Former Northern Army Commander Lt Gen H S Panag,in a series of tweets on Saturday,raised questions over the Army procurement process. Panag mentioned a Siachen equipment and ration racket,which he alleged was to the tune of Rs 400 crore every year and should be probed.
A member of the Chandigarh bench of the Armed Forces Tribunal,Panag tweeted,Siachen ration procured through a peculiar system. Even army commander is not in chain. MGASCN has unusual authority. Through his tweets,Panag suggested that despite having raised red-flag on irregularities in procurement of supply for troops at Siachen glacier,his recommendations were turned down by the Army,and now called for investigation.
In his tweets,Panag said,Siachen equipment and ration racket is worth investigating… deals directly with MoD despite my recommendations,procedures not changed… My recommendations to have a buffer stock not accepted…. Done annually to continue kickback every year.
He tweeted,Annual bill 400 crores. A similar one in procurement of rations. Engine and chassis r the key! Rest is cosmetics like the load carriers in India. See how the vehs come from the factory. Panag further lashed out at the MoD and Army officials on quality check and tweeted,Yes quality check a must. MOD has a big org 4 it. The irony is that it too mired in corruption.
In his susbsequent tweets, Panag raised questions over the Tatra deal By MOD & AHQ Combo. The MGO who did it became MD/Chairman of Vectra India! Even VK knew it when Gen T met him. But der aaye durust aaye!…. 20 yrs! All decision makers were aware of the scam. Either party to it or guilty of acquiescence!…. Tatra Gate began 20 yrs ago when HMV made synonymous with TATRA, he tweeted.
Panag seemed to be hinting at more scams within the Army while supporting Gen V K Singh when he tweeted,No trouble really. The man fell by the wayside with Adarsh and Sukhna. Though many more scams will never see the light of the day.