If I read the press report right, days of INSAS, Excaliber are over. Indian Army is switching back to 7.62 mode and dumping 5.56. What a pity!
Is nobody looking over Indian Army and the decisions they make and change them at will. Until about a year back, all eyes were fixed on multicaliber rifle. Then they liked the Excaliber, although it may not look sexy like its western counterparts, yet it never failed hence a big plus for it. By then Indian Army head honchos had decided that time for 5.56 caliber is over, they would go for 7.62. The latter kills but the former wounds. It is the wounding logic and the number of buddies required to take care of him during fight had persuaded the Indian army go for 5.56 in 1991. Now that decision is over turned.
Mad General's in the Indian Army made the initial decision of 5.56 in 1991 and forced the tax payers to shell out $3 billion in 1991 dollars to replace a perfectly functional FAL rifle which is 7.62 and fires three round bursts, hence conserves ammunition. They argued that the range of 5.56 is inferior but a soldier would carry 20% more ammunition as it is lighter. All humbug - India Army was following the glossy brochures of M-16 rifle which Americans spoke very highly, hence adopted 5.56 caliber as standard rifle. With this the Indian made INSAS was born. Although, this had less operational troubles than the M-16 rifle had in Vietnam for 15 years, yet the nay sayers (all encouged by retired army officers) kept on harping on troubles and troubles and what not. These troubles were minor as opposed to the M-16 troubles but young boys and Presstitutes were hired by them, who had not seen the business end of the rifle yet wrote bad opinions about INSAS in volumes. The forgoing had direct impact on soldiers morale and public opinion about this big bad rifle. They were setting the stage for imports.
Excaliber - not so sexy as others in its class, is grand daddy of all rifles in the market of this type, hence the army procurement bureaucracy could not let this rifle to become standard. Hence for them there was only one way to push for imports I.e. To dump 5.56 caliber and switch back to 7.62.
Shame on them - they would not switch back to FAL, which India has these in quantities, they want a very pretty looking imported rifle with a different name.
Now tax payers are stuck with $6 billion bill for the fancy foolishness of the Indian Army cadres. So far no general has been fired for leading the tax payers the garden path. They should not only be fired but court martialled. Any argument of innocence or lack of knowledge should be taken out of their defence argument.
If the generals get away this time then they would keep on repeating it and hold the country to ransom, time and again.
Wake up Modi/Parikar, go after this bad decision making and put an end to it.
