Key developments
since March 1999: India ratified CCW Amended Protocol II on 2 September
1999, exercising the nine-year deferral period. India is making its stockpile
of M14 antipersonnel mines detectable. India states it has cleared 8,000 mines
planted by intruders during the 1999 conflict in the Kargil area of Kashmir.
Officials report 835 civilian casualties to mines and IEDs in the state of Jammu
and Kashmir alone in 1999.
Mine Ban Policy
India has not signed the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty.
While expressing support for the eventual elimination of antipersonnel mines,
India has been critical of the Ottawa Process and the Mine Ban Treaty
itself.
While India voted in favor of the 1996 UN General Assembly Resolution urging
states to vigorously pursue an international agreement banning antipersonnel
mines, it has been among the small number of states to abstain on the pro-Mine
Ban Treaty UNGA resolutions in 1997, 1998, and 1999. India did not attend the
First Meeting of States Parties to the Mine Ban Treaty in May 1999 and has not
participated in the Mine Ban Treaty intersessional Standing Committee of Experts
process, even though a large number of non-signatories have done so.
India’s position on a ban has changed little in recent years.
Ambassador Savitri Kunadi articulated the Indian government’s approach to
AP mine elimination in December 1999:
India remains committed to the objective of a non-discriminatory, universal
and global ban on anti-personnel mines through a phased process that addresses
the legitimate defence requirements of States, while at the same time
ameliorating the humanitarian crises that have resulted from an irresponsible
transfer and indiscriminate use of landmines.... The process of complete
elimination of APLs will be facilitated by the availability of appropriate
non-lethal alternative technologies.... We had proposed and remain prepared for
a complete prohibition of the use of landmines...in non-international armed
conflicts, i.e. internal conflicts.... In fact, we believe that use of
anti-personnel landmines should only be permitted for the long-term defense of
borders, perimeters and peripheries of States.... We...favor an outright ban on
transfers rather than attempts to restrict transfers.... [W]e could in fact
start by addressing a ban on transfers in the Conference on Disarmament....
India has always observed a unilateral moratorium on export of landmines. India
calls upon all States to do
so.[1]
Ambassador Kunadi also stated, “We believe that increased transparency
and regular exchange of information would be useful in enhancing
confidence.”[2] But India
has refused to provide even basic details to Landmine Monitor on its production
or stockpiling of antipersonnel mines.
India ratified Amended Protocol II (Landmines) of the Convention on
Conventional Weapons (CCW) on 2 September 1999. In doing so, it decided to
exercise the option to defer implementation of key provisions of the protocol
for nine years. India views Protocol II as the best international instrument to
address the global mine problem.
Production
India has produced two types of antipersonnel
landmines, both copies of U.S. mines: the M16A1 bounding fragmentation mine, and
the APNM M14 pressure initiated blast mine. The M14 has less metallic content
than required by Amended Protocol II. Thus, to be in compliance with the
protocol, India must cease production of this mine, and continued use is
conditional upon making it detectable. In its report required by Article 13 of
Amended Protocol II, India said that “production agencies have been
instructed to cease production of landmines incompatible with the Amended
Protocol II.”[3]
It appears India will be producing new mines that meet Protocol II standards.
The Article 13 report states, “India is taking the necessary steps to
render existing stocks as well as new designs [emphasis added] fully
compliant with the relevant provisions of Amended Protocol II.... Further, the
Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has designed devices
equipped with self-destruction and self-deactivation features. Devices that have
fulfilled the required design parameters are undergoing user
trials.”[4]
Various armed groups in India have manufactured improvised explosive devices
(IEDs).
Transfer
According to the government, “India has never
exported landmines and has formally announced [a] moratorium, of unlimited
duration, prohibiting the export of landmines.”[5] The comprehensive moratorium was
announced on 3 May 1996. India has called for a global ban on transfers, and
suggested the Conference on Disarmament as the best
forum.[6] There is no evidence
of Indian exports of AP mines. Information is not available on any Indian
import of mines.
