India Air Force to upgrade 8 ALGs in Northeast

In the next three years, the IAF will upgrade eight Advanced Landing Grounds (ALGs) in the northeast to strengthen its capabilities to carry out aircraft operations in that region.

"We are planning to upgrade eight ALGs in the northeast... By August, we are expected to sign the contract and in next three years, our capabilities would be improved in that region," Air Chief marshal P V Naik told reporters here.


The IAF chief said the upgrading of the ALGs along with the upgrade of the airfields there was the focus area for the force and more such fields were planned under the 12th Plan.

The IAF is strengthening its capabilities in the northeastern sector in view of the increased military presence of China along its border with India.

IAF has already based Sukhoi-30MKI fighters at airbases like Tezpur and Chabua.

ALGs in areas including Pasighat, Mechuka, Walong, Tuting, Ziro, Along and Vijaynagar as well as several helipads in Arunachal Pradesh are also being upgraded now, much like the western sector ALGs like Daulat Beg Oldi, Fukche and Nyoma in eastern Ladakh.

An empowered committee (on North-East infrastructure development) under the Chief of Air Staff-designate Air Marshal NAK Browne is continuously monitoring upgradation of the facilities, creation of new infrastructure and induction of assets in this region.

Asked about the gaps in intelligence set up, the IAF chief said, "Gaps in intelligence will exist in many countries as you would want more and more of it.

"There have been lot of moves by the Home Ministry in terms of combining the intelligence inputs of various agencies and it is paying dividends. Things have improved from what they were earlier."
Source : htt p://zeenews. india. com/news/nation/iaf-to-upgrade-8-algs-in-northeast_722295.html

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

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

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

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 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

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

IAF lost 46 fighters in 7 years: Govt

Indian Air Force (IAF) has in all lost 46 fighter aircraft in little less than seven years since 2005, government said on Wednesday.
"During 2008 to August 17, 2011, a total of 26 fighter planes of IAF had crashed. During the preceding three-year period of 2005 to 2008, 20 IAF fighter planes had crashed," defence minister A K Antony told the Rajya Sabha.
Replying to a question on crashes involving fighter planes, the minister said, "The makes of these fighter planes were MiGs, Su-30 MKI and Jaguar. Six pilots were killed in these crashes."

Source : htt p://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes. com/2011-08-24/india/29921585_1_indian-air-force-iaf-fighter-aircraft

Hooda punished for role in Adarsh: Army chief

The chief of Army Staff, General VK Singh, on Wednesday said that the army had taken action against retired Major-General R K Hooda, former General Officer (Commanding) for Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa area, who was allotted a flat in the controversial Adarsh housing society.

"The commission on inquiry (CoI) has punished General Hooda for not performing his duty on certain issues in the Adarsh case. As a result, Hooda lost his promotion (as Lt General). Another CoI has been set up to inquire about the transfer of defence land at Kandivli; a report is expected at the earliest. Action will be taken against those officers, however high-ranking they might be, for not doing their duty," Singh said.

The army chief was responding to a query from TOI as to whether the army has taken inspiration from Anna Hazare, an ex-army man, to clean up the system. "Anna is a good man. I would not like to comment further. So far as the army is concerned, I have maintained that we want to clean up the system. This will continue," Singh said.

Singh is in Mumbai for a two-day visit. Earlier, he gave a keynote address, "Indigenization of army supplies", at an event organized by the All India Association of Industries.

In its March 13 edition, TOI had mentioned that a three-man CoI, headed by Lieutenant-General J S Rawat, commandant of the Intelligence School in Pune, did not find any evidence of Hooda misleading superiors about the fact that the land did not belong to the army. However, Hooda was issued a show-cause notice for failing to inform the army headquarters that he has taken a Rs 30-lakh bank loan and withdrawn Rs 5 lakh from his provident fund to pay for the Adarsh flat. n the Adarsh Housing Society scam, Chief of the Army Staff General VK Singh on Wednesday said that the Army had taken action against retired Major General (then serving) R K Hooda, former General Officer Commanding for Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa area and one of the allottees in the 31-storey building.

"The Commission of Inquiry (CoI) has punished General Hooda for not performing his duty on certain issues in the Adarsh case. As a result of which the officer lost his promotion (as Lt General). Another CoI has been set up to inquire transfer of defence land at Kandivali and where, a report is expected at the earliest. Action too will be taken against those officers, however high ranking they might be for not doing their duty," Singh said.

