Amit Cowshish replies: The initiative to engage with the academia in the field of defence R&D must come from the private and public sector defence industry, acting in tandem with the armed forces and the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO). This also requires an overarching organisation to coordinate the efforts. On the face of it, there are three specific areas for potential collaboration.

Vivek Chadha replies: There has been a long-standing debate on the deployment of Army in the Maoist-infested areas. One of the first instances, when this debate came into the public domain, was in 2010, when the then Chief of Army Staff, Gen. V.K. Singh, ruled out the deployment of the Army. The debate has repeatedly come to the fore since after major incidents of Maoist violence.

Vivek Chadha replies: The idea of regimentation emerged from the British Indian Army, which was created on regional lines. Over the years, it underwent several stages of restructuring especially after the transfer of power from East India Company to the British Government. However, the underlying core of the regimental system remained intact.