With its force levels set to increase by at least 15 per cent over the next five years, the Indian Navy is to focus on developing its operational and technical infrastructure, apart from manpower growth.
With its force levels set to increase by at least 15 per cent over the next five years, the Indian Navy is to focus on developing its operational and technical infrastructure, apart from manpower growth.
"The navy continues to maintain focus on development of operational and technical infrastructure, as the force levels increase," Indian Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma told his commanders at the concluding session of their five-day biannual commanders conference here Friday.
"Discussions during the conference, lasting over three days, focused on a range of issues relevant to the navy's preparedness and plans to develop a definitive road map for the future. The plans for the navy's growing role in the Indian Ocean region were also discussed during the conference," a press release said.
The existing manpower 50,000 men and 8,000 officers is expected to increase by at least 15 percent to help operate the planned warship and other platform acquisitions.
The navy already has around 40 warships and battle vessels on order with both Indian and foreign shipyards, including an indigenous aircraft carrier, Kolkata class destroyers, Shivalik class frigates, Corvettes and Scorpene submarines, that will be inducted in the next five years.
These apart, the navy's infrastructure too will increase with opening of a major naval base at Karwar on the West coast, new forward naval bases, operational turnaround bases and naval air enclaves at Tuticorin, Kamarta, Diglipur, Campbell Bay, Paradip and other coastal towns of the mainland and island territories of Andaman and Nicobar and Lakshadweep.
"The primary challenge confronting the navy was to balance its resources and building human capital and a requisite strategy so as to be responsive to the full spectrum of operations," Verma said at the conference.
"The aviation arm of the navy is set to grow in the years ahead," he said, noting that the induction of the 16 MiG-29K naval combat aircraft for INS Vikramaditya (erstwhile Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier) from Russia had already started and the first flight of American major Boeing's P8I maritime patrol aircraft, eight of which were bought in 2009, taking place in September this year.
The P8I is "on schedule" for its induction in 2013, Admiral Verma added.
The naval chief said that progress had been made in the last few months in the induction of ships with contracts for five offshore patrol vessels, two cadet training ships, eight amphibious landing craft and fast interceptor craft being concluded.
He also highlighted the progress made in various plans and programmes for the modernisation of the navy and the initiatives and new schemes introduced for the promotion and welfare of sailors and their families.
The navy has been performing its traditional tasks and missions entrusted, which include overseas deployments, intra-navy exercises, bilateral exercises with friendly foreign countries and presence-cum-surveillance missions in the Indian Ocean region, with a view to discharge its role as the net security provider in the maritime domain in its area of operations.
http ://www.defencenews. in/defence-news-internal.asp?get=new&id=753
Showing posts with label india defence news. Show all posts
Showing posts with label india defence news. Show all posts
Army wants Light Strike Vehicles for Indian Special Forces
The Indian Army is likely to procure light strike vehicles (LSVs) specifically for its Parachute Battalions (Special Forces). An recent RFI issued in this regard says that the LSVs will be used as a fast attack vehicle for the Special Forces. It will also enhance the mobility and reach of the Special Forces in different types of hostile terrains.
The Army is keen to have these LSVs fitted with integral fire power systems. The Army has sought for a stable vehicle which can carry four persons (including the driver) in a full-combat mode, including personal weapon. The LSV must be configured to have stowage space for carrying communication sets, spare ammunition, water and fuel. The specs: 4.7m (length) x 2.1m (width) x 1.65 (height).
The RFI further states that the LSV must have hard points for a suitable weapon mount capable of firing a 7.62mm GPMG from co-driver’s seat (frontal arc). “The rear hard point must enable to mount either a MILAN anti tank guided missile launcher or a .50/12.7 HMG or an Automatic Grenade Launcher. The Army has also sought information on whether the LSV can be air portable\para droppable (AN-32, IL-76, MI17).
T-50 PAK FA Ends MAKS Hot & Low
This sucks. MAKS 2011 ended on a real downer for the PAK FA programme. The video above shows what happened during the take-off roll of the second T-50 prototype -- a starboard engine flameout after two sharp spikes of flame. The take-off was immediately aborted by pilot Sergei Bordan. Sukhoi has apparently put it down to a malfunction in the fuel supply system and the FADEC. Not a pretty way to end your first public show. Damn.
source : htt p://livefist.blogspot. com/2011/08/pak-fa-ends-maks-hot-low.html
PHOTOS: Navy Inducts 2nd Indian Stealth Frigate
The Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma today commissioned INS Satpura into the Indian Navy. Satpura is the second of the ingeniously designed and construct ed stealth frigates of the Shivalik Class, built by Mazagon Dock Ltd, Mumbai. This momentous occasion is a 'red-letter' day for the Navy, and is a tribute to the indigenou s ship building industry which further strengthe ns the Navy's resolve to move from a buyer's Navy to a builder's Navy.
The ceremony was marked with an inspectio n of a Guard of Honour by the Chief of Naval Staff. The CMD of Mazagaon Docks addressed the gathering after which the Commandin g Officer Captain Sharath Mohan read out the Commissio ning Warrant. The formal ceremony began with the Colour Guard presentin g arms while the National Flag & Naval Ensign were hoisted along with the Commissio ning pennant for the first time onboard the Ship, thus marking the induction of INS Satpura into the Naval Fleet. INS Satpura and also other ships in the Naval Dockyard were dressed overall for the occasion.
INS Satpura is armed with a formidabl e array of surface, sub-surface and air-defence weapons. These include long range anti-ship missiles, anti-aircraft missiles and anti-missile defence systems, which can detect and engage the enemy at extended ranges, thereby giving her significa nt combat power. The weapon-sensor fit of the Satpura is controlle d through a Combat Managemen t System, designed and developed by the Indian Navy and manufactu red by Bharat Electroni cs. The system allows the seamless integrati on of the ship's systems as well as with the weapons and sensors of other Fleet ships, thus enabling the concept of 'Co-operative Engagemen t Capabilit y' (CEC). The two multi-role helicopte rs that are embarked on Satpura provide enhanced surveilla nce and attack capabilit y.
INS Satpura has been conceived and designed by an Indian Naval design team. This class of ships will be the mainstay frigates of the Indian Navy in the first half of the 21st century. The incorpora tion of numerous new design features aboard INS Satpura effective ly reduces the probabili ty of her being detected at sea. The in-built structura l, thermal and acoustic stealth features augment the potent capabilit y of the ship to address threats in all dimension s of maritime warfare.
The ship is propelled by two modern LM 2500 Gas Turbine, which enable her to generate speeds in excess of 30 knots (or over 55 kmph), and two SEMT Pielstic Diesel Engines for normal cruising speeds. The ship's electric power is provided by four Diesel Alternato rs, which together produce 4 Mega-Watts of power-enough to light up a small town.The power generatio n and distribut ion on board is controlle d through an 'Automated Power Managemen t System' (APMS).
INS Satpura is also equipped to operate in an environme nt contamina ted by nuclear, biologica l or chemical agents. The state-of-the-art 'Total Atmospher ic Control System' (TACS) ensures filtratio n of the air going into the ship at all times. In addition, it ensures the complete removal of radioacti ve, chemical or biologica l impuritie s, thereby protectin g the crew and shipborne systems.
The ship's domestic requireme nts of fresh water are met through two Reverse Osmosis plants, while a fully automated galley, ensures that the crew can be fed a variety of cuisines, including freshly baked bread and home-made ice cream. The accommoda tion for the 35 officers and 250 crew members of INS Satpura incorpora tes advanced ergonomic design and ensures crew comfort and space managemen t.
Source : htt p://andhrafriends. com/index.php?topic=228402.msg2820152#msg2820152
America warns China expanding its Navel power
The advances mean China will by 2020 close a technological gap that once left it lagging far behind major powers, the Defence Department said in a report.
China has ramped up efforts to produce anti-ship missiles that could knock out aircraft carriers, improved targeting radar, expanded its fleet of nuclear-powered submarines and warships and made advances in satellite technology and cyber warfare, the Pentagon wrote in a report to Congress.
The weapons buildup comes as the Asian economic giant places a growing priority on securing strategic shipping lanes and mineral-rich areas in the South China Sea.
“The evolution of China’s economic and geostrategic interests has fundamentally altered Beijing’s view of maritime power,” said the document, an annual report on China’s military.
While Chinese leaders continue to prepare for a potential conflict with Taiwan, they now see a broader role for the People’s Liberation Army, with the navy as a crucial element, it said.
“China’s leaders have offered unambiguous guidance that the PLA Navy will play a growing role in protecting China’s far-flung interests,” the report said.
US commanders worry that China’s advances could jeopardize America’s longstanding military dominance in the Pacific, while US officials have accused Beijing of aggressive tactics against neighboring countries over territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
An expanded Chinese naval presence in the region would have “implications for regional rivalries and power dynamics,” Michael Schiffer, deputy assistant secretary of defense, told reporters.
Chinese leaders have insisted its modernization program is aimed solely at “self-defense” and accused US officials of trying to portray the armed forces as a threat.
Beijing has downplayed the advances, pointing out it was in fact last to get an aircraft carrier platform compared to the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.
The Pentagon also said China had sought to strengthen its nuclear forces by adding more “road-mobile” ballistic missiles and by stressing “camouflage” tactics to ensure the atomic arsenal could better survive a potential attack, the report said.
The buildup includes a new aircraft carrier that recently held its first sea trial. But the Pentagon played down its importance, saying the ship was a first step towards a future fleet of carriers expected to be built over 10 years.
The new carrier, a Ukrainian ship modified by the Chinese, “will serve initially as a training and evaluation platform, and eventually offer a limited operational capability,” it said.
The aircraft carrier still has no warplanes on board and “it will take a number of additional years for an air group to achieve the sort of minimal level of combat capability,” Schiffer said.
If China begins building its own aircraft carrier this year, it would not be operational until 2015, the report said.
With an array of new weapons coming on line, China’s military will face a challenge in the coming decade as it tries to train troops in new tactics and revise its approach to “adopt modern operational concepts,” he said.
The report noted an internal debate in China about the role of the military and whether the PLA “should develop to advance China’s interests beyond traditional requirements.”
It renewed US warnings that China was extending its military edge over Taiwan, citing better artillery that could strike targets within or even across the Taiwan Strait.
China considers Taiwan, where the mainland’s defeated nationalists fled in 1949, to be a province awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.
The dispute over Taiwan, including US arms sales to Taipei, has remained a stumbling block to Washington’s attempts at promoting a security dialogue with the Chinese military.
Taiwan, and some US lawmakers, have called for the sale of F-16 fighter jets to help counter the Chinese threat.
The Pentagon report covered 2010 and was delayed for five months, following a high-profile visit to Beijing by the US military’s top officer in July.
The document estimated China’s overall military-related spending was more than $160 billion in 2010.
Chinese military spending, however, is still far below the US defense budget, the world’s largest, which was nearly 700 billion dollars in 2010.
source : htt p://www.dawn. com/2011/08/25/us-warns-china-expanding-its-maritime-power.html
China has ramped up efforts to produce anti-ship missiles that could knock out aircraft carriers, improved targeting radar, expanded its fleet of nuclear-powered submarines and warships and made advances in satellite technology and cyber warfare, the Pentagon wrote in a report to Congress.
The weapons buildup comes as the Asian economic giant places a growing priority on securing strategic shipping lanes and mineral-rich areas in the South China Sea.