The army chief was responding to a query from ToI to whether the Army had taken any inspiration from Anna Hazare, an ex-army man to clean up the system. "Anna is a good man. I would not like to comment further. So far as the army is concerned, I have maintained that we want to clean up the system. This will continue," said Singh.

Singh is in Mumbai for a two-day visit - the first time after he took over as army chief in 2010. Earlier, he gave a keynote address on "Indigenisation of Army Supplies" at a interactive organized by the All India Association of Industries.

ToI in their March 13 edition had mentioned that a three man CoI headed by Lieutenant General J S Rawat, commandant of the Intelligence School in Pune did not find any evidence of Hooda misleading superiors on the fact that the land did not belong to the army. The former GOC however, was issued a show-cause notice for failing to inform the army headquarters that he had taken a Rs 30-lakh bank loan and withdrawn Rs 5 lakh from the provident fund (PF) to pay for the Adarsh flat. 

sources : htt p://timesofindia.indiatimes. com/city/mumbai/Hooda-punished-for-role-in-Adarsh-Army-chief/articleshow/9726686.cms

Goa Shipyard records highest VOP at Rs 990-cr since inception

The state-run Goa Shipyard Limited today said it has reported highest value of production (VOP) at Rs 990 crore since its inception in 1957 in the last fiscal and is eyeing to train the navies from the Middle East, Africa and some South East Asian countries in ship repair and maintenance capabilities.
GSL Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) Vineet Bakshi told reporters in an annual press conference here that the yard earned a profit of Rs 176 crore in the year ended March 2011 as against Rs 131 crore in 2010.
"During the financial year 2010-11, the company achieved highest value of production ever since its inception to Rs 990 crore as compared to Rs 866.48 crore the last fiscal," Bakshi said.
GSL, based in the port town of Vasco, manufactures warships for the Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard since 1961.
Bakshi said the first and second phase of the shipyard's expansion has been completed, while he expects to achieve a total VOP at Rs 3,000 crore to Rs 4,000 crore from the third and fourth phase.
Adapting to modernisation has given a technical facelift for the yard thus making it the "first defence ship-building yard in India to be equipped with a modern shiplift facility and launching and docking of ships," he said.
Responding to a query, the GSL management said the current global recession is unlikely to affect its targeted performance.
"There are 350 ships of the Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard, which need to be replaced and because of our internal strength we are competitive in the market," Bakshi said, adding the order book of the yard will continue to be full despite economic recession.
Sources : htt p://articles.economictimes.indiatimes. com/2011-08-24/news/29922703_1_gsl-chairman-indian-navy-vineet-bakshi

ISRO to launch 3 nano spacecraft along with Megha-Tropiques

Aug 24 (PTI) ISRO plans to launch three nano satellites, including one from Luxembourg, and an advanced weather and climate research satellite, on board PSLV from Sriharikota spaceport next month.The other two nano "piggy-back" satellites, which would be co-passengers of Megha-Tropiques, are one from SRM University and the other named "Jugnu" is a research spacecraft from IIT Kanpur, ISRO sources told PTI.The SRM satellite, aimed at monitoring green house gases, is a student-driven research project funded by the university.Megha-Tropiques is a joint atmospheric mission of ISRO and French National Space Centre (CNES).Sources said top CNES officials are slated to witness the launch by PSLV, ISRO's work-horse launch vehicle.Megha-Tropiques (Megha meaning cloud in Sanskrit and Tropiques denoting tropics in French) will investigate the contribution of water cycle in the tropical atmosphere to climate dynamics.

Sources : htt p://ibnlive.in. com/generalnewsfeed/news/isro-to-launch-3-nano-spacecraft-along-with-meghatropiques/799165.html

Navy prevented 34 piracy attempts in Gulf of Aden

Navy warships have prevented 34piracy attempts and apprehended 120 Somali pirates since theirdeployment in the Gulf of Aden in October 2008.

"26 Indian Navy ships have been deputed in the Gulf ofAden since October 2008. A total of 1,731 ships have beenescorted. 34 piracy attempts have been prevented by the Navythere," Defence Minister A K Antony told the Rajya Sabha inreply to a question. He said a total of 120 pirates have been apprehended and73 fishermen and crew rescued in four operations of Navy inEast Arabian Sea in 2011.

The Minister said the Navy was cooperating with othernavies operating there and the Arabian Sea.

Meanwhile, replying to another query, the Minister saidthe Navy had also played a crucial role in rescuing a Chinesemerchant vessel from being hijacked by the pirates in May thisyear.

