NEW DELHI, 30 December 2020, (TON):  Despite Indian strategy of becoming a regional power and the fact that India allocated allotted USD 66 billion equivalent to INR 471,378 crores for the purpose of military and defense expenditures for FY 2020-2021 with overall increase in the military allocation as compared to defense budget of 2019-2020 is INR 40,367.21 crores which indicates 9.37% growth, a gloomy picture is being propagated. 

India is unclear about its military and strategic objectives with that of its adversaries, Pakistan and China, and neither of them can be defeated in a war, a new book by N.C. Asthana, former Indian police officer respected for his insights into security affairs, says.

A review of the book National Security and Conventional Arms Race: Spectre of a Nuclear War carried out by The Wire news network on Tuesday quoting the book as observing, “a huge mismatch between the militaristic official and media rhetoric, on the one hand, and the reality, which is that India cannot defeat either country militarily”.

The reviewer, Siddharth Varadarajan, editor of the esteemed current affairs portal, quotes Asthana as suggesting that instead of pouring vast sums of money into expensive weapons imports, India would be better served by finding solutions to the security challenges both Pakistan and China present by strengthening itself internally and pursuing non-military solutions, including diplomacy.

“In any case, the moment Pakistan feels that it is going to lose a conventional war under the weight of a bigger Indian military, it will feel compelled to go nuclear immediately. This is not 1971. Recall what General Khalid Kidwai, head of Pakistan’s strategic command, told a visiting Italian arms control organisation delegation about the country’s red lines in 2002,” the book quoted.

Author further made it clear that exploiting enmity with Pakistan for electoral benefits has made Indian leaders victims of their own rhetoric.

Asthana’s columns are widely read for their scholarly insights and he has authored 48 books, written or co-authored while in service. He is particularly known for his willingness to be sharply critical of the political and bureaucratic establishment, Varadarajan says.