Indian Elephant Trying To Counter The Evil Designs Of The Dragon

India it seems has decided to disregard the Chinese warning regarding railway line on the Arunachal Border. Instead it will augment the plan with building 4 more railway links. Plus ITBP is acquiring cameras which will peer 20km inside the Chinese territories.

Readers might remember few weeks back the Chinese decided to issue a threat to India when it was made public that India will build 1800km long road along the border. China has been irked by its own mis-calculation that India will keep its side under-developed giving them a huge strategic advantage.

The Modi government has taken it a step further and has decided to build 4 more railway lines for the purpose of the troops. According to sources the proposed railway lines are 

1. Misamari-Tawang Railway line 378 kms 
2. Himachal Pradesh-Jammu and Kashmir, Bilaspur-Mandi-Manali-Leh 495 km 
3. Assam-Arunachal Pradesh, north Lakhimpur- Silapthar line 240 kms 
4. Assam-Arunachal Pradesh, Murkongselek-Pasighat-Tezu-Parshuram Kund-Rupai Siding line 256 km 

The PM has already issued orders to the Minister of Railways for starting the survey and submit a detailed budget for this project with exact routes etc. Due to the terrain many obstacles will have to be overcome and the survey alone will take 2 years to complete.

These proposed lines will run through some of the most strategic areas giving our forces an advantage during any form of conflict.

Projects like these should have been initiated by the previous UPA regime during its 10 years of mis-rule but for unknown reason the Congress Government decided to keep India at a disadvantage. It is very rare in Indian history that we get 10 years of relative peace. Defense ministry should have used that time to improve the infrastructure but it refused to do anything.

Even ITBP after the recent border skirmish with China has accepted that it is very poorly equipped to take on an increasingly aggressive and dangerously adventurist chines army. Thus it has decided to buy cameras which can look into the Chinese territories upto 20 km and has started testing one of them by placing it on one of its outpost.

According to reports these camera with thermal imaging feature will be used to keep track of any medium to large scale movement of Chinese army over a fixed period. But it doesnot stop there instead plans are to lay fibre optics cable along the border to connect these cameras for real time monitoring by not only ITBP command HQ but Delhi too.

Higher FDI In Defense a master stroke or a lame duck initiative?

Unfortunately, unless new investments are made in R&D, modern factories, personnel Indian defense industry is going to stagnate.
Till now India has not been able to attract any FDI in our defense sector as told by Anthony to the Parliament.
We do not have the modern technology to make everything in India.
Lets take the case of Arihant, we could not have built the nuclear reactor in the next 50 years, it was the Russians who stepped in and gave us the technology to do so.
Next are the destroyers we are building, actually the word should be assembling, none of the high end components being put in those destroyer are Indian.
Then comes the case of Arjun, again we have bought 50 equipments from 50 different sources and assembled it thus the quality is so "ify".
Now why is no money flowing into FDI or the private sector not bothering to  come in a big way.
PROFIT........ As civilians we look at the finished product but the case is drastically different for the three services, after we buy a Mirage2000, every time it fly's a small part inside that huge body either finishes its life term or is about to, where do we get these parts from????
1) Cannibalize our own Mirage200 to have at least one in the air.
2) Ask France to give it, If france has stopped the assembly line it will just say sorry.
3) Look for other countries who have spare parts, if we find some, they will try to cheat us by selling old spare parts or asking 100rs for 1rs product.
4) Build our own!!!!!!!
4th point is where privates sector comes in.
So IAF needs 10000 of these small parts for the next 5 years.
Fine, a private player with the help from the french sets up a factory to build these parts, it supplies 10,000 parts to the IAF within one or two years, now what??????
What happens to the factory????The equipments??? The workers???? The Investment????

This is the huge bottleneck in our Private/FDI policy.

Just imagine if the French move their production of some high end lethal weapon to India and after 500-1000 unit we say ok now stop production because we will not allow you to sell these items to anybody else. You can imagine the four letter word French will throw at us.

Thus no FDI or privatization policy will work unless we can assure profits to the private sector.

These views have been formulated after talking to a Gen(retd), Air Marshal(retd) so this is the situation on the ground.
Given below is an excellent article written by Maj Gen Mrinal Suman
fdi in defence dispelling the myths

Government wants to raise FDI in defense

NEW DELHI: The department of industrial policy & promotion (DIPP) has prepared a draft Cabinet note that proposes to allow up to 100 per cent foreign direct investment in defence as part of its plan to boost domestic manufacturing. The move comes two days after Nirmala Sitharaman took charge as the new commerce & industry minister. Defence Minister Arun Jaitley had indicated on Tuesday after taking charge of the ministry that he would consider the issue of FDI in the sector.

LOC Skirmishes What is the real story?

For the past few weeks India and Pakistan have been trading heavy fire on the Line of Control(LOC) yet nobody knows what are the actual reasons for Pakistan challenging India for a firing match which it knows it cannot win. It tried to instigate a reaction by beheading Indian soldiers and ambushing an Indian patrol.Why?
On the Indian side most citizens are up in arms for what is perceived as Government apathy towards the casualties and cold blooded murder of soldiers on LOC. There is a mob frenzy which seeks bloody retribution.
My question is a bit more involved than just joining the Pakistani's in a duel. Why would Pakistan escalate tensions on LOC for what purpose and why now?