“The evolution of China’s economic and geostrategic interests has fundamentally altered Beijing’s view of maritime power,” said the document, an annual report on China’s military.
While Chinese leaders continue to prepare for a potential conflict with Taiwan, they now see a broader role for the People’s Liberation Army, with the navy as a crucial element, it said.
“China’s leaders have offered unambiguous guidance that the PLA Navy will play a growing role in protecting China’s far-flung interests,” the report said.
US commanders worry that China’s advances could jeopardize America’s longstanding military dominance in the Pacific, while US officials have accused Beijing of aggressive tactics against neighboring countries over territorial disputes in the South China Sea.
An expanded Chinese naval presence in the region would have “implications for regional rivalries and power dynamics,” Michael Schiffer, deputy assistant secretary of defense, told reporters.
Chinese leaders have insisted its modernization program is aimed solely at “self-defense” and accused US officials of trying to portray the armed forces as a threat.
Beijing has downplayed the advances, pointing out it was in fact last to get an aircraft carrier platform compared to the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council.
The Pentagon also said China had sought to strengthen its nuclear forces by adding more “road-mobile” ballistic missiles and by stressing “camouflage” tactics to ensure the atomic arsenal could better survive a potential attack, the report said.
The buildup includes a new aircraft carrier that recently held its first sea trial. But the Pentagon played down its importance, saying the ship was a first step towards a future fleet of carriers expected to be built over 10 years.
The new carrier, a Ukrainian ship modified by the Chinese, “will serve initially as a training and evaluation platform, and eventually offer a limited operational capability,” it said.
The aircraft carrier still has no warplanes on board and “it will take a number of additional years for an air group to achieve the sort of minimal level of combat capability,” Schiffer said.
If China begins building its own aircraft carrier this year, it would not be operational until 2015, the report said.
With an array of new weapons coming on line, China’s military will face a challenge in the coming decade as it tries to train troops in new tactics and revise its approach to “adopt modern operational concepts,” he said.
The report noted an internal debate in China about the role of the military and whether the PLA “should develop to advance China’s interests beyond traditional requirements.”
It renewed US warnings that China was extending its military edge over Taiwan, citing better artillery that could strike targets within or even across the Taiwan Strait.
China considers Taiwan, where the mainland’s defeated nationalists fled in 1949, to be a province awaiting reunification, by force if necessary.
The dispute over Taiwan, including US arms sales to Taipei, has remained a stumbling block to Washington’s attempts at promoting a security dialogue with the Chinese military.
Taiwan, and some US lawmakers, have called for the sale of F-16 fighter jets to help counter the Chinese threat.
The Pentagon report covered 2010 and was delayed for five months, following a high-profile visit to Beijing by the US military’s top officer in July.
The document estimated China’s overall military-related spending was more than $160 billion in 2010.
Chinese military spending, however, is still far below the US defense budget, the world’s largest, which was nearly 700 billion dollars in 2010.
source : htt p://www.dawn. com/2011/08/25/us-warns-china-expanding-its-maritime-power.html
Three Hundred Air Warriors inducted into Indian airforce
More than 300 Air Warriors were on Friday inducted into the Indian Air Force (IAF) at a passing out parade held at the IAF station at suburban Tambaram.
Air Commodore Alok Kumar, Command Flying Training Officer, reviewed the parade held at the end of their training.
In his address on the occasion, Kumar said the career prospects in the IAF had 'substantially improved,' and urged the newly inducted professionals to strive for excellence.
He said the operational efficiency of the IAF 'hinged upon,' maintenance and administrative support.
This was vital as the IAF was "in the process of a technology based transformation and modernisation with the phased induction of high performance, state-of-the-art aircraft and high precision military hardware and automation," he added.
Earlier, the Air Warriors had gone through a 'rigorous intensive training' at the Mechanical Training Institute and Workshop Training Institute (WTI).
Besides the 322 personnel, 13 soldiers from the Air Forces of Nepal, Myanmar and Sri Lanka also earned the training course certification, a defence release here said.
source : htt p://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes. com/2011-07-01/india/29725805_1_mechanical-training-institute-air-warriors-iaf-station
Air Commodore Alok Kumar, Command Flying Training Officer, reviewed the parade held at the end of their training.
In his address on the occasion, Kumar said the career prospects in the IAF had 'substantially improved,' and urged the newly inducted professionals to strive for excellence.
He said the operational efficiency of the IAF 'hinged upon,' maintenance and administrative support.
This was vital as the IAF was "in the process of a technology based transformation and modernisation with the phased induction of high performance, state-of-the-art aircraft and high precision military hardware and automation," he added.
Earlier, the Air Warriors had gone through a 'rigorous intensive training' at the Mechanical Training Institute and Workshop Training Institute (WTI).
Besides the 322 personnel, 13 soldiers from the Air Forces of Nepal, Myanmar and Sri Lanka also earned the training course certification, a defence release here said.
source : htt p://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes. com/2011-07-01/india/29725805_1_mechanical-training-institute-air-warriors-iaf-station
Prahaar Missile to be test-fired on Sunday
Prahaar, a new quick-reaction, short-range tactical missile, which will fill the gap for a battlefield weapon system in India’s missile arsenal, is all set to be flight-tested on Sunday. It had been under development for the last four years.
It has greater accuracy as compared to other unguided missiles India has developed so far with a strike range of 150 km. Moreover, it can handle several targets at once and allow mixture of different kinds of missiles in just one launcher.
Terming ‘Prahaar’ as an excellent weapon, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister and DRDO Director- General VK Saraswat said it would be equipped with omni-directional warheads and initially handled by the Indian Army.
The missile appears to be India’s response to Pakistan’s Nasr, a 60-km range tactical nuclear missile which was tested on April 19.
Defence sources said preparation for the first test at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, about 15 km from here, has reached final stage. Weather permitting, the test will be conducted on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the defence authorities have initiated steps to temporarily shift people residing in the 2-km radius of the test range. A meeting in this regard will be convened with the district administration on Friday to decide the pay package for the people to be displaced for a day.
(Follow IBNLive.com on Facebook and on Twitter for updates that you can share with your friends.)
source : htt p://ibnlive. in. com/news/prahaar-missile-to-be-testfired-on-sunday/167739-60-117.html
It has greater accuracy as compared to other unguided missiles India has developed so far with a strike range of 150 km. Moreover, it can handle several targets at once and allow mixture of different kinds of missiles in just one launcher.
Terming ‘Prahaar’ as an excellent weapon, Scientific Adviser to the Defence Minister and DRDO Director- General VK Saraswat said it would be equipped with omni-directional warheads and initially handled by the Indian Army.
The missile appears to be India’s response to Pakistan’s Nasr, a 60-km range tactical nuclear missile which was tested on April 19.
Defence sources said preparation for the first test at the Integrated Test Range (ITR) at Chandipur, about 15 km from here, has reached final stage. Weather permitting, the test will be conducted on Sunday.
Meanwhile, the defence authorities have initiated steps to temporarily shift people residing in the 2-km radius of the test range. A meeting in this regard will be convened with the district administration on Friday to decide the pay package for the people to be displaced for a day.
(Follow IBNLive.com on Facebook and on Twitter for updates that you can share with your friends.)
source : htt p://ibnlive. in. com/news/prahaar-missile-to-be-testfired-on-sunday/167739-60-117.html
India Russia Sukhoi T-50 PAKFA aircraft aborts 2nd flight due to technology issues
Indo-Russian Sukhoi T-50 stealth fighter faced a major technical problem when it had to abort its second test flight at an airshow here, causing a temporary setback to the fifth generation combat jet project.
"The T-50 fighter aborted the takeoff for technical reasons due to engine overflow and its pilot Sergei Bogdan decided to apply emergency brakes with the tail parachute," Interfax reported quoting defence industry sources.
Earlier the government run RIA Novosti reported that a flash was seen during the fighter''s takeoff, after that the aircraft landed with a parachute at the MAKS-2011 International Aviation and Space Show.
The T-50 made its maiden flight in January 2010 and is expected to enter service by 2015.
Russia had lifted the curtain on the secret T-50 project on August 17 in the presence of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
The project is being developed at a fraction of the cost of American F-22 and F-35 fighters.
A senior aviation expert quoted by the agency said that an emergency landing was normal for the period of test flights, especially in the conditions of high humidity and "taking into account the safety of the air show visitors."
The closing day of the airshow was marred by heavy rains and the demonstration flights for the public were limited to two hours only.
Under a 2007 intergovernmental agreement India and Russia are to jointly develop the futuristic stealth fighter capable of challenging the US Raptor F-22.
source : htt p://news.in.msn. com/international/article.aspx?cp-documentid=5381802
"The T-50 fighter aborted the takeoff for technical reasons due to engine overflow and its pilot Sergei Bogdan decided to apply emergency brakes with the tail parachute," Interfax reported quoting defence industry sources.
Earlier the government run RIA Novosti reported that a flash was seen during the fighter''s takeoff, after that the aircraft landed with a parachute at the MAKS-2011 International Aviation and Space Show.
The T-50 made its maiden flight in January 2010 and is expected to enter service by 2015.
Russia had lifted the curtain on the secret T-50 project on August 17 in the presence of Prime Minister Vladimir Putin.
The project is being developed at a fraction of the cost of American F-22 and F-35 fighters.
A senior aviation expert quoted by the agency said that an emergency landing was normal for the period of test flights, especially in the conditions of high humidity and "taking into account the safety of the air show visitors."
The closing day of the airshow was marred by heavy rains and the demonstration flights for the public were limited to two hours only.
Under a 2007 intergovernmental agreement India and Russia are to jointly develop the futuristic stealth fighter capable of challenging the US Raptor F-22.
source : htt p://news.in.msn. com/international/article.aspx?cp-documentid=5381802
Indian Army downplays america warning about terror attacks in india
Asserting that the recent US warning about LeT attacks on India had "no special intelligence value", the Army on Sunday said it had eliminated top commanders of the outfit which has increased "desperation" of militants to infiltrate into Kashmir ahead of winter. "Lashkar-e-Toiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad are traditionally the major terrorist groups -- Jaish from the year 2000 and Lashkar even before that. It has no special intelligence value that Lashkar or Jaish are planning to increase attacks or their activity," General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Army's Srinagar-based 15 Corps, Lt Gen Syed Atta Hasnain said. Hasnain said the Army has always known about Lashkar's attempts to target India.
"What is important is what we are doing to counter it. Jointly, security forces are targeting the leadership of Jaish and Lashkar, and our intelligence this year has been extremely good. It is because of this that the desperation has increased (among militants) and they are trying to infiltrate," he told reporters here.
Warning that LeT has the ability to "severely disrupt already delicate" regional relations, the US State Department had said the Pakistan-based terror outfit, responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks, remained active in Kashmir and continued to target India along with groups like JeM and HuM.
The GOC said infiltration attempts will continue over the next two months. "Infiltration will continue and their (militants') mistakes will also continue and we will take benefit of their mistakes," he said.
source : htt p://zeenews.india. com/news/nation/indian-army-downplays-us-warning-about-let-attacks_727450.html
"What is important is what we are doing to counter it. Jointly, security forces are targeting the leadership of Jaish and Lashkar, and our intelligence this year has been extremely good. It is because of this that the desperation has increased (among militants) and they are trying to infiltrate," he told reporters here.
