Will India survive a two-front war with China and Pakistan
WILL INDIA SURVIVE A TWO FRONT WAR WITH PAK AND CHINA?
INTRODUCTION
Is India in a position to face a two-front war with Pak and China? As the relations with both the hostile neighbors continue to deteriorate day by day, the Indian strategy makers find themselves contemplating the unfortunate possibility of an inevitable “two front” war.
QUOTES
“ Either I will come back after hoisting the tricolor, or I will come back wrapped in it, but I will be back for sure. “ – Capt. Vikram Batra, PVC
“ We fight to win and win with a knockout because there are no runners up in war” – General JJ Singh
HISTORY
India has fought four wars with Pakistan and one with China.
- First Indo-Pak war, 1947
- Sino-Indian war, 1962
- Second Indo-Pak war, 1965
- Third Indo-Pak war, 1971
- Kargil War, 1999
Among these, India only lost to China in 1962 reasons being the Failure of Indian leadership to understand Chinese strategies and Logistical failures.
STATISTICS – What Numbers have to Say?
- It is estimated that countries having a big army spend around 3% of GDP as defense budget which is around 8%(i.e. 13.77 lakh) in the case of china surpassing India’s allocation of 4.31 lakh crore, which is almost 2.5% of GDP. China, in recent years, has spent heavily on its military modernizations and expansion in order to enhance its influence.
- According to Trading Economics global macro models and analysts, the military Expenditure in Pakistan is expected to reach 13000.00 USD Million by the end of 2020.
Who is stronger military India or Pakistan?
| Paramter | India | Pakistan |
| Military Budget(2018) | Rs. 4 trillion | Rs. 1.26 trillion |
| Army strength | 1.2 million | 5,60,000+ |
| Battle tanks | 3565 | 2496 |
| Total aircrafts | 2216 | 1143 |
| Submarines/frigate | 16/13 | 8/9 |
DESCRIPTION – Let’s take a Deep Dive
INSIGHT INTO TODAY’S SITUATION
- The Himalayas, being a great natural barrier between India and China, can act as a game-changer during the war. The key is to get air superiority.
- The Indian airforce has a great advantage over Chinese. We have many bases that can act as live wires from where aircraft can take off easily. But the Chinese force can either carry oil or equipment with challenging heights. So it will be a tough nightmare for china to maintain its ammunition supply where we can get the situation in our hands easily.
- However, the Indian navy working shoulder to shoulder with the air force can make India to sit on a higher table. Focusing the entire strength of the naval force to enforce a blockade of Karachi will lead Pakistan to a tough situation giving IAF opportunity to gain superiority over southern Punjab.
- Shifting all offensive power towards borders will be the prime requirement by the Indian army.
THINGS TO BE DONE
- All in all a strong air defense will be a game-changer against the two countries.
- The focus must be securing all strategic weak points of our border areas.
- Moreover, the Unified command center acting as a single head of all the three forces will transform the strategies into reality in a better coordinated and efficient manner.
- Military strategies like deterrence depend heavily on the budget.
- Improved allocation of the budget will equip our military with the latest art of weapons.
- The need of the hour is to get self-dependency. All sophisticated weapons such as Nuclear technology, Missile technology, even putting satellites into space with precision are done by ourselves, so why these conventional weapons are continued to be purchased?
- Focused Research and adequate fund allotments will energize DRDO and other related agencies to improve our defense preparedness in upcoming years.
- Decisions such as increment in indigenous production, joining hands with private industry for productions will encourage them to come at the front foot.
- Last but not the least, improved infrastructure can put India in a better position. Proper connectivity along POK, LOC, NE states will help to deploy the troops and weapons quickly. Increased satellite surveillance in the bordered area will help to analyze the clear picture of the situation.
- Our outdated technology, tanks, aircraft, aging weapons are putting us a decade behind the Chinese modernized army.
CHALLENGES
- India mainly focuses on building its military power rather than making it powerful.
- Another sort of challenge that we are facing today is the lack of modernization and technology.
- Even after permitting 100% FDI in the defense sector, transfer of technology and new procurement policies, 70% of our weapons are imported from other countries.
- We have a great disbalance of import and export of weapons. Our recent procurements including S400(Russia), M777 Howitzer tanks(America), Rafale(France) and many more are increasing our reliance on other nations.
CONCLUSION
Definitely, war is not the ultimate solution for any kind of problem but getting ready beforehand to face any situation can put us in a different position.
It is said that all wars are fought with economies, so a politically stable and economically strong India with proper coordination among all the three forces will definitely remove the question mark whether India will survive a two-front war or not.
Author: Priyanka Mahala
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