Lets look at the simplistic answer,

• Pakistanis are an evil race which lives, drinks and dreams of war with Indian republic.
• Pakistan wants to push in more infiltrators under the cover of heavy firing.
• Pakistan Government has lost control over its commander who are driven by jihadi mentality.

All these explanations though plausible are not probable. Let's look at point no 2 infiltrators are pushed through specific paths and firing or shelling there makes sense but this is more wide spread and acts by the Pakistani Border Action Team defies logic because they know this will push the lackadaisical Indian Government into taking action. So there must be a more sinister plot afoot.
As to point 3 as much we would like to believe it to be true and give Nawaz Sharif the PM of Pakistan a clean chit the pretext to that point isn't true. While Nawaz may not control Pakistani army to the full extent yet its rank and file haven't been infiltrated to a large extent as of now. General Kayani remains in full control of his armies thus it cannot be a renegade general performing these acts.
Therefore what is the point behind all this?

The answer may lie in many points and the Pakistanis may be trying to hedge their bets on multiple issues. We all know that the so called dove Nawaz Sharif has activated the dormant Kashmir Cell of the Pakistan Government as soon as he took oath of office. This cell's sole responsibility is to put Kashmir on the international forum and by overt or covert means force India to a discussion on Kashmir in UN or other places. His parties provincial government is bankrolling terrorist organisations responsible for countless attacks on Indian cities including Mumbai. Yet he talks of peace. What Nawaz Sharif has guessed and rightly so is the predisposition of Indian Government towards peace come what may and the romantic idea in PM Singhs mind that Nawaz Sharif and the people of Pakistan are basically a hostage of General Kayani. Thus they must do everything in its power to support Sharif against Kayani.
Keeping this in mind Pakistan wants to play good cop and bad cop routine by asking its military to kill as many Indian soldiers as it can and push infiltrators into India for jihad. If their guess is correct PM Singh will force the Indian military to give a token timid response to assuage the public. This will have two fold effect, firstly it will de-moralize the soldiers on the ground reducing their efficiency against the terrorist and make the international community jittery about a possible confrontation between nuclear powered nations. thirdly it will cement the theory in the minds of PM Singh and Foreign minister Khurshid of India that this is the handiwork of Kayani to embarrass poor helpless PM Sharif.
Due to the nervousness of International Community we have already seen noises being made by some western powers for talks between India and Pakistan while Mr Khurshid has categorically stated the Governments resolve to talk peace. They have successfully marginalized the Indian army into a glorified mall security guard. Emboldened the secessionist factions in India.
On the other hand if the Government of India thus react into doing something drastic then Pakistan will be ready for it and it will give excuse to China to jump into the fray. This is the ultimate goal of Pakistan is to involve China in Kashmir war thus paving the way for annexation of Kashmir to Pakistan.

Instead of joining Pakistan in a gunbattle India should escalate the war on fronts where Pakistan is weak and a decisive move by the Indians will cause huge losses. this will make Pakistans forked tongue strategy too costly to maintain. Indians should get rid of their romantic notions about the Pakistani people and their establishment. Just like one Gandhi does not make every Indian a saint in the same way one Pakistani singer does not make every one of them sufi mystics.

Indian Army To Hold Several Military Exercise

Some of the world elite military powers, which include the US, Russia and France want to learn from the Indian army and thus will hold war games with the IA. Not to be left behind smaller friendly countries are gearing for war games too. The exercises are not only related to urban warfare a forte of IA but it will include mechanized columns and infantry formations as well.

Indian Army will hold around 15 exercises this year with friendly foreign countries including the who's who in the global arena, army officials said.

In its immediate neighbourhood, Indian Army will conduct these joint training exercises with Bangladesh and Singapore.

'Bold Kurukshetra' with Singapore army will kick-off the war games in Babina near Jhansi in March. The two sides will field their mechanised forces in the training engagement.

The schedule and nature of exercises with other countries are yet to be decided, but anti-terrorism drills and urban warfare is going to be an important part of all of these war games, officials said.

The army troopers will also engage the American mechanised forces in the deserts of Rajasthan in the exercise 'Yudh Abhyas' which will see the US fielding its tanks there.

The US had participated in exercise 'Yudh Abhyas-2009' with the Indian Army, when it had taken its Stryker infantry armoured vehicles outside of its operational area to a foreign land.

Indian Army had participated in the exercise with its mechanized infantry battalions. Similar exercises have also been planned with the armies of France and Russia.

Last year in October, troops of Indian and French armies had conducted a joint exercise-'Shakti-2000' in the hills of Ranikhet in Uttarakhand.

The fourth round of 'INDRA' series of joint exercise between Indian and Russian armies was also conducted in 2010 in Uttarakhand.

