Ashely Tellis on Indian Armed Forces as published in US Army War College Compendium.
https://carnegieendowment.org/files/India_-_Capable_but_Constrained.pdf
Thanks for posting:
Interesting section from above:
"
Two other realities shape the Indian Army’s large
force size. First, given the trauma surrounding the
country’s independence, which resulted in the partition
of the subcontinent, India’s political leaders since have
insisted their armed forces lose no further territory
in the event of conflict. The huge territorial claims
levied by Pakistan and China over the years have only reinforced this sentiment. The political requirement that no Indian territory be lost has compelled the Indian Army to defend the country’s vast frontiers
l inearly, packing the front with numerous combat
formations intended to parry any adversary thrusts
that might result in significant territorial losses. The inability to trade space for operational effectiveness.
has thus prevented the Indian Army from generally
prosecuting large-scale campaigns of maneuver.
Instead, the army plans for wars of attrition in which
large forces deployed along virtually continuous
fronts are employed to grind down their opponents in
set-piece battles that put a premium on numerical and
firepower superiority.
The other reason the Indian Army has ended up
with huge military forces is the enlisted manpower
that forms the bulk of the army’s infantry formations
is drawn mainly from rural India. Although recruits
have completed high school and are trained to rigorous
standards upon joining the service, they are most
proficient in infantry operations that involve either
holding territorial objectives or mounting prepared
advances on the battlefield. The officer corps of the
Indian Army is also highly conservative and appears
to be comfortable with methodical and deliberate
operations. The constrained defense budgets have
only reinforced the army’s proclivity for attrition
operations because the army could not invest heavily
in alternatives to light infantry.
In all of its wars with Pakistan, only once did
the Indian Army demonstrate the capacity for deep-
maneuver warfare. In East Pakistan in 1971, "
Interesting points. Don't agree 100% but issues raised above merit a discussion.
As an alternative Israel is a country that has a smaller military that open faces multiple larger military threats BUT how much does the alliance with Uncle Sam help?
Also we are the ONLY country that has conflicts with 2 peer powers on our borders with nuclear weapons.
How much of attrition warfare is to ensure little loss of territory for us or Opfor so that shit dome go nuclear ?
zeenews.india.com
indianexpress.com
timesofindia.indiatimes.com
Kargil war report explicitly asked armed forces to be for and youthful and we are again going back to late retirement to save money.