Insurgent groups have obtained mines mostly through the global clandestine
arms trade. However, it appears the militants in Kashmir have obtained and used
mines manufactured by the Pakistan Ordnance Factory. During interviews with
senior Border Security Force officials and Army officials in Kashmir, a Landmine
Monitor researcher was shown, and took photographs of, recovered mines, both
antipersonnel and antitank, that had the seal of the Pakistan Ordnance Factory
on them.[7]
Stockpiling
India’s antipersonnel mine stockpile may
number as many as four to five million, according to some non-Indian
governmental sources, although confirmed details are not
available.[8] The great
majority of mines in the stockpile are believed to be the Indian APNM M14 mines.
India’s Article 13 report states that India will make the M14 mines
detectable and therefore compliant with Amended Protocol II: “This
includes a simple and cost-effective technique to render mines detectable by
strapping a 8mg metal strip on M14 mines in accordance with the provisions of
the Amended Protocol. The Director General of Quality Assurance in the Ministry
of Defence has been tasked with ensuring the detectability of existing stocks.
The entire stock of antipersonnel landmines would be rendered detectable within
the stipulated time
period.”[9] India will
have nine years to complete the process.
Use
India has charged that “during the intrusions
in India’s Kargil areas [in June-July 1999] large scale and indiscriminate
laying of anti-personnel landmines, including both metallic and plastic APLs and
special snow type devices, was resorted to by the retreating
intruders.”[10] The
Indian government indicated that a total of 8,804 mines had been recovered, and
that fifty-two Army personnel were injured due to landmines (See Pakistan report
for additional details).[11]
There were some allegations of use of mines by Indian forces, but these were
denied by India and no evidence has been
found.[12] One news story that
focused on use of mines by “Pakistani-backed intruders” ended with
the following: “But India uses landmines, too. ‘We also use
anti-infiltration mines,’ said an Indian army official, who asked not to
be identified.”[13]
India has called for a complete prohibition of the use of landmines except in
international armed conflicts, and has also said that use of antipersonnel
landmines should only be permitted for the long-term defense of borders. In
December 1999 Ambassador Kunadi said, “For its part, India has never used
and remains committed not to use landmines in armed conflicts not of an
international character, ” and that “the restraint characterizing
the use of landmines by Indian forces has been widely
acknowledged.”[14]
India states, “There is no peacetime deployment of landmines by the
armed forces.”[15]
According to the Army, no mines are laid for border protection or to prevent
armed infiltration, such as in Jammu and Kashmir. The minefields are to be laid
only when hostilities are imminent, and are to be used only by the Army. The
police and paramilitary forces are not authorized to hold
mines.[16]
Armed groups in India have used a wide variety and type of both regular mines
as well as improvised explosive devices, and such attacks continue to this
day.[17]
The following chart shows the number of mines and IEDs recovered in Kashmir
from militant forces by Indian security forces, according to the Jammu &
Kashmir Police. It appears to show that the use of antipersonnel mines by
militants has been on the decline, while the use of IEDs has been on the
rise.
Mines and Improvised Explosive Devices Recovered in Kashmir,
1990-1999
Year
Antipersonnel Mines
Antitank Mines
IEDs
1990
723
27
-
1991
123
13
8
1992
212
14
86
1993
570
22
136
1994
989
17
126
1995
529
101
811
1996
517
35
245
1997
373
35
1020
1998
471
70
514
1999
261
44
466
TOTAL
44,768
382
3,422
(Source: Jammu & Kashmir Police)
The People’s War Group in Central India (Andhra Pradesh state) has also
been using mines and IEDs. On 7 March 2000 Andhra Pradesh Panchayat Raj Minister
Madhav Reddy was killed in a landmine
blast.[18] According to the
state government of Andhra Pradesh, from 1987 to 1999 there were 113 landmine
and IED incidents, resulting in 63 civilians killed and 65 injured, as well as
178 policemen killed and 224
injured.[19]
Landmine Problem
The Indian Government states that there is no
problem with uncleared mines in India: “India is not a mine afflicted
country.”[20] Still,
there have for years been reports indicating that there are uncleared mines
along the India/Pakistan border in Kashmir and along the India/China border. It
appears that there are still mines in Kashmir laid in the 1965 and 1971
conflicts, still claiming victims. Retired Lt. Colonel Man Singh of the Indian
Army, who fought in both wars, stated that “antipersonnel mines planted in
1965 in Poonch, Nawgoan, Uri, and Kyan Bol in forward areas are still not taken
away. When snow melts, due to shifting of the antipersonnel mines, there are
still antipersonnel mine
casualties.”[21]
There also appear to be landmines remaining from the India-China conflict in
1962, including in Ladakh and Arunahal Pradesh. The mines are in extremely
remote, almost uninhabited, high mountain regions, but some mine casualties
among the local population in Arunachal Pradesh have been
reported.[22]
Mine Action Funding
While not making financial contributions, India has
provided significant assistance internationally in the fields of mine clearance
and victim assistance (see below).
