“For every failed bullet, there is life of a soldier at stake”: Why Prez reminds this to some civilian officers

WHEN a section of Group “A” trainee officers belonging to Indian Ordnance Factories Service (IOFS) met with the President of India Pranab Mukherjee at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Monday, he quoted Confucius and said – “What I hear, I forget. What I see, I remember. What I do, I understand.” Mukherjee made it a point to say that…
the officers would need to continuously upgrade their skills in terms of developing, producing and upgrading the weapon systems. He said that maintaining quality is of utmost importance, according to a statement issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Mukherjee said this when he met a group of 41 probationers of IOFS’ 2013 batch.
Despite being a Group “A” defence civilian service under the ministry of defence, the IOFS is not a preferred service, as the selected officers are mostly posted in Kolkata throughout their career. Currently, there are 1,760 members of Indian Ordnance Factories Service out of whom 60% are direct recruits whereas the rest 40% get an entry through promotions.
But Mukherjee reminded them of their high responsibility. He said that they should never forget that for every failed bullet, or weapon, there is the life of a soldier at stake, who is performing his call of duty for the safety and integrity of the nation. Thus, it’s not about producing arms and ammunition alone, it is about giving quality products, ensuring timely deliveries and strengthening hands of our Armed forces, para military forces and police forces, President said, according to the same statement issued by Rashtrapati Bhavan on Monday.