'Need for extended network centricity to battlefield's last mile'

There is need for extended network centricity to the last mile in the tactical battle area, as also automated systems that are able to synthesize and interpret intelligence inputs from different sources and capable of pushing information to the army commanders and staff rather than waiting for the "pull" from decision-makers, the Indian Army vice chief said Monday.

Inaugurating the International Seminar on Digitisation of the Battlefield organized by FICCI and SP Guide Publications, Lt. Gen. Phillip Campose assured the industry of a level-playing field between PSUs and the private sector in procurement of systems and equipment.

"We are convinced that there must be a level-playing field and this is the sense we get from the defence ministry as well", he said even as he urged industry to ensure that the commanders and staff are given processed information relating to enemy and terrain.

He said the intelligence information pushed to the commanders and staff needs to be contextual, based on the need and in a comprehensive format, preferably in a digital map, so as to prevent an informational overload. The evolving technologies should be

harnessed towards this end, he emphasized.

The hallmarks of net centric warfare, he said, are speed, self-synchronization and flexibility, with speed being of essence to compress decision-making time, adding that the objective of net centricity was to enhance situational awareness, facilitate collaborative planning and enable self-synchronization, all of which leads to the enhancement of combat power and speed of operations.

Sundeep Oberoi, Global Head for Niche Technology Delivery Group, Tata Consultancy Services, stressed the imperative of a level-playing field if the private sector was to participate in defence sector projects competitively. The key to successful technology solutions, he said, lay in forging partnerships. He called for shortening the acquisition cycle so as to beat the technology vector which is changing rapidly. The development of technologies, he said, should be based on continuous evolution rather than looking for revolutions.

The day-long event deliberated on themes such as Battlefield Milieu at the Cutting Edge, Enabling Network Centric Technologies and Information Assurance: Vulnerabilities and Solutions.