Mine Clearance
The Indian armed forces have very extensive mine
clearance capabilities. Its large engineering corps would be able to field
hundreds of mine clearance teams. Following the fighting in Kargil in the summer
of 1999, India reports that the “Corps of Engineers of the Army have taken
steps to clear the area of all mines,” and that members of the Indian
forces suffered injuries during the clearance
operations.[23]
Beginning with the Congo mission in 1963, India has been extensively involved
in the UN mine clearance and rehabilitation programs, in places including
Cambodia, Angola, Mozambique, Rwanda, Somalia, and Bosnia. Currently they are
involved in the peacekeeping mission in Sierra Leone. Their services have
included “establishing mine clearance and mine survey teams, actual mine
clearance tasks, developing of databases on landmines, area fencing duties,
sensitizing local populations to the threat of landmines, setting up specialized
clinics providing prosthetic aids as well as conducting workshops on prosthetic
devices.”[24]
Mine Awareness
The Indian Campaign to Ban Landmines (IIPDEP)
believes that there is a need for mine awareness programs in India. As a public
education and awareness campaign, it has arranged three National Conferences and
eighteen Regional Seminars and Photo Exhibitions in state capitals and major
cities.
Landmine Casualties
There are regular press accounts of landmine
incidents and casualties in Jammu and Kashmir and elsewhere due to insurgent
activities. The Indian Campaign to Ban Landmines has appointed twelve field
workers, who are visiting border villages in the Jammu region and collecting
information about mine victims.
Following are some statistics provided by Indian government sources on mine
casualties in certain regions. In the state of Jammu and Kashmir, from 1990-1999
a total of 889 civilians were killed and 7,798 injured by mines and IEDs. From
1994-1999, there were 1,461 mine and IED casualties in Kashmir valley, and 561
in Andhra Pradesh from 1989-1999.
Civilian Casualties due to Mines and IEDs in State of Jammu and
Kashmir
Year
Civilians Killed
Civilians Injured
1990
12
185
1991
41
551
1992
98
683
1993
79
719
1994
120
1196
1995
153
1021
1996
106
1153
1997
85
756
1998
103
786
1999
92
743
Total
889
7,798
(Source: Jammu and Kashmir Police)
Mine & IED Incidents and Casualties in Kashmir
Valley[25]
Mine & IED Incidents and Casualties in Andhra
Pradesh
Year
Incidents
Policemen
Civilians
Militants
Killed
Injured
Killed
Injured
Killed
Injured
1989
3
7
1
14
6
0
0
1990
3
1
8
0
0
0
0
1991
13
27
31
11
3
4
0
1992
24
44
38
5
20
22
0
1993
14
27
28
8
3
0
0
1994
24
14
25
5
5
3
0
1995
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1996
8
12
11
1
3
0
0
1997
7
21
20
6
10
0
0
1998
10
15
56
10
15
0
0
1999
5
10
6
3
0
2
0
Total
112
178
224
63
65
31
0
(Source: State Government of Andhra Pradesh)
Survivor Assistance
The government reports, “The Army’s
Artificial Limb Centre at Pune plays an important role in the rehabilitation of
victims of landmines in the broader framework of policies for the reintegration
of such victims, which includes assistance for self-employment.... Indian
medical agencies have developed prosthetics for mine victims. The most commonly
used device is an artificial limb popularly known as the ‘Jaipur
foot.’ India’s assistance to mine victims under international
programmes has also included assisting mine victims with the Jaipur foot. New
advances in this field are being constantly examined, including development of
artificial limbs using new materials derived from polypropylene technologies.
