1,007 DRDO scientists quit in five years

[HAIDER]

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), criticised for huge time and cost overruns in its multifarious projects, saw 1,007 scientists quitting in the past five years "due to increased opportunities available in private sectors", Parliament was informed Thursday.

"The rate of attrition is marginally higher compared to private sector industries," Defence Minister AK Antony said during question hour in the Lok Sabha.

"There has been no substantial impact of such attrition on completion of DRDO projects. The deficiencies are made up through regular recruitments," the minister added.

According to Antony, DRDO had submitted a comprehensive proposal of incentives to arrest the exodus of scientists and this was under the government's "active consideration".

Noting that DRDO has adopted a "dynamic approach" for recruitment of "talented people with desired competency", the minister said the organisation conducts campus interviews in reputed institutions like the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore.

DRDO also recruits scientists through scientists' entry tests (SET) and doctoral scholars under its ROSSA (Registration of Students with Scholastic Aptitude) scheme.

Earlier this week, Antony had served notice on DRDO to quickly rectify the defects in the Arjun main battle tank (MBT) it has been developing since the 1970s or the government would be compelled to wind up the project.

The admonition came during a review meeting with DRDO officials after the Indian Army refused to induct the tank citing 14 major technical defects.

A parliamentary panel had last month rapped the DRDO for failing to meet its import substitution targets by as much as 50 per cent, saying huge overruns in its big ticket projects warranted a "thorough review" of its functioning.

"(We) are not happy to be informed that during the 10th Plan (2002-07), against the target fixed to reach 70 per cent indigenisation, only 30-35 percent could be achieved," Parliament's standing committee on defence said in its report on the DRDO.

Noting that the country was still largely dependant on imports of military hardware and DRDO "even after 48 years of its formation has not been able to achieve its targeted mission of self reliance" in defence products, the committee pointed to the "urgent need for a thorough review" of its functioning and organisational structure "to increase its efficiency".

Pointing to specific projects, the committee had referred to delays in the MBT, as also those relating to the development of the Tejas light combat aircraft (LCA) and its Kaveri engine, and slippages in the integrated guided missile development programme (IGMDP).

Noting there was "no scientific audit at any point of time of DRDO and its projects", the committee recommended that the organisation's projects "must be audited by external and independent groups of experts approved by the government.
http://hindustantimes.com/storypage/storypage.aspx?id=0f941209-ca0f-4e33-857c-0830f927e0ea&

 

[joey]

Atrrition is a SEVERE ISSUE HUGE HUGE ISSUE, not the way report has been written.

but yes one of direct delay of kaveri is due to attrition, else what makes you think we designed Cryogenic engine cannot design a plane engine?

When you start the work and if you leave afterr 3-4 years the one to replace you will have to go over again.

increase the buck..

 

[Adux]

It is very true issue, I hope the government does something about it, The reason DRDO has asked for a whopping 400% Salary increase.

 

[Bull]

Well isnt this contradicting. There were such a hue and cry on the amount of money being spend on research which was going waste. Now they are saying the money isnt enough.

 

[joey]

^^ DUDE!!!!!

What money HOW MUCH?
800 CRORE ON AKASH DEVELOPEMENT?

DO YOU KNOW MAHIDNRA SPENDS THAT MUCH AMOUNT TO JUST UPGRADE THEIR SCORPIO CAR!!

Engine developement at HOW MUCH?

Trishul developement initial cost 70 CRORES!! NOW A FRIGGIN EW SYSTEM COSTS 100MN$ MEANS 1mn$ = 12 crore (roughly).

WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?

Kaveri engine developement DO YOU KNOW THE ASMOUNT OF MONEY SANCTIONED?

Any engine developement at such big scale that too of 20000 lb thrust will take NO LESS THAN 1 TO 2 BN$!!




It is widely known fact DRDO works on shoe string budget and still does what no one knows ........

DRDO asked for 4x times salary hike!

 

[EagleEyes]

Still does what no one knows?

Joey!

 

[joey]

Webmaster I wanted to say It does a lot more than what entertains many internet boards by articles written by DDM journalists whiwh are absolutely baseless.