Answering another query, the government denied that therewas a scam in the Defence Ministry's department looking afterresettlement and rehabilitation of ex-servicemen.

sources : htt p://zeenews.india. com/news/nation/navy-prevented-34-piracy-attempts-in-gulf-of-aden_728098.html

Mahindra gears up for military march

Taps into group synergies for bigger defence play. With expertise in sectors as diverse as auto and infotech, the $12.5-billion Mahindra Group is tapping into group synergies to roll out its next big bet in the Indian defence space.The Indian Army’s future infantry combat vehicles programme, a $12-billion order to supply 2,600 vehicles, may actually see this playing out on the ground. Mahindras are among the four shortlisted entities, and if selected will actually see group entities Mahindra Satyam and Mahindra Systech collaborating with the defence division
Mahindra Engineering Services, a part of Mahindra Systech, is working on the automotive design aspects, while Mahindra Satyam is creating the information technology backbone, or “battlefield management systems” in the defence parlance. Systech’s role as a key component vendor will increase, once the entire supply chain is put in place.
“We saw defence as an emerging mega trend over a decade back. And, today, Mahindra Defence System (MDS), an operating group under Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) itself, is poised to handle bigger and integrated solutions that are much in demand. We now have the necessary state of readiness to achieve scale and be commercially viable, and can exploit the group advantage,” said Anand Mahindra, vice-chairman and managing director of M&M.
India is planning to spend $80-100 billion in defence capital purchases over the next decade. Currently, 70 per cent of this gets imported, though the political establishment has been trying to gradually open up to the Indian private sector.
But Mahindra was rather conservative while outlining the business prospects. “This is a sector where the opportunity is worth billions of dollars. But unlike retail, there is no predictability of orders or easy foreseeable demand patterns. I see this piece to be at least half a billion dollars for us alone in the near term,” he said.
The plans are not just on paper or restricted to prototypes. Already, 1,000 legacy armoured vehicles of MDS have been rolled out for various government services.
In fact, the Mahindras’ defence play is now becoming far more evolved. Defence Land Systems India (DLSI), Mahindra’s 74:26 joint venture with global defence and security company BAE Systems, has reached an inflection point, with the commercial roll-outs of its mine protection vehicles (MPVs), a first for the Indian private sector.
“It’s not about slapping steel. These MPVs are significantly different from our other auto platforms. We have altered the chassis, which has been supplied by Russian truck manufacturer Ural, and have indigenised the manufacturing to make it custom-made for Indian conditions,” said Mahindra.
The alliance with BAE has helped in technology and product capability transfer from BAE’s South African arm, OMC.
From its Faridabad facility, the first batch of six MPV-I vehicles will be headed for Jharkhand to assist armed forces in counter insurgency operations. Already, states like Maharashtra, Jammu & Kashmir, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh have shown interest. “We are also expecting follow-on orders from Jharkhand,” said Khutub Hai, managing director and chief executive officer of DLSI. “The ministry of home affairs has a requirement of around 300 MPVs, for which request for proposals will be issued shortly.”
“Our vehicles are the most powerful in the category. It seats more people (16+2), as opposed to 10+2 in others. It also has a much higher level of improvised explosive device protection,” explained Hai.
According to Mahindra, BAE is the partner for all initiatives in land systems and depending on demand dynamics, it may even extend to include light artillery weapons like howitzers. But company officials said over the next year, series of initiatives were being planned for a much bigger and diversified interest.
The naval systems piece will get hived off into a wholly owned subsidiary, after which other global joint venture partners are likely to come on board. These partnerships can either be for specific projects or be omnibus in nature. The concentration here will mainly be for niche products of under water weapon systems, but maritime patrol boats could also be looked into. Mahindra Odyssea is already into the powerboats business.
To bridge the gap in defence electronics, M&M is looking at acquiring specialised companies. These buyouts will help integrate the electronics piece with the land, naval and the aerospace verticals. This, in turn, will be the catalyst to develop capabilities for manufacturing complex weapons systems and sub-systems.
Even with BAE, the scope is much larger. The common objective is to leverage India’s low-cost manufacturing and emerge as a hub for a bigger global supply chain. India, however, will be the dominant market to cater to. In this game plan, if required, existing partners or global arms like Navistar and SsangYong can also come on board.
sources : htt p://www.business-standard. com/india/news/mahindra-gearsfor-military-march/447112/

Goldman Sachs faces myriad legal challenges

Conventional wisdom in legal circles has long held that Goldman Sachs might escape further large fines or criminal charges for its role in the 2007-2009 financial crisis after reaching a $550 million settlement with securities regulators in July 2010.

