Greater Noida (Defence Desk), December 03: Last week, the Chief of the Army Staff (COAS) General Upendra Dwivedi on launched an online learning platform for the Indian Army named – Eklavya.
The Indian Defence ministry says that Eklavya enables Headquarters Army Training Command to seamlessly integrate any number of training establishments of the Indian Army, each capable of hosting an extensive range of courses.
Student officers are permitted to register for multiple courses simultaneously. A total of 96 courses by 17 Category ‘A’ Training Establishments of the Indian Army have already been hosted on the platform.
Then there are three categories of courses hosted on the Eklavya platform. The first category is the ‘Pre-Course Preparatory Capsules’, which has study material for all offline physical courses being conducted at various Category ‘A’ training establishments.
But what is it that the Indian defence sector attempting to achieve from this?
Well, if the senior defence officials are to be believed, the aim is to shift the basics to the online courses so that physical courses have more and more contemporary content with a focus on the application part.
They say that not only it will help to decongest the existing courses while generating time for adding emerging concepts as per the changing character of warfare but also allow the students to register for any course at any point of their service.
Eklavya, a software program, has been developed at zero cost through “Bhaskaracharya National Institute of Space Applications and Geoinformatics” (BISAG-N), Gandhinagar, along with support from Directorate General of Information Systems. The Headquarters Army Training Command and the Army War College also have played a prominent role in this achievement.
The initiative is seen as one of the aspects of India readying itself for a dramatic digitisation and modernisation and also aligns with the Indian Army’s theme for 2024 as the “Year of Technology Absorption”.
But do such e-courses and digitisation of military training actually efficiently work?
If we see the trend across the world, e-education has proven to be effective during military conflicts, in particular the experience of Saudi Arabia, Syria, Ukraine and other countries. This indicates the widespread use of e-education elements.
E-learning examples from across world and its usage hints that it is being considered actually as a growing part of military training and is used to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of training.
There also are multiple uses e-learning in military training can be put to, which include from upskilling their officers to tailoring their training and customise it as per the need of every military student official.
But primarily, to modernize and upskill is the main usage as e-learning can help prepare officers for future battles by giving them a peek into the fast modernizing warfare and accordingly upskilling them to tackle such challenges.
Further, it is believed that e-learning can effectively help in decongesting physical courses and make training more flexible. It also is being used globally to encourage continuous professional military education.
However, the most interesting part of e-learning in military training comes when it is about tailoring to the needs of each participant. Such courses allow to attain a balance of practical and theoretical components in learning and training of each candidate who is preparing for military training.
In another significant usage the e-learning process can also noticeably shorten the time a soldier spends at a residential learning facility. It can be done from anywhere and therefore there is no constraint of positioning and further it saves time which always has been a crucial component to military training.
Additionally, e-learning can provide fast and comfortable access to information and knowledge which is an added advantage when resporting to e-learning than physical training.
But Eklavya has not been the only e-learning module that India has so far adopted. Other than Eklavya, the Indian army has been using Military information Exchanges Advanced FSC Programme. This is a program available on the Open edX platform, which works on mobile devices and desktops.
Further, Coventry, Solihull and Warwickshire Armed Forces Covenant is also one of the e-learning resource for those who have recently left or are leaving the Armed Forces and their families.
But where Eklavya takes a step ahead of the already being used modules and also why it is being globally seen as an added advantage to India’s military training, because Eklavya allows officers on special postings to learn the craft by getting on-the-job training (OJT).
Some of such appointments are in the domain of information warfare, defence land management, financial planning, discipline and vigilance, works, provost, veteran affairs etc.
The courses in this category will also enable the officers to get domain specialisation in the field of their choice, which will further aid their employment planning.
It also includes courses on Strategy, Operational Art, Leadership, Organisational Behaviour, Finance, Art of Reading, Power Writing, Emerging Technology and related issues.
Therefore, be it Eklavya or any similar e-learning program for military training, saving time, unhindered availability and effective learning is what makes it a sought after choice for not only the Indian defence but also globally. The pace at which countries like the US, France, Australia, the UK and Russia are adapting to e-learning in military training, it leaves no doubt that there will soon be a time when e-education will become inseparable to the military trainings.
