NEW DELHI: The government hopes that Army chief Gen VK Singh's eventful tenure in office will now end on a less turbulent note as despite controversies that rocked civilian-military ties, the general is seen as a "professional soldier" with a sound grasp of strategic matters. 

The row over Gen Singh's contentious demand that his date of birth be altered led to a souring of ties with the government besides rocking the top ranks of the Army but his equations with defence minister AK Antony remain equanimous despite the high-octane events that saw the chief approach the Supreme Court in a failed attempt to "correct" his date of birth. 

It is understood that the government continues to see Gen Singh as having worked for the betterment of the force he commands and will be more than glad to end the association on a no-hard-feelings note when the chief retires in May. Suggestions that the general may have political plans has not escaped notice but this would be seen as a personal choice. Some quarters feel Gen Singh would lose some of his standing if he were to join a partisan platform after retiring. 

However, there is a sense of satisfaction in the government over the general scotching reports of there being anything sinister in the allegedly "unauthorized" movement of troops towards Delhi on January 16. The general described such movements as purely routine, echoing the position taken by the government after it was suggested that the Army chief's supporters had staged a show of strength on the day when he approached the Supreme Court over his date of birth. 

The Army chief's allegation that he was offered a bribe with regard to a truck contract and the subsequent leak of a sensitive letter he wrote to the PM put the government and Antony in a tough spot. The defence minister ordered a CBI inquiry while the opposition demanded a response to the letter's contents that listed serious deficiencies in defence preparedness. 

The suspicions and distrust between the government and the general are not likely to dissipate completely and while the ministry has moved to accelerate medium term and long term plans, sources point out that progress and scope of modernization will depend on macro factors like the Centre's finances. The ministry could ask for much more than is available although the defence budget has increased by 18%. 

Inspite of financial limitations, the Army has raised two new divisions in Arunachal Pradesh, adding crucial muscle on the border with Tibet. The last time a new division was raised was during the tenure of the late R Venkataraman as defence minister in the early 1980s.

Source: TOI