In recent years, the military-defence task requirements in Hanoi have evolved with multiple imperative tasks. In particular, Hanoi is identified as one of the key areas for ensuring safety for events, fire prevention, Covid-19 pandemic prevention; performing social distancing; organising centres for quarantine and medical treatment and patient transportation, etc. for the North and the whole country; therefore, there has been a sharp increase in the demand for technical assurance to satisfy the task requirements and serve for the other unscheduled tasks of the Capital city’s armed forces. Meanwhile, the materials, vehicles, weapons, and equipment of units are diverse and of low-quality; safety corridors and equipment in stations and storehouses have not reached the required standard; budgets for materials are inadequate due to fluctuating prices; the competencies of cadres and technicians remain low; etc. Therefore, the Technical Department, Hanoi Capital Command has brought into play the core role in renewing and effectively and synchronously implementing the technical work to victoriously accomplish military-defence work, pandemic prevention, and maintain political security, social order and safety in the city.

First and foremost, the Department has advised the Party Committee and Heads of the Command and party committees, commands at all levels about leading and directing the comprehensive implementation of technical work. On the basis of grasping tasks, forces, vehicles, and competencies in technical assurance and dissemination of higher echelons’ directives, resolutions, plans, and instructions, the Party Committee and Command of the Technical Department have concretised the targets of tasks, mapped out plans, decentralised authority, and directed its agencies and units to design plans to ensure the coordination and unity among units. The Department’s agencies and units have also put into play the core central roles of the Technical Branch in mobilising forces, and making a breakthrough in key contents in technical work. Noticeably, the Department recently has advised Hanoi Capital Military Command on designing master planning, developing projects on building storehouses; using, liquidating, and handling weapons and equipment; building Programme No. 06-CTr/ĐU issued on March 23^rd, 2016 by the Command’s Party Committee on improving the quality of technical work to meet the task requirements in the new situation. The Department also advised the building and effective implementation of programmes and goals in the 2016-2021 period such as synchronising weapons and equipment; consolidating and upgrading storehouses; exploiting and mastering new equipment; ensuring safety, fire prevention, and traffic safety; and Project No. 1385/ĐA-BTL issued on October 21^st, 2016 on renewing and enhancing the quality of technical work within the armed forces of Hanoi Capital. Additionally, the Branch has focused on managing technical issues, allocating work to technical staff, supplementing the management process; planning all activities, unifying sampling systems; applying technologies and digital transformation to managing weapons, equipment, materials and administering work, etc. to ensure the continuous operation and accurate data to facilitate the commanders’ inspection and administration.

Additionally, the Branch has proactively advised party committees and commanders at all levels to plan and arrange cadres and technicians with sufficient strength and qualifications; renewed contents and methods of technical training in line with fostering ethics. Over the past years, along with selecting and sending cadres and technicians to train at military schools, the Branch has paid attention to appropriate on-the-spot training. In particular, importance should be placed on the training for technical cadres in commanding, managing, planning, directing, instructing, and organising the implementation of technical work, especially the competence in predicting and advising commanders according to responsibility. As for technicians, they have been required to concentrate on training and fostering professional competence in managing and calculating weapons and equipment; the process of maintaining and repairing during training and task of combat readiness; safety precautions in using weapons and equipment, etc. At the same time, importance has been attached to improving the mastery of management software and training non-professional staff and technicians to use newly bought equipment. To achieve high effectiveness, the Branch has directed its agencies and units to combine training with task implementation in all tasks according to assigned responsibilities. Technical cadres have mapped out operational plans for each individual and detachment, organise extra training, closely follow detachments to make immediate corrections, learn from experience, and complete lesson plans for the next tasks.

The Branch, concurrently, has also encouraged cadres and technicians to study and participate in scientific research to enhance their all-around qualifications and effectively exploit allocated weapons and equipment. Additionally, each individual has enhanced their learning autonomy, accelerate studying and following Ho Chi Minh’s thoughts, ethics, manners, and surmount all difficulties so that they could heighten their sense of responsibility and accomplish all assigned tasks. Besides, the Branch has advised its party committees and commanders to attach training to appropriate personnel planning and arrangement that suit their professional competence and personal situations. The branch has also organised and participated in multiple competitions. Besides, in the 2019-2022 period, the Branch organised dozens of training courses, over 20 competitions, etc., which contributes to heightening the qualifications and competencies of cadres and technicians. Currently, the number of high-level workers reaches 17%, while that of professional technicians is 98%; annually, all of them show commitment to work and accomplish assigned tasks.

To ensure the readiness for all tasks, the Branch has synchronously implemented the preservation, repair, storage, and maintenance of technical coefficients. Agencies and units have maintained the quality of weapons and equipment preservation, actively mobilised forces, materials for technical days, stepped up technical inspection and promptly repaired damage, etc. with priority given to combat-ready equipment. To improve the quality of preserving, repairing, and storing, the Branch has attached importance to acquiring modern technology and supplemented equipment to repair workshops to ensure the repair of all weapons and equipment especially new-generation vehicles. At the same time, all sources have been mobilised to consolidate the existing storehouse system, boost the progress of constructing new storehouses as planned, and improve the standard of storing weapons and equipment. Initiatives, technical improvements, and research topics have been accelerated in technical innovation contests. Schools, institutes, and technical assurance facilities have coordinated to apply modern technology, and exchange experience in manufacturing, repairing, storing, and exploiting modern equipment. Since 2019, the Branch has conducted 14 research topics at the Ministry of Defence and the municipal level and constructed 04 garages, 01 combined repair station, 01 vehicle inspection station, etc. with full modern equipment, thereby maintaining high technical coefficients for combat readiness.

To bring into play the power of all forces in technical assurance, the Department has advised the High Command on consolidating, improving the competencies of the Steering Boards of Campaign 50 at all levels and stepping up the propagation and implementation of the Campaign. The propagating contents concentrate on the goals and targets of the Campaign, the instructions of Steering Board 50, the Ministry of Defence, directives, resolutions on accident prevention, traffic order and safety, etc. to heighten the awareness and responsibility of all forces in well managing, exploiting weapons and equipment. Agencies and units have stringently and accurately performed weapon operation and safety precautions when exposed to weapons and equipment; regularly checked the storehouses’ temperature and moisture to ensure the absolute safety of weapons, ammunition, and flammable materials; categorised, collected weapons and equipment, and promptly deal with 5^th level ammunition. The Branch has advised on designing plans and programmes for the practice of thrift, ensuring the safety of storehouses, weapons and equipment, information safety, and traffic safety. At the same time, emphasis has been put on combining the Campaign with executing Conclusion No. 01-KL/TW issued on May 18^th, 2021 on implementing Directive No. 05-CT/TW of the Politburo and other political tasks, determine-to-win emulation movements, law education programmes, etc. so that the Campaign can become a regular activity of Hanoi Capital’s armed forces.

Thanks to the accurate advice, “regular and safe” management, flexible distribution of sources, maximal mobilisation of materials and human resources, etc. the Branch has always promptly ensured a standard and sufficient quantity of weapons, equipment, and materials for all tasks to enhance the synergy and combat readiness of the Capital’s armed forces to satisfy the task requirements in safeguarding the Fatherland in all situations.

Senior colonel MAI TRUNG TUYEN, Head of Technical Department, Hanoi Capital Command