BUGS ,WHICH HAVE BRED VIRUS

In a recent statement to the press, the Naval Chief  Nirmal Verma , when resting  the concerns of the public regarding the probable de motivating effect the spurt of scams, which have caught the attention of the people, will have on its own rank and file --- was specious by saying that, it was only some “Bugs” who sucked the organization. Like anywhere else, “Bugs”  exist in the  Armed Forces, also. You, have got it completely wrong this time, Admiral, because your analogy is least convincing and the metaphor grossly inappropriate. The problem in the instant matter is not the irritating sting of the customary bug, that can only cause pain and loss of blood at a very insignificant and innocuous  level, but instead the debilitating siphoning of a humongous volume of the vital fluid, which has the capacity to emasculate the Organization.

The series of scams and acts of reprehensible nature in the past decade, which have come to light, all involve senior and General rank officers of the Army. Sukhna Land Scam and The Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society Scandal, has a long list of one, two, three and four Star Generals (including three ex Chiefs) under the Armed Forces’ and the Central Bureau of Investigation’s scanner. These, can, by no stretch of imagination be explained off as aberrations and instances in isolation. These misdeeds are an endemic reality of the prevailing military environment and deserve to be lambasted with the entire force and facility, available to the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC). The Ostrich Syndrome will not resolve the problem of diminishing core military values, in its officership. This is synonymous to hedging the issue and ducking the responsibility to restore the elevating  culture of morals and ethics in the Armed Forces. The problem is extraordinary and therefore begs of the COSC to shun platitudes and take equally extraordinary measures to arrest, manage and eradicate the malaise. The matter is as serious as can be, and deserves a comprehensive approach to handle its repetitive occurrence. When the rot in the System is orchestrated and given finality to, by its Generals, we have a classic example of the ‘fence eating  the lawn’. Then it is not ‘Bugs’, Admiral, but instead borrowing from the more savvy IT terminology, a case of ‘Virus’ afflicting the System. This ‘Virus’ has the potential to crash the Military and its much heralded  Motivation.

Therefore, while Verma may be euphemistic in describing the current situation, he could improve upon his own understanding of the situation by being more direct in his response to the stigma which has tainted the ‘Uniform’. Yes, it could be a case of ‘Bugs, which have bred Virus’.

Brig (retd) S D Dangwal

Dehra Dun-248001

7895131861