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NEW DELHI: The decision to scrap the Rs 3,000-crore Eurocopter deal at the last minute in December, 2007, might have been the flashpoint that convinced arms lobbies that defence minister AK Antony was a serious thorn in their flesh.
Antony took the tough call to cancel the order for the 190-odd attack helicopters for the Army due to irregularities in the bidding process and deviations from established procedures and this brought home to defence lobbyists and vendors, who were used to having their way, that it would not be business as usual anymore.
Sources said the Eurocopter decision sent shockwaves through the defence and business establishments as the contract was all but sealed and the firmness with which the French government's vocal protests were ignored induced a sense of panic among arms-dealers and lobbyists.
Long used to peddling influence so that shortlists and seeding were altered and technical parameters re-jigged to disadvantage rivals, the new regime in the defence ministry after Antony took charge began to bother several interests. Soon, Antony was accused of slowing down defence acquisitions due to his fear of taint.
The charge of a defence freeze is contested, with official sources pointing out that budgets have been utilized. Even last year, 66% of the defence budget was utilized by December, while around Rs 3,000 crore had to be returned to the finance ministry due to a resource squeeze affecting the central government.
With his political mandate aimed at keeping the government free of "scam", Antony acted without hesitation whenever a serious complaint was brought to his notice, making it plain that he would not hesitate to scrap a deal or order fresh tendering.
The Eurocopter deal was not a flash in the pan. The defence ministry's insistence that all bidders for the Rs- 100,000 crore 126-aircraft contract for the Indian Air Force fulfill excruciating technical parameters that would be the sole criteria for finalizing the deal made big names in the business nervous.
The failure of in-house lobbying and the exclusion of US F-16s and F-18s from the race along with the Russian MiG 35 at the technical evaluation stage led to outrage, with the Indian government politely, but firmly ruled out any reconsideration of its decision.
Sources familiar with proceedings said it was odd that criticism was leveled that India was "restricting" the race after the rules of selection were plain to all the bidders. The refusal to allow "geo-political" considerations to influence the deal left foreign suppliers and their Indian partners distraught and disbelieving.
The decision to blacklist Singapore Technologies Kinetics following corruption charges was yet another major friction point that disrupted the cozy co-habitation between arms-dealers and both civilian and military officials. "The government could hardly have pretended that nothing was happening," said sources.
With a series of decisions indicating policies benefitting select vendors and procurement procedures open to manipulation were being replaced by a more predictable and level-playing field, the utility of power brokers itself became questionable.
http://m.timesofindia.com/PDATOI/articleshow/12576932.cms
Antony took the tough call to cancel the order for the 190-odd attack helicopters for the Army due to irregularities in the bidding process and deviations from established procedures and this brought home to defence lobbyists and vendors, who were used to having their way, that it would not be business as usual anymore.
Sources said the Eurocopter decision sent shockwaves through the defence and business establishments as the contract was all but sealed and the firmness with which the French government's vocal protests were ignored induced a sense of panic among arms-dealers and lobbyists.
Long used to peddling influence so that shortlists and seeding were altered and technical parameters re-jigged to disadvantage rivals, the new regime in the defence ministry after Antony took charge began to bother several interests. Soon, Antony was accused of slowing down defence acquisitions due to his fear of taint.
The charge of a defence freeze is contested, with official sources pointing out that budgets have been utilized. Even last year, 66% of the defence budget was utilized by December, while around Rs 3,000 crore had to be returned to the finance ministry due to a resource squeeze affecting the central government.
With his political mandate aimed at keeping the government free of "scam", Antony acted without hesitation whenever a serious complaint was brought to his notice, making it plain that he would not hesitate to scrap a deal or order fresh tendering.
The Eurocopter deal was not a flash in the pan. The defence ministry's insistence that all bidders for the Rs- 100,000 crore 126-aircraft contract for the Indian Air Force fulfill excruciating technical parameters that would be the sole criteria for finalizing the deal made big names in the business nervous.
The failure of in-house lobbying and the exclusion of US F-16s and F-18s from the race along with the Russian MiG 35 at the technical evaluation stage led to outrage, with the Indian government politely, but firmly ruled out any reconsideration of its decision.
Sources familiar with proceedings said it was odd that criticism was leveled that India was "restricting" the race after the rules of selection were plain to all the bidders. The refusal to allow "geo-political" considerations to influence the deal left foreign suppliers and their Indian partners distraught and disbelieving.
The decision to blacklist Singapore Technologies Kinetics following corruption charges was yet another major friction point that disrupted the cozy co-habitation between arms-dealers and both civilian and military officials. "The government could hardly have pretended that nothing was happening," said sources.
With a series of decisions indicating policies benefitting select vendors and procurement procedures open to manipulation were being replaced by a more predictable and level-playing field, the utility of power brokers itself became questionable.
http://m.timesofindia.com/PDATOI/articleshow/12576932.cms
