Value and Ethics:Indian Army Perspective

Values occupy a prominent place in the scientific and public discourse at various levels. They are among the very few social psychological concepts that have been lucratively employed across all social science disciplines. Every entrant into the army is an individual with needs and aspirations, and his personal value, knowledge-set and worldview. The selection process for entry into the army essentially determines his trainability, and the training process instills military values in him and gives knowledge and skills to be an effective member of a team. Later, in-service training on courses and exercises, and functioning in various postings and deployments reinforces military values and builds team-spirit, motivation self-confidence and morale. The military ethics are the collection of values, beliefs, ideals, principles and other moral ethical knowledge held by the Services. They are embedded in military culture that inspires and regulates individual and organizational behavior Military Ethics applies to a specialized realm and has developed principles appropriate to help guide future operations. The armed forces must be always ethically governed to uphold the defence of the nation and its national interests. Within this construct, this paper offers an overview of value and ethics in Indian army. The paper stresses on the need for upholding values and ethics in the armed forces as it is an absolute requirement if we are to retain the sacred trust of the society and the nobility of the profession of arms. The need for overall moral and ethical standards and adherence to institutional values is clearly obvious. The article thereafter dwells with the erosion of values and ethics in Armed Forces and certain suggestions that could be emphasized to enhance the prevalent ethical climate.