MAPUSA
“Parrikar’s contribution is unparalleled. He has brought wonderful reforms in the defence ministry, particularly in the procurement sector,” Dr Bhambre said.
The Union Minister of State for Defence was speaking at the sidelines of the Swachh Bharat drive organized by the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha as part of Prime Minister, Narendra Modi’s three years in office at the Mapusa bus-stand.
Union Minister for Ayush, Shripad Naik, Urban Development Minister, Francis D’Souza, BJP State President, Vinay Tendulkar and other leaders were present on the occasion.
Speaking further, Dr Bhambre said the new procurement procedure has brought sea changes in defence procurement and the person responsible for that was none other than former defence minister, Manohar Parrikar.
“Some of the procurement procedures have been given highest priority like the indigenously designed development and manufacture… We need to encourage indigenization and that is what the former defence minister has done,” he said.
Giving credit to the defence minister over the surgical strike across the border, he said Parrikar was the driving force behind the strike.
When questioned that cross border firing and infiltration continued in the North despite the surgical strike, Union Minister of State for Defence said it was unfortunate that India had a neighbour like Pakistan.
“You can select friends but you cannot choose your neighbours. We have been trying our best to have peaceful relations with our neighbour. But Pakistan continue to indulge in proxy war,” Dr Bhambre said.
“They have been using cross border infiltration of terrorists least realizing that terrorism is a global phenomenon and they themselves being victim of the act,” he added.
He further said that people of Pakistan were very unfortunate because the priorities of their country’s military and political leadership were different.
“Their priorities are not on the well-being of their people. And that’s why to divert attention of the people from their failures by indulging in proxy war with India,” he said.
