Quality concerns may further delay acquisition of bulletproof jackets for soldiers

NEW DELHI: The ongoing acquisition of bulletproof jackets for soldiers on the border may see a further delay as ammunition manufactured by the Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) is failing to meet velocity requirements.

This means the jackets can’t be tested. This has raised concern in the light of the standing committee report on defence underlining that the jackets currently in service will reach the end of their shelf life next year.

According to a recent statement by defence minister Manohar Parrikar in Parliament, ‘the case is being monitored and urgent essential requirement of the jackets is being met through the revenue procurement route”.

The minister had approved the purchase of 50,000 jackets at the end of 2014. The standing committee report highlighted the need for 1.86 lakh bulletproof jackets and took a grim view of the speed which the defence ministry was responding to the urgent requirement.

There is a view in Army Headquarters that there is no shortage of bulletproof vests in critical areas of the North and East but the situation on the ground is different, others said.

“There is an urgent need for jackets, which explains the urgency with which 50,000 bulletproof jackets have been ordered through revenue procurement,” said an officer deployed on the border. The officer added that the existing jackets are heavy, have no protection on the sides and inhibit mobility.

According to highly placed sources, the ammunition produced by the OFB should match the velocity stated in the General Staff Qualitative Requirements (GSQR), which stipulates the requirements for procuring new equipment. It’s in recent times that the factories have been unable to match the velocities mentioned in the GSQR. The defence minister alluded to this in Parliament last month. “In the capital acquisition case of procurement of Bullet Proof Jackets (BPJ), trials have been delayed due to the need for conduct of velocity validation of ammunition,” he said.

This is worrying officials as, along with bottlenecks in the capital acquisition of bulletproof jackets, the ammunition appears to be of inadequate quality.

In 2012, after an assessment of the existing bulletproof jackets, the government decided to float a tender for 2 lakh bulletproof jackets. However, the jackets are still to reach soldiers and urgent requirements are being met through fasttrack procurements.

The newer jackets provide additional protection extending on the sides and front and will not restrict mobility due to its lighter weight.