Warning that LeT has the ability to "severely disrupt already delicate" regional relations, the US State Department had said the Pakistan-based terror outfit, responsible for the 2008 Mumbai attacks, remained active in Kashmir and continued to target India along with groups like JeM and HuM.
The GOC said infiltration attempts will continue over the next two months. "Infiltration will continue and their (militants') mistakes will also continue and we will take benefit of their mistakes," he said.
source : htt p://zeenews.india. com/news/nation/indian-army-downplays-us-warning-about-let-attacks_727450.html
India ready to counter China`s border might
With Beijing flexing its muscles by strengthening its military capacity in Tibet, New Delhi has given an in-principle nod to beef up defences along the 4,057-km Line of Actual Control. The Indian counter-move includes raising a new army corps at Pannagarh in West Bengal, an armoured
brigade each in eastern Sikkim and eastern Ladakh and an independent infantry brigade in the Barahoti plains in Uttarakhand.While the proposed upgradation of Indian military defences is being processed for final approval by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), it was given an in-principle green signal from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and defence minister AK Antony during an army presentation last month.
The strategic step was taken in the light of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) capability to deploy no less than 34 divisions (nearly half-a-million troops) within a month on the LAC due to a huge infrastructure build-up (see graphic) in Tibet. To add to India's discomfort, the PLA has been conducting airborne, para-dropping and artillery firing exercises in Tibet for the past two years.Government sources said the Pannagarh-based corps (around 15,000 combat troops) will include a Ranchi-based formation, which is currently part of the Mathura-based 1 Corps. This means that the army will raise two more divisions in the coming years to replenish the Mathura Corps and another to add to the Pannagarh formation. For this purpose, the army has earmarked 6,000 acres of land in Pannagarh, which has a functioning air force strip and is located 150 km from Kolkata.
Already a battalion and a tank regiment, which will be part of the armoured brigade, have been moved to Sikkim.
At the heart of the proposed Indian defence build-up is the threat assessment that the PLA may become assertive across the Arunachal Pradesh border in the coming years as Beijing still calls its South Tibet and has not given up its stapled visa strategy for residents of Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu Kashmir.
source : htt p://www.hindustantimes. com/Delhi-ready-to-counter-Beijing-s-border-might/Article1-735945.aspx
brigade each in eastern Sikkim and eastern Ladakh and an independent infantry brigade in the Barahoti plains in Uttarakhand.While the proposed upgradation of Indian military defences is being processed for final approval by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), it was given an in-principle green signal from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and defence minister AK Antony during an army presentation last month.
The strategic step was taken in the light of the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) capability to deploy no less than 34 divisions (nearly half-a-million troops) within a month on the LAC due to a huge infrastructure build-up (see graphic) in Tibet. To add to India's discomfort, the PLA has been conducting airborne, para-dropping and artillery firing exercises in Tibet for the past two years.Government sources said the Pannagarh-based corps (around 15,000 combat troops) will include a Ranchi-based formation, which is currently part of the Mathura-based 1 Corps. This means that the army will raise two more divisions in the coming years to replenish the Mathura Corps and another to add to the Pannagarh formation. For this purpose, the army has earmarked 6,000 acres of land in Pannagarh, which has a functioning air force strip and is located 150 km from Kolkata.
Already a battalion and a tank regiment, which will be part of the armoured brigade, have been moved to Sikkim.
At the heart of the proposed Indian defence build-up is the threat assessment that the PLA may become assertive across the Arunachal Pradesh border in the coming years as Beijing still calls its South Tibet and has not given up its stapled visa strategy for residents of Arunachal Pradesh and Jammu Kashmir.
source : htt p://www.hindustantimes. com/Delhi-ready-to-counter-Beijing-s-border-might/Article1-735945.aspx
Coordination enhanced among maritime agencies: India defence Navy
There has been an enhanced coordination among maritime agencies to step up coastal security after the 26/11 terror attacks, Navy chief Admiral Nirmal Verma said on Saturday.
"The number of agencies utilised in maritime domain is very large. Earlier, there was no adequate coordination with them. It was virtually non-existent," he said, adding after the sea-borne attacks in the metropolis in November 2008, the coordination has improved.
The Navy chief was talking to reporters here after commissioning Shivalik class stealth frigate 'INS Satpura'.
Asked if he favoured the idea of the Navy having operational control of all maritime agencies to ensure better coastal security, the Admiral said, "I think it would be too huge a task to execute with my own manpower. That is the reason I think that very wisely, the tasking has been given to different agencies who actually deal with the subject."
The responsibilities have been assigned after a great deal of thought, he maintained. "That is the reason why the Navy had been pursuing the proposal for a National Maritime Commission. When that did not happen, we were looking forward to the appointment of a maritime security advisor.
Unfortunately, this also did not happen."
Admiral Verma chief cited these factors as "the reason each one of us was operating in isolation. That could be one of the many factors which led to 26/11."
"Today, fishermen are giving information (on suspicious movements in sea). This information is very accurate in the sense that trawlers and boats always carry GPS with them. When you get such inputs you are able to deploy the forces that Navy and Coast Guard have got."
Technical measures like smart cards for fishermen are progressing well. The coastal belt is well covered by mobile telecom operators and there are toll-free numbers in operation virtually along the entire coast, the Navy chief said.
"With transponders and identification aids to be installed on our fishing craft, there would be an element of identification."
"We have been hearing about the fishermen being the eyes and ears of the (coastal) security network. I have said that this is a very important aspect of the coastal security matrix," Admiral Verma maintained.
The Navy and Coast Guard have put in a tremendous amount of efforts to carry out the coastal security awareness campaign, he said. "The objective being that over a period, you visit each coastal village and every possible landing site and make fishermen aware of the situation that prevails at sea."
On piracy incidents, the Navy chief said the menace was initially contained within 500 to 700 miles off Somalia coast.
"They (pirates) later ventured into areas that came 200 to 300 miles off the Lakshadweep islands."
On China's exploration of a 10,000 sq km polymetallic sulphide ore deposit in an international seabed area in the Indian Ocean region, he said, "Firstly, for whatever reasons, we did not stake claim (to the area), otherwise we could have been owners of that site. There are complex issues involved here because you have to prove that you have the technology to carry out (seabed) mining."
Earlier, addressing the gathering after commissioning INS Satpura, India's latest stealth frigate, the Navy chief said "we have come a step closer towards realisation of our long cherished dream of being self-sufficient in warship production."
"We fully realise and are conscious of our responsibility to the global maritime community to ensure safety of the international shipping lanes that criss-cross our regions of interest. The Indian Navy remains committed to ensuring the security of seafarers in our region."
Admiral Verma lauded Mazagon Docks Ltd, where INS Satpura has been built, for "continuing to excel" as the premier defence shipyard of the country.
source : htt p://www.brahmand. com/news/Coordination-enhanced-among-maritime-agencies-Indian-Navy/7806/3/14.html
"The number of agencies utilised in maritime domain is very large. Earlier, there was no adequate coordination with them. It was virtually non-existent," he said, adding after the sea-borne attacks in the metropolis in November 2008, the coordination has improved.
The Navy chief was talking to reporters here after commissioning Shivalik class stealth frigate 'INS Satpura'.
Asked if he favoured the idea of the Navy having operational control of all maritime agencies to ensure better coastal security, the Admiral said, "I think it would be too huge a task to execute with my own manpower. That is the reason I think that very wisely, the tasking has been given to different agencies who actually deal with the subject."
The responsibilities have been assigned after a great deal of thought, he maintained. "That is the reason why the Navy had been pursuing the proposal for a National Maritime Commission. When that did not happen, we were looking forward to the appointment of a maritime security advisor.
Unfortunately, this also did not happen."
Admiral Verma chief cited these factors as "the reason each one of us was operating in isolation. That could be one of the many factors which led to 26/11."
"Today, fishermen are giving information (on suspicious movements in sea). This information is very accurate in the sense that trawlers and boats always carry GPS with them. When you get such inputs you are able to deploy the forces that Navy and Coast Guard have got."
Technical measures like smart cards for fishermen are progressing well. The coastal belt is well covered by mobile telecom operators and there are toll-free numbers in operation virtually along the entire coast, the Navy chief said.
"With transponders and identification aids to be installed on our fishing craft, there would be an element of identification."
"We have been hearing about the fishermen being the eyes and ears of the (coastal) security network. I have said that this is a very important aspect of the coastal security matrix," Admiral Verma maintained.
The Navy and Coast Guard have put in a tremendous amount of efforts to carry out the coastal security awareness campaign, he said. "The objective being that over a period, you visit each coastal village and every possible landing site and make fishermen aware of the situation that prevails at sea."
On piracy incidents, the Navy chief said the menace was initially contained within 500 to 700 miles off Somalia coast.
"They (pirates) later ventured into areas that came 200 to 300 miles off the Lakshadweep islands."
On China's exploration of a 10,000 sq km polymetallic sulphide ore deposit in an international seabed area in the Indian Ocean region, he said, "Firstly, for whatever reasons, we did not stake claim (to the area), otherwise we could have been owners of that site. There are complex issues involved here because you have to prove that you have the technology to carry out (seabed) mining."
Earlier, addressing the gathering after commissioning INS Satpura, India's latest stealth frigate, the Navy chief said "we have come a step closer towards realisation of our long cherished dream of being self-sufficient in warship production."
"We fully realise and are conscious of our responsibility to the global maritime community to ensure safety of the international shipping lanes that criss-cross our regions of interest. The Indian Navy remains committed to ensuring the security of seafarers in our region."
Admiral Verma lauded Mazagon Docks Ltd, where INS Satpura has been built, for "continuing to excel" as the premier defence shipyard of the country.
source : htt p://www.brahmand. com/news/Coordination-enhanced-among-maritime-agencies-Indian-Navy/7806/3/14.html
Ajai Shukla: Building a submarine fleet in india
The Indian Navy has acted decisively over the years to create the capability and infrastructure needed for building surface battleships, but it has dithered in setting up an industry that could build submarines. Consequently, even as India’s 140-ship surface fleet is an imposing presence across a swathe of the northern Indian Ocean Region (IOR) from the Gulf of Hormuz to the Strait of Malacca, its 14 diesel-electric submarines hardly provide a matching underwater capability. Meanwhile, China, with at least 53 conventional and seven nuclear attack submarines (SSNs), poses a viable threat to our waters. Even Pakistan is boosting its submarine fleet to 11 vessels, of which nine will have air-independent propulsion (AIP) systems that are superior to anything in the Indian Navy.What makes submarines so important? Naval warfare is about gaining “sea control”, or dominating an operationally important tract of water. In a war with China or Pakistan “sea control” would enable the Indian Navy to bottle up enemy warships in their harbours; prevent seaborne operations by the enemy; and block commercial vessels from resupplying those countries. Sea control is a rich man’s game, requiring the deployment of naval assets in multiple dimensions: underwater, surface, aerial and space. India can hope to gain sea control only in its vicinity, ie the northern IOR. Then there is “sea denial”, a less force-intensive, spoiler’s option in which a navy deploys submarines and lays mines to deny the enemy sea control. For example, three or four Pakistani submarines lurking off India’s west coast would tie up Indian naval assets in locating and neutralising them, diverting those Indian vessels from the task of sea control. The longer a submarine can lurk underwater, ie “remain on patrol”, the longer it ties down enemy assets. Diesel-electric submarines like the Indian Navy’s must resurface periodically to charge their batteries, giving away surprise. In contrast, submarines with air-independent propulsion (AIP), and SSNs, can remain submerged far longer.