Year End Defense Review By MoD

Indian Ministry Of Defense has issued year end review of all the projects and purchases. Some points are given below

NEW WEAPONS

• The successful test launch of the 3,500 km range Agni-IV Ballistic Missile on Tuesday, Nov 15, 2011 was the highlight of the year. A press conference was organised the next day, viz Wednesday, Nov 16, 2011 for DRDO chief Dr. VK Saraswat, which was widely covered by the media, on the launch of Agni-IV from Wheeler island off Orissa coast.
• Sixth successful test launch of Agni-AI Ballistic Missile from Wheeler Island on Thursday, Dec 1, 2011 by Armed Forces.
• Successful launch of Dhanush and Prithvi Missiles by the Strategic Forces Command from Interim Test Range, Chandipur, Orissa and a warship off Orissa Coast on March 11, 2011.
• Successful launch of new Surface to Surface Tactical Missile ‘PRAHAAR’ by DRDO on Thursday, July 21, 2011.
• Successful flight testing of Surface to Surface Strategic Missile AGNI (A-II) on Friday, September 30, 2011, from Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, Orissa Coast.
• Successful flight testing of Surface to Surface Strategic Missile PRITHVI (P-II) on Monday, September 26, 2011, from ITR, Chandipur. In collaboration with DRDO, DPR also organised a press briefing on the strategic significance of the event on the same day.
• Successful flight test of the 700- km range SHOURYA Missile from Launch Complex III of Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur off Orissa Coast on Saturday, Sep 24, 2011.
• Successful launch of Prithvi (P-II) missile on Thursday, June 09, 2011
• The DRDO conducted the 5th successful flight of UAV ‘Rustom I’ near Hosur, Karnataka on Friday, Nov 11, 2011.
• Initial Operational Clearance Ceremony to LCA (Tejas) at Bangalore on January 10, 2011. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony formally handed over the release to service certificate of Tejas Aircraft to the chief of Air Staff, Air chief Marshal PV Naik.
• Successful Engine Ground Run of LCA Tejas at Bangalore on Tuesday, Sep 27, 2011.
• Kaveri engine being developed by the DRDO for the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft successfully completed the first phase Flying Test Bed trials mounted on a modified IL-76 aircraft in Russia during April.
• Defence Minister Shri AK Antony inaugurated the DRDO’s state-of-the-art composite propellant processing facility – ACEM (Advanced Centre for Energetic Materials) at Nasik in Maharashtra on Wednesday, Jun 29, 2011.
• Indian Naval crew began training in Russia in April aboard the new Aircraft Carrier Admiral Gorshkov, being rechristened INS Vikramaditya, to be inducted into the Indian Naval fleet.

EXPORT ORDERS / ACQUISITIONS / CAPACITY BUILDING / OPERATIONS

• Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma commissioned INS Satpura, the second in the Shivalik class of warships, at a function at the Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in Mumbai on Saturday, Aug 20, 2011.
• Commissioning of Fleet Tanker “Deepak” at Mumbai by the Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in January, 2011.
• Induction Ceremony of C-130J -30 Super Hercules Tactical Aircraft at Air Force Station, Hindan on Feb, 05, 2011.
• The down select of two aerospace companies for the MMRCA contract was the highlight of the last week in April. Commercial bids were opened on Friday, Nov 04, 2011 for the contract related to procurement of 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircrafts (MMRCA) for the IAF.
• Smt. Mamatha, wife of Minister of State for Defence Dr MM PallamRaju, launched the second indigenous ‘Anti-Submarine Warfare’ (ASW) corvette ‘Kadmatt’ at a function at the Garden Reach Ship Builders & Engineers (GRSE) in Kolkata on Tuesday, Oct 25, 2011.
• Commissioning of Indian Coast Guard Station at Mundra in Gujarat by Vice Admiral Anil Chopra, Dir Gen, Indian Coast Guard on Thursday, May 19, 2011.
• Foundation stone laying ceremony of Indian Coast Guard Academy at Azhikkal in Kannur district of Kerala by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony on Saturday, May 28, 2011.
• Foundation stone laying ceremony for the National Institute for Research and Development (NIRDESH) in Defence Shipbuilding at Kozhikode, Kerala by the Defence Minister, Shri A K Antony on 4th January 2011.
• The new Officers Training Academy (OTA) at Gaya, Bihar was inaugurated by Lt Gen K SurendraNath, GOC-in-C, Army Training Command on Monday, July 18, 2011 and later by the Army Chief Gen VK Singh on Monday, Nov 14, 2011.
• Commissioning of a Fast Attack Craft, INS Kabra, at Naval Base Kochi by Vice Admiral KN Sushil on Wednesday, June 08, 2011.
• Commissioning of Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) C-152 by Dr Vijayalakshmy K Gupta, Secretary (Defence Finance) at Okha, Gujarat on Saturday, June 18, 2011 and later ICGS C-153 at Porbandar, Gujarat by Director General, Indian Coast Guard Vice Admiral Anil Chopra on Saturday, Oct 22, 2011.
• Commissioning of the two Indian Coast Guard Ships C-150 and C-151 by Vice Admiral Anil Chopra, Director General Coast Guard at an impressive ceremony in Kochi on Monday, March 28, 2011.
• Commissioning of hi-tech 3G connectivity services in the Air Force in March for enhanced operational efficiency.
• Re-induction of upgraded AN-32 tactical transport Aircraft into IAF in June, after the aircraft underwent total technical life extension (TTLE), overhaul and re-equipment at Ukraine.
• Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat, Scientific Adviser to Raksha Mantri, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and DGR&D, inaugurated an integrated microwave tube development unit in Bangalore on Saturday, April 09, 2011.
• DRDO dedicated Integrated Thermally Regulated Shelters for use of the Indian Army in Leh, Ladakh on Thursday, June 16, 2011.
• Indian Army introduced in April better habitat for its personnel at high altitudes.
• A US-based firm signed a licensing agreement in New Delhi on Monday, April 25, 2011 with the DRDO to acquire the technology of Explosive Detection Kit developed by the High Energy Material Research Lab (HEMRL), Pune.
• An intensive anti-piracy operation was launched by Indian Navy during the week ending Friday, March 18, 2011.
• Indian Navy warships apprehended an Iranian boat 400 nautical miles off Lakshadweep, rescuing 12 Iranian and 4 Pakistani crew and detaining 16 pirates in a daring operation on Saturday, March 26, 2011.
• A press release and photos were released to the media on Friday, May 6, 2011 on the Indian Navy foiling a piracy attempt on a Chinese ship in the Arabian Sea, 100 NM off Karwar.
• On March 11, 2011 Indian Navy Warships assisted a damaged Egyptian registered Ship take to the sea again that was released by pirates off Somalia

