Defence deals: Ban firms only as last measure,says panel

Sources said the report has suggested concrete guidelines that need to be followed before banning a defence firm.

A key committee on defence reforms is believed to have suggested that the Defence Ministry needs to adopt a graded approach when it comes to dealing with tainted arms manufacturers and blacklisting of firms should be resorted to only as the last measure.

The Task Force of National Security Systems headed by retired bureaucrat Naresh Chandra,which submitted its report to the Prime Minister on Wednesday,delved into the issue of banning of defence firms that have severely limited the armed forces options of procuring weapon systems,as part of a detailed review of existing processes,procedures and practices in the national security system.

Sources said the report has suggested concrete guidelines that need to be followed before banning a defence firm. The current practice of a blanket ban on firms that come under the scanner has held up procurements for the armed forces,especially the Army that for example has almost no options left when it comes to procuring world class artillery systems.

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It is learnt that the committee has suggested a structured process when dealing with tainted firms that would withstand the checks and balances of the democratic process. It suggests that the ministry should resort to a complete banning of firms only as the last resort in extreme cases.

Instead,norms should be adopted that would determine what acts of commission or omission by the defence firm in question actually constitutes an offence. A graded approach has also been suggested recommending that individuals be barred from deals instead of a blanket ban on firms. Other measures include stringent fines of companies for violating norms.

The report of the task force,which was constituted in July 2011,will be scrutinised by the PMO and the government will take a call on implementing measures suggested by it on a variety of topics from the armed forces structure to key gaps in preparedness. Parts of the report are likely to be made public in the coming days.

The task force also reviewed all recommendations made by the Kargil committee 10 years ago. Several suggestions of the committee have not yet been implemented,including setting up of a Chief of Defence Staff. The task force,consists of retired armed forces chiefs,scientists,diplomats,analysts and intelligence chiefs.