#SecurityScan 29: Defence Budget, Securing border areas and more

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

National security advisor Ajit Doval and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken discussed ways to deepen bilateral cooperation and shared views on a host of issues at a meeting in Washington on Wednesday.

 

 

 

 

General Atomics, a major American energy and defence corporation, has started three significant projects in India in the field of artificial intelligence, drones and semiconductors, a company official has said, a day after the launch of a landmark India-US initiative on critical and emerging technologies.

 

 

 

 

The India Pavilion will further showcase the growth of India in developing an eco-system for fixed wing platform which includes the demonstration of various structural modules, simulators and systems, among others, of LCA-Tejas aircraft being produced by private partners.

 

 

 

 

Google will make artificial intelligence-based large language models like LaMDA available “in the coming weeks and months.”Users will soon be able to use language models “as a companion to search,” Pichai said on a conference call following the internet search giant’s fourth-quarter earnings report on Thursday.

 

 

 

 

The Pentagon is tracking a Chinese surveillance balloon that’s lingering at high altitude over the western US, home to sensitive sites including nuclear-missile silos, Defense Department officials said Thursday.

 

The Chinese balloon, spotted earlier this week, was loitering over Montana for a short time and briefly caused the grounding of planes in Billings as a precaution. Officials said it poses no intelligence threat and a decision was made not to shoot it down because of the possible risk of falling debris.

 

 

 

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his Australian counterpart, Anthony Albanese, are planning to go to Washington DC in mid-March potentially to unveil a proposal for Australia’s nuclear submarine project.

 

Under plans still being thrashed out, President Joe Biden could host the British and Australian leaders, and the allies are expected to announce their preferred design to replace Australia’s aging Collins-class fleet.

 

 

 

 

China-Korea semiconductor trade ties start to fray under US pressure.Samsung and SK Hynix are finding it difficult to expand in China because Washington has cut China’s access to advanced chip making equipment.Early signs of decoupling could become more prominent in 2023 as Seoul has little choice but to align its policies with Washington, a major ally.

 

 

 

 

Japanese companies critical to curbing Beijing's chip ambitions, China has thrown in the towel when it comes to punishing Australia, Rahm Emanuel, the U.S. ambassador to Japan, told Nikkei Asia in an interview Thursday. Beijing's rapprochement with Canberra, after years of giving it the cold shoulder, proves that economic coercion will not work if the target has friends.

 

 

 

 

Announced Thursday by U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his Philippine counterpart, Carlito Galvez Jr., in Manila, the pact will grant U.S. forces access to four more military sites in the country — in addition to a previously agreed five — providing Washington with a strategic footing on the southeastern edge of the disputed South China Sea. The US has secured access to four additional military bases in the Philippines - a key bit of real estate which would offer a front seat to monitor the Chinese in the South China Sea and around Taiwan.

 

With this deal, Washington has stitched the gap in the arc of US alliances stretching from South Korea and Japan in the north to Australia in the south.The missing link had been the Philippines, which borders two of the biggest potential flashpoints, Taiwan and the South China Sea, or the West Philippine Sea as Manila insists on calling it.

 

 

 

 

China, only the third country to put a man in space after the Soviet Union and United States, is to build ground stations on Antarctica to back its network of ocean monitoring satellites, state media said on Thursday.

 

China's global network of ground stations to support a growing number of satellites and outer space ambitions has drawn concern from some nations that it could be used for espionage.

 

 

 

 

A report documented a total of 2,405 subsidiaries owned by 1,404 EU and G-7 companies that were active in Russia at the time of the first military incursion into Ukraine.

 

By November 2022, fewer than 9% had divested at least one subsidiary in Russia, and the research team noted that these divestment rates barely changed over the fourth quarter of 2022.

 

Barclays European consumer staples analysts said that while most of the companies they cover had pledged to exit Russia, few have managed to do so yet.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The official said the case, pertaining to a conspiracy hatched by ISIS for propagation of its ideology and to raise funds for the organization, was suo-moto registered by the NIA on June 25 last year.

 

 

 

Participants also discussed the critical value that startups and VCs play in accelerating innovation and the commercialization of new technologies. Industry representatives noted that shared resolve to facilitate the movement of highly skilled workers and scientific personnel, as well as to ease export control measures and protect intellectual property frameworks, would be key to further developing the US-India innovation ecosystem. The US Chamber of Commerce will continue conversations on critical and emerging technologies with India as part of its close engagement with its G20 agenda, and as a chair of the B20.

 

 

 

 

The Budget session of the Parliament started with the maiden address of President Droupadi Murmu to a joint sitting of both Houses on Tuesday.

