- As you are aware, the entire global community is quite aware of the continued hostilities between the two nuclear neighbors viz. India and Pakistan. The history of animosity between the two nations is well recorded and acknowledged needing no further elaboration. That the two neighboring countries are always on the alert to dissuade others from getting adventurous leads to a situation of intense alertness. A slight misadventure might trigger an unwanted escalation in conflicts is a real threat. One such alarming situation did arise recently when the accidental launch of an India Air Force BrahMos supersonic cruise missile landed 124 km inside Pakistan territory.
PC: Northline’s
- As per the reports made available, the missile was inadvertently launched during a training and maintenance exercise near an air force base in the Western region. Thankfully, the missile was not tipped with a warhead, and that there was no loss of lives reported is what saved the situation from getting escalated alarmingly. Make no mistake, the Pakistani authorities could not have known that the missile was unarmed. Imagine a scenario, had their air defense systems picked up the BrahMos, they could have easily judged it as a hostile attack and retaliated as can be expected from any sovereign nation.
- Moreover, the reaction time in the event of missile launches between the two neighbors is only a matter of minutes thereby rendering the possibilities of a conflict escalation a real danger. Needless to mention, it was a sheer providence that saved the day otherwise it is unimaginable what could have been the consequences. In hindsight, it is baffling that the accident happened with much-tested BrahMos, which has been in service for many years now. For the uninitiated, the missile launch system comes with multiple mechanical and electronic locks. As such, either these locks were accidentally bypassed by operators during the training exercise or there was a serious technical malfunction. Nonetheless, both are extremely worrying.
PC: TOI Plus
- Further, if human error is to be blamed, then the operational, command, and control procedures must be thoroughly reviewed. Again, a technical glitch of this nature will cast doubts over the weapon system itself, especially at a time when India is looking to export BrahMos to countries like the Philippines. Agreed, a court of inquiry has been ordered to determine the chain of events that led to the mishap. However, responsibility needs to be fixed and heads must roll if required for the almost catastrophic mishap. The seriousness of this incident demands that IAF inquiry pulls no punches in zeroing on the irresponsible persons.
- Most importantly, despite their history of hostility, India and Pakistan do not have robust risk-reduction protocols or mechanisms to deal with such mishaps. This is something that New Delhi and Islamabad must look into now. Misunderstandings of this nature should never happen again. To ensure a water-tight detection system, it is high time India and Pakistan work out protocols that can prevent hostile responses to any kind of accident or false alarm. The security experts from both ends should leave no stone unturned in formulating a precise system for the good of its own citizens by showing maturity in handling devastating weaponry.
