All the buzz about Tatra trucks getting back into business in India after a two-year lull happened due to the then Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar, who in December 2014, soon after taking over, said he was open to reviewing all the cases of blacklisting by the previous UPA government, reports GEOPOLITICS Bureau.
Not many may be aware that the Indian Army operates more than 10,000 Tatra heavy vehicles. The Indian Army is historically one of the largest users of Tatra vehicles in the world and perhaps the largest outside of Czech Republic. Between 2003 and 2012, Tatra had supplied nearly 4,000 complete knocked down kits to India and these CKD kits were used to build, along with different superstructure, based on the needs and requirements projected by the Indian armed forces.
The Tatra supplies to the Indian armed forces got into trouble in early 2012, after the then Indian Army chief General Vijay Kumar Singh spilled the beans on an alleged offer of bribe to him for clearing a tranche of nearly 450 trucks for the force. The problem happened due to the involvement of a London-based intermediary and a then stakeholder in Tatra, who died in early 2016. There were also issues relating to the high pricing of the Tatra trucks being offered by Indian defence public sector undertaking BEML, after it procured it through the intermediary company, whose promoter was also the stakeholder in Tatra.
After the blacklisting of Tatra, as a desperate measure, the Army completed trials for two types of trucks to replace the Tatra fleet – the six-wheeled-drive high-mobility vehicle and the eightwheeled-drive high-mobility vehicles. The minimum need was expected to be about 1,000 trucks. The Army also wants to induct more Field Artillery Tractors (FAT) Trucks which are used by Indian Army for towing 130mm and 155 mm medium guns, which also has cabins for 10 gun crews and can also be used to carry dead Tanks for repairs or transport on a trailer.
This story is from the May 2017 edition of Geopolitics.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the May 2017 edition of Geopolitics.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
India's space economy set to soar
India's burgeoning space economy could see a substantial increase in its global share by 2040. At present, India's space sector contributes a modest $8 billion to the overall cake. However, the government has set its sights on an ambitious target, aiming for a five-fold surge in India's share of the global space economy.
CRITICAL NEED TO BOOST CONVENTIONAL SUBMARINE FLEET
VENUGOPAL MENON explains why India cannot afford to view the critical deficiency in Submarine force levels lightly
BEEFING UP OUR SUBMARINE FLEET
In the last week of March, the Indian Navy displayed its submarine prowess. Eight of its submarines operated together in the Western Indian Ocean Region, a first in three decades, and one of its Scorpene submarines sailed to the Andaman Nicobar Islands, overlooking the Malacca Strait, a critical choke point for China. But how is the comparison with China? RITU SHARMA reports
ENHANCING CRUISE MISSILE CAPABILITY
India’s cruise missile capability has largely evolved as a credible conventional level deterrence since the turn of the new millennium. But much more needs to be done, writes AMARTYA SINHA
BOOSTING DEFENCE EXPORTS
Earlier, India was known to be an arms importer. But today, the country has come out of its comfort zone and found a place in the list of top-25 arms exporter nations argues AMARTYA SINHA
ENHANCING INDIA'S AIRBORNE SURVEILLANCE CAPABILITIES
Project NETRA represents a proactive initiative by ISRO to safeguard India's interests in space by mitigating the risks posed by space debris and other hazards, says GIRISH LINGANNA
THE HIMALAYAN TRIANGLE: WHY INDIA KEEPS BHUTAN SAFE FROM CHINA
India, given its special relationship with Bhutan, has been very wary about the possibility of the establishment of diplomatic relations and the signing of a boundary agreement between Bhutan and China, writes SIMRAN SODHI
TROOST, DESAI AND SANCTIONS
The Western sanctions against companies and individuals doing business with Russia have produced a complex set of reactions with lobbyists and shell companies working overtime to beat the rap. A GEOPOLITICS Bureau report
THE KOREA-GATE
India attaches great importance to “three principles of inclusiveness, trust and reciprocity’” for creating the basis for working more closely with like-minded partners in the Indo-Pacific such as the Republic of Korea (ROK), better known as South Korea for “a free, peaceful and prosperous region”. Prakash Nanda dissects the relationship and the way ahead
Pushpak RLV-TD successfully lands autonomously
ISRO achieved another significant milestone in reusable launch vehicle (RLV) technology with the successful landing of Pushpak (RLV-TD), the winged vehicle, autonomously on the runway.
