It would be unwise to blame everything on the army general's shoulder. Yes, army haven't been very supportive of the project right from the inception, but still allegations of kickbacks for every mundane thing isn't good. It should be kept in mind that if the actual need arose to use these machines, it would not be you or me or rest of us going to drive these tanks in the battlefield, but these soldiers, and if these machines malfunctions or not up to their paper specifications, they would loose their lives FIRST.
Every machine needs periodic maintenance to keep it up to the mark be it car, bike, a/c anything... than a complex mechanical machine such as Tank with thousands of moving parts would need obviously more maintenance. when we give our car to service center, how much time do we expect it to be returned back to us. May be one day or two days, isn't it we want it back to us as soon as possible??................... now if the tank is sent for maintenance (general wear and tear), after how much time should our army expect it to be returned, may be one week, two week or two months (from the article it appears two months is more likely),
Now why army men would give a damm... to the reasons of delay due to maintenance woes of DRDO (more, specifically service centre department). They have a job to do and that is "Protection of the Country" and they need their weapons to fulfill their obligations. Why should they concern themselves with the intricacies of the service center? whether the spare part had to be repaired in India or sent abroad to there O.E.M for reparation, they should be concerned only with their preparedness.
The actual serviceability or combat readiness could never be revealed to media (public) for obvious reasons. But the matter at hand is very serious. There appears to be many genuine concerns faced by all the parties involved. Our DM, should definitely involve his personal nose in the matter, and address the matters of concern. And for serious aggravators be it from army, or DRDO or any other department......a PINK SLIP would definitely serve as a panacea...
Thanx