But news that Goldman Chief Executive Lloyd Blankfein and other senior executives have hired their own lawyers, separate from the army of attorneys already retained by the company, was a powerful reminder for markets that Goldman is still the subject of myriad investigations.

Goldman has confirmed that Blankfein and other executives hired outside counsel when the Justice Department began investigating "certain matters" raised by the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.

Spokesman David Wells said it was a common practice for executives to have separate lawyers from those representing the company, and that Goldman was paying the executives' legal fees. He declined comment on how many executives had hired outside lawyers, or give their names.

Among the legal issues currently facing the bank are:

-- A Justice Department investigation launched after the Senate's Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations referred its 640-page report on the financial crisis, which included a large section on Goldman's handling of mortgage-backed securities. The panel's chairman, Senator Carl Levin, said Goldman and its executives misled investors and Congress, but said it was up to federal prosecutors to determine if any crimes were committed.

Goldman has said it disagreed with many of the report's conclusions but took seriously the issues addressed. One deal involving collateralized debt obligations (CDOs) marketed as "Hudson," may provide prosecutors with the most compelling case for possible criminal or civil charges, according to two sources familiar with the matter.

-- In June, New York city prosecutors subpoenaed the bank to explain its actions in the run-up to the financial crisis. The Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus Vance, is not seeking new documents, according to one source, but wants to ask further questions about the information in the Levin report.

-- New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman is investigating Goldman as part of a broader probe into the mortgage operations and securitization practices of seven banks. Schneiderman was removed Tuesday from the committee negotiating a nationwide foreclosure settlement with U.S. banks after he objected to a ban on further investigation of fraudulent business practices as part of the settlement.

-- The Securities and Exchange Commission is also investigating Goldman's handling of mortgage-backed securities deals. When the SEC settled its case with Goldman last year, it expressly noted that that did not preclude further actions. One source said the SEC viewed the case as a continuing priority.

sources : htt p://economictimes.indiatimes. com/news/international-business/goldman-sachs-faces-myriad-legal-challenges/articleshow/9727859.cms

