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By Ajai Shukla
Business Standard, 3rd Feb 2010
The Indian Army chief�s dismaying disclosure last month, that India�s tank fleet was largely incapable of fighting at night, highlighted only a part of the problem with the Russian T-72, the army�s main tank. In fact, the T-72 is in far worse shape than General Deepak Kapoor let on.
Another signal of the T-72�s obsolescence was its recent withdrawal, by the army�s Directorate General of Mechanised Forces (DGMF), from next month�s comparative trials with the indigenous Arjun tank. An embarrassed DGMF has realized that, without major refurbishing, the T-72 was not in the Arjun�s class.
But in the army�s long-term planning, the T-72 --- which the more advance T-90 will replace only gradually --- will continue to equip almost half of the army�s 59 tank regiments as far in the future as 2022.
Business Standard has accessed a sheaf of technical reports and funding requests that actually quantify the state of the T-72. Exactly 32 years have passed since the first T-72s arrived in India; army guidelines stipulate 32 years as the service life of a tank. The earliest tanks from the army�s 2418-strong T-72 inventory should have already been retired, making way for a more modern tank, such as the T-90 or the Arjun.
Instead, the DGMF --- longstanding advocates of Russian equipment --- plans to spend Rs 5 crores per T-72, hoping to add another 15-20 years to that tank�s service life by replacing crucial systems, such as its fire control system, main engine and night vision devices.
The military�s Annual Acquisition Plan for 2008-2010 (AAP 2008-10) lists out the cost of modernizing the T-72 fleet as follows:
� New 1000-horsepower engines (identical to the T-90 tank) to replace the T-72�s old 780 horsepower engines. The cost of each engine: Rs 3 crores.
� Thermal Imaging Fire Control Systems (TIFCS) that will allow the T-72 gunners to observe, and fight at night. Each TIFCS will cost Rs 1.4 crores.
� Thermal Imaging (TI) sights to provide T-72 tank commanders with night vision. Each TI sight costs Rs 0.4 crores.
� An auxillary power unit (APU) to generate power for the tank�s electrical systems. Each APU will cost Rs 0.16 crores.
The Rs 5 crore cost of upgrading each T-72 knocks out the argument that the T-72 --- at Rs 9 crores apiece --- is value-for-money. Retrofitting upgraded systems will escalate the cost of the T-72 to Rs 14 crores. In contrast, a brand new Arjun, with a 1500 horsepower engine, state-of-the-art integrated electronics, and the indigenous, widely praised Kanchan armour, can be had for a marginally more expensive Rs 16.8 crores.
�It is folly to stick with Russian tanks despite having developed the Arjun, and the design capability to continuously improve it?� says Lt Gen Ajai Singh, who headed the army�s Directorate of Combat Vehicles before becoming Governor of Assam. �India can tailor the Arjun to our specific requirements and continuously upgrade the tank to keep it state-of-the-art. Why upgrade old T-72s? It is time to bring in the Arjun.�
The T-72�s galloping obsolescence is magnified by the MoD�s failure to overhaul tanks on schedule: some 800 T-72s are years overdue for overhaul. Originally, each T-72 was to be overhauled twice during its service life of 32 years. But as the overhaul agencies --- the Heavy Vehicles Factory, Avadi; and 505 Army Base Workshop, Delhi --- failed to meet their overhaul targets of 70 and 50 tanks respectively, the army decided that one overhaul was good enough. And with even that schedule not implemented, a desperate MoD has approached Indian industry to play a role in overhauling the T-72 fleet.
The total expenditure on the T-72 tank, budgeted for AAP 2008-10, is over Rs 5000 crores. The cost of overhaul has not been accurately determined.
so my point isz why dont we produce more T 90 TANKS
source
http://ajaishukla.blogspot.com/2010/02/rather-than-buying-more-arjun-tanks.html
