ID :
123149
Thu, 05/20/2010 - 01:57
Auther :
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https://oananews.org//node/123149
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Navy Chief asks commanders to maintain vigil, moral conduct
New Delhi, May 19 (PTI) Indian Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal
Verma Wednesday asked his commanders to maintain a high state
of preparedness as the force's role in fighting terrorism and
piracy would grow.
He also emphasised the need to maintain the highest
standards of "moral conduct and integrity in addition to
professional excellence."
"The Navy needs to maintain a high state of preparedness
due to the ever-increasing demands of maritime security both
in the littorals and high seas," Verma said at the four-day
Navy Commanders Conference, which began here on Tuesday.
He said the tempo of operational commitments were
increasing significantly necessitating greater attention to
improving operational efficiencies and material availability.
"Professional excellence, coupled with material
preparedness, sound logistics, effective maintenance and
comprehensive training are the cornerstones of combat
readiness," he said.
His remarks on moral conduct come against the backdrop of
reports that a senior Naval officer, Commodore Sukhjinder
Singh, posted in Russia to supervise the Admiral Gorkshkov
aircraft carrier project, had established inappropriate
relationship with woman there.
The Navy has ordered a probe to find out if Singh's
liaison with the woman could have influenced the hike in the
price of Gorshkov's repair and refit from the contracted USD
974 million in 2004 to the recently concluded cost of USD 2.34
billion in 2010.
Verma pointed out that during the 2009-10 financial year,
the Navy had fully utilised its allotted budget and signed
major contracts including those for additional MiG-29K fighter
jets from Russia and for revision of Gorshkov cost.
Appreciating the additional funds for clearing important
schemes for the Navy, he said due emphasis was being laid on
improving efficiency of internal processes associated with
acquisition to achieve the goals laid down in the Maritime
Capability Perspective Plan.
During discussions on anti-piracy measures, he brought
out that since October 2008, the Navy maintained continuous
patrol of the Gulf of Aden when 17 warships were deployed on
anti-piracy duties to escort 976 merchant ships, including 130
Indian traders.
The Navy had also deputed its units for patrolling the
exclusive economic zone and maritime areas of interest of
friendly island countries in western Indian Ocean such as
Mauritius, Seychelles and Maldives, which Verma said would
continue to be facilitated.
The conference also discussed lessons learnt from internal
and international exercises concluded in the past six months
and finalised the exercise calendar for the next six months.
On Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), Verma said, "there is
a requirement for a national effort involving various
ministries to build a common maritime picture and enable on
line information exchange.
"The aim is to synergise various agencies with the vast
spectrum of information available to build an integrated
picture of the maritime domain," he added.
During discussions on Coastal Security, it was brought out
before the commanders that the Joint Operations Centres (JOC)
set up after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks were operating
effectively and in close co-ordination with Navy and Coast
Guard.
Verma noted that a fillip was provided to the coastal
security matrix by fisherman, who would now act as the "eyes
and ears" of the maritime security establishment.
The Navy commanders were also briefed about various
measures being taken to address the extant shortage of junior
officers in the force, according to Navy spokesperson
Commander P V S Sathish.
The Navy suffers a shortage of about 1,439 officers in all
the branches of the officer cadre. Of the sanctioned 9,293
officer strength, the Navy at present has only 7,854 officers
in service.
It is also facing a shortage among sailors. Against a
sanctioned strength of 54,317 sailors, the Navy at present has
47,134 sailors in service and another 4,957 trainees, leaving
a shortfall of 7,183.
Measures to improve the 'teeth-to-tail' ratio (the weapon
platforms and systems compared to its manpower strength) were
also discussed, Sathish said.
The deliberation would include issues pertaining to
maintenance, operational readiness, availability of ships,
submarines and aircraft, cyber security and personnel matters
impacting the welfare of personnel. PTI NCB
KAB
Verma Wednesday asked his commanders to maintain a high state
of preparedness as the force's role in fighting terrorism and
piracy would grow.
He also emphasised the need to maintain the highest
standards of "moral conduct and integrity in addition to
professional excellence."
"The Navy needs to maintain a high state of preparedness
due to the ever-increasing demands of maritime security both
in the littorals and high seas," Verma said at the four-day
Navy Commanders Conference, which began here on Tuesday.
He said the tempo of operational commitments were
increasing significantly necessitating greater attention to
improving operational efficiencies and material availability.
"Professional excellence, coupled with material
preparedness, sound logistics, effective maintenance and
comprehensive training are the cornerstones of combat
readiness," he said.
His remarks on moral conduct come against the backdrop of
reports that a senior Naval officer, Commodore Sukhjinder
Singh, posted in Russia to supervise the Admiral Gorkshkov
aircraft carrier project, had established inappropriate
relationship with woman there.
The Navy has ordered a probe to find out if Singh's
liaison with the woman could have influenced the hike in the
price of Gorshkov's repair and refit from the contracted USD
974 million in 2004 to the recently concluded cost of USD 2.34
billion in 2010.
Verma pointed out that during the 2009-10 financial year,
the Navy had fully utilised its allotted budget and signed
major contracts including those for additional MiG-29K fighter
jets from Russia and for revision of Gorshkov cost.
Appreciating the additional funds for clearing important
schemes for the Navy, he said due emphasis was being laid on
improving efficiency of internal processes associated with
acquisition to achieve the goals laid down in the Maritime
Capability Perspective Plan.
During discussions on anti-piracy measures, he brought
out that since October 2008, the Navy maintained continuous
patrol of the Gulf of Aden when 17 warships were deployed on
anti-piracy duties to escort 976 merchant ships, including 130
Indian traders.
The Navy had also deputed its units for patrolling the
exclusive economic zone and maritime areas of interest of
friendly island countries in western Indian Ocean such as
Mauritius, Seychelles and Maldives, which Verma said would
continue to be facilitated.
The conference also discussed lessons learnt from internal
and international exercises concluded in the past six months
and finalised the exercise calendar for the next six months.
On Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA), Verma said, "there is
a requirement for a national effort involving various
ministries to build a common maritime picture and enable on
line information exchange.
"The aim is to synergise various agencies with the vast
spectrum of information available to build an integrated
picture of the maritime domain," he added.
During discussions on Coastal Security, it was brought out
before the commanders that the Joint Operations Centres (JOC)
set up after the 26/11 Mumbai attacks were operating
effectively and in close co-ordination with Navy and Coast
Guard.
Verma noted that a fillip was provided to the coastal
security matrix by fisherman, who would now act as the "eyes
and ears" of the maritime security establishment.
The Navy commanders were also briefed about various
measures being taken to address the extant shortage of junior
officers in the force, according to Navy spokesperson
Commander P V S Sathish.
The Navy suffers a shortage of about 1,439 officers in all
the branches of the officer cadre. Of the sanctioned 9,293
officer strength, the Navy at present has only 7,854 officers
in service.
It is also facing a shortage among sailors. Against a
sanctioned strength of 54,317 sailors, the Navy at present has
47,134 sailors in service and another 4,957 trainees, leaving
a shortfall of 7,183.
Measures to improve the 'teeth-to-tail' ratio (the weapon
platforms and systems compared to its manpower strength) were
also discussed, Sathish said.
The deliberation would include issues pertaining to
maintenance, operational readiness, availability of ships,
submarines and aircraft, cyber security and personnel matters
impacting the welfare of personnel. PTI NCB
KAB