Egypt to withdraw ambassador to Israel over ambush

Egypt said early Saturday it will withdraw its ambassador from Israel to protest the deaths of five Egyptian security forces in what it called a breach of a peace treaty, sharply escalating tensions between the two countries after a cross-border ambush that killed eight Israelis.Retaliatory violence between Israel and the Islamic militant group Hamas also spiked in the aftermath of Thursday's attack. Israeli airstrikes killed at least 12 Palestinians, most of them militants, in the Gaza Strip, and nine Israelis have been wounded by Palestinian rockets fired into southern Israel.The Egyptian troops were killed as Israeli soldiers pursued suspected militants from the Gaza Strip who crossed the border from the Sinai Peninsula into southern Israel, killing eight Israelis on Thursday. It was the deadliest attack on Israelis in three years.There were conflicting statements about how the Egyptians were killed, but an Egyptian Cabinet statement said it held Israel ``politically and legally responsible for this incident,'' which it deemed a breach of the 1979 peace treaty between the two countries. It demanded an immediate investigation.In strong language, it said Israel was to blame because lax security from its side allowed the ambush to take place.``The Egyptian ambassador to Israel will be withdrawn until we are notified about the results of an investigation by the Israeli authorities, and receive an apology from its leadership over the sad and hasty remarks about Egypt,'' the Cabinet statement said.It was the first time in nearly 11 years that Egypt decided to withdraw its ambassador from Israel. The last time was in November 2000 when the Egyptians protested what they called excessive use of violence during the second Palestinian uprising.The decision to withdraw Egyptian Ambassador Yasser Reda came as hundreds of protesters have staged demonstrations in front of the Israeli embassy in Cairo, raising a Palestinian flag and calling for expulsion of the Israeli ambassador in response to the killings.Egypt's official news agency blamed the Israelis for shooting and killing the five while chasing militants who killed eight Israelis in Thursday's ambush across the border in southern Israel.The Cabinet statement did not repeat that claim but accused Israel of trying to ``shirk responsibility for the recklessness of Israeli security forces in protecting the borders.''Israeli officials did not immediately comment on Egypt's decision, although the military promised on Friday to investigate the shootings.An Israeli military officer, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with military regulations, initially said a suicide bomber, not Israeli soldiers, killed the Egyptian security forces. He said the attacker had fled back across the border into Egypt and detonated his explosives among the Egyptian troops.Israeli media also reported that some of the sniper fire directed at the Israeli motorists Thursday came from near Egyptian army posts and speculated that the Egyptian troops were killed in the cross fire.It was not possible to reconcile the different versions.``There was an exchange of fire between Israeli soldiers and terrorists on the Egyptian border following the deadly terror attack Thursday morning. We are investigating this matter thoroughly and will update the Egyptians,'' the Israeli military said Friday.Thursday's attack signaled a new danger for Israel from its border with the Sinai Peninsula, an area that has always been restive but was kept largely under control by former Egyptian leader Hosni Mubarak. The desert area has become increasingly lawless since Mubarak was ousted on Feb. 11 following a popular uprising.Relations between the two countries have been chilly since they made peace in 1979, but Israel valued Mubarak as a source of stability with shared interests in containing Iran and its radical Islamic proxies in the region.The violence could further damage ties if Egypt's political upheaval and a resulting power vacuum in Sinai allows Gaza militants, who had been pummeled by a punishing Israeli three-week war 2{ years ago, to open a new front against Israel in the frontier area.Anger rose after Egyptian officials said Thursday's gunbattles killed five Egyptian security personnel. An Egyptian security official said three died Thursday and two others died of wounds on Friday.``Israel and any other (country) must understand that the day our sons get killed without a strong and an appropriate response, is gone and will not come back,'' wrote Amr Moussa, former Arab League chief and now a presidential hopeful. He tweeted his statement along with, ``the blood of our martyrs which was spilled while carrying out their duties, will not be shed in vain.''Gunmen crossed the border from Egypt on Thursday and set up an ambush along a 300-yard (meter) strip, armed with automatic weapons, grenades and suicide bomb belts, the Israeli military said.They opened fire on a civilian bus heading toward the Red Sea resort city of Eilat, hitting a number of passengers, then riddled another passing bus and two cars with bullets and rigged a roadside bomb that detonated under an army jeep rushing to the scene. At the same time, Palestinian mortar gunners in Gaza opened fire at soldiers along the Gaza-Israel border fence.The assailants killed eight people, six civilians and two Israeli troops responding to the incursion. Israel said it killed seven assailants.Hamas, which controls Gaza, praised the attacks but denied any involvement. Israel holds Hamas responsible for all violence coming from the Palestinian territory and retaliated by striking the group.``This is a response to the terror attacks executed against Israel in the last 24 hours,'' the military said.Israeli aircraft struck several targets in Gaza, killing five Palestinian militants late Thursday and five more on Friday, including a senior member of the Islamic Jihad, according to Palestinian hospital officials. Two civilians were also reported dead.One of the rockets launched from Gaza Friday smashed through a roof of a Jewish seminary, damaging a synagogue in the port city of Ashdod and wounding six Israelis who were standing outside, Israeli emergency services said. Another hit an empty school while a third, aimed at the city of Ashkelon, was intercepted by the new Israeli anti-missile system known as Iron Dome.On Saturday, one of those rockets seriously injured two people in the port city of Ashdod, police said.A senior Israeli military officer who briefed reporters by phone said at least 15 Palestinians from Gaza took part in the assault. He also spoke on condition of anonymity according to military regulations.Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu visited some of the wounded in the hospital Friday. ``We killed the head of the group that sent the terrorists, but this is just an initial response,'' he said. ``We have a policy to extract a very heavy price from those that attack us and that policy is being implemented in the field.''Israel said the attackers had come from Gaza and made their way into neighboring Sinai and from there into Israel. The attack was the deadliest for Israel since a Palestinian gunman killed eight people in a Jerusalem religious seminary in 2008.Israeli aircraft hit multiple targets in Gaza, the military said. Gaza Health Ministry spokesman Adham Abu Salmia said at least four militants were killed and a dozen injured Friday.One strike hit a motorcycle carrying senior militants from the Palestinian group Israel says is behind Thursday's violence. Another five militants including the group's leader were killed Thursday night.At the United Nations, diplomats said that Lebanon blocked the Security Council during a closed meeting on Friday from condemning the terrorist attacks in southern Israel. The United States had circulated a draft press statement to the council, which requires the support of all 15 council nations.``We think the council needs to speak out on this issue,'' said the U.S. deputy ambassador, Rosemary DiCarlo. ``We find it regrettable that because of one delegation we couldn't issue that in a timely way.''

sources : htt p://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes. com/2011-08-20/middle-east/29909110_1_israeli-soldiers-gaza-strip-israeli-airstrikes

Hurricane Irene menaces Bahamas islands

 

A large and powerful Hurricane Irene was roaring its way Wednesday across the entire Bahamas archipelago, knocking down trees and tearing up roofs and posing the most severe threat to some of the smaller and less-populated islands, officials said.

