit organisation, helps the soldiers find their feet once they are discharged from service. Operating from a small office in Delhi, the foundation's patron-in-chief is General V.K. Singh, the Army chief. The foundation is supported by donations from institutions and individuals.
Most of the soldiers THE WEEK met had poured their bitterness into some creative venture. But ask them to let their children wear the olive green and the answer is in the negative, quick and rude. Here is looking at them.

Naib Subedar Balu Ram Nehra
In June 1988, Balu Ram lost his left eye to fragments from a grenade. He was part of an IPKF village patrol when the LTTE opened fire and lobbed grenades at them. Badly injured, he was hospitalised in Chennai and Bangalore before being discharged.
Now 54 years old, Balu Ram survives by farming his 11 bighas. He said his pension of Rs:9,000 a month does not suffice for anything. So, from sunup to sundown, he toils in the farm. “This helps me forget my pain and the step-motherly treatment of the government and the Army,” he said.
Though he applied for an agency from a cement manufacturer and made many trips to Jaipur, he said corrupt officials in the company asked for hefty bribes which he could not give. So the agency slipped out of his hand.
“The government and Army should think of how a soldier will cope with disability,” he said. “Why the discrimination among battle casualities and disabilities. Is disability received in Kargil more important than disability received in Sri Lanka?”

Havildar Sajjan Singh Yadav
Sitting in a rickety wheelchair in his dilapidated house, Sajjan could not hide his bitterness. He shivered when he said that if he urinated or defecated at night, he wallowed in it until somebody came to clean him. “You cannot imagine the plight of people like me who cannot control their urine or faeces,” he said. “All muscles below my waist are dead. The Army and my unit have forgotten me. I die many deaths every day.”
An old transistor radio keeps him updated. A long iron pole runs above his head, across the courtyard. When the tedium of sitting becomes too much, he grabs the pole and tries to stand. Soon, he gives up and falls back into the wheelchair.
Sajjan, however, is not willing to sit and rot. He is the ‘news anchor’ of Ahiran. He reads the daily newspaper, listens to the radio and conveys the news to the villagers. Since he is widely travelled and has served in the Army, his opinion carries weight. “This keeps me busy through the day and helps me forget that I am a disabled,” he said.
Sajjan was disabled while fighting the LTTE in Sri Lanka. On January 4, 1988, his team was air-dropped in a village to flush out the LTTE cadre there. While they were advancing towards the village, an Indian Air Force helicopter mistook them for the enemy and fired at them. Hit in the spine, Sajjan lost consciousness.
Sajjan was flown to the military hospital in Chennai and was shunted to other hospitals before being discharged from the Army on August 10, 1990. He returned to Ahiran, and has been there for the last 20 years. He said the Rs:10,000 he receives as monthly pension is not enough for his upkeep.
He said he is not getting the revised pension. Sajjan said a trip to Delhi for treatment sets him back by Rs:5,000 and the person he employs to help him is paid around Rs:6,000. “Who would clean my faeces for less than that?” he asked. He said those involved in Operation Blue Star and the Kargil war were well taken care of, but the IPKF veterans were given step-motherly treatment.

Lance Naik Ashok Kumar
On July 23, 1999, Ashok Kumar was deployed near the now famous Tiger Hill in Dras sector when a shell broke his left leg. Seconds later a bullet cracked his helmet, knocking him out. For two days Ashok was lying in a pool of blood. His team’s ammunition had run out and no help was coming from the Indian side. Out of the 30 men in his team, only three survived.
By the afternoon of July 26, the firing waned. Ashok was put on a stretcher and moved out. Suddenly a fresh bout of firing started and his handlers dropped him, compounding his injuries. He was later treated in different Army hospitals before being discharged from the Army. Said Ashok: “My leg was paralysed. The doctors treating me told that I would never walk with this injury.” Back home, he found that the land mafia had usurped his 25 acres. His applications for jobs yielded no response. He said he even met Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi but nothing happened.
But the fire in his belly led him to a yoga teacher. “Yoga helped me lift my sagging spirit. I even went to Haridwar and attended Baba Ram Dev’s camp. I also attended Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s camps. This has helped me get rid of my crutches,” said Ashok. Now his day begins with yoga, following which he discusses the village’s problems with residents. He has guided the building of three temples in his village. He said: “What comes from showing patriotism in Kargil? A crippled leg, no job and loss of ancestral land to mafia, Army forgets you and civil society does not accept you. No one is bothered about the sacrifices made by men in uniform. Like me they are remembered for a while, then forever forgotten.” He is unmarried and thinks that marriage will hinder his fight against corruption.

