The Hindu : National : Private defence units must install security measures: Ministry

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Monday, Nov 16, 2009
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Private defence units must install security measures: Ministry

Ravi Sharma

Defence and Home Affairs Ministries will grade the security level
Employees’ personal details, track record will have to be verified

BANGALORE: With today’s increased risk of defence technology falling into the wrong hands, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has mandated that all private players in defence R&D and manufacture must install on their premises security measures that are on a par with or better than those at the defence public sector enterprises.

The measures are necessary in the new Indian defence procurement regime — including the ‘offset clause’ where a foreign company securing a defence contract for capital acquisition in excess of Rs.300 crore will have to source at least 30 per cent (50 in some cases) of the order from Indian defence companies — where India is not satisfied with just transfer of manufacturing technology, but is looking for design technology as well. Foreign companies vying for contracts are apprehensive that the technology they pass on could fall into wrong hands.

There is also the need to strengthen private sector defence units against possible terrorist attacks.

While the MoD is yet to spell out what security measures will be required for a particular type of defence industry and work, it will, along with the Ministry of Home Affairs (MoHA), grade the levels of security available at a facility. The grading/classification will be handed out at the time when the facility seeks its industrial licence.

The security measures will include demarcating either the entire facility or certain areas in a facility as restricted, classified, secret, and so on. It will also mean installing access control equipment, perimeter fencing, extra lighting, information security and surveillance systems.

A broad outline of the security requirements were spelled out by T. Ramachandru, MoD’s Joint Secretary (Supply), during a recent one-day conference to review security-cum-production issues of private defence sector units in New Delhi. The conference was attended by 62 of India’s private sector defence units.

At the conference it was decided that a draft document will be circulated among the private sector players — with Tata Advanced Systems acting as the coordinator — discussed and then with the help of the Confederation of Indian Industry’s defence committee put up before a MoD-MoHA inter-ministerial group.

Sources also told The Hindu that besides security measures for the facilities, the MoD also wants companies to undertake verification of their employees — their track record, including personal details such as birth, schooling, college and employment. While personnel verification is optional for the present, installing such a system will be an added incentive for the company earning it brownie points from the MoD.

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