The Indian Navy, which aspires to “blue water” capability, must be capable of sea control in certain sectors, as well as sea denial further away, for example, at the choke points leading into the Indian Ocean from the South China Sea. That requires at least 24 conventional submarines for our coastal waters; and at least five to seven SSNs that can carry out sea denial for extended durations at very long ranges.
Unfortunately, the building of such a submarine force has been beset with blunders. The Indian Navy makes do with 14 old-style, diesel-electric submarines, of which just seven or eight are operational at any time. Six Scorpene submarines are currently being built under Project 75, but when they come on stream by late 2018 an almost equivalent number will have retired from the current fleet.
The ministry of defence (MoD) and the navy are aware of this crisis. In 1999, the Cabinet approved a 30-Year Submarine Construction Plan, for constructing 24 conventional submarines in India. Two simultaneous construction lines were to build six submarines each. One line was to use western technology; and the other Russian know-how. Based on this experience, Indian designers would build the next 12 submarines.
Twenty years after the plan was finalised, in 2019, India will have built just six Scorpene submarines. The reason is as simple as it is astonishing: with Indian shipyards competing to build tens of thousands of crore rupees worth of submarines, the MoD has failed spectacularly to bring any order to this melee. Instead of adjudicating decisively, setting up design and construction partnerships, and placing orders in good time, the MoD has – in typical Antony style – avoided a decision. Instead, it has set up committee after committee to identify which shipyard should get the orders. The latest, the Krishnamurthi Committee, has submitted split findings, setting the stage for Mr Antony to launch a fresh round of doing nothing.
It is time to thin out the crowded field of aspirants. Within the public sector, only Mazagon Dock Ltd (MDL) has built submarines. Its ongoing Project 75 to build six Scorpene submarines should be extended by another three vessels. Of these nine vessels, the last six must have AIP and the ability to fire missiles, changes that can be made easily. This should be India’s west coast production line.
On the east coast, L&T (which has gained experience building India’s nuclear submarine, the Arihant) should be permitted to join hands with Hindustan Shipyard Ltd (HSL), the MoD’s new shipyard in Vishakhapatnam, for building a second line of submarines with Russian technology. The L&T-HSL JV should also be designated the node for developing and building a line of SSNs, which remains a glaring hole in India’s defence capabilities. Every other country with nuclear submarine capability first built SSNs before developing the technology for SSBNs, as nuclear ballistic missile submarines are called. India alone has begun with a complex SSBN (the INS Arihant) and is continuing building more SSBNs without taking on the simpler design challenge of SSNs. Now, having leased the INS Chakra, an Akula class SSN, from Russia for the next ten years, India must integrate these experiences into an indigenous SSN line.
Meanwhile, the MoD must ensure that the expensive (Rs 6,000 crore) technology that it bought for the Scorpene, and will buy for the Russian submarine line, fructifies into a world-class indigenous design. This will require close involvement from the navy’s integral design establishment. A concurrent role must be allocated to NIRDESH, the newly set up National Institute for Research and Development in Defence Shipbuilding.
source : htt p://business-standard. com/india/news/ajai-shukla-buildingsubmarine-fleet/446636/
The Indian Navy, which aspires to “blue water” capability, must be capable of sea control in certain sectors, as well as sea denial further away, for example, at the choke points leading into the Indian Ocean from the South China Sea. That requires at least 24 conventional submarines for our coastal waters; and at least five to seven SSNs that can carry out sea denial for extended durations at very long ranges.
Unfortunately, the building of such a submarine force has been beset with blunders. The Indian Navy makes do with 14 old-style, diesel-electric submarines, of which just seven or eight are operational at any time. Six Scorpene submarines are currently being built under Project 75, but when they come on stream by late 2018 an almost equivalent number will have retired from the current fleet.
The ministry of defence (MoD) and the navy are aware of this crisis. In 1999, the Cabinet approved a 30-Year Submarine Construction Plan, for constructing 24 conventional submarines in India. Two simultaneous construction lines were to build six submarines each. One line was to use western technology; and the other Russian know-how. Based on this experience, Indian designers would build the next 12 submarines.
Twenty years after the plan was finalised, in 2019, India will have built just six Scorpene submarines. The reason is as simple as it is astonishing: with Indian shipyards competing to build tens of thousands of crore rupees worth of submarines, the MoD has failed spectacularly to bring any order to this melee. Instead of adjudicating decisively, setting up design and construction partnerships, and placing orders in good time, the MoD has – in typical Antony style – avoided a decision. Instead, it has set up committee after committee to identify which shipyard should get the orders. The latest, the Krishnamurthi Committee, has submitted split findings, setting the stage for Mr Antony to launch a fresh round of doing nothing.
It is time to thin out the crowded field of aspirants. Within the public sector, only Mazagon Dock Ltd (MDL) has built submarines. Its ongoing Project 75 to build six Scorpene submarines should be extended by another three vessels. Of these nine vessels, the last six must have AIP and the ability to fire missiles, changes that can be made easily. This should be India’s west coast production line.
On the east coast, L&T (which has gained experience building India’s nuclear submarine, the Arihant) should be permitted to join hands with Hindustan Shipyard Ltd (HSL), the MoD’s new shipyard in Vishakhapatnam, for building a second line of submarines with Russian technology. The L&T-HSL JV should also be designated the node for developing and building a line of SSNs, which remains a glaring hole in India’s defence capabilities. Every other country with nuclear submarine capability first built SSNs before developing the technology for SSBNs, as nuclear ballistic missile submarines are called. India alone has begun with a complex SSBN (the INS Arihant) and is continuing building more SSBNs without taking on the simpler design challenge of SSNs. Now, having leased the INS Chakra, an Akula class SSN, from Russia for the next ten years, India must integrate these experiences into an indigenous SSN line.
Meanwhile, the MoD must ensure that the expensive (Rs 6,000 crore) technology that it bought for the Scorpene, and will buy for the Russian submarine line, fructifies into a world-class indigenous design. This will require close involvement from the navy’s integral design establishment. A concurrent role must be allocated to NIRDESH, the newly set up National Institute for Research and Development in Defence Shipbuilding.
source : htt p://business-standard. com/india/news/ajai-shukla-buildingsubmarine-fleet/446636/
BrahMos sets the ‘gold standard’ for Russia India defence Technology projects
There has been a lot of talk recently about growing competition on India’s arms market, which is crucial for Russia. In Soviet times, Russia supplied some 75-80 per cent of the weapons for India’s Army, Air Force and Navy but now, as India matures financially, it is opting increasingly for more expensive western armaments. Back in the 1980s, German and French supplies brought India submarines and Mirage 2000 fighters and, in 1990, Israel broke in, making India one of its biggest sales markets, along with the US. Finally, the last ten years have seen a significant boost to Indian-US military and technical ties, with US’s sales of military transport and antisubmarine aircraft nearing $10 billion.
In this situation, the best way for Russia to retain its position in India is to revise the trade paradigm of military and technical cooperation, shifting the focus to joint projects based on risk-sharing partnership, whereby the parties invest jointly in creation, production and promotion of products. Today, Russia and India have two joint defence projects, including the BrahMos programme for designing, producing and marketing supersonic stealth cruise missiles, and a project for building the MTA multirole medium transport aircraft. During Russian President Medvedev’s visit to India in December 2010, a contract was also signed to design India’s version of the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA), which potentially means yet another joint undertaking.
While the МТА programme has not yet shown any impressive progress, the BrahMos project can be seen as the ‘gold standard’ for joint military manufacturing programmes, effectively combining such factors as commercial profit for Russian and Indian partners, a tangible improvement in the combat ability of the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force, and development of new technologies, which is particularly important for India. Perhaps the project’s most valuable result is the accumulated experience of resolving difficult legislative, organisational and financial problems. In the future, this experience will be used for new joint programmes, including for the FGFA project.
What makes this programme so unique is that India is, in fact, buying one of its first standardised weapons systems that can be deployed by all three armed services - the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.
The Indian Navy was the first customer for the BrahMos missile, which can be carried by a wide range of naval platforms, including most existing and future surface ships. The first ships to be equipped with BrahMos were Project 61ME (Kashin-Mod class) destroyers. Two of them, the Ranvir and the Ranvijay, will also be fitted with 8-missile vertical launch systems. Other ships that will carry BrahMos include three Project 15A (Kolkata class) destroyers, which are currently under construction in India, the future Project 15B destroyers, future Project 17A frigates, and three Project 11356M (Talwar class Batch 2) frigates now being built for India at the Yantar Shipyards in Kaliningrad. The future Talwar class Batch 3 frigates will also be equipped with the new missile, irrespective of where they are built, be it Russia or India.
In addition to surface ships, the Indian Navy plans to deploy BrahMos on submarines and, possibly, on land-based patrol aircraft. The suitable airborne carriers include the Russian Il-38SD ASW aircraft and, in a few years' time, the Boeing P-8I Poseidon ASW, which India has already ordered from the United States. It seems that the Indian Navy wants to make BrahMos its core weapon. The new missile’s long range (up to 280 km), high speed and powerful warhead will give Indian fighters not just a military advantage but absolute dominance over Pakistan’s ship groups, also creating a significant deterrent to China’s fast-growing navy.
Another major customer is India’s land forces, which are buying BrahMos missiles in the mobile land-based configuration. These will be used not only against ships but also as high-precision weapons against land targets, such as command posts and key military, public and economic infrastructure facilities (the Block II LACM version). The Indian Army ordered 134 mobile anti-ship land-based BrahMos Block I missiles in 2006-2009 and another 240 land-attack BrahMos Block II in 2010, to a total of about 3 billion US dollars.
Finally, the Indian Air Force is awaiting completion of research and development for an air-launched version of BrahMos, to be deployed primarily on Su-30 MKI fighters, with first deliveries expected in 2012. The Indian Air Force also plans to buy the BrahMos Block II version, which is designed to engage land targets. Currently, the Sukhoi Design Bureau is carrying out research and development to deploy the air-launched version of the missile on the Su-30 MKI. This will apparently become the focus for modernising the Su-30 MKI under the Super 30 programme. Indeed, the aircraft was designed in the early 1990s and is not due for an upgrade: an active phased array radar will be installed, along with BrahMos missiles.
All this is also of interest to Russian customers. Currently, BrahMos missiles and their Russian analogue, the Yakhont, are arguably the most powerful non-nuclear anti-ship weapons deployed in Russia and India and the Su-30 MKI is the only suitable carrier. The Russian Air Force plans, therefore, to order 28 Su-30 SM fighters, which will be technically similar to the Indian version, the only difference being that the Israeli and some French systems will be replaced by Russian ones. Russia’s Navy is also considering the possibility of buying 12 such aircraft for its own purposes.
In this respect, acquisition of BrahMos missiles would come in very handy. And it is not about Russian-made Yakhont missiles, but about BrahMos. From a military and technical perspective, this would mean acquisition by the Russian armed forces of the hugely effective Su-30 SM-BrahMos system, which would revolutionise the alliance of forces, for example, in the Black Sea region. And politically, it would underline the joint nature of the project. The Indians are extremely concerned about any symbols of their industrial and technological progress and acquisition by Russia of Indian products would be very much appreciated in a country that pays billions of dollars for Russian weapons every year.