Bahamian Prime Minister Hubert Ingraham said there have been no major injuries or deaths according to preliminary reports he has been receiving from throughout the widely scattered islands. But he added that they would not know the full extent of damage from the Category 3 storm until it is clear of the country on Friday.

Mr. Ingraham said the latest storm data seemed to indicate that lightly populated Cat Island, as well as the even smaller Rum Cay, was in particular danger because the storm was expected to pass over the entire length of both islands. Bahamian forecasters said New Providence, the largest and most populated island, would see tropical storm-force winds starting late Wednesday.

This was only the third time since 1866 that a hurricane has gone across the entire length of the island chain, Mr. Ingraham said, and the country was bracing for extensive damage to buildings and infrastructure. But the Prime Minister predicted few casualties overall.

“As a general statement we do a fair job of managing hurricanes so personal injuries, we hope, will not be substantial,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press at an emergency operations centre in Nassau. “Property damage, vegetation, public infrastructure, yes, but as a general statement we would hope that personal injuries would be minimized.”

The latest forecast was relatively good news for Nassau, which is on New Providence, and is home to more than 200,000 in addition to being a major tourist destination. Capt. Stephen Russell, director of the National Emergency Management Agency, told AP that the capital should not expect the direct hit from the hurricane that many feared. Instead, forecasters said the island should see tropical storm force winds of 60 mph, with stronger gusts.

“That should go very well for us unless the system alters its course during the next 24 hours,” Mr. Russell said.

Still, the storm could cause problems. Trevor M. Basden, senior deputy director of the country’s Department of Meteorology, said New Providence could expect to be buffeted with fierce winds until Thursday evening. “That is quite of bit of time to be experiencing tropical storm force winds,” he said.

Authorities set up emergency shelters throughout the country but most locals were expected to stay in their own homes or with friends and family while visitors stayed in the handful of hotels that remained open for what was expected to be a rough next few days.

As darkness fell in the capital, and the first strong winds and rain began to lash the city, the streets were largely deserted. Earlier, the capital buzzed with last-minute preparations as people gathered what last-minute supplies were still available and shop owners boarded up their windows. Nassau, which surrounded by sparkling greenish-blue ocean, is known to flood even in heavy rain so the storm surge was expected to make many roads impassable, especially in the colonial downtown.

Many visitors weren’t waiting around to find out what would happen and fled the country, waiting in long lines to catch planes before the airport closed. Some tourists had no choice but to leave since smaller hotels abruptly closed and larger ones were booked up with Bahamian residents looking for a place to ride out the storm. Others flying out simply didn’t want to take their chances with what could be a major storm.

By Wednesday night, Irene was centred about 245 kilometres east-southeast of Nassau with winds of 120 mph (195 kph). Hurricane force winds extended about 95 kilometres from its centre.

Irene is expected to become a Category 4 hurricane by Thursday as it passes over the north-western Bahamas en route to the eastern U.S. coast, said the U.S. National Hurricane Centre in Miami, Florida.

Irene barrelled through the Turks and Caicos Islands late Tuesday as a Category 1 hurricane, blowing off some roofs and downing power lines, said Emily Malcolm, district commissioner for South Caicos island.

No deaths or injuries have been reported, she said.

Puerto Rico, which also was hit by Irene, is still struggling with heavy flooding that has stranded motorists and affected several neighbourhoods. Dozens of landslides have been reported and 765 people remain in shelters, Gov. Luis Fortuno told a news conference Wednesday, two days after he declared a state of emergency.

On Tuesday, a 62-year-old woman died at a hospital after trying to cross a swollen river in her car near the capital of San Juan, police said.

In the Dominican Republic, flooding, rising rivers and mudslides have prompted the government to evacuate nearly 38,000 people. Authorities said a 40-year-old man was killed when floodwaters destroyed his home in Cambita, about 42 kilometers west of Santo Domingo, and a 42-year-old Haitian migrant drowned in a surging river near the city of El Seibo.

Juan Manuel Mendez, director of the Central Emergency Operations Center, said more slides were likely in coming days because of days of intense rain from the storm system.

Impoverished Haiti was left “relatively unscathed,” with only isolated damage from flooding, the United Nations said.

sources : htt p://www.thehindu. com/news/international/article2395606.ece

Russia may suspend space deliveries

The failed launch of a Russian cargo spacecraft on Wednesday is likely to affect further missions to the International Space Station (ISS), Russian experts said.

