Scorpene submarine Leak - French firm DCNS kept us in the dark says MoD.
Notwithstanding the close ties between India and France, French firm DCNS which is helping India build constructing six
Scorpene submarines in Mumbai, chose to not inform the Indian Navy (IN) or the Ministry of Defence (MoD) about the leak of nearly
22,400 sensitive documents pertaining to the submarine program and its secret features. Top sources in the
Indian establishment have informed INDIA TODAY that they learnt the matter from the Australian press reports.
What makes this significant is that DCNS while replying to the Australian press tried to reassure, saying the leak which hit the Scorpene program would not recur in the Australian submarine contract it has recently secured.
However, this information was not passed to the Indian side. It was reported by the 'The Australian', "The company also implied - but did not say directly - that the leak might have occurred at India's end, rather than from France. 'Uncontrolled technical data is not possible in the Australian Âarrangements,' the company said".
The report then quoted DCNS saying, "Multiple and independent controls exist within DCNS to prevent unauthorised access to data and all data movements are encrypted and recorded. In the case of India, where a DCNS design is built by a local company, DCNS is the provider and not the controller of technical data. In the case of Australia, and unlike India, DCNS is both the provider and in-country controller of technical data for the full chain of transmission and usage over the life of the submarines". It was also mentioned that the needle of suspicion, for the alleged theft, was on a former French naval officer who was a part of DCNS in 2011.
While it may not have been possible to avert the theft, but information shared earlier could have help react sooner and more effectively.
GROPING IN THE DARK
"
Our biggest problem is that we just don't know how much we have lost. We are only taking baby steps in our effort to understand what has hit us," said a senior source.
When asked if it was incumbent on the DCNS to keep its Indian partner in the loop,
Vice Admiral KN Sushil (Retd), a submariner said, "If they can reply to the Australian media they should well have informed us about this leak as well. Perhaps they may have thought that they would obliquely be admitting to the leak if they informed us".
The DCNS and Navantia of Spain are the technology providers who are overseeing India's Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) build these six submarines for a total cost of $3.5 billion. Armaris is the main French contracting firm which overlooks the MDL's efforts.
PARRIKAR SEEKS REPORTS FROM NAVY CHIEF
While Defence Minister
Manohar Parrikar termed the leaks as a result of 'hacking' and said he had sought a report from the navy chief, the Indian Navy in an official statement said, "The available information is being examined at Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of Defence (Navy) and an analysis is being carried out by the concerned specialists. It appears that the source of leak is from overseas and not in India."
A spokesperson for DCNS India was approached for a comment but there was none provided till the time this article was written.
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