 

 

 

 

Angered by Pakistan's cooperation with Washington in the war on terrorism, the TTP was officially set up by Pakistani militants in 2007 when different outlawed groups agreed to work together against Pakistan and support the Afghan Taliban, who were fighting U.S. and NATO forces.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The defence ministry has been allotted at ₹5.93 lakh crore, up from ₹5.25 lakh crore in the 2022-23 budget. There is 12.95% hike in the total budget compared to last years revised estimate’s (money that was actually spent)

 

 

 

 

A total of Rs 1.62 lakh crore has been set aside for capital expenditure that includes purchasing new weapons, aircraft, warships and other military hardware, The capital outlay has been hiked to ₹1.62 lakh crore, a ₹10,000 crore hike from last time. The armed forces have not been able to spend the full amount of ₹1.52 lakh crore allotted in the last budget. This is because of the air force surrendering ₹1,837 crore as per the revised estimates.

 

The relatively small hike in capital expenditure has resulted in disappointment for the industry. "Capex for defence gets a nominal increase of 7% vs 33% increase in the nation's overall capital expenditure commitment. This capex allocation misses on the government's impetus on defence manufacturing.

 

The government also increased the capital budget of Border Roads Organisation by 43% to ₹5,000 crore against ₹3,500 crore in FY23.The increase will boost border infrastructure and assist in implementing projects like the Sela Tunnel, Nechipu Tunnel and Sela-Chhabrela Tunnel, Which will improve defensive preparedness and capability to move troops from the rear areas into forward areas on the Indo China border.

 

Capital expenditure in the defence sector is crucial for India’s aim to become self-reliant in defence manufacturing and to meet a rising challenge from China and Pakistan by creating infrastructure and adopting modern technology. The government, in the last few years, has encouraged domestic manufacturing while reducing exports under the defence ecosystem of India. The exports in the sector surged nearly eight times to Rs 12,815 crore in 2021-22 from Rs 1,521 crore in 2016-17.

 

 

 

 

In September 2022, the government had introduced the PLI scheme in order to spur manufacturing of drones and drone components in India. The defence ministry had, in December last year, approved the procurement of arms worth over Rs 84,300 crore to boost the combat capabilities of the defence forces. This amount included approval for six capital acquisitions for the Indian Army, 10 for the Indian Navy, six for Indian Air Force, and two for Indian Coast Guard.

 

 

 

 

The increase in the budget is mostly on account of a peak in revenue expenditure (₹2.7 lakh crore) projected for the financial year.

 

Allocation of Rs 2,70,120 crore has been made for revenue expenditure that includes expenses on payment of salaries and maintenance of establishments. The budgetary allocation of revenue expenditure in 2022-23 was Rs 2,39,000 crore. "The allocation under this segment has doubled in two years since FY 2021-22.

 

This will cater to sustenance of Weapon Systems, Platforms including Ships/Aircrafts & their logistics; boost fleet serviceability; emergency procurement of critical ammunition and spares; procuring/hiring of niche capabilities to mitigate capability gaps wherever required; progress stocking of military reserves, strengthening forward defences, amongst others.

 

The enhanced allocations in the Budget will also cater to Training Aids & Simulators for Agniveers and ensure that they achieve the set standards of training for induction in the Defence Forces.

 

 

 

 

 

The expenditure on defence pensions has gone up considerably over arrears being disbursed under the One Rank-One Pension (OROP) scheme and the ballooning defence pension bill that is estimated to cost ₹1.38 lakh crore. The pensions expenditure has exceeded budgetary estimates of last year (₹1.53 lakh crore against the estimated ₹1.19 lakh crore) on account of OROP arrears being paid out. ₹23,600 crore worth of arrears are being paid out.

 

 

 

 

 

The government had allocated ₹1,364 crore in the last budget for a technology development fund for development of prototypes under the 'Make Procedure'. But Industry-led development of new military projects has failed to take off. despite adequate budgetary allocations last year. The industry/armed forces could only spend ₹122 crore out of this allocation.

 

 

 

 

While several projects under this scheme - including anti-drone systems, 155 mm guided munitions and loitering munitions - have been cleared by the ministry, the process to allocate them to the industry has not been completed.

Towards strengthening Research and Development in Defence, the allocation to DRDO has been enhanced by 9%, with a total allocation of Rs 23,264 crore in BE 2023-24, But the DRDO has to be made more accountable and must finish projects in time.

 

To further foster innovation, encourage technology development and strengthen the Defence Industrial eco-system in the country, iDEX and DTIS has been allocated Rs 116 crore and Rs 45 crore respectively representing an enhancement of 93% for iDEX and 95% for DTIS over 2022-23. This will fulfill Ministry of Defence vision to leverage ideas from bright young minds across the country. The MOD Bureaucracy must work over time and clear projects speedily.