SECURITY ISSUES / POLICY / PROCEDURES

• Formal unveiling of Defence Production Policy and Defence Procurement Procedure – 2011 by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony on January 13, 2011.
• Defence Minister Shri AK Antony convened a high level meeting of all stakeholders on Coastal Security in New Delhi on Wednesday, Aug 10, 2011 and another on Monday, Aug 29, 2011. Shri Antony called for concerted efforts to avoid incidents like the grounding of MT Pavit on July 31 and MV Rak a week later off Mumbai coast. He also reviewed operationalising Phase-II of Coastal Security.
• Defence Minister Shri AK Antony visited the Desert sector (Rajasthan) of Southern Army on Monday, May 2, 2011 to review the operational preparedness of the Indian Army.
• Defence Minister Shri AK Antony visited the North East on February 18-19, 2011. He reviewed the security situation during his visit to Military installations at Chabua in Assam, Rangapahar in Nagaland, Kibithu in Arunachal Pradesh and Leimakhong in Manipur.
• Defence ministry ordered a reality check on all defence land at the ground level, to be undertaken by the Directorate General of Defence Estates. In this context, a CD containing database on all defence land records was formally released by the Defence Minister at New Delhi on Wednesday, July 13, 2011.
• Ministry of Defence decided to go for open bidding to select an event manager for the Seventh edition of Land, Naval and Internal Security System Exhibition (Def-Expo India 2012) scheduled to be held in Pragati Maidan, New Delhi from March 29 to April 01, 2012, says press release on Monday, Oct 10, 2011.
• Improvement of rations supplied to the Junior Commissioned Officers and others in the army, says a press release on Tuesday, July 12, 2011.

Indian Army To Go Ahead With M-777 Howitzers Deal

Rubbishing all reports that deal for M-777 ultra light howitzers has run into rough weather. Defense ministry officials made it clear that India is going ahead with the deal. This deal was for 145 guns at a total cost of 650 million USD.

Antony told the Indian parliament on Dec. 12 that India is looking at buying the guns through the U.S. government's Foreign Military Sales program.

The procurement was stalled after a report on the trials was released, but the program is back on track now, Antony said.

"The field evaluation trial report of the guns was a confidential document. Four pages of draft field trial report were received in an anonymous envelope by the Army headquarters. An enquiry in the matter is underway," the minister said.

The Ultralightweight Field Howitzer (UFH), designated M777 in the USA, was selected in 1997 by a joint US Army / Marine Corps initiative to replace the existing inventory of M198 155mm towed howitzers. The first of five EMD systems was delivered in June 2000. The US Marine Corps is to procure 380 systems and the US Army 273 systems. A low-rate initial production (LRIP) contract for 94 systems was awarded in November 2002.

Operational testing with the USMC, during which nearly 12,000 artillery rounds were fired by four production systems, was completed in December 2004. A contract for full-rate production of 495 systems was awarded to BAE Systems in April 2005. In May 2005, the USMC began fielding the M777 with the 11th Marines unit at Twentynine Palms in California.

The first 18 systems were delivered to the US Army's 2nd Battalion, 11th Field Artillery in Hawaii in October 2006.

The M777 will be the artillery system for the Stryker Brigade Combat Teams (SBCT). The systems fitted with the digital fire control system are designated M777A1, and those with the software update which allows the firing of the Excalibur projectile, M777A2. M777A2 received full material release in July 2007, clearing the upgrade for fielding. All M777A1 systems will be upgraded to the A2 standard.

The M777 was deployed by the US Army and Marine Corps to Afghanistan in December 2007 and to Iraq in 2008.

In July 2008, Australia requested the foreign military sale of 57 M77 howitzers.

BAE Systems has developed a mobile version, the M777 Portee, which is mounted on a purpose-built 8x6 Supacat vehicle. The vehicle was first shown at Eurosatory in June 2006.

This gun is half the weight of all 155mm howitzers in the world but matches their fire power making it a deadly weapon in the hands of good artillery unit.

