I would confine myself to certain factors about planning and the efforts that we propose to make. In the coming years– when I refer to planning, I am not only confining to this year– we will have to make efforts in three or four directions. I am now talking about the short-term planning –I am not now mentioning about the long term planning – but the short-term planning is also to be spread over a certain number of years. The immediate effort that will have to be made is four-fold. Firstly, we will have the expansion of the army. Secondly, there has to be necessary expansion and modernisation of the air force. Thirdly, there will have to be a sufficiently strong base of production looking into consideration the new capacities of consumption that we are producing in the defence sector.

Fourthly, ancillary facilities like communications and transport also; that will need to be expanded. These are generally, four directions in which we will have to make efforts. I can say that it is our intention, I should say it is our decision and determination, to expand the army in the coming two years nearly to double the size of the present army. I know some Members may just say, why not three times or four times. It would become just a wishful thinking, because, an army is not just a collection of people, not even a collection of trained people. An army is trained people lead by trained officers with necessary powerful equipment and many other things. I am coming to that. This is certainly a very, if I may use the word, somewhat, ambitious programme, but we want to accept the ambitious programmes as our targets and fulfil them with your support, with the country’s support and the friendly gestures of friendly countries. Though our emphasis is on the production to which I am coming a little later, naturally, we will have in the immediate future to depend upon the support and aid of friendly countries. At this stage, I must make a grateful mention about spontaneous gesture made by many friendly countries like the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia and many other friendly countries in the world, because the way they came to our help has some good quality about it, a friendly quality about it. That only shows that the dynamic non-alignment policy has succeeded without committing ourselves to any group or alliances.

Now, coming hack to the army again, I would like to mention a few things about the army itself. Some Members mentioned about the concept of Mountain Divisions that were to be raised as to what are they like etc. I find from the questions put by- them that some of them have a rather wrong notion about it. They feel, Mountain Divisions mean Divisions which would consist of only mountain people. I would like to explain the distinguishing features about the ordinary Divisions and the Mountain Divisions. According to me, as far as I can see, there are two or three distinguishing features between the standard army Divisions and the Mountain Divisions. So far as the strength is concerned, it is practically the same. But on two points, it differs. One is mobility, the other is the fire power and, thirdly, which is also very essential, it also requires some sort of a special training, some sort of a special acclimatisation, some sort of a special use of special vehicles, etc., a special training for the particular terrain. I am sure that by the end of this year we will be completing five Mountain Divisions that we have planned to raise this year.