Only then will there be harmony in multi-sectoral and multi-ministerial policy making and implementation.
“The whole world knows, gentlemen, that we are building a new navy … well, when we get our navy, what are we going to do with it,” said the great naval strategist Alfred T. Mahan in 1892 I asked. US Naval War College. This is a question that we can ask in India where announcements are made in pieces without any national approach in various sectors. There is no comprehensive official document to guide policy and decision making.
lessons from china
What do other nations do? In 2015, China released the ‘Made in China 2025’ document, which envisaged a 10-year plan for the development of 10 key high-tech industries, with the larger aim of reducing dependence on foreign technology. The goal is to be 70% self-sufficient by 2025 and achieve a leading position globally by 2049, the centenary of the People’s Republic of China. China’s 2019 Defense White Paper states that by 2035, the armed forces will complete “national defense and modernization of the military” and, by 2049, “completely transform the people’s armed forces into world-class forces.” The Fifth Plenum of the Communist Party of China re-emphasized the goal of China becoming a modern socialist society by 2049.
Western countries also issue vision documents from time to time – Defense Reviews, Security Strategies etc. Shell-shocked by the progress made by the USSR in space exploration in the 1950s and early 1960s, US President John F. Kennedy propounded the American approach in May 1961 to put a man on the Moon by the end of the decade. The scientists were given a 10-year deadline, were financially supported and met the national goal. In August 2018, India announced its target of sending astronauts to space by 2022. Where are we? India made only two space launches in 2021 (one of which failed) while China set a world record of 47.
India should learn from China. Beginning his path-breaking economic reforms in the 1980s, Deng Xiaoping asked his countrymen to “hide their potential and spend their time”. With a one-minded conviction and a national vision to regain China’s lost glory, all policies and actions were first focused towards increasing national power by increasing economic capacity. This central direction and monitoring is still visible as Beijing looks to its Made in China 2025 plan, a long-term space exploration program and a military technology enhancement vision.
It seems that India first announces a program and then completes it. And even when the Atmanirbhar Abhiyan is in the limelight, it would only be nationalistic to ask whether everything needs to be 100% Indian. Is this even possible in this age of niche technologies being protected by nations, which exclude international cooperation? Certainly, many projects are actually being developed indigenously. For example, the progress in the UAV and drone industry in the private sector is really interesting; and Radar and Missile Defense Research and Development Organization achievements. But when there are success stories, it is dangerous for the environment to be pushed into the artificial world of fake grandeur and equally dangerous to allow the feeling of being powerful to kick in. Being powerful means having the ability to create and maintain one. The result requires a deepening of the nation’s capacity to not only be self-reliant in the focal areas necessary for daily sustenance, but also to support the steps taken to project national power to safeguard national interests. We declared that India is the vaccine capital of the world, but when it came to delivery, New Delhi reneged on its promise to supply COVID-19 vaccines; Our ‘Shakti’ became suspicious in the eyes of our friends.
three-step process
If we continue unplanned, we are doomed to Makeshifter, The fact that every emergency, without exception (Kargil, Mumbai 26/11, Doklam, Uri, Pulwama) As a result high-powered teams have been sent to make emergency procurement of arms and ammunition, showing that the lack of a national vision is costing us ; No wonder we get caught up in such transactions. Therefore, the need of the hour is to prepare a comprehensive document to enable coherence in multi-sectoral and multi-ministerial policy formulation and execution. Clarity will emerge only when the National Vision Document is drafted and put through a three-stage process. Firstly, adequate time should be given to the experts to draft it. Second, the ‘view’ must be put through an economic and technical analysis grinder to ensure that this is a realistic national dream. Third, the plan should be implemented by a body of experts that has the confidence of the leadership on both sides of the political aisle; Lack of political continuity would be a non-start to achieving the grand national vision.
Air Vice Marshal Manmohan Bahadur is former Additional DG, Center for Air Power Studies; thoughts are personal
,