The Indian Ministry of Defence (MoD) is likely to cancel the national army’s light-utility helicopters (LUH) procurement contract following allegations of bribery.
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The move comes after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) registered a case against the army aviation corps brigadier VS Saini and other unknown army officers for allegedly attempting to favour a company competing to win the contract in return for €5m, the Times of India reports.
A CBI spokesperson, Kanchan Prasad, said: "The matter came to notice when an unsigned note was recovered during a search by Italian prosecutors at the residence of Guido Hashcke’s (the alleged middleman in VVIP chopper scam) mother, which allegedly says that the brigadier in-charge of flight evaluation can tilt the decision in the favour of the Italian firm, but was asking for €5m in return"
An unnamed senior defence ministry official was quoted by DNA as saying, ”cancellation of the deal seems imminent.”
An unidentified senior army official said: ”If the government cancels the deal once again, it is going to be a major setback for the preparedness of the army, which is making all efforts to match China’s capabilities on the eastern front.”
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Covering procurement of 197 helicopters for replacement of the army’s ageing Cheetah and Chetak fleet, the INR30bn ($482m) project has already been cancelled after being virtually finalised in December 2007.
Widely used for reconnaissance and casualty evacuation operations in forward locations and high-altitude areas, such as Siachen, Ladakh, North Kashmir and the Northeast, the Cheetah and Chetak helicopters have flown 12 to 15 years more than their original airframe life.
The French-built helicopters are considered ‘death traps’, as 12 pilots have died in Cheetah crashes over the past five years.
Image: a light utility helicopter mock up being displayed during Aero India 2009. Photo: courtesy of Jinu.raghavan.