Naik Dharamveer Yadav
On September 21, 1990, Dharamveer’s team was assigned the task of busting 12 bunkers made by Pakistan on the Line of Actual Control. The Indian soldiers set out to do their task amidst heavy shelling from the Pakistan side. At around 4:30 p.m., a shell landed near him and inflicted heavy wounds.Rescued by his fellow soldiers, he was hospitalised in Udhampur and Srinagar. Five major surgeries and prolonged medical treatment could not save his left hand and right eye. The Army medical board declared him 100 per cent disabled and discharged him on September 2, 1991. “At that time I got Rs:2.20 lakh only. Even today I have not got my full pension. Is the cost of a hand and an eye just Rs:2 lakh? Is this the cost of serving my motherland?” he asked. Dharamveer is currently involved in pursuing welfare projects for his village. He helps the villagers improve their standard of living by adopting modern means of agriculture. He has a little agricultural land which keeps him and his three children going. He ran a retail agency for ceiling fans and other equipment for seven years, but the venture folded up because of inadequate sales. “My wounds have rendered me useless. I cannot do farming or other physical work. Don’t the war-wounded like us deserve more?” he asked. “My only desire is that my last rites should be done with full military honours. No one came to inquire about me from the Army or my unit. They do not know whether I am alive or dead. The Army forgets its own people very soon.”

Havildar Rang Lal
In August 2003, Rang Lal was shot at while fencing along the Indo-Pakistan border in Mehdhar, Jammu and Kashmir. The bullet lodged itself in his left leg. “I fell, blood was gushing like a fountain and I lost consciousness,” he said. “When I woke up I was in an Army hospital in Rajouri.”
Even after treatment he was unable to walk and he quit the Army. “I have not got any benefit, neither disability pension nor any aid from the government,” said Rang Lal. He said he has not been getting his full pension either. To pursue his pension case, Rang Lal visited Delhi many times, but all was in vain.
A fertiliser outlet which he runs near his village fetches him Rs:3,000 per month and there is also the returns from four bighas of agricultural land. The 47-year-old Rang Lal has started limping back to normalcy, but the anger refuses to die down. “Why is there a difference between the bravery of a soldier who fights in Kargil and who fights in Mehdhar? Kargil jawans got so much and people like me are not given full pension. Are we second grade soldiers?”

Naik Surendra Kumar
Surendra Kumar was discharged on May 30, 2000, after he lost his left leg to an anti-personnel mine. He was fighting Pakistani troops in Operation Vijay when he ran into the mine. Bleeding, he lay on the cold mountainside for the entire night. At 5:00 the next morning, a rescue party carried him down and shifted him to the Army hospital in Leh. He was hospitalised for six months before being discharged.
“Owing to my disability I could not undertake any physical work,” he said. “In the initial years, life had lost its meaning. You can easily imagine the condition of a man who had been leading a normal life some years ago and suddenly he loses his leg and job, I felt crestfallen.” To support his family comprising his wife, two sons and a daughter, he started a tyre retreading firm in Mahendragarh. The shop is doing well now.
Said he: “Neither the government nor the Army have done anything for people like me. Even my unit forgot me. I was never invited to any unit function. Sometimes I feel like an orphan.” Exasperated with the Government's attitude he has asked his son not to join the forces. Instead, he is planning to make him an engineer.

[Sachin]

^^^ They all seems to be NCOs (and one JCO). Is it because there poor folks do not have the communication skills, or other means to reach out to the ministry or higher offices of the Army?