Strange as it might seem, the success of the BrahMos programme has boosted Russia’s chances of promoting its air and naval platforms on the Indian market. Normally, is the opposite would be the case: export of platforms opens up opportunities for missile supplies to be deployed on these platforms. But with BrahMos, it is the missiles that have become the driving force. So the Rubin Design Bureau is creating a special version of Russia’s new Project 677 (Аmur class) submarine to carry BrahMos anti-ship missiles as its main weapon system. This raises the submarine’s chance of winning India’s tender for six submarines worth up to $10 billion.
And last but not least, the BrahMos Aerospace joint venture has become a vehicle for further Russian-Indian projects, on an even larger scale and with greater Indian participation. The company is known to be already working on a new hypersonic missile. The unique experience accumulated since 1998 as part of the BrahMos project has paved the way for even more ambitious goals, including new strategic ballistic and cruise missiles.
source : htt p://indrus. in/articles/2011/08/22/brahmos_sets_the_gold_standard_for_russian-indian_defence_projects_12899.html
In this situation, the best way for Russia to retain its position in India is to revise the trade paradigm of military and technical cooperation, shifting the focus to joint projects based on risk-sharing partnership, whereby the parties invest jointly in creation, production and promotion of products. Today, Russia and India have two joint defence projects, including the BrahMos programme for designing, producing and marketing supersonic stealth cruise missiles, and a project for building the MTA multirole medium transport aircraft. During Russian President Medvedev’s visit to India in December 2010, a contract was also signed to design India’s version of the Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA), which potentially means yet another joint undertaking.
While the МТА programme has not yet shown any impressive progress, the BrahMos project can be seen as the ‘gold standard’ for joint military manufacturing programmes, effectively combining such factors as commercial profit for Russian and Indian partners, a tangible improvement in the combat ability of the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force, and development of new technologies, which is particularly important for India. Perhaps the project’s most valuable result is the accumulated experience of resolving difficult legislative, organisational and financial problems. In the future, this experience will be used for new joint programmes, including for the FGFA project.
What makes this programme so unique is that India is, in fact, buying one of its first standardised weapons systems that can be deployed by all three armed services - the Army, the Navy and the Air Force.
The Indian Navy was the first customer for the BrahMos missile, which can be carried by a wide range of naval platforms, including most existing and future surface ships. The first ships to be equipped with BrahMos were Project 61ME (Kashin-Mod class) destroyers. Two of them, the Ranvir and the Ranvijay, will also be fitted with 8-missile vertical launch systems. Other ships that will carry BrahMos include three Project 15A (Kolkata class) destroyers, which are currently under construction in India, the future Project 15B destroyers, future Project 17A frigates, and three Project 11356M (Talwar class Batch 2) frigates now being built for India at the Yantar Shipyards in Kaliningrad. The future Talwar class Batch 3 frigates will also be equipped with the new missile, irrespective of where they are built, be it Russia or India.
In addition to surface ships, the Indian Navy plans to deploy BrahMos on submarines and, possibly, on land-based patrol aircraft. The suitable airborne carriers include the Russian Il-38SD ASW aircraft and, in a few years' time, the Boeing P-8I Poseidon ASW, which India has already ordered from the United States. It seems that the Indian Navy wants to make BrahMos its core weapon. The new missile’s long range (up to 280 km), high speed and powerful warhead will give Indian fighters not just a military advantage but absolute dominance over Pakistan’s ship groups, also creating a significant deterrent to China’s fast-growing navy.
Another major customer is India’s land forces, which are buying BrahMos missiles in the mobile land-based configuration. These will be used not only against ships but also as high-precision weapons against land targets, such as command posts and key military, public and economic infrastructure facilities (the Block II LACM version). The Indian Army ordered 134 mobile anti-ship land-based BrahMos Block I missiles in 2006-2009 and another 240 land-attack BrahMos Block II in 2010, to a total of about 3 billion US dollars.
Finally, the Indian Air Force is awaiting completion of research and development for an air-launched version of BrahMos, to be deployed primarily on Su-30 MKI fighters, with first deliveries expected in 2012. The Indian Air Force also plans to buy the BrahMos Block II version, which is designed to engage land targets. Currently, the Sukhoi Design Bureau is carrying out research and development to deploy the air-launched version of the missile on the Su-30 MKI. This will apparently become the focus for modernising the Su-30 MKI under the Super 30 programme. Indeed, the aircraft was designed in the early 1990s and is not due for an upgrade: an active phased array radar will be installed, along with BrahMos missiles.
All this is also of interest to Russian customers. Currently, BrahMos missiles and their Russian analogue, the Yakhont, are arguably the most powerful non-nuclear anti-ship weapons deployed in Russia and India and the Su-30 MKI is the only suitable carrier. The Russian Air Force plans, therefore, to order 28 Su-30 SM fighters, which will be technically similar to the Indian version, the only difference being that the Israeli and some French systems will be replaced by Russian ones. Russia’s Navy is also considering the possibility of buying 12 such aircraft for its own purposes.
In this respect, acquisition of BrahMos missiles would come in very handy. And it is not about Russian-made Yakhont missiles, but about BrahMos. From a military and technical perspective, this would mean acquisition by the Russian armed forces of the hugely effective Su-30 SM-BrahMos system, which would revolutionise the alliance of forces, for example, in the Black Sea region. And politically, it would underline the joint nature of the project. The Indians are extremely concerned about any symbols of their industrial and technological progress and acquisition by Russia of Indian products would be very much appreciated in a country that pays billions of dollars for Russian weapons every year.
Strange as it might seem, the success of the BrahMos programme has boosted Russia’s chances of promoting its air and naval platforms on the Indian market. Normally, is the opposite would be the case: export of platforms opens up opportunities for missile supplies to be deployed on these platforms. But with BrahMos, it is the missiles that have become the driving force. So the Rubin Design Bureau is creating a special version of Russia’s new Project 677 (Аmur class) submarine to carry BrahMos anti-ship missiles as its main weapon system. This raises the submarine’s chance of winning India’s tender for six submarines worth up to $10 billion.
And last but not least, the BrahMos Aerospace joint venture has become a vehicle for further Russian-Indian projects, on an even larger scale and with greater Indian participation. The company is known to be already working on a new hypersonic missile. The unique experience accumulated since 1998 as part of the BrahMos project has paved the way for even more ambitious goals, including new strategic ballistic and cruise missiles.
source : htt p://indrus. in/articles/2011/08/22/brahmos_sets_the_gold_standard_for_russian-indian_defence_projects_12899.html
Indian Army fears rise in infiltration of terrorists into J&K
The General-officer-in-Command 15 Corps, Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain has expressed apprehensions that armed terrorists from across the line of control would step up their efforts to infiltrate in to Jammu and Kashmir in the coming months. General Hasnain said that August and September are generally considered the best time for infiltration but our troops are ready to face the challenge.
"We have so far killed 12 to 13 commanders of Lashker-e-Taiba and Jaish-e- Mohammad this year. The level of desperation in the militant groups is high as their leadership has been wiped out. When desperation rises mistakes happen and we will exploit those mistakes of militants," Gen Hasnain told reporters at wreath laying ceremony of Lieutenant Navdeep Singh inside Srinagar Army headquarters on Sunday.
General Hasnain said, "There is no intelligence communication with the army from across the border but we have different resources for intelligence."
He said, the Pakistani sponsors frequently change the route of the armed terrorists to keep the Indian troops guessing. "Whenever we get success on certain routes on LoC against infiltration attempts, those routes get blocked and the terrorists are pushed in from other routes," corps commander Hasnain said.
About Saturday encounter at the LOC wherein 12 armed terrorists were killed, he said it was a result of coordinated and synchronized intelligence.
Meanwhile, State Human Right Commission has revealed that 2156 unidentified militant bodies have been buried in unmarked graves at 38 different sites in the Kashmir Valley.
A report released by the SHRC here reveals that there were 21 unmarked graves in Baramulla, three each in Bandipore and Handwara and 11 in Kupwara and others in other districts of Kashmir. It also said that 851 unidentified bodies were found in Baramulla, 14 in Bandipore, 14 in Handwara and 1277 in Kupwara.
All these bodies, according to the SHRC report, were handed over by the police to the local population for burial with bullet injuries and were classified as "unidentified militants."
The report came after a three-year-long inquiry by an 11-member team led by Bashir Ahmad Yatoo, senior superintendent of police of the investigative wing of the commission.
The SHRC probe was the response to a campaign by the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons, which in March 2008, released a report, "Facts Underground" and pointed out the presence of unmarked graves.
source : htt p://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes. com/2011-08-22/india/29914040_1_infiltration-srinagar-army-kupwara
"We have so far killed 12 to 13 commanders of Lashker-e-Taiba and Jaish-e- Mohammad this year. The level of desperation in the militant groups is high as their leadership has been wiped out. When desperation rises mistakes happen and we will exploit those mistakes of militants," Gen Hasnain told reporters at wreath laying ceremony of Lieutenant Navdeep Singh inside Srinagar Army headquarters on Sunday.
General Hasnain said, "There is no intelligence communication with the army from across the border but we have different resources for intelligence."
He said, the Pakistani sponsors frequently change the route of the armed terrorists to keep the Indian troops guessing. "Whenever we get success on certain routes on LoC against infiltration attempts, those routes get blocked and the terrorists are pushed in from other routes," corps commander Hasnain said.
About Saturday encounter at the LOC wherein 12 armed terrorists were killed, he said it was a result of coordinated and synchronized intelligence.
Meanwhile, State Human Right Commission has revealed that 2156 unidentified militant bodies have been buried in unmarked graves at 38 different sites in the Kashmir Valley.
A report released by the SHRC here reveals that there were 21 unmarked graves in Baramulla, three each in Bandipore and Handwara and 11 in Kupwara and others in other districts of Kashmir. It also said that 851 unidentified bodies were found in Baramulla, 14 in Bandipore, 14 in Handwara and 1277 in Kupwara.
All these bodies, according to the SHRC report, were handed over by the police to the local population for burial with bullet injuries and were classified as "unidentified militants."
The report came after a three-year-long inquiry by an 11-member team led by Bashir Ahmad Yatoo, senior superintendent of police of the investigative wing of the commission.
The SHRC probe was the response to a campaign by the Association of Parents of Disappeared Persons, which in March 2008, released a report, "Facts Underground" and pointed out the presence of unmarked graves.
source : htt p://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes. com/2011-08-22/india/29914040_1_infiltration-srinagar-army-kupwara
Indian Army plans mountain strike corps to counter China
The Indian Army is planning to set up a mountain strike corps and is talking to various states against the backdrop of a Chinese build up of military infrastructure on its side of boundary. “We are in talks with the governments of states including Assam, West Bengal and Bihar for setting up the Mountain Corps headquarters, which would require at least 4,000 to 5,000 acres of land,” senior army sources said here.
Around 10-12 locations in these states have been identified by the army to set up the formation, they said.
The Mountain Strike Corps is being planned by the army after it established two new Mountain Infantry Divisions for the northeastern region.
The two new divisions, with 1,260 officers and 35,011 soldiers, have their headquarters in Zakama in Nagaland and Missamari in Assam.