 

 

 

 

The government has decided to encourage tourism in border areas, and speed up vibrant village program in the border areas, that is to relocate villages on our own side of the border right up to the China border so that they become eyes and ears of the security forces and keep watch on any enemy intrusions that may take place. Sustained effort in developing Jammu Kashmir Ladakh and Northeast good for the army as it benefist due to improved infrastructure especially in the mountainous border areas. Investment in infrastructure outlay is increasing by 33% .

 

 

 

 

Rs 1.96 lakh crore allocated to Home Ministry .Sending a clear message about its internal security priorities, the government allocated Rs 1.96 lakh crore to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) with a majority of the spending on Central Armed Police Forces such as CRPF and intelligence gathering.

 

The 2023-24 budget allocation to the MHA, is Rs 1,96,034.94 crore. The budget 2022-23 had earmarked Rs 1,85,776.55 crore. A substantial amount has also been allocated for improving infrastructure along the international border, police infrastructure and modernisation of police forces.

 

The bulk of the amount of the MHA, Rs 1,27,756.74 crore, has been allocated to the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) in comparison to Rs 1,19,070.36 crore in 2022-23.

 

Among the CAPFs, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), mostly responsible for internal security duties and fighting militancy in Jammu and Kashmir, has been allocated Rs 31,772.23 crore in comparison to Rs 31,495.88 crore given in 2022- 23.

 

The Border Security Force (BSF), which guards India's border with Pakistan and Bangladesh besides handling internal security assignments, has been given Rs 24,771.28 crore in comparison to Rs 23,557.51 crore given in the current budget.

 

The Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which protects vital installations such as nuclear projects, airports and metro networks, has been given Rs 13,214.68 crore in comparison to Rs 12,293.23 crore allocated in 2022-23. The Shashastra Seema Bal (SSB), which guards India's borders with Nepal and Bhutan, has been allocated Rs 8,329.10 crore in comparison to Rs 8,019.78 crore given in 2022-23. The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), which guards the Sino-Indian border, got Rs 8,096.89 crore in comparison to Rs 7,626.38 crore given in the current year.

 

 

 

 

The Assam Rifles, which is deployed along the India-Myanmar border and for anti-insurgency duties in the Northeast, has been allocated Rs 7,052.46 crore in comparison to Rs 6,561.33 crore given in the current year.

 

The National Security Guard (NSG), the elite commando force to tackle any emergency security situation, has been allocated Rs 1,286.54 crore in comparison to Rs 1,183.80 crore given in 2022-23. The Intelligence Bureau has been given Rs 3,418.32 crore in comparison to Rs 3,022.02 crore given in the current fiscal. The Special Protection Group (SPG), which protects the prime minister, has been allocated Rs 433.59 crore in comparison to Rs 411.88 crore given in 2022-23. The Delhi Police has been allocated Rs 11,662.03 crore in comparison to Rs 11,617.59 crore given in 2022-23.

 

A sum of Rs 3,545.03 crore has been allocated for development of border infrastructure like construction of roads and bridges in comparison to Rs 3,738.98 crore allocated in the current fiscal. Rs 3636.66 crore has been given for development of police infrastructure in comparison to Rs 2,188.38 crore allocated in 2022-23.

 

For modernisation of police forces in the country, the budget allocated Rs 3,750 crore in comparison to Rs 2,432.06 crore given in 2022-23. Rs 2780.88 crore has been allocated for security-related expenditure in comparison to Rs 2,024.54 crore given in the current year. The budget also allocated Rs 1,100 crore for women safety schemes, Rs 700 crore for modernisation of forensic capacities, Rs 350.61 crore for maintenance of border check posts and Rs 202.27 crore for Modernisation Plan IV for CAPFs.

 

The increase in the MHA budget will definitely improve the internal security and management of borders with Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and Myanmar and International border with Pakistan which is banned by capf forces. The security challenges on these borders are smuggling of arms, ammunition, drugs, fake Indian currency notes and illegal human migration especially on the Bangladesh border.

 

 

 

 

 

Defence stocks had ralled up to 8% ahead of Budget.Defence sector, wanted increase in the outlay indigenisation, which means an emphasis on local production. This year a significant budget has been allotted for the space and research, electronic equipment and advancement for further localization.

 

The GOI is fostering healthy competition in the defence space through launching various PLI schemes. This would surely improve the quality of defence products and services and further enhance the defence sector.

 

Despite very serious challenges posed by the Indian economy due to spread of Corona in China, recession in most part of the world and economic uncertainties due to Russia Ukraine war, the country has still managed to increase its defence budget. This is creditable.

 

Exponential increase in budget for improving country’s infrastructure will help the armed forces in the border areas. Increase in capital expenditure will also help in achieving Atmannirbharta in defence manufacturing and improve the security environment in the country.

 

India's economy is growing at the fast speed in the whole world. This will also ensure that defense budget gets additional funds for furthering defence preparedness in the days to come.

 

 

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