Govt Orders Private Players To Look After Army Base Workshops

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) for the first time has allowed private firms to manage and operate all the Army base workshops (ABWs) and associated station workshops in eight cities across six states, including in Delhi, Kolkata, Pune and Bengaluru.

What are ABWs?

The Army Base Workshops carry out repairs and overhaul of weapons, vehicles and equipment to keep the Indian Army operationally ready.

Provisions

The Ministry of Defence calling it the ‘Government-owned, Contractor managed Model’ or the GOCO Model, says that private firms will not be responsible for the machinery, investment in land and support system, all of which will be readily available, internal communications and orders issued by the MoD revealed according to The Times of India.

The decision came to rebalance the government’s spendings on the army and also because Prime Minister Narendra Modi urged for more private participation in the defence sector.

Explaining the concept, an MoD communication reads: “The government will provide land, infrastructure, plant and machinery, equipment system support, oversight… The contractor operates and utilises the facilities available, manages all types of work and is also responsible to get required licences, certifications and accreditations to deliver mutually agreed targets and maintains the plant machinery and services integral to the venture,” according to The Times of India.