Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visits out
of New Delhi last week have emphasised the new government's
understanding of India's Grand Strategy. In some ways, it marks a continuity with the policy of past governments, but in important ways it presages a departure.
The
visits – to commission the INS Vikramaditya in Karwar and to the
kingdom of Bhutan – are connected through an understanding of that
strategy.
It has three elements: the
need for India to live in conditions of peace and stability in which
economic growth can take place and make the life of every Indian better;
the importance of establishing India's primacy in its own neighbourhood
before making extra-regional commitments; and third, and most important
in the current context of flux in the world order – anchoring India's
foreign policy in a strong national security posture.
Indigenisation
In his remarks at the function, Modi not only called on the Navy to
fulfil its traditional role in keeping sea lanes open to commerce, but
also promote self-reliance and indigenisation in the defence
manufacturing sector.
It may be
recalled that as Chief Minister of Gujarat Modi has long supported
indigenisation and has even offered Gujarat as a platform for defence
R&D and manufacturing.
Significantly,
Modi added that Indian-made arms and equipment "should also serve as
protectors for small nations across the world."
In other words, India must emerge as a net security provider in its immediate region.
As a former Chief Minister of Gujarat, Modi is also familiar with other
things maritime and has self-consciously promoted manufacturing based
on SEZ's close to ports.
Gujarat's
coastline of 1600kms is the longest among Indian states. It also hosts
ports, such as Kandla, Mundra, Dahej, as well as smaller ones like
Pipavav, Jakhau, Porbander and so on.
Gujarat
has also been a pioneer in encouraging industry based on proximity to
sea lanes of communications, such as the Jamnagar oil refinery.
If
the visit to Bhutan seemed a puzzle, take out a map of India and see it
again. Bhutan lies adjacent to two of the most sensitive parts of the
country - the Siliguri corridor and the Chumbi Valley.
The
former is the narrow neck of Indian territory that lies between Nepal
and Bangladesh, with Bhutan on its northwest. It is just about 35kms
wide at its narrowest point.
The Chumbi Valley is that part of Tibet that lies between Sikkim and Bhutan and is proximate to the Siliguri Corridor.
China
has claims with Bhutan on its eastern, central and western flanks and
the two countries have undertaken over 20 rounds of talks to resolve
their differences.
Strategy
In terms of bare
bones, the Navy's 2009 maritime doctrine describes as areas of "primary
interest" the immediate waters around India, the littoral reaches of the
Arabian Sea and Bay of Bengal, the straits leading into the Indian
Ocean and the sea lanes that criss-cross it.
From the purely military point of view, a maritime strategy involves
four elements – sea control, power projection ashore, presence and
strategic deterrence.
As long as I
have spoken to Indian Navy leaders, I have heard the word "balanced
Navy" for their vision what the Navy should be all about. Which means a
Navy which can exercise sea control through fleets built around aircraft
carriers.
Power projection involves
the ability to use the sea to make strikes on targets of coastal or
land-locked straits as well as in physically taking control of choke
points.
The emphasis is on building all four elements of maritime strategy. As the record will show, with mixed results.
India's
inefficient public-sector navy yards are unable to keep up to the
required pace of construction – the time they take to build a warship is
sometimes three or four times longer than those of comparable yards
abroad.
For example, most modern Shivalik class, which were contracted to be built within 60 months, took 112 months to be built.
The
Scorpene submarine which was to be delivered in 2012 will start
arriving in 2016. In the meantime, two of ten Kilo-class submarines we
had acquired from Russia are out of commission.
A project to acquire a new class of 75I submarines has been hanging
fire for the past decade. The first Indian designed aircraft carrier –
the new Vikrant – has been delayed till 2018.
Ironically,
India has a number of private sector yards dying to get into business –
Pipavav Defence Systems, L&T, ABG shipyards and so on – but they
are given the crumbs of the table of naval construction because of an
indifferent attitude of an alliance of bureaucrats and public sector
unions.
Reassertion
As for presence, India is reasonably well off in the Indian Ocean. It
has helped countries like Mauritius, Seychelles and Mozambique in
maintaining security. It has a strategic presence in Maldives and
Madagascar and ties with almost all the littoral countries.
Presence
is important in maritime strategy. But to consolidate yourself, you
need something more – a flourishing economy, maritime assets like ports
and merchant ships, an open trading system and secure sea lanes.
China
is using economic, military and diplomatic tools to gain influence over
coastal states and small islands in the Indian Ocean and is using its
investments and aid to consolidate its strategic positions and secure
the approaches to these positions.
In
his initial visits and statements, Modi's footing has been quite sure
and firm. The Indian Ocean is as important as the subcontinental land
mass for India's security and well being. To secure both, the government
has an agenda of reform and restructuring that are needed to enable
India to emerge as a security provider for its smaller neighbours.
Mail Today June 17, 2014
No comments:
Post a Comment