Defence Allocation Upped 8 per cent

New Delhi, Feb 28 (UNI) The Indian Defence Budget has risen by an expected moderate eight per cent to Rs 96,000 crore, Finance Minister P Chidambaram said in Parliament today while presenting the Union Budget proposals for 2007-08.

This is an increase of Rs 7,000 crore over the Rs 89,000 crore allocated for the fiscal 2006-07.

A little less than half -- Rs 41,922 crore -- of the Rs 96,000 crore allocation for 2007-08 will be earmarked for the acquisition of hardware by the Armed Forces, Minister Chidambaram announced.

The Finance Minister -- seeking to assuage continuing concerns about funds for acquisitions -- further made clear that ''any additional requirement for the security of the nation'' would be provided.

Even last fiscal, the Defence allocation over the previous year had been raised by seven per cent -- to Rs 89,000 crore -- as part of ongoing plans to modernise the 1.3-million strong Armed Forces.

The present increase -- as also that of the last fiscal -- in defence allocation is of the same level -- to keep it at around 2.4 or 2.5 per cent of GDP (Gross Domestic Product).

However, both the country's Armed Forces and defence experts have for years clamoured for expenditure to be set at 3 per cent of GDP.

And, in the meanwhile, slow decision-making and a lack of strategic planning means that some of the money may not even be spent -- as has been the case in the past.

Defence officials noted that both Pakistan and China spent around five per cent of their GDP on defence -- pointing out that New Delhi had to keep pace despite peace on both frontiers.

They also pointed out that Pakistan had been on its own modernisation spree -- particularly of its Air Force -- and continued to eye more F-16 fighters from the United States, the Chinese JF-17 Thunders and the J-10 aircraft.

Also -- despite booming economic ties between India and China, Beijing remained a worry due to its regular defence spending boosts and muscle flexing in the form of next-generation weapons -- such as the anti-satellite missile.

UNI