But as usual, It feeds the 3rd person who are not aware of mil, and that is why they are meant to be written.

 

[EagleEyes]

That is true. Would you like to share what DRDO has done that is not known to the public and has become success other than small arms or so? The cruise missile you posted about is the only thing that validates your comment.

 

[joey]

Webmaster I'm in no mood to get in a debate with you, because research through 40 to 50 laboratories with 100 more small/medium pvt firms attached, with hundreds of technology transfers to pvt sectors to industries et al, isnt that easy to share, is it?

However if you come up with specific reports, I can put my views forward it, I once pasted here the article "The week" , on shortcomings of DRDO another one is here "Leaders not Crabs".

But just to make the point, lets take Ajay shuklas articles on LCA and see the substance he puts in, I'm sure your not aware of the total developement process of any Indian system so far, simply put you dont have access to the mil magazines that I do.

Read this expert from somewhere..

Hi Ajai

The problem why you are being excoriated is because you write rubbish. And you write rubbish because you are too arrogant to admit that you are wrong, and you have let your personal loathing for the DRDO and PSUs color each and every article, and you have the attitude of the self-righteous, that what you say is evident and correct, and nobody else dare tell you different! You make no distinction between the performers- such as BEL, and the disgraceful, such as the OFB either.

For instance, you call the LCA a dud, because it is not in service- what utter tosh! Is the EF a dud then? Its yet to get FOC or full weaponization! The Rafale- a dud again, why- after all the French AF is yet to deploy it after two decades of development and a couple of Rafales are tentatively being deployed to Afghanistan to check out the most rudimentary of A2G options. But no, they are white and hence infallible!

The maturity of the French and British speaks for itself- they support their own, they dont drip venom at BAe and Dassault, contrast it with your own actions- every article of yours goes out of its way to run each and every Indian product down, and often on the most spurious of grounds. The LCA FT crew would regard your article as a piece of yellow journalism, and so it is.

You call the LCA a dud, and then say what has it contributed- do you realize how ignorant you are of the scale and present achievements of this program?

You take advantage of DRDOs reticence in admitting what and how its programs are crosslinked, abuse them and the scientific community and then pose rhetorical questions to which the answer is obvious, but you will not acknowledge them!

The LCA's mission computers, its RWR, its jammers, its HOTAS, its environmental and control systems, its display processors, its composite technology, its RCS reduction- these are all flying on multiple IAF aircraft today in the form of upgrades. Those Pvt sector firms you shill for, TCS and others- ask them, which defence project in India they cut their teeth for, in terms of design and development, something which they were too proud to get involved with, till successive DRDO SA's asked them to get involved. Today they are reaping the benefits. And not only are you unaware, you heap bile on the very program that launched the defence entrance of these so called titans.

The problem is Ajai, you display a complete and utter lack of understanding of technology and defence strategy. You assume DRDO are asses, that they are mediocre and you know best, and your conclusions flow from that.

The LCA was meant to create an entire aerospace industry in India, private and public- it has done that, but will you ever acknowledge it? Hardly. Kumaran & Dynamatic in Bangalore, Datapattern in Chennai, Astra in Hyderabad, Southern Electronics- all these firms are tied to DRDO which has ensured that they developed capabilities critical to India,but you heap contempt on DRDO & PSUs by implying that they developed in a vacuum!

The problem is Ajai, that you dont know, and you write on what you dont know. For instance- India has attained critical levels of self sufficiency in EW & radars- do you know of this? Or will you admit it? Indra-1,2, BFSR-SR, now medium range, then 3D LLLR, 3DCAR...all of these units combine to orders worth crores. And they were selected after competitive tendering vs units from Thales and IAI. The Navy's EW is almost all Indian, and from the target of your idealogical loathing, BEL and DRDO.

What has the LCA contributed? Today India is amongst a handful of countries which can manufacture RLG INS- now you tell me. What are these used for? Do you even understand the strategic implications of this single item, developed on a shoestring budget by the DRDO?

You come up with ridiculous analogies- confirmed orders for the EF! Oh jeezus- and I wonder, you dont want the services to do the same for the LCA, but you approvingly quote the pork the Europeans did to prop up their product.

