We need to take Indian capabilities more seriously.
What many people in the west imagine India's Army to be like.
There's a general assumption in the West that the Indian Army is (as one forum contributor put it):
A third-rate force using 1970s Soviet arms and tactics.
We need to take Indian capabilities more seriously.
There's a general assumption in the West that the Indian Army is (as one forum contributor put it):
Pre independence foundation
I think that idea is well out of date.
Personally, I regard the Indian Army as a competent one, with a history that verges on greatness.
Say what you like about the British in India (that's a completely different topic) but we should all recognise that the British had built the Indian Army into one of the biggest and best in the world at the time of independence. It was using state of the art equipment, organisation, training and tactics, and it had just defeated the Japanese, winning 30 Victoria Crosses in the process.
All that pride, history, experience and competence was passed on to the independent Indian Army.
The 1971 War
This is the jewel of the Indian Army, the blitzkrieg attack on East Pakistan could not really have been bettered by any other army.
Modern Indian Armed Forces
In the occasional exercise with the US, the Indian forces very much hold their own, although talk of them 'beating' the US is exaggerated. The Cope India series of exercise in particular have given the patriotic Indian much to cheer about, with the US Air Force afterwards admitting it underestimated India's capabilities and tactics.
Equipment
Much of the Indian Army's equipment is not of the very front rank, compared to the best of Western equipment, and most issues with the Indian Army do concern modernisation of its equipment, which is not complete.
However, the existing equipment is likely to be adequate to the missions it may be required to carry out, and the way India is building it's own armaments industry is likely to pay dividends eventually.
The Future
I would expect that in future the Indian army will continue its rise and at the least maintain it's position as the pre-eminent force in the subcontinent.
Indian Army: Where does Indian army stand in comparison to Chinese army? (in terms of weaponary / tactics)
Please provide well-argued answers and substantiate with facts/reports (whatever is available in public domain). No nationalist fervor - only rational assessment! Analysis from ex-Army men or defense experts will be highly appreciated.
What if China declares war on India or it happens to be the other way around (Highly unlikely) , is India strong enough to strike back ?
Back in 1962 India lost war to China over the same issue , the non demarcated boundary has then since been a matter of conflict. The Chinese army has since been intervening regularly but this has now gone far beyond the limit.
Now that China signals for a possible war, let us analyze what does this have to mean and what do the number and stats say about comparison between the military strengths of the two countries.
Let’s start off with a few lesser known facts :
India is the world’s largest importer of military goods.
India has joined the Nuclear Power’s elite club which previously included USA, China, France and Russia with the development of ICBM (Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile) AGNI-V.
India is one of the few countries operating an Aircraft carrier.
Countries that Operate Aircraft Carriers Blue (Currently Operating) Light Blue (Once Operated)
What many people in the west imagine India's Army to be like.
There's a general assumption in the West that the Indian Army is (as one forum contributor put it):
A third-rate force using 1970s Soviet arms and tactics.
We need to take Indian capabilities more seriously.
There's a general assumption in the West that the Indian Army is (as one forum contributor put it):
Pre independence foundation
I think that idea is well out of date.
Personally, I regard the Indian Army as a competent one, with a history that verges on greatness.
All that pride, history, experience and competence was passed on to the independent Indian Army.
The 1971 War
This is the jewel of the Indian Army, the blitzkrieg attack on East Pakistan could not really have been bettered by any other army.
Modern Indian Armed Forces
In the occasional exercise with the US, the Indian forces very much hold their own, although talk of them 'beating' the US is exaggerated. The Cope India series of exercise in particular have given the patriotic Indian much to cheer about, with the US Air Force afterwards admitting it underestimated India's capabilities and tactics.
Equipment
Much of the Indian Army's equipment is not of the very front rank, compared to the best of Western equipment, and most issues with the Indian Army do concern modernisation of its equipment, which is not complete.
However, the existing equipment is likely to be adequate to the missions it may be required to carry out, and the way India is building it's own armaments industry is likely to pay dividends eventually.
The Future
I would expect that in future the Indian army will continue its rise and at the least maintain it's position as the pre-eminent force in the subcontinent.
Indian Army: Where does Indian army stand in comparison to Chinese army? (in terms of weaponary / tactics)
Please provide well-argued answers and substantiate with facts/reports (whatever is available in public domain). No nationalist fervor - only rational assessment! Analysis from ex-Army men or defense experts will be highly appreciated.
What if China declares war on India or it happens to be the other way around (Highly unlikely) , is India strong enough to strike back ?
Back in 1962 India lost war to China over the same issue , the non demarcated boundary has then since been a matter of conflict. The Chinese army has since been intervening regularly but this has now gone far beyond the limit.
Now that China signals for a possible war, let us analyze what does this have to mean and what do the number and stats say about comparison between the military strengths of the two countries.
Let’s start off with a few lesser known facts :
India is the world’s largest importer of military goods.
India has joined the Nuclear Power’s elite club which previously included USA, China, France and Russia with the development of ICBM (Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile) AGNI-V.
India is one of the few countries operating an Aircraft carrier.
Countries that Operate Aircraft Carriers Blue (Currently Operating) Light Blue (Once Operated)
No comments:
Post a Comment