An unmanned Progress spacecraft, carrying food, water, fuel and experiments to the International Space Station crashed in Siberia minutes after takeoff from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan.

The accident will push back planned launches to the ISS, an unnamed space official at Baikonur told the Interfax news agency.

“The launch of a manned Soyuz TMA-22 spacecraft scheduled for September 22 will be put off to a later date,” Interfax quoted the expert as saying on Thursday.

The launch of a Glonass navigational satellite planned for Friday has already been cancelled.

The Soyuz-U rocket, which carried the ill-fated Progress M-12M freighter, has the same third stage booster as the Soyuz-FG used for manned flights, the Russian expert explained. It is the third stage that is blamed for Wednesday’s accident. The spacecraft failed to reach orbit because the third stage engines shut off early after developing a malfunction, the Russian space agency Roskosmos said on its website.

Roskosmos said the accident will not disrupt the work of the six-man international crew aboard the ISS as they have sufficient supplies of food, water and oxygen. The space agency also refuted fears voiced by NASA that the planned return to earth of three ISS crew on September 8 may be delayed.

Ecologists fear large-scale environmental damage from the Progress accident as the rocket that crashed on Wednesday carried a ton of highly toxic liquid fuel, Geptil, that can poison soil and underground water for decades. It is not known how much of the fuel was destroyed in a massive explosion that was heard 100 km away from the crash in a remote area of Altai in southern Siberia.

The Progress was the fourth failed space launch in Russia since December last year when a rocket with three Glonass satellites crashed into the Pacific Ocean after launch. The Russian military lost a geodetic satellite in February, and Europe’s biggest satellite for Internet and digital television across Russia was put into the wrong orbit last week.

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has ordered an overhaul of quality control procedures during the manufacture of space hardware. 

Sources : htt p://www.thehindu. com/sci-tech/article2396541.ece

Summons issued to Amar Singh

The former general secretary of the Samajwadi Party, Amar Singh; the former aide of the Bharatiya Janata Party's senior leader L. K. Advani, Sudheendra Kulkarni; and two former BJP MPs on Thursday were issued summons to appear before a court here on September 6 in connection with the cash-for-votes scandal, in which they have been charge-sheeted.

Special Judge Sangeeta Dhingra Sehgal also issued production warrants against Mr. Singh's former aide Sanjeev Saxena and another accused, Sohail Hindustani, who were arrested earlier and now lodged in the Tihar Central Jail. Ms. Sehgal also took cognisance of all the offences mentioned in the charge sheet.

Issuing the summons to Mr. Singh, Mr. Kulkarni, Faggan Singh Kulaste and Mahaveer Singh Bhagora, Judge Sehgal said, “Was there any special reason for not arresting them?”

Public Prosecutor Rajeev Mohan, appearing for the Delhi Police Crime Branch, said the four were not arrested as their custodial interrogation was not required.

Mr. Saxena's bail plea was adjourned to September 6 after his counsel Santosh Pandey said he wanted to wait until the police presented a status report on its probe in the Supreme Court on September 2.

Mr. Hindustani's bail plea was adjourned to Friday after his counsel Anand said he wanted more time to study the charge sheet.

The prosecution also told the judge that a supplementary charge sheet would be filed against sitting BJP MP Ashok Argal after getting requisite sanction from the Lok Sabha Speaker.

The 80-page charge sheet said that on July 21, 2008, a day before the three BJP MPs waved wads of cash amounting to Rs.1 crore in Parliament, Mr. Kulkarni held a meeting with the three MPs and Mr. Hindustani at his New Delhi residence. They “hatched a criminal conspiracy to contact, solicit, and entrap leaders of the Congress and the Samajwadi Party by projecting the names of the three BJP MPs as vulnerable MPs” whose votes during the motion of confidence could be influenced on the basis of monetary considerations.

“Sohail Hindustani was the initiator of the move and Sudheendra Kulkarni mastermind of the operation.”

The charge sheet also alleged that BJP leader Arun Jaitley told Mr. Kulkarni that a reporter from a news channel would contact him for a sting operation. However, the police said it had no evidence against the four-member team of the channel that they “played any role in any inducement, attempt, delivery or receipt of illegal gratification”.

On Mr. Singh, the police said he “hatched a criminal conspiracy with Sanjeev Saxena to deliver an advance of Rs.1 crore to the three BJP MPs” at Mr. Argal's residence.

