In a poor reflection of the countrys resolve to strengthen its internal security apparatus,hundreds of vehicles of the security forces about 250 of them from the CRPF alone have been standing idle in depots for more than a year waiting to be bullet-proofed. Only in the last few weeks has the work on bullet-proofing these vehicles started,after being stuck for the last 18 months because of problems in the import of raw material. The Ordnance Factory Board,whose facility in Medak in Andhra Pradesh is given contracts for bullet-proofing of vehicles for government departments,said it had already supplied 40 Gypsys and 11 Ambassadors to the security forces in the last couple of weeks. Several more would be delivered before the end of this financial year,Sudipta Ghosh,chairman of the OFB,told The Indian Express. But the one-and-a-half year of stoppage of work,mainly because of difficulties in the import of armoured plates,has resulted in a huge backlog in all the central paramilitary forces. The worst affected is the CRPF,which has the biggest demand for bullet-proof vehicles for its operations in the Naxal-affected regions where guerrilla attacks and landmine blasts are common occurrences. The CRPF currently has 504 bullet-proof vehicles and is waiting for 246 more to meet its target of 750. After more than a year of waiting,16 of its vehicles have now been made ready and undergoing testing at Medak before being delivered in the next couple of weeks. The problem in the import of 4-mm and 6-mm armoured plates was because of the rise in prices of steel in the international market in the previous year. The Medak factory had placed orders for armoured plates with two major international vendors,both of which had supplied the plates to the factory earlier as well,after a global tendering process. But following a sharp rise in the steel prices,the two firms had been indulging in delaying tactics in meeting their commitment. One of the firms was also having some problems in getting its export licence renewed from its country. The result was that in the year 2007-08,the Ordnance Factory did not receive any supplies of the armoured plates and no bullet-proofing could be performed. All this while the demand for bullet-proofing of vehicles also increased substantially owing to greater risks to the security forces from Naxalite organisations and insurgent groups. Ghosh said the supplies were ensured only after an intervention from the Home Secretary last year. By then the steel prices had also gone down considerably. The factory received its first supplies around November last year. He said at least 20 more Ambassador cars and 30 Tata 407 mini-trucks would be delivered to the security forces before March this year. To clear the huge backlog and also to meet the increased demand,the Ordnance Factory Board has also started bullet-proofing of vehicles at its factory in Jabalpur,which is expected to double the current capacity from about 150 to about 300.
