Our Bureau

Mr J.J. Singh

Mumbai , Aug 26

THE Chief of Army Staff, Mr J.J. Singh, has called upon scientists and technologists to join hands with the armed forces for technological superiority.

Delivering the convocation address at the graduation ceremony of the Training School of Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), he stressed the need to further strengthen the armed forces' association with scientists.

The army has changed its doctrine to adopt the RMA and network-centric warfare, which influences its organisation and command and control structure.

(The Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA) affords network-centric warfare in which precision-guided munitions and cruise missiles launched from stand-off and maybe unmanned positions strike accurately.)

Of the latest batch of 105 trainee scientific officers, 12 are from the armed forces, an indication of the importance the forces attach to science and technology.

Mr Singh described how much modern combat depends on science and technology.

Paying rich tributes to the nuclear community, he said that India wants to live in peace but that peace could not be had by one's unilateral desire; to achieve it, one has to be strong and self-reliant.

The nuclear community contributes a great deal to national security and energy security.

Later, speaking to newspersons, Mr Singh said that the emphasis was on technological superiority rather than manpower superiority and use of information and electronic technologies for suppressing, degrading, and disabling the hostile capabilities.

Network-centric warfare has brought about organisational changes in combat units, he said, and also restructuring of command and control.

But that does not mean that the importance of the manpower or hard-kill weapons has diminished or the military concept of `boot on the ground', he added.

Therefore, modernisation of weapons would continue.

The Atomic Energy Commission Chairman, Dr Anil Kakodkar, who presided over the convocation, said that atomic energy in India was in the beginning of the second stage; it calls for construction of fast-breeder reactors and

India is among few countries to posses home-grown knowhow.

Without referring to the recent declaration of Indo-US co-operation in the civilian nuclear field, Dr Kakodkar said that self-reliance was the bedrock of the Indian nuclear power programme but that meant not being vulnerable to technology denial.

Dr R.B. Grower, Director of Knowledge Management Group of BARC and Director of the newly approved deemed university, Homi Bhabha National Institute, welcomed the gathering.

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