MoD sanctions Rs 1,487 crore to improve perimeter security

The defence ministry has sanctioned Rs 1,487 crore to the Army to improve the perimeter security of its bases in the next 10 months.

The green signal came days before yet another terror attack on yet another army camp in Jammu region.

The terror strike on Sunjuwan military camp led to the  killing of five Army men and a civilian so far even though three terrorists were gunned down.

The Sunjuwan attack is in the same category as previous suicidal missions on Uri, Nagrota and Kupwara army camps and Pathankot IAF base in the last two years, as terrorists continue to target high-value establishments from the defence forces.

While clearing the long-awaited project, the defence ministry has set a 10-month deadline for the project's execution.

The Army headquarters will keep an eye on the  quick implementation of the key programme that seeks to beef up the security of army bases in six commands.

The new financial sanction would be in addition to an earlier allocation of nearly 800 crore each to the Vice Chiefs of the Army, Air Force and Navy to improve the outside security of the military stations without any ministerial approval.

This comes one and half years after a high-powered panel, headed by former Army Vice Chief Lt Gen Philip Campose looked into the loopholes of perimeter security of military stations and forward bases, and suggested improvements.

Set up in the aftermath of January 2016 terror attack on Pathankot IAF base, the panel submitted its report in May 2016.

While the Standard Operating Procedures were modified following the Campose panel recommendation, many other suggestions could not be implemented in the absence of resources.

After a detailed security audit of nearly 3,000 military units including 600 highly sensitive installations, the five-member panel recommended multiple short and long-term measures including introduction of technological solutions to improve the security of armed forces establishments.