The police also said Mr. Singh's contention that Mr. Saxena was the aide of another MP and visited him only occasionally was rejected by the Crime Branch, which seized a letter written by Mr. Singh on his official letterhead regarding Mr. Saxena's son's admission to a Delhi college where he mentions Mr. Saxena as his secretary. The son's admission form also listed Mr. Singh's residence as Mr. Saxena's official address.

sources :  htt p://www.thehindu. com/todays-paper/tp-national/article2398309.ece

Maoists present proposal for peace

In the run up to a vote to elect a Prime Minister in Parliament, the Unified Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) has unveiled a “proposal” and “commitment” on peace, Constitution and government. Chairman Pushpa Kamal Dahal made the document public at a press conference in the capital after a meeting of the standing committee of the party. He was accompanied by vice-chairman andparty's prime ministerial candidate Dr. Baburam Bhattarai and senior vice-chairman Mohan Vaidya “Kiran”.

In terms of the peace process, the Maoists have accepted an informal Nepal Army proposal to create a directorate under the NA as the modality of integration of combatants. The party has suggested that “around 8000” of the 19,602 combatants in the cantonments be integrated, while the rest be rehabilitated. The official party document says those to be integrated will have to meet norms of physical fitness, but there should be specially created norms with flexibility in terms of “age, marital status and education”. For those combatants who would be rehabilitated, Maoists have proposed giving a “golden handshake” of anything between $9500 and $14,000 to be paid in instalments.

Those Maoist commanders who are a part of the party's central committee would opt for political work instead of going into a security force. The party has proposed that a team of experts should be constituted to work out “rank harmonization” for the remaining commanders. The former rebels have also called for the formation of a taskforce to create a “national security policy” and plan for the “democratisation of the army”.

Calendar

The party has set itself a calendar, stating that the process of “regrouping of combatants” into those to be integrated and rehabilitated would begin before the term of the Constituent Assembly ends on August 31, and be concluded within one month. They have proposed holding an “official ceremony” within 45 days to bid farewell to the combatants. The party has said that as soon as a Maoist-led government is formed, combatants, weapons and containers with the weapons would be handed over to the Special Committee for Supervision, Integration and Rehabilitation of Maoist Combatants. The party has also proposed extending the term of the CA for another six months.

The Maoist proposal comes right before a parliamentary contest between Dr. Bhattarai and NC parliamentary party leader Ram Chandra Poudel to become the next Prime Minister. Efforts at forging a consensus government failed with both the NC and the Maoists asking the other side to support their claim for leadership first. The outcome of the vote will now depend on the stand adopted by the Communist Party of Nepal (Unified Marxist Leninist) and the United Democratic Madhesi Front (UDMF). 

sources : htt p://www.thehindu. com/todays-paper/tp-international/article2398276.ece 

Failed launch to affect Russia's ISS missions

The failed launch of a Russian cargo spacecraft on Wednesday is likely to affect further missions to the International Space Station (ISS), say Russian experts.

An unmanned Progress spacecraft, carrying food, water, fuel and experiments to the International Space Station crashed in Siberia minutes after takeoff from the Baikonur spaceport in Kazakhstan.

The accident will push back planned launches to the ISS, an unnamed space official at Baikonur told the Interfax news agency.

“The launch of a manned Soyuz TMA-22 spacecraft scheduled for September 22 will be put off to a later date,” Interfax quoted the expert as saying on Thursday.

The launch of a Glonass navigational satellite planned for Friday has already been cancelled.

The Soyuz-U rocket, which carried the ill-fated Progress M-12M freighter, has the same third stage booster as the Soyuz-FG used for manned flights, the Russian expert explained. It is the third stage that is blamed for Wednesday's accident. The spacecraft failed to reach orbit because the third stage engines shut off early after developing a malfunction, the Russian space agency Roskosmos said on its website.

Roskosmos said the accident will not disrupt the work of the six-man international crew aboard the ISS as they have sufficient supplies of food, water and oxygen. The space agency also refuted fears voiced by NASA that the planned return to earth of three ISS crew on September 8 may be delayed.

Ecologists fear large-scale environmental damage from the Progress accident as the rocket that crashed on Wednesday carried a ton of highly toxic liquid fuel, Geptil, which can poison soil and underground water for decades. The Progress was the fourth failed space launch in Russia since December last year when a rocket with three Glonass satellites crashed into the Pacific Ocean after launch. The Russian military lost a geodetic satellite in February, and Europe's biggest satellite for Internet and digital television across Russia was put into the wrong orbit last week.

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has ordered an overhaul of quality control procedures during the manufacture of space hardware.
sources : htt p://www.thehindu. com/todays-paper/tp-international/article2398275.ece