The army is also looking to deploy ultra-light howitzers and light tanks along the Line of Actual Control in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
The IAF, on its part, has already based Sukhoi-30MKI fighters at airbases like Tezpur and Chabua. Eastern sector advanced landing grounds (ALGs) like Pasighat, Mechuka, Walong, Tuting, Ziro and Vijaynagar as well as several helipads in Arunachal Pradesh are also now being upgraded, much like western sector ALGs like Daulat Beg Oldi, Fukche and Nyama in eastern Ladakh.
All these developments come against the backdrop of a major build-up of military infrastructure by China all along the border, which includes five fully-operational airbases, an extensive rail network and over 58,000-km of roads in Tibet Autonomous Region.
source : htt p://www.firstpost. com/fwire/army-plans-mountain-strike-corps-to-counter-china-66420.html
Around 10-12 locations in these states have been identified by the army to set up the formation, they said.
The Mountain Strike Corps is being planned by the army after it established two new Mountain Infantry Divisions for the northeastern region.
The two new divisions, with 1,260 officers and 35,011 soldiers, have their headquarters in Zakama in Nagaland and Missamari in Assam.
The army is also looking to deploy ultra-light howitzers and light tanks along the Line of Actual Control in Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
The IAF, on its part, has already based Sukhoi-30MKI fighters at airbases like Tezpur and Chabua. Eastern sector advanced landing grounds (ALGs) like Pasighat, Mechuka, Walong, Tuting, Ziro and Vijaynagar as well as several helipads in Arunachal Pradesh are also now being upgraded, much like western sector ALGs like Daulat Beg Oldi, Fukche and Nyama in eastern Ladakh.
All these developments come against the backdrop of a major build-up of military infrastructure by China all along the border, which includes five fully-operational airbases, an extensive rail network and over 58,000-km of roads in Tibet Autonomous Region.
source : htt p://www.firstpost. com/fwire/army-plans-mountain-strike-corps-to-counter-china-66420.html
India Russia T50-2 PAKFA flame-out at MAKS air show
Flightglobal's Moscow-based correspondent Vladimir Karnozov was at the scene at 13:57 yesterday afternoon when Sukoi's T50-2 prototype experienced a dramatic flame-out at the ends of the MAKS 2011 air show. He files this witness report:
"Two bursts of flames erupted from the right engine and two loud "bumps" were heard. Thanks to the great length of the Ramenskoye runway - 5000 meters - the pilot managed to bring the airplane to a stop well before the aerodrome fence, but had to deploy brake parachute in addition to wheel brakes. The incident happened before eyes of some 200,000 visitors gathered to watch flight display. That day Sukhoi test-pilot Sergei Bogdan was to perform in the second operable PAKFA prototype, referred to as the T-50-2 or Side 52. Sukhoi admitted that the airplane suffered a technical malfunction and said the pilot acted "in accordance with manuals". The airframer ads the T-50-2 did not have any damage, while playing down the earlier media reports that the right NPO Saturn Item 117 engine developed surge. Rather, the company attributed it to "malfunctioning fuel supply system" in one case and "engine's FADEC" in another. The latter is strange since Sukhoi and Saturn claimed earlier the Item-117-powered PAKFA differs from the Su-35 with similar FADEC-equipped Item 117S engines in having a centralized comprehensive control system for flight controls, onboard systems and powerplant, which is a feature of fifth-generation fighters as opposed to fourth generation. Further to Sukhoi embarrassment, immediately after the incident the show organizers promised the public that the PAKFA would fly, calling for the first operable prototype T-50-1 to takeoff. But as the show closed down four hours later, the promise did not materialize. Rumors had it that the T-50-1 had gone to repairs shortly after flat-out flight performance on 17 August before Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin."Source : htt p://www.flightglobal. com/blogs/the-dewline/2011/08/video-witness-report-from-t50-.html
New strike corps for China border
In 2009, New Delhi acted decisively in sanctioning two new army divisions, about 35,000 troops, to strengthen Indian defences in Arunachal, which China claims as a part of Tibet. It can now be revealed that New Delhi has also sanctioned a new mountain strike corps, of an additional 40,000 soldiers, to be permanently located in bases in northeast India. The new corps is to retaliate against any major Chinese ingress into India by launching an offensive into Tibet.
For decades after India’s humiliation at the hands of China in 1962, New Delhi shrank from a robust defence posture on the Sino-Indian Line of Actual Control (LAC), fearing it might provoke China. In the aftermath of 1962, through the 1960s and 1970s, the Indian Army stayed away from the border, remaining behind a self-imposed ‘Limit of Patrolling (LoP)’. In the 1980s, the army returned to the LAC, but remained entirely defensive in outlook. The sanctioning of a strike corps, therefore, signals a dramatic new assertiveness in New Delhi.Business Standard has been aware of this development since 2009, but has refrained from reporting on it after requests from top Ministry of Defence (MoD) officials. Now, with the outlines of this development emerging in the media, Business Standard no longer feels bound by confidentiality.
The new mountain strike corps will control two divisions, trained and equipped for an attack into Tibet. If China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) captures any Indian territory, by quickly concentrating an attacking force over Tibet’s impressive road network, the Indian Army would not be forced into bloody, Kargil-style counterattacks to recapture that territory.
Instead, the new strike corps would launch its own riposte, advancing into Tibet and capturing a vulnerable chunk of Chinese territory, e.g. the Chumbi Valley that projects into Sikkim and Bhutan. Several such objectives would be identified in advance and detailed preparations made for the offensives. The new strike corps will have its own mountain artillery, combat engineers, anti-aircraft guns and radio equipment. It would also be supported by Indian Air Force (IAF) fighters, operating from newly renovated bases in northeastern India. On July 26, the then IAF chief confirmed that Sukhoi-30 fighters had already been posted to air bases at Tezpur and Chhabua.
On June 25, he told NDTV that Jorhat, Guwahati, Mohanbari, Bagdogra and Hashimara were also being developed as air bases. The IAF is also modernising eight ALGs (Advanced Landing Grounds), essential for quickly building up and resupplying a strike corps. These bases would also be crucial for airborne operations, especially heli-lifting forces to key objectives behind the enemy frontlines.
The proposal to raise two additional divisions for the defence of Arunachal Pradesh, as well as a strike corps, dates back to 2007. It began as a decision of the China Study Group, a secretive government body that considers all strategic issues relating to China. Thereafter, the army’s Directorate General of Military Operations (DGMO) prepared a cabinet note. The decision to raise the additional divisions was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) on May 14, 2009.
This was the last major decision taken by the UPA government before the elections of 2009. It was rushed through because top UPA leaders felt if the UPA were not re-elected, the new government would begin the decision-making process afresh, losing another two years. To manage the expenses, it was decided the two defensive mountain divisions would first be raised during the 11th army plan (2007-2012). Next, the strike corps, including its two mountain divisions, would be raised during the 12th Defence Plan (2012-2017). The cost of raising a new Indian Army mountain division is estimated to be Rs 700 crore.
The 4,057-km LAC consists of three sectors. In the western sector in Ladakh, which India’s 14 Corps defends, the PLA already controls most of the area that China claims. The central sector, at the UP-Tibet border, which India’s 6 Mountain Division defends, is relatively insignificant. The most contentious is the eastern sector, which includes Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, where China claims 90,000 sq km of territory that India occupies. It is here, driven by fear of Chinese aggression, that India is strengthening its capabilities by raising new formations.
A mountain strike corps will provide India with strategic capabilities that were badly missed when Mao Zedong marched the PLA into Tibet in 1950. While considering its responses, the Indian government asked the army chief of that time, General (later Field Marshal) K M Cariappa, what resources he had to intervene on behalf of Tibet. Cariappa could spare just one battalion (800 soldiers). And, so, New Delhi watched as Tibet was subjugated and the China border advanced all the way to the Himalayas.
source : htt p://www.business-standard. com/india/news/new-strike-corps-for-china-border/446854/
For decades after India’s humiliation at the hands of China in 1962, New Delhi shrank from a robust defence posture on the Sino-Indian Line of Actual Control (LAC), fearing it might provoke China. In the aftermath of 1962, through the 1960s and 1970s, the Indian Army stayed away from the border, remaining behind a self-imposed ‘Limit of Patrolling (LoP)’. In the 1980s, the army returned to the LAC, but remained entirely defensive in outlook. The sanctioning of a strike corps, therefore, signals a dramatic new assertiveness in New Delhi.Business Standard has been aware of this development since 2009, but has refrained from reporting on it after requests from top Ministry of Defence (MoD) officials. Now, with the outlines of this development emerging in the media, Business Standard no longer feels bound by confidentiality.
The new mountain strike corps will control two divisions, trained and equipped for an attack into Tibet. If China’s People’s Liberation Army (PLA) captures any Indian territory, by quickly concentrating an attacking force over Tibet’s impressive road network, the Indian Army would not be forced into bloody, Kargil-style counterattacks to recapture that territory.
Instead, the new strike corps would launch its own riposte, advancing into Tibet and capturing a vulnerable chunk of Chinese territory, e.g. the Chumbi Valley that projects into Sikkim and Bhutan. Several such objectives would be identified in advance and detailed preparations made for the offensives. The new strike corps will have its own mountain artillery, combat engineers, anti-aircraft guns and radio equipment. It would also be supported by Indian Air Force (IAF) fighters, operating from newly renovated bases in northeastern India. On July 26, the then IAF chief confirmed that Sukhoi-30 fighters had already been posted to air bases at Tezpur and Chhabua.
On June 25, he told NDTV that Jorhat, Guwahati, Mohanbari, Bagdogra and Hashimara were also being developed as air bases. The IAF is also modernising eight ALGs (Advanced Landing Grounds), essential for quickly building up and resupplying a strike corps. These bases would also be crucial for airborne operations, especially heli-lifting forces to key objectives behind the enemy frontlines.
The proposal to raise two additional divisions for the defence of Arunachal Pradesh, as well as a strike corps, dates back to 2007. It began as a decision of the China Study Group, a secretive government body that considers all strategic issues relating to China. Thereafter, the army’s Directorate General of Military Operations (DGMO) prepared a cabinet note. The decision to raise the additional divisions was taken by the Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS) on May 14, 2009.
This was the last major decision taken by the UPA government before the elections of 2009. It was rushed through because top UPA leaders felt if the UPA were not re-elected, the new government would begin the decision-making process afresh, losing another two years. To manage the expenses, it was decided the two defensive mountain divisions would first be raised during the 11th army plan (2007-2012). Next, the strike corps, including its two mountain divisions, would be raised during the 12th Defence Plan (2012-2017). The cost of raising a new Indian Army mountain division is estimated to be Rs 700 crore.
The 4,057-km LAC consists of three sectors. In the western sector in Ladakh, which India’s 14 Corps defends, the PLA already controls most of the area that China claims. The central sector, at the UP-Tibet border, which India’s 6 Mountain Division defends, is relatively insignificant. The most contentious is the eastern sector, which includes Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh, where China claims 90,000 sq km of territory that India occupies. It is here, driven by fear of Chinese aggression, that India is strengthening its capabilities by raising new formations.