[rohitvats]

It is the bureaucracy in the MOD and Services which is the reason for the plight of these men......and bloody archaic laws.

[Surya]

thanks ASP for the link

Sachin

no single answer

one issue is we tend to treat some wars and ops more equal than others

So Kargil was a very public war but Op rakshak is chugging in the background so it gets forgotten

Then the IPKF the Army itself is to blame. Many in the aRmy do not want to think about it and the nightmare it caused.

most of the good people who served have left - many crappy ones who did not set foot on the island got promoted.


Then the apathy in MOD, Service HQ, etc. If you read Kaul's book (hell the title says it all - Better Dead than disabled ) you will see even he as an officer was subject to so many indignities.

The subsequent chapters deal with the injury, recuperation and rehabilitation process. Colonel Kaul lost most of his left hand and his right eye. He had to endure multiple grafts. The process was long and agonizing and left his arm is prone to frequent infections and problems in adverse conditions. The reader also gets an insight into the naiveté of the many well wishers who would visit the wounded soldiers of the IPKF operations. Gifts like transistors that did not work, vests and underwear picked up from street vendors and the most puzzling - 2 oranges from Mrs Pant, wife of the Defence Minister. A couple of groups gave useful gifts with little fanfare (writing material and toiletries).

Once he was past this, Colonel Kaul returned to active duty. A brief piece of good news was the awarding of the Vir Chakra. If he was thinking that the hard part was over he was to be strongly mistaken. A callous surgical specialist at the Jammu military hospital remarked that the work on his arm was a waste of effort and it should have been amputated! Then he was initially posted to Southern Command HQ. A Major General (one who had never been in combat) decided that the injury would have affected his brain. He was shunted to a Sub HQ to allow a favored officer to be posted in his place. This type of reaction was to be repeated by many. Unfavourable ACRs followed at every stage. Generals treated him with disdain and Army bureaucrats (both Generals and junior officers) continued to make him run pillar to post for his dues.

The reading is sometimes painful. While the stories are not unique as such (at least in India) one did not expect this in the Indian Army. The reader is left wondering the callous and inhuman behavior of some men in senior positions. What is it that brings such uncaring people in the higher ranks and in positions of power? Is this petty nature unique to us Indians? Regional chauvinism, religious cliques are all added to the mix. Again, all expected and seen widely in India - but one always hoped and prayed that it will be less in the armed forces. One hopes that this is a small percentage.

Basically the welfare of ex and disabled soldiers need to move out of Army and MOD into its own department.

[ASPuar]

Unfortunately, even officers suffer similar depredations, delayed pensions, lack of recognition, and failure of support systems.

I speak from experience. I have relatives who have served even in WWII, up to 1971. Today, they, as senior officers, must wait 6-7 hours to be seen at an ECHS clinic. One of them was taking an antibiotic unnecessarily fot five months, because his old doc quit, and noone else wanted to see him! But they are the lucky ones. They have not suffered the privations that some have, and dont have to fight the civilian IDAS pension bureaucracy.

Frankly, and if I many say so humbly. Colonel Kaul also had it relatively easy. Despite all the curses he heaps upon army HQ, some very seriously committed generals in the 1980s, put their foot down, ensured he got the VrC, and a transfer to the Army Edn Corps (though Kaul may or many not know this), and a job as principal of an Army Public School (Remember, all this happened in an era, when pvt sector jobs didnt go abegging). There are many who were much more disabled than he, who got nothing at all, and are living a pathetic existence, as burdens upon thier families. Colonel Kaul on the other hand got to stay on in the army, serve as a principle, and continue to be the primary breadwinner of his family, even getting promoted (he was a major when he was wounded).

[Surya]

Colonel Kaul also had it relatively easy.

I don't think the Colonel denies that - everything is relative - there is always some better and some worse or many worse.

he does mention those who helped out or gave him a fair shake



The fact is he was treated in a lousy manner by many especially those who have never set foot in combat.