The maximum firing range is 24.7km with unassisted rounds and 30km with rocket-assisted rounds. The M777A2 will fire the Raytheon / Bofors XM982 Excalibur GPS / Inertial Navigation-guided extended-range 155mm projectiles using the Modular Artillery Charge Systems (MACS). Excalibur has a maximum range of 40km and accuracy of 10m.

The LRIP systems employ an optical sighting system for direct and indirect firing by day or night. Full production systems will be fitted with the General Dynamics Armament Systems Towed Artillery Digitisation (TAD) system. LRIP systems will be retrofitted with TAD.

The M777 is able to deliver up to five rounds a minute.

The TAD digital fire control system provides onboard ballistic computation, navigation, pointing and self-location, providing greater accuracy and faster reaction times. The TAD system also includes a laser ignition system, electric drives for the howitzer's traverse and elevation and a powered projectile rammer.

Type Ultra light howitzer Country users United States, Canada, India Designer Company BAE Systems  Crew 5 to 8 soldiers Accessories Digital fire control system a a a

Gun 155 mm 39 calibre Weight 3,175 kg Rate of fire 5 rounds/minute Firing Range 30 km maximum, 40 km with Excalibur munition  Dimensions Lenght, 9,275 m; Width, 2,770 m; Height, 2,26 m in towing mode Lenght, 10,21 m; Width, 3,720 m; Height, 0,65 m in firing mode mode

Mahindra And Telephonic plan joint venture for radars, surveillance systems

Indian transport vehicles major Mahindra & Mahindra on Thursday announced a joint venture (JV) with US aviation communications equipment major Telephonics Corporation to produce radars, surveillance systems, and communications solutions for the Indian defence ministry and civilian sector.

The JV was announced at a press conference here by Mahindra Defence Systems chief executive Brig. (retd.) Khutub Hai and Telephonics Corporation CEO and president Joseph Battaglia.

Khutub Hai said the US firm will bring in 26 per cent investment for the JV, while his company will bring the rest 74 per cent.

Apart from the radars, surveillance systems and friend-or-foe identification systems, the joint venture will manufacture air traffic management services, and equipment for homeland security and other emerging surveillance requirements.

How the Indian Army Salvaged Quake-Struck Sikkim

It is now over a month since rescue and evacuation efforts began following the September 18 earthquake in north Sikkim. Relief and reconstruction work by the Indian Army, Indian Air Force (IAF), Border Roads Organisation (BRO), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), in tandem with the local administration, continues unabated despite many adversities of weather and inhospitable terrain conditions.

Electromagnetic Bomb To Numb Enemies Command And Control Structure

In the not too distant future, Indian armed forces would be equipped with "e-bomb", courtesy Terminal Ballistic and Research Laboratory (TBRL), one of the top defence research and development laboratories in the country.

Stated to be most lethal weapon after nuclear bombs, the TBRL is expected to finish the R&D work on the project within the 12th plan period.

Located on the outskirts of Chandigarh, the lone ballistic laboratory of Defence Research and Development Organisation ( DRDO), TBRL has developed the technology and is working on a weapon, which would be capable of neutralising the command, control and communication systems of the enemy. Confirming the development, TBRL director Dr Manjit Singh told TOI that such weapon would be capable of causing huge destruction, without affecting humans.

"It would be equally capable of damaging the communication system and other technologies ensuring maximum and sudden setback to the enemy," Singh added.

He said that the technology of 'e-bomb' or 'electromagnetic bomb' would be based on explosive-driven high-energy pulse power technology and can be deployed against enemy's other establishments like civil utility networks and power generation networks, to name a few.

A P S Sodhi, senior scientist of TBRL working on the project, said that to develop electromagnetic bombs, they are using explosive-driven high-energy pulse power technology, which can produce a pulse current of peak value 1.4 mega ampere from chemical energy released by 2.8 kg of high explosives.

The information about the 'e-bomb' was shared by TBRL scientists on Monday on the sidelines of a gathering called to apprise about an international conference which the organization is holding from November 10 to 12 at its field laboratory in Ramgarh near Panchkula. Leading global experts from India, USA, Israel UK, Russia, Germany, Australia, Ukraine, Czech Republic and Poland, among other countries, who will be sharing their expertise and knowledge on the latest technologies now in use in the world as well as the latest trends in research on a host of sensitive subjects.

The conference has been organised by High Energy Materials Society of India (HEMSI) with a view to help in strengthening country's defence, space and internal security system.

Forgotten Volunteers On British Indian Army

Documentary shows the Indians who fought for the British and tries to throw a new light on them. Though I accept that they have been forgotten by both Indian and British Governments but who is to blame other than they themselves.

To the old Sikh soldier in the documentary who calls INA guys traitor for breaking the oath to King of Britain and forsaking their honor, I will ask what about your country-men and country, what about your oath to them. You had a blood oath to them and for few pieces of gold sold it to the British so do not grudge if those brothers look at you with scorn and contempt.

The best interview  I liked was the INA officer who when told that some of his relatives have joined British Army, took a bottle and smashed it on his relation's head and asked him to get lost to London and if he ever came to his house he will cut him up.

