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| Speculations over supplying firm’s links with local politician | | Faulty (ill fitting) jackets issued to troop in J&K | | Early Times Special Correspondent
Jammu | Feb 11
The report appearing in a section of the press about 17000 faulty (ill fitting) jackets issued to the army troops in Jammu and Kashmir for the winter, that hamper free movement of arms, essential for quick reaction to the threat from the terrorist, has given rise to speculations about the source from where the jackets were procured. The number of these defected jackets is believed to be running to much more than 17000 issued this winter to the soldiers posted on LoC and in Kashmir valley, who are now under additional discomfort in the severe cold conditions in Kashmir and upper mountainous reaches in Jammu division.
The sources trace the source of supply of these jackets to the Ordinance Depot to a Jammu based firm owned by close relatives of a politician from J&K who during the NDA government was at an important position in the Defence Ministry. Although these jackets are reported to have been issued to the Northern command in 2005 and provided to the soldiers this winter only, but the same are believed to have been purchased by the army Ordnance Depot during the NDA regime. The reports had appeared in a section of the press few years ago about the relatives of a top NDA politician in J&K, in a position to influence purchases by the Ministry of Defense, having supplied few lakh jackets to the army, which were never contradicted. Now the link is being established of these defective jackets with the supply of the same made to the army by the Jammu based firm owned by close relatives of the said politician.
Soldiers have complained that the jackets are very tight fitting under the arm pits and this is causing restrictive movements of the arms. Also, the inner jacket arms are longer than the outer arms in the defective items, the army officers said with complaints about the jackets pouring in from the Northern Command, the army pulled up the Director General of Quality Assurance (DGQA), the central body responsible for quality control in the armed forces, for failing to identify the problems at the delivery stage.
The sources say that the Directorate is still to initiate an enquiry. While the DGQA and the Ordnance factory board are swapping blame for not detecting the defect at the time of receipt of the supply of jackets, the enquiry may ultimately lead to the probe about link of supposed supply firm to the politician from J&K who held an highly important positions in the defense minister during NDA regime. Meanwhile the troops posted in the valley have hit upon a unique method to refit the faulty jackets. A small patch has been attached under the arms of some of the defected jackets to give soldiers space for free movement. |
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