A mountain strike corps will provide India with strategic capabilities that were badly missed when Mao Zedong marched the PLA into Tibet in 1950. While considering its responses, the Indian government asked the army chief of that time, General (later Field Marshal) K M Cariappa, what resources he had to intervene on behalf of Tibet. Cariappa could spare just one battalion (800 soldiers). And, so, New Delhi watched as Tibet was subjugated and the China border advanced all the way to the Himalayas.
source : htt p://www.business-standard. com/india/news/new-strike-corps-for-china-border/446854/
Mazagon Docks launches 2nd Shivalik Class frigate with 60% Indigenisation
Indigenously-built stealth warship, INS Satpura, the second of the three-ship Project-17 Shivalik Class frigates built by the Mumbai-based Mazagon Docks (MDL) was commissioned by the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma. Conceived and designed by the Indian Naval design team, Satpura will be among the mainstay frigates of the force for the next few decades.
The next warship of the class INS Sahyadri is also expected to be inducted into the Navy in next six to eight months. Along with the three stealth frigates under Project-17, three Kolkata class destroyers under Project 15 A and six Scorpene class submarines are under construction at MDL. According to reports the total cost of the three Shivalik-class frigates (Project 17A) will be Rs 7,883 crore. Imported components, like the on-board weapons, sensors and radars, engines, transmission etc, account for approximately Rs 2,710 crore - approximately 40 percent.
An agreement with Essar Steel for manufacturing warship-grade steel helped in lowering the cost of imported equipment. Crucial dimensions of design and integration have also been indigenised. Indigenisation levels are expected to rise dramatically in the next two lines of warships that are coming on stream next year, i.e. in Project 15B (four destroyers) and Project 1A (seven frigates).
The ship is powered by 2 US-origin General Electric LM-2500 gas turbine engine and 2 French SEMT Pielstick diesel engine, one on each shaft driving a large diameter controllable pitch propeller.
The LM 2500 Gas Turbine engines enable the ship to generate speeds in excess of 30 knots (or over 55 kmph) and the SEMT Pielstic Diesel Engines are for normal cruising speeds. This is known as CODOG (combined diesel or gas) configuration.
The 142.5-metre-long warship, with 6,200-tonne displacement, has versatile control systems with signature management and radar cross-section reduction features. It has been provided with structural, thermal and acoustic stealth features to augment its potent capability. The Satpura is equipped with a mix of imported and indigenous weapon systems and sensors, including Barak surface-to-air missiles, 'SHTIL' air defence system, rapid fire guns and basic anti-submarine warfare weapons.
The ship’s electric power is provided by four Diesel Alternators, which together produce 4 Mega-Watts of power-enough to light up a small town.The power generation and distribution on board is controlled through an ‘Automated Power Management System’ (APMS).
A stealth warship is designed to have low signatures so that they remain undetected to enemy sensors. Its shape is designed to evade detection by radar; it is engineered to give off minimal infra-red (IR) emissions; and every piece of equipment on board, is designed to work silently to escape the enemy’s sonar and acoustic sensors.
From a small dry dock built to service ships of the British East India Company, Mazagon Dock Limited is today the Country’s premier warship building yard. By next year, MDL would have delivered all three in the series. The Shivalik Class frigates are part of the Project 17 of the Indian Navy under which multi-role frigates with stealth features are being built for the Indian Navy at Mazagon Dock Limited. The first ship of the Class INS Shivalik was commissioned on April 29 last year and launched India into the league of countries with the capability of building stealth frigates.
source : htt p://machinist. n/index.php?option= com_content&task=view&id=3658&Itemid=55
The next warship of the class INS Sahyadri is also expected to be inducted into the Navy in next six to eight months. Along with the three stealth frigates under Project-17, three Kolkata class destroyers under Project 15 A and six Scorpene class submarines are under construction at MDL. According to reports the total cost of the three Shivalik-class frigates (Project 17A) will be Rs 7,883 crore. Imported components, like the on-board weapons, sensors and radars, engines, transmission etc, account for approximately Rs 2,710 crore - approximately 40 percent.
An agreement with Essar Steel for manufacturing warship-grade steel helped in lowering the cost of imported equipment. Crucial dimensions of design and integration have also been indigenised. Indigenisation levels are expected to rise dramatically in the next two lines of warships that are coming on stream next year, i.e. in Project 15B (four destroyers) and Project 1A (seven frigates).
The ship is powered by 2 US-origin General Electric LM-2500 gas turbine engine and 2 French SEMT Pielstick diesel engine, one on each shaft driving a large diameter controllable pitch propeller.
The LM 2500 Gas Turbine engines enable the ship to generate speeds in excess of 30 knots (or over 55 kmph) and the SEMT Pielstic Diesel Engines are for normal cruising speeds. This is known as CODOG (combined diesel or gas) configuration.
The 142.5-metre-long warship, with 6,200-tonne displacement, has versatile control systems with signature management and radar cross-section reduction features. It has been provided with structural, thermal and acoustic stealth features to augment its potent capability. The Satpura is equipped with a mix of imported and indigenous weapon systems and sensors, including Barak surface-to-air missiles, 'SHTIL' air defence system, rapid fire guns and basic anti-submarine warfare weapons.
The ship’s electric power is provided by four Diesel Alternators, which together produce 4 Mega-Watts of power-enough to light up a small town.The power generation and distribution on board is controlled through an ‘Automated Power Management System’ (APMS).
A stealth warship is designed to have low signatures so that they remain undetected to enemy sensors. Its shape is designed to evade detection by radar; it is engineered to give off minimal infra-red (IR) emissions; and every piece of equipment on board, is designed to work silently to escape the enemy’s sonar and acoustic sensors.
From a small dry dock built to service ships of the British East India Company, Mazagon Dock Limited is today the Country’s premier warship building yard. By next year, MDL would have delivered all three in the series. The Shivalik Class frigates are part of the Project 17 of the Indian Navy under which multi-role frigates with stealth features are being built for the Indian Navy at Mazagon Dock Limited. The first ship of the Class INS Shivalik was commissioned on April 29 last year and launched India into the league of countries with the capability of building stealth frigates.
source : htt p://machinist. n/index.php?option= com_content&task=view&id=3658&Itemid=55
The Dalai Lama's War
IN THE late autumn of 1962, there was a short, intense border war between India and China. It resulted in the complete rout of an underprepared and poorly led Indian Army. For the two rising powers, the battle—and its outcome—was seen in national, civilizational and ideological terms. These nations were, or at least saw themselves as, carriers of ancient civilizations that had produced great literature, philosophy, architecture, science and much else, but whose further evolution had been rudely interrupted by Western imperialists. India became free of British rule in 1947; China was united under Communist auspices in 1949. The recovery of their national independence was viewed as the prelude to the reemergence of China and India as major forces in the world.
Thus, the defeat of 1962 was at once a defeat of the Indian Army by its Chinese counterpart, a defeat of democracy by Communism, a defeat of one large new nation by another and a defeat of one ancient civilization at the hands of another. In India, the defeat was also interpreted in personal terms, as the defeat of Jawaharlal Nehru, who had held the offices of prime minister and foreign minister continuously since independence in 1947.
That debacle at the hands of China still hangs as a huge cloud over Nehru’s reputation. And there is an intriguing comparison to be made here with his fellow Harrovian, Winston Churchill. British historian Robert Rhodes James once wrote a book called Churchill: A Study in Failure, whose narrative stopped at 1939. It excavated, perhaps in excessive detail, its subject’s erratic and undistinguished career before that date. But of course, all Churchill’s failures were redeemed by his heroic leadership in World War II. It is tempting to see Nehru’s career as being Churchill’s in reverse; marked as it was for many decades by achievement and success, these nullified by the one humiliating failure which broke his nation’s morale and broke his own spirit and body. The war began in October 1962; a year and a half later, Nehru was dead.
It is a legacy that still haunts the Sino-Indian relationship.
NEHRU WAS long interested in (and influenced by) China. His prolific writings—books, letters, speeches—reveal much of the man and how he came to be so deeply misled by the threat he (and his country) faced. Nehru saw China at once as peer, comrade and soul mate. His first major book, Glimpses of World History, published in 1934, puts his predilections on full display. It has as many as 134 index references to the Middle Kingdom. These refer to, among other things, different dynasties (the Tang, Han, Qin, etc), corruption, Communism, civil war, agriculture and banditry. Already, the pairing of China and India was strongly imprinted in Nehru’s framework. Thus China is referred to as “the other great country of Asia” and as “India’s old-time friend.” There was a manifest sympathy with its troubles at the hands of foreigners. The British were savaged for forcing humiliating treaties and opium down the throats of the Chinese, this being an illustration of the “growing arrogance and interference by the western Powers.”
In all his pre-1947 writings, Nehru saw China from the lens of a progressive anti-imperialist, from which perspective India and China were akin and alike, simultaneously fighting Western control as well as feudal remnants in their own societies. Chiang Kai-shek and company, like Nehru and company, were at once freedom fighters, national unifiers and social modernizers. It stood to reason that, when finally rid of foreign domination, the two neighbors would be friends and partners.
In the spring of 1947, with India’s freedom imminent, Nehru organized the Asian Relations Conference in New Delhi. Representatives of Asian nations already free or struggling for independence from European rulers were in attendance. There, Nehru called China “that great country to which Asia owes so much and from which so much is expected.” The conference itself he characterized as
Even when the Communists took power on the mainland in 1949 and began to voice their reservations about the McMahon Line, the prime minister continued to give Beijing the benefit of the doubt. So did other influential Indians. The ambassador to China, K. M. Panikkar, was greatly impressed by the new ruler, comparing Mao Tse-tung to his own boss, Nehru. Both, he claimed—or fantasized—“are men of action with dreamy, idealistic temperaments,” both “humanists in the broadest sense of the term.”
source : htt p://nationalinterest. org/article/the-dalai-lamas-war-5742
Thus, the defeat of 1962 was at once a defeat of the Indian Army by its Chinese counterpart, a defeat of democracy by Communism, a defeat of one large new nation by another and a defeat of one ancient civilization at the hands of another. In India, the defeat was also interpreted in personal terms, as the defeat of Jawaharlal Nehru, who had held the offices of prime minister and foreign minister continuously since independence in 1947.
That debacle at the hands of China still hangs as a huge cloud over Nehru’s reputation. And there is an intriguing comparison to be made here with his fellow Harrovian, Winston Churchill. British historian Robert Rhodes James once wrote a book called Churchill: A Study in Failure, whose narrative stopped at 1939. It excavated, perhaps in excessive detail, its subject’s erratic and undistinguished career before that date. But of course, all Churchill’s failures were redeemed by his heroic leadership in World War II. It is tempting to see Nehru’s career as being Churchill’s in reverse; marked as it was for many decades by achievement and success, these nullified by the one humiliating failure which broke his nation’s morale and broke his own spirit and body. The war began in October 1962; a year and a half later, Nehru was dead.
It is a legacy that still haunts the Sino-Indian relationship.
NEHRU WAS long interested in (and influenced by) China. His prolific writings—books, letters, speeches—reveal much of the man and how he came to be so deeply misled by the threat he (and his country) faced. Nehru saw China at once as peer, comrade and soul mate. His first major book, Glimpses of World History, published in 1934, puts his predilections on full display. It has as many as 134 index references to the Middle Kingdom. These refer to, among other things, different dynasties (the Tang, Han, Qin, etc), corruption, Communism, civil war, agriculture and banditry. Already, the pairing of China and India was strongly imprinted in Nehru’s framework. Thus China is referred to as “the other great country of Asia” and as “India’s old-time friend.” There was a manifest sympathy with its troubles at the hands of foreigners. The British were savaged for forcing humiliating treaties and opium down the throats of the Chinese, this being an illustration of the “growing arrogance and interference by the western Powers.”