Part-1


Part-2


Part-3


Part-4


Part-5

Ghatak Of Indian Army To Be Equipped With New Sniper Rifles

Uploaded with ImageShack.us
Swiss, Russian and Israeli firms are in the fray for supplying over 2,000 sniper rifles to the Indian Army for equipping the 'Ghatak' (strike force) in its more than 300 Infantry battalions.Every infantry unit has Ghataks.They are basically the ad hoc Commando Platoon that the infantry battalions had and the nomenclature was changed by Gen Bipin Joshi to Ghataks.

The Request for Proposal for the procurement was issued earlier this year by the Indian Army to replace and augment the existing inventory of Dragunov and Galil sniper rifles.

"Fresh commercial bids have been submitted by five vendors for the contract," said an Army source.

XM-500

The sniper rifles are being procured for the Ghatak in the Indian Army after the Government decided that they would also be used as counter-terrorist grids while they are deployed in peace locations to tackle 26/11 type attacks.

After the attacks, the elite Para Special Forces battalions were assigned the task of training these regular Infantry battalions to tackle such attacks in an urban environment.

M-24

The Directorate General of Infantry was also asked to initiate procedures for procuring specialized counter terrorism equipment for these units.

Till now, these Ghataks comprising of best soldiers in battalions were used only in Jammu and Kashmir and the North Eastern states for taking on the terrorists there.

SR-25

VKS Vychlop from Russia

OSV-96 large caliber sniper from KBP

No mercy for foreign militants: Lt Gen Syed Atta Hasnain

The commander of the Indian army in Kashmir said on Friday that his force did not ask foreign militants trapped during an operation to surrender, but went straight for the kill.

“We decided to eliminate LeT's (Lashkar-e-Tayaba commander) Abdullah Uni the very moment we received reports that he was hiding in a Sopore house.

He was not asked to surrender,” GOC 15th Corps, Lt Gen Syed Atta Hasnain said at a public meeting in the Trehgam area of the frontier Kupwara district.

“The army never asks any foreign militant to surrender,” he said.

The general claimed that the Lashkar-e-Tayaba had been finished as a fighting force in Kashmir with the killing of 25 of its top commanders.

“It is now calling up fresh blood from Pakistan to shore up its activity,” he said.

Gen Hasnain said that around 500 Kashmiri youth were imprisoned in various jails in Pakistan.

“Kashmiri youth no longer go to Pakistan for militant training, nor do they want to take the path of violence now,” he said.

The general said that the army was engaged in strong efforts to bridge the gulf with the common people in Kashmir and that its public meetings with the masses had shown positive results.

According to the general, the army would be holding a ten-day recruitment rally in the Behama area of Kupwara from September 26.

Indian Army To Induct RUDRA The Weaponized Version Of Advanced Light Helicopter

Army's aerial firepower capabilities will get a boost as it is soon going to induct the attack version of indigenously-built Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) 'Rudra'.

The 'Rudra' is the first weaponised chopper built in the country and will be inducted into the Army Aviation Corps in the current financial year, army officials said here.

Armed with an array of guns, rocket pods, air-to-air and anti-tank guided missiles, the fleet of the weaponised helicopters, the "heavily-loaded" ALH, has been approved for induction as part of modernisation and capability development efforts by the government, they said.

Integration of the weaponised aerial platform into the army will provide the field commanders the ability to apply decisive combat power at critical times anywhere in the battle field, they said.

Rudra is an armed variant of the ALH Dhruva chopper and "necessary changes have been made in the airframe of the chopper to give it agility and speed to make it a suitable support weapon for the ground troops".

The chopper has been named 'Rudra', one of the names of Lord Shiva who is worshipped as the destroyer of enemies, to signify the helicopter's firepower and capabilities. .

The HAL is also in the process of developing a Light Combat Helicopter (LCH) which will be inducted in both the Army and the Indian Air Force.

The 5.5 tonne class twin engine chopper has a number of advanced features such as Automatic Flight Control System, Integrated Dynamic System, Full Authority Digital Electronic Control can cruise at speeds of 250 km per hour.
(Source PTI)

Mahindra Delivers Special Mine Protected Vehicles For Jharkand Police

courtsey  http://motorids.com

The first lot of six mine-protected vehicles jointly developed by BAE Systems and India's auto major, Mahindra Group, has been delivered to the state police of Jharkhand, which are fighting an internal Maoist insurgency.

Defence Land Systems India, a joint venture between Mahindra & Mahindra and BAE Systems Plc,expects to sell more MPV-I next fiscal as it eyes big orders from the Home Ministry for CRPF and other state police forces for mine protected vehicles.

"We are among the four companies identified for Indian Army's future infantry combat vehicle, out of which two will be shortlisted. Already we are preparing ourselves to be ready if we are shortlisted for that," Defence Land Systems India (DLSI) Managing Director and CEO, Khutub Hai told PTI.

Moreover the company is "also looking at design and development of artillery systems" to widen its portfolio.

He said the company is leveraging on technology from BAE Systems and develop products that are cost effective but at par with global standards.