Oh, the average fellow can even tolerate your snibes, your diatribe against HAL- the same pathetic firm which makes sections of the GSLV whereas the much vaunted private sector screwed the pooch in quality control for the GSLV, we can even tolerate your self righteous commentary...but what we cant take is your dishonesty and bias.

You insist that te 6000 crores invested in DRDO has brought little, when it is obvious to an unbiased observer that DRDO has indeed delivered various systems over the past few years, and that by international and even regional standards, this sum is hardly the be-all and end-all.

The kind that implies that the Brahmos is the Yakhont, but fails to mention the Indian contribution to the project, and then even states that DRDO et al have not admitted to the Yakhont linkage- this when every Brahmos official mentions NPO Mash. and the Yakhont, including Sivathanu Pillai.

So you turn up at Aero India, and all you can comment upon- amongst the vast array of locally developed items displayed by BEL, DRDO and all you can do is make cheap jibes at HAL. What pettiness, what an utter lack of any graciousness and such puerile vindictiveness.

You turn my stomach & I daresay that of many others too- I am ashamed that you write in an Indian paper, I am ashamed that you serve as a propoganda shill across every Pakistani and Chinese board, and I am even more ashamed that I have to count myself as your fellow citizen.

I contrast your articles to those written by TS Subramanium of the Hindu, to Raj Chengappa of India TOday, to R Prasannan of the Week- and see the effort they put into their work, and your diatribes come across even worse.

I am an Indian taxpayer, and I am glad my tax money goes to the DRDO and PSUs- I have no love lost for the likes of you & your fellow journalists, who are more used to shouting people down without having the grace or maturity to admit you are wrong and massively so.

You are using the media to conduct a witchhunt, and it is a shame.

I see Shiv Aroor is also here! He of the "post on Orkut" and ask why DARE is a success whilst rubbishing the LCA...

The same LCA for which ASIEO developed all these items, and which was then spun off as the renamed and expanded DARE. To think of the ignorance amongst the journalistic breed even whilst you pat each other on your back and share the usual diatribes and "sources of info". Thapar, Pandit, Aroor, Sawheny and Shukla- kudos gentlemen, kudos- no arms manufacturer or CC representative could do better than you gentlemen achieve.

They are just trool feed to various boards across the internet in which it only does is entertain 3rd knowledged people on mil stuffs , lastly say after me the Commies must die!

 

[joey]

Here are some good brochures,
you might take a loko at them,

http://media.bharat-rakshak.com/aero/Users/Arun_S/Brochures/
http://media.bharat-rakshak.com/aero/Users/Arun_S/Misc_Temporary/
http://media.bharat-rakshak.com/aero/Brochures/info/

Just a few of the brochures........

 

[BATMAN]

It is very true issue, I hope the government does something about it, The reason DRDO has asked for a whopping 400% Salary increase.

I wonder what are their salaries now and would this 400%raise will help to bring better results or will it only inflate the project cost. At the end what's the fun if unit cost is more than that of a compareable product available in market.

 

[BATMAN]

Here are some good brochures,
you might take a loko at them,

http://media.bharat-rakshak.com/aero/Users/Arun_S/Brochures/
http://media.bharat-rakshak.com/aero/Users/Arun_S/Misc_Temporary/
http://media.bharat-rakshak.com/aero/Brochures/info/

Just a few of the brochures........

Very impressive, Its pitty people are critical of failiures but never praised success stories.

Comming to the subject, what are the average number of scientist working in DRDO?

 

[Adux]

I wonder what are their salaries now and would this 400%raise will help to bring better results or will it only inflate the project cost. At the end what's the fun if unit cost is more than that of a compareable product available in market.

Its not about better results, its about keeping better talent. they are asking higher pay so that good talent dont go behind the money available in the private sector.

 

[Adux]

Joey,

LCA isnt a DRDO project is it, it is a ADA project, Where DRDO contributes only in the Radar,Missiles...etc

 

[con]

1007 in 5 years makes around 200 average. Out of org strength running in thousands,200 per year. What is the big deal?

200 people quit from the company within 3 months from my friends company. And it is a British MNC.


What is the fuss!