Govt to inquire into lapses in bullet proof jacket trials

Government has asked the technical evaluation committee of bullet proof jackets to inquire into the allegations of lack of transparency in the trials for procuring 59,000 of the life-saving armours for para-military forces.

Government has asked the technical evaluation committee of bullet proof jackets to inquire into the allegations of lack of transparency in the trials for procuring 59,000 of the life-saving armours for para-military forces.

HT Image

Official sources said the committee will look into the procedural lapses.

Bullet proof jacket manufacturers have petitioned the Union Home Ministry claiming that "transparency and scientific approach" were not adhered to while testing for the life saving armour.

A manufacturer, in its letter dated November 16, 2009 to the Home Minister said "transparency and scientific approach of the evaluation process was missing unlike previous tenders where participative transparency was a bench mark. This time, the vendors were disallowed to witness and authenticate the ballistic trials".

The letter alleges that the DRDO lab-- Terminal Ballistics Research Laboratory (TBRL)-- in Chandigarh, which tests the jackets, has flouted the Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) and the "firing sequence was altered at will".

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) has been designated as the nodal force to procure the jackets for six central para-military forces. The other five forces include NSG, CISF, ITBP, Assam Rifles and SSB.

An open tender was floated on July 3 last year under a two-bid system for procurement of the jackets.

The manufacturers have alleged that "multiple BPJ samples simultaneously were immersed in a water tank to conduct Ballistic Trials on wet cycle, which is against SOP norms".

The Director General of CRPF and the Bureau of Police Research and Development (BPRD) are key members of the committee.