Commenting on the MPV-I, Hai said:"This is the first such vehicle of its kind indigenously manufactured by the private sector industry being delivered to the police forces in the country." While declining to disclose order size from Jharkhand Police, he said the firm expects to sell a total of about 20- 25 MPV-Is this fiscal.

"This will include repeat order from Jharkhand Police, which will be slightly bigger than the first order and also from five to six states which are actively combating Naxalites," Hai said without disclosing further details.

"For the next fiscal we are confident of doing about 100 MPV-Is and we are expecting orders from various state police forces," he said.

Globally such vehicles cost around about half a million dollars but DLSI is offering it "at a much lesser rate", he said.

Mahindra Defence Systems is producing a variety of military vehicles for the Indian Army and the paramilitary forces. The Army's requirement for special military vehicles is estimated to be more than $3 billion.

The Army proposes to purchase more than 10,000 light military vehicles over the next five to seven years valued at more than $2 billion, and the majority of these will be produced by private defense companies in collaboration with overseas firms.

These vehicles will be purchased in phases. The Army requires that the vehicles include four-wheel drive, a high power-to-weight ratio, are capable of traveling 80 kilometers per hour and carrying rocket launchers, and are equipped with GPS navigation.

The company's Prithla plant has a capacity to produce up to 800 vehicles a year, of which up to 120 are MPV-Is. In the last three to four years the company has invested about Rs 60 crore on the plant.

Ordnance factory develops system to airlift Light Field Guns

Indian Army may be soon able to chopper-lift artillery guns to its mountain posts. The Army along with the ordnance factory has developed an indigenous system for lifting the lighter 105mm light field gun (LFG). The equipment has been tested successfully and the ordnance factory which developed it hopes to bag a bulk production order.

The equipment, 'apparatus airlift', was developed at the century old Gun Carriage Factory in Jabalpur. The factory also manufactures the LFGs. These guns are currently the most deployed 'howitzers'of the Army. Developed indigenously in 1980s, the LFG has a range of 17 kms which can be extended up to 20 kms by making a slight modification in the artillery shell. The 155mm howitzer guns have almost double the range.

At present the Army moves the guns to its mountain posts by road on trucks or on mule-back after dismantling the LFGs. The airlift equipment has been tested successfully and it is expected that the Army will soon place orders for this product, said SP Yadav, general manager of GCF.

The equipment can be attached to Army's MI-17 helicopter as well as Navy's Sea King. Although it looks like an ordinary attachment on which the gun is air lifted, the engineering skill lies in ensuring that the gun is lifted along its centre of gravity only. This ensures the stability of both the gun and the chopper. The gun has to be lifted by keeping it in the same position as when it is placed on the ground. The gun should be placed in the same position through out or else the gun may get damaged if it is offloaded in the wrong position. Also, if the gun wobbles while being airlifted it can affect the stability of the chopper which can cause the chopper to crash, said the official.

The 105mm LFG weighs around 2,100kg, and the ultra light guns of 155mm calibre which the Army plans to purchase are almost double the weight. The present 155mm Bofors gun weighs almost 12 tonnes.

The indigenously developed equipment is only capable of helping airlift 105mm guns. Army will be buying the equipment for airlifting 155mm ultra light guns along with the weapon.

The ordnance factory has also developed a mounted version of the 105mm gun. The gun can be placed on a truck and fired. This increases its mobility and enables it to be fired even while shifting positions. The gun was test-fired recently and the ordnance factory hopes that the Army may place an order for its bulk production, said Yadav.

Recently, the factory had developed an indigenous barrel for Russian T-90 tanks. A barrel has to be changed after around 200 to 250 shells are fired. Earlier, the Army had to completely depend on Russia for the supply of the barrels but now it won't be needed as the factory has finally developed the T-90 barrels, he added.

(source TOI)

New Special Forces Battalion For Indian Army

Strengthening its capabilities to carry out special operations, the Indian Army is raising a new special forces battalion which will be deployed in the north-eastern sector.

A new battalion of the Parachute Regiment -- 11 Para (SF) -- is being raised and will be first deployed in the north-eastern sector, Army sources said here.

This will be eighth special forces battalion of the Parachute Regiment and will be deployed in counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism operations in that region, they said.

The Parachute Regiment has 10 battalions under it and seven of them have been trained as special forces, which are supposed to carry out counter-terrorist operations during peacetime and sabotage enemy installations beyond enemy lines during wars.

The special forces battalions include the 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 10 and 21 para units, which are deployed in different sectors of the country and have also been given responsibility to handle any 26/11 type attacks if that occurs near their area of deployment.

The Army wants to increase the number of special forces troops to more than 10 battalions with around 700 men in each.

These battalions have been provided with modern equipment such as Tavor 21 assault rifles.

(Source PTI)

DRDO Builds Integrated Thermally Regulated Shelters For Troops In High Altitudes

For Indian Army personnel deployed in high altitude areas, DRDO has built hi-tech shelters that would provide protection to the soldiers against extreme climatic conditions of the Himalayan region.

"The Integrated Thermally Regulated Shelters were dedicated by DRDO chief V K Saraswat to the 14 Corps at a function in Leh yesterday," DRDO officials said here.

These shelters were received by the Corps Commander Lt Gen Ravi Dastane in the presence of W Selvamurthy, a distinguished scientist and senior Army officers.