The Indian corporate sector has also assisted in this
process.”[27]
The Indian Campaign to Ban Landmines reports that in its field work, it
appeared that landmine victims were given proper medical treatment and that
every victim encountered was fitted with a prosthetic by the government or the
military.
[1] Statement by Ambassador Savitri Kunadi,
Permanent Representative of India, Permanent Mission of India to the United
Nations (Geneva), to the First Annual Conference of States Parties to the
Amended Protocol II to the CCW, 15 December
1999. [2]
Ibid. [3] India’s National Annual
Report in accordance with Article 13 of Amended Protocol II, 1 December
1999. [4] Ibid. This was echoed by
Ambassador Kunadi: “Self-destruction and self-deactivation devices
fulfilling the required design parameter are undergoing user trials.”
Statement to the First Annual Conference of Amended Protocol II, 15 December
1999. [5] Statement by Ambassador Kunadi
to the First Annual Conference of Amended Protocol II, 15 December
1999. [6]
Ibid. [7] Interviews with senior Border
Security Force officials and Army officials in Kashmir, BSF Camp and Army
Headquarters in Sri Nagar, 6-9 January
2000. [8] Estimate provided by
government officials involved in discussions with the Indian government during
the CCW negotiations. [9] Protocol II
Article 13 report, 1 December 1999. [10]
Ibid. [11] “Mines Used by Pak
Intruders,” statistics provided by Ministry of Defense, Government of
India, data as of July 1999. One press account alleged use of 5,000 mines.
Times of India, 24 July 1999. [12] Amb.
Inam-ul-Haque, Pakistan’s Ambassador to the UN in New York, told the ICBL
that “according to some accounts, India had planted mines up to a depth of
5 to 10 km on its side of the border.” Letter to Stephen Goose, Chair,
ICBL Treaty Working Group, 19 October 1999. In an interview on 5 October 1999,
India’s UN Ambassador Kamalesh Sharma denied any Indian use of mines. The
Taliban in Afghanistan has also accused India of providing “technical
assistance” to opposition forces using Indian M14 and M16 mines inside
Afghanistan. Pakistan TV: Indians Laying Mines in Afghanistan, FBIS Transcribed
Text, 4 August 1999. There is no independent evidence to support this
claim. [13] “Indian Army on
Eternal Landmine Alert in Kashmir,” Reuters, Poonch, India, 9 July
1999. [14] Statement by Amb. Kunadi to
the First Annual Conference Amended Protocol II, 15 December
1999. [15] Protocol II Article 13
report, 1 December 1999. [16] Landmine
Monitor 1999 interview with former military
officials. [17] For extensive details on
the armed groups and mine use, see, Mallika Joseph and Suba Chandran, Institute
of Peace and Conflict Studies (New Delhi), “Use of Mines and IEDs by Non
State Actors in South Asia,” May 2000. This paper was prepared for
Landmine Monitor. [18] “AP
Minister’s cremation today,” The Hindu, News Update at 1800 hours
(IST) on 8 March 2000. [19] The state
government, including the Director General of Police, Ministry of Home Affairs,
provided this information. A year-by-year breakdown of incidents and casualties
is available. [20] Protocol II Article
13 report, 1 December 1999. [21]
Interviews with Singh and other former Indian military officials who attended
the Workshops on Banning Landmines in three border villages in the Jammu region,
21-23 January 2000. [22] Interviews with
delegates from Arunchal Pradesh who attended the Regional Seminar & Photo
Exhibition in Shillong state capital of Meghalaya in North East India on 4 March
2000. [23] Protocol II Article 13
report, 1 December 1999. [24]
Ibid. [25] Statistics provided pertain
only to the Kashmir valley and not the entire state of Jammu and
Kashmir. [26] Includes other police and
paramilitary forces operating in the
region. [27] Protocol II Article 13
report, 1 December 1999.