In all his pre-1947 writings, Nehru saw China from the lens of a progressive anti-imperialist, from which perspective India and China were akin and alike, simultaneously fighting Western control as well as feudal remnants in their own societies. Chiang Kai-shek and company, like Nehru and company, were at once freedom fighters, national unifiers and social modernizers. It stood to reason that, when finally rid of foreign domination, the two neighbors would be friends and partners.
In the spring of 1947, with India’s freedom imminent, Nehru organized the Asian Relations Conference in New Delhi. Representatives of Asian nations already free or struggling for independence from European rulers were in attendance. There, Nehru called China “that great country to which Asia owes so much and from which so much is expected.” The conference itself he characterized as
an expression of that deeper urge of the mind and spirit of Asia which has persisted in spite of the isolationism which grew up during the years of European domination. As that domination goes, the walls that surrounded us fall down and we look at each other again and meet as old friends long parted.Nehru believed that the fundamental areas of disagreement between India and China could be bridged; in particular, the unresolved detritus of the imperialist era that largely centered on Tibet. For back in 1913–14, a meeting was held in the British imperial summer capital, Shimla, convened by the government of India and attended by Chinese and Tibetan representatives (Tibet was by then enjoying a period of substantial, indeed near-complete, political autonomy from Chinese overlordship). Here the McMahon Line (which sought to demarcate the frontiers of British India) was drawn. When India became independent in 1947 it recognized this boundary, which largely followed the path of the Himalaya, and adopted it as its own. By this, Nehru and his government thought that the border between India and China, determined at the Shimla Conference, had been reaffirmed.
Even when the Communists took power on the mainland in 1949 and began to voice their reservations about the McMahon Line, the prime minister continued to give Beijing the benefit of the doubt. So did other influential Indians. The ambassador to China, K. M. Panikkar, was greatly impressed by the new ruler, comparing Mao Tse-tung to his own boss, Nehru. Both, he claimed—or fantasized—“are men of action with dreamy, idealistic temperaments,” both “humanists in the broadest sense of the term.”
source : htt p://nationalinterest. org/article/the-dalai-lamas-war-5742
Lieutenant, did you die in vain?
You will not get the adulation from the government that a martyred soldier gets in the US.
Your name will not be read out in any obituary reference in Parliament, as is done in the UK for all soldiers who fall in combat in the line of duty.
Your name will not be etched on any national memorial because we do not have one.
Sarvar Bali salutes Lieutenant Navdeep Singh, 26, who died fighting terrorists in the Kashmir [ Images ] valley last week.
I learnt about your demise from the ticker tape on one of the news channels. It was a big encounter and a very fierce one at that. A feeling of deep sadness enveloped me as I reflected on your youth which had been sacrificed in the Gurez sector in the line of duty.
What does your death mean?
You were too young to die, far too young! For whom and for what did you die then? This question haunted me last night and I will attempt to answer you.
You were probably from a village or a small town of India. You were perhaps the son of an army officer or JCO, or from an urban or rural civilian background. You could not be from one of the big cities where iron has entered the soul of our youth and where the only driving motivator is quest for money in the surreal environment of the corporate world.
Why did you join the army? Of course to get a job. But then that is over simplifying the question. You were possibly motivated by the traditions in your family and clan, you were probably enthused by the sight of your elder brothers, uncles or other men from your community in uniform, you were perhaps enchanted by the cantonment life where you may have spent your growing years.
On your last journey, you would not have got the adulation from the government that a martyred soldier gets in the US. Your name will not be read out in any obituary reference in Parliament, as is done in the UK for all soldiers who fall in combat in the line of duty. Your name will not be etched on any national memorial because we do not have one!
Symbolically you will become the Unknown Soldier for the nation, for whom the flame burns at India Gate, but your name will not be etched there. The names engraved on that monument are of the soldiers who died fighting for the British Indian Army [ Images ] and not those who have made the supreme sacrifice for Independent India! Can it get more ironic?
But do not despair, Lieutenant. Your comrades will do you proud! The senior-most officer would have led the homage that your brother officers will pay you before you left the Valley of Kashmir one last time. Your unit representatives must have escorted your body home. You would have been carried to the funeral pyre draped in the flag for which you died fighting.
The darkened and tearful eyes of your grief-stricken mother and the stoic figure of your father, benumbed by the enormity of this tragedy, will move even the most cynical.
I do not know Lieutenant at what stage of the encounter you fell, mortally wounded. But the fact that you were there on the lonely vigil across the Line of Control [ Images ] in Gurez, is enough to vouch for your valour. Your unit and formation commanders will see to it that you get the gallantry award which you so richly deserve. In due time your father or your mother will be presented the medal and parchment of your gallantry, which will be framed and find pride of place in your home.
Time will dull the bitterness of this tragic parting, which right now is the only feeling that engulfs your parents and siblings in its enormity.
Lieutenant you were lucky. You did not live long enough to get married and leave behind a grieving widow. You did not live long enough to have children. For when they would have come of age you would have seen in them a cynicism towards the army for which you died.
You will not see a young son who thinks his father is a hero and wants to follow his footsteps in joining the army only to be harshly dissuaded by his mother (or father) from following a profession which ranks so low for the youth of our country.
You were lucky not to serve long enough to see the army getting belittled. You did not live long enough to see the utter indifference and disdain for the army. Like you, a large number of valiant soldiers laid down their lives on the rocky heights of Kargil [ Images ], fighting against self-imposed odds. Today it is not even felt fit to publicly commemorate the anniversary of that stupendous military victory in a befitting manner, a war won by the blood of young men.
But do not despair Lieutenant. Your name will be etched for posterity in the annals of your Unit and your Regiment. A silver trophy with your name inscribed on it, will grace the centre table of the Unit mess. You will also find your name in the unit Quarter Guard, where annual homage will also be paid to you. The war memorials at the Formation HQ where you served and your Regimental Centre will proudly display your name for eternity.
If you joined the Army through the NDA, your name will be written in the Hut of Remembrance through which each cadet will pass, paying homage before his Passing Out Parade.
There will be an obituary reference to you from your comrades in the papers, which will be flipped over by most but which will be read in detail by people who have a connect with those who wear or wore the uniform.
As your parents head into the evening of their life, memories of your valour will be their most precious possession. When ever your mother will think of you her eyes will mist over but there will be more stars in them than you ever wore on your shoulders.
Your father may speak quietly about you but no one will miss the swell of pride in his chest. For your siblings you will always remain the real hero, and for that matter even for your community and village. A school or a road may well be named after you and you will become a part of the local folklore.
You died Lieutenant, because when the test came, you decided that you could not let down your family, your clan and your comrades, who always expected, without ever saying so, to do your duty. You, Lieutenant, have done more than your duty and made your memory their hallowed possession.
Lieutenant you did not die in vain!
Source : htt p://www.bharat-rakshak. com/NEWS/newsrf.php?newsid=15074
Your name will not be etched on any national memorial because we do not have one.
Sarvar Bali salutes Lieutenant Navdeep Singh, 26, who died fighting terrorists in the Kashmir [ Images ] valley last week.
I learnt about your demise from the ticker tape on one of the news channels. It was a big encounter and a very fierce one at that. A feeling of deep sadness enveloped me as I reflected on your youth which had been sacrificed in the Gurez sector in the line of duty.
What does your death mean?
You were too young to die, far too young! For whom and for what did you die then? This question haunted me last night and I will attempt to answer you.
You were probably from a village or a small town of India. You were perhaps the son of an army officer or JCO, or from an urban or rural civilian background. You could not be from one of the big cities where iron has entered the soul of our youth and where the only driving motivator is quest for money in the surreal environment of the corporate world.
Why did you join the army? Of course to get a job. But then that is over simplifying the question. You were possibly motivated by the traditions in your family and clan, you were probably enthused by the sight of your elder brothers, uncles or other men from your community in uniform, you were perhaps enchanted by the cantonment life where you may have spent your growing years.
On your last journey, you would not have got the adulation from the government that a martyred soldier gets in the US. Your name will not be read out in any obituary reference in Parliament, as is done in the UK for all soldiers who fall in combat in the line of duty. Your name will not be etched on any national memorial because we do not have one!
Symbolically you will become the Unknown Soldier for the nation, for whom the flame burns at India Gate, but your name will not be etched there. The names engraved on that monument are of the soldiers who died fighting for the British Indian Army [ Images ] and not those who have made the supreme sacrifice for Independent India! Can it get more ironic?
But do not despair, Lieutenant. Your comrades will do you proud! The senior-most officer would have led the homage that your brother officers will pay you before you left the Valley of Kashmir one last time. Your unit representatives must have escorted your body home. You would have been carried to the funeral pyre draped in the flag for which you died fighting.
The darkened and tearful eyes of your grief-stricken mother and the stoic figure of your father, benumbed by the enormity of this tragedy, will move even the most cynical.
I do not know Lieutenant at what stage of the encounter you fell, mortally wounded. But the fact that you were there on the lonely vigil across the Line of Control [ Images ] in Gurez, is enough to vouch for your valour. Your unit and formation commanders will see to it that you get the gallantry award which you so richly deserve. In due time your father or your mother will be presented the medal and parchment of your gallantry, which will be framed and find pride of place in your home.
Time will dull the bitterness of this tragic parting, which right now is the only feeling that engulfs your parents and siblings in its enormity.
Lieutenant you were lucky. You did not live long enough to get married and leave behind a grieving widow. You did not live long enough to have children. For when they would have come of age you would have seen in them a cynicism towards the army for which you died.
You will not see a young son who thinks his father is a hero and wants to follow his footsteps in joining the army only to be harshly dissuaded by his mother (or father) from following a profession which ranks so low for the youth of our country.
You were lucky not to serve long enough to see the army getting belittled. You did not live long enough to see the utter indifference and disdain for the army. Like you, a large number of valiant soldiers laid down their lives on the rocky heights of Kargil [ Images ], fighting against self-imposed odds. Today it is not even felt fit to publicly commemorate the anniversary of that stupendous military victory in a befitting manner, a war won by the blood of young men.
But do not despair Lieutenant. Your name will be etched for posterity in the annals of your Unit and your Regiment. A silver trophy with your name inscribed on it, will grace the centre table of the Unit mess. You will also find your name in the unit Quarter Guard, where annual homage will also be paid to you. The war memorials at the Formation HQ where you served and your Regimental Centre will proudly display your name for eternity.
If you joined the Army through the NDA, your name will be written in the Hut of Remembrance through which each cadet will pass, paying homage before his Passing Out Parade.
There will be an obituary reference to you from your comrades in the papers, which will be flipped over by most but which will be read in detail by people who have a connect with those who wear or wore the uniform.
As your parents head into the evening of their life, memories of your valour will be their most precious possession. When ever your mother will think of you her eyes will mist over but there will be more stars in them than you ever wore on your shoulders.
Your father may speak quietly about you but no one will miss the swell of pride in his chest. For your siblings you will always remain the real hero, and for that matter even for your community and village. A school or a road may well be named after you and you will become a part of the local folklore.
You died Lieutenant, because when the test came, you decided that you could not let down your family, your clan and your comrades, who always expected, without ever saying so, to do your duty. You, Lieutenant, have done more than your duty and made your memory their hallowed possession.
Lieutenant you did not die in vain!
Source : htt p://www.bharat-rakshak. com/NEWS/newsrf.php?newsid=15074
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