Pakistan’s military industrial base is better than India’s, said India’s Vice Chief of Army Staff (VCOAS) Lieutenant General Sarath Chand, as he slammed the performance of ordnance factories at home, The Times of India reported.
Chand said, “Pakistan probably has a better industrial base, as far as defence production is concerned, than our country.” Pakistan exported more defence equipment than India, the Indian paper quoted him as saying.
Speaking at the inaugural session of AMICON 2017, a two-day conference organised by the Indian army and the Confederation of Indian Industry, Chand criticised India’s ordnance factories for not keeping up with changing technology and not undertaking enough research and development initiatives.
He wondered if the poor functioning of the factories was caused by a “lack of accountability”, read the newspaper’s report.
“It is very hard to see ordnance factories changing in the present state. Overall, it has become an unsuccessful method of supporting our defence requirements,” observed Chand.
According to the Indian daily, Chand further highlighted the importance of a military industry in times of war, adding that India had been “let down” by “friends […] whenever the chips have been down.”