"These shelters designed and developed by DRDO, are equipped with integrated temperature regulators, biodigestors and air monitoring systems and have been designed to withstand seismic activities upto a level of zone 5, wind velocities upto 55 metre per second and sub-zero temperature upto minus 35 degree Celsius," they said.

Speaking on the occasion, Saraswat stressed on large scale utilisation of solar and other non-conventional energy resources to meet the energy requirements at high altitudes.

(Source PTI)

Ministry Of Defense Reviews Procurement Policies

The defence ministry has invited suggestions from the Armed Forces and various departments and agencies that fall under it for amending the defence procurement policy (DPP) that governs defence purchases.
Beginning this week, representatives of the Armed Forces are likely to meet ministry officials to put forth their suggestions, said a person familiar with the development, requesting anonymity.

While the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the navy have already submitted their proposals, the army is expected to do so in the next few days, this person said.

IAF has suggested that stipulated indigenous content in case of the so-called “buy (Indian)“ mode of procurement should be raised to 50% from 30% currently. Projects that come under the so-called “make“ category should have a minimum 60% indigenous content on cost basis, at the production stage.

Mint has reviewed a copy of the proposals suggested by IAF.

“The goal of achieving self-reliance in defence equipment needs to be kept in mind,“ said the note, explaining the rationale behind the recommendation.

If a purchase is classified “buy (Indian)“, only Indian vendors are allowed to bid for the tender, while a “buy (global)“ allows both foreign and Indian vendors to compete. Acquisitions covered under the “make“ category are meant to include high technology complex systems to be designed, developed and produced ingeniously. At present, this category does not have any minimum stipulation for indigenous content.

IAF wants the defence ministry to increase the validity of the commercial offer sought in request for proposal (RFP) before bids are opened. The currently stipulated period is 18 months.

“There are numerous cases, where requirement of extension of validity for commercial proposal or submission of a fresh While the air force and the navy have already submitted their proposals, the army is expected to do so in the next few days commercial proposal by a certain period is felt necessary, as the procurement process does not reach the stage when the commercial proposal could be opened by CNC (contract negotiation committee),“ says the note.
“There is no provision in DPP to seek extension of validity or fresh commercial proposal in such a situation.“

IAF also recommends that vendors submit price quotes valid for the period from the 19th to the 30th month at the time of replying to RFP itself.

IAF has proposed changes in the way field evaluation trials are carried out. Suggestions include making it compulsory for vendors to provide a complete list of “optional equipment“ while responding to RFP. The ministry should ensure vendors are not allowed to submit any additional data pertaining to the trials after the trials are over, it says. It has also made suggestions to speed up the process.

To remove ambiguities about costs and supply of spare parts, IAF has suggested that vendors be required to submit an illustrated spare parts catalogue in the standard contract document itself. This catalogue, IAF says, should have the base price and pricing mechanism for subsequent purchase of spares in the life cycle of the equipment.

“Not all the changes that the forces suggest are incorporated,“ said retired colonel and defence analyst Rajiv Chib of PricewaterhouseCoopers India. “But their suggestions do have a significant bearing, as the forces use the equipment that the government procures.“

© Copyright Mint

No Kargil-like situation in Arunachal: Antony

Defence Minister A K Antony Tuesday discounted the possibility of Kargil-type operations in Arunachal Pradesh as apprehended by a minister of the state, saying the situation on the border was under constant monitoring and capabilities were being upgraded.

"Just as the other side (China) is increasing their capabilities in our part, our Army and Air Force are steadily increasing their capabilities. So we are confident of protecting our interest in any territory. At the moment the border is peaceful," he told reporters.

"We are closely monitoring the border situation. Our Armed Forces, especially Army, are constantly upgrading their capabilities in the eastern sector," he added.

Arunachal Pradesh's Minister for Finance and Planning Kalikho Pul, during his meeting with Planning Commission Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, had reportedly cautioned the government against a Kargil-like situation in the state.

During his meeting with Ahluwalia on June 13, Pul reportedly also discussed the infrastructure development projects carried out by the Chinese in areas bordering Arunachal Pradesh.

On deployment of Army battalions in Chattisgarh, Antony said, "Army is training in many states in most difficult terrain because they want to have a feel of all the terrains like deserts, mountains and plains. They are now establishing a new training unit there."

He further said, "The land is alloted only for training. We will not cut a single tree, we will not harass anybody there. We are not against anybody, it is not an enemy territory."

Source PTI

Indian Army Planning On Increasing Strength By 16,000 Officers

With increasing commitments on both its eastern and western fronts, the Indian Army has proposed to increase its sanctioned strength by another over 16,000 officers.

During a recent meeting attended by high-level Defence Ministry and Army officials, a proposal to increase the number of officers by another 35 per cent was discussed, Army sources said here.

The proposal comes at a time when the Army is facing a shortage of 12,349 officers against its sanctioned strength of around 46,500 officers and the other two sister Services are also facing similar shortfalls.

On the need for expansion, they said the Army has expanded its strength by two divisions in the Northeast along the China border and is also involved in counter insurgency operations in the North Eastern states and Jammu and Kashmir and increased strength was required to cater for future plans also.