Washington, November 17

India has sought from the US 24 multi-role MH-60 ‘Romeo’ anti-submarine helicopters for its Navy at an estimated cost of $2 bn, defence sources here said on Friday.

India has been in need of these formidable anti-submarine hunter helicopters for more than a decade now.

The deal is expected to be finalised in a few months, informed sources said, days after US Vice President Mike Pence held a successful meeting with PM Narendra Modi in Singapore on the sidelines of a regional summit. India has sent a letter of request to the US for an “urgent requirement” of 24 multi-role helicopters MH 60 Romeo Seahawk, sources said.

In recent months, there has been acceleration in defence ties between the two countries, with the Trump administration opening up America’s high-tech military hardware for India’s defence needs.

Lockheed Martin’s MH-60R Seahawk helicopter is considered the world’s most advanced maritime helicopter. It is the most capable naval helicopter available today designed to operate from frigates, destroyers, cruisers and aircraft carriers and would add to lethal capabilities of the Indian Navy which, experts say, is the need of the hour given the aggressive behavior of China in the Indian Ocean region.  — PTI

Ajay Banerjee
Tribune News Service
New Delhi, October 31

In what may change the working conditions for Lt Colonel-level officers of the Indian Army, fresh assessment parameters are being drawn up for those who have been overlooked at the rank.

The suggested changes, if implemented, can impact future postings; decide whether an officer can be given a “time-scale” promotion as Colonel or not; decide if the officer can be sent on deputation to other places or even get study leave.

There are a few thousand officers at the Lt Colonel level who have been superseded or overlooked. These “non-empanelled” officers can’t be “selected” for higher ranks like Colonel and thence upwards like Brigadier, Maj General or Lt General.

An officer gets selected as Colonel around the age of 35-36 at the rank of Lt Colonel. Those who don’t make the cut — only 25 per cent get selected — get the only available opportunity i.e. “time-scale” elevation to rank of Colonel after having served for a specified period.

This happens by the time an officer is around 47-48 years of age. The rank of Colonel is the highest a “non-empanelled” officer gets.

An officer who joins the Army gets promoted automatically to the rank of Lt Colonel in 13 years of service. The selections start from thereon. There are about 39,000 officers in the Army and only 4,000 or so are Colonels.

The Military Secretary branch on October 17 sent out a letter seeking comments of all Army Commands on whether such a new assessment form be made part of annual confidential reports (ACRs) or not.

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, October 27

To mark the 86th anniversary of the Indian Air Force, various activities such as aero-adventure involving powered hang glider flying, para-sailing by an air warrior drill team and Air Force band were organised at the Air Force Station in Bhisiana on Saturday.

The objective of the event was to promote spirit of adventure and motivate people to aspire for an enthralling life and career in the Indian Air Force.

Air Commodore Rajiva Ranjan inaugurated the event. The impressive and well-coordinated display mesmerised the spectators enthralling one and all with precision and skill.

Ranjan appreciated the contribution of air warriors who participated in the event for enriching local citizenry, students/children and dignitaries from the Indian Army.

Tribune News Service

Karnal, October 26

Girl students will soon be able to get admission in Sainik Schools across the country. The decision was taken by the principals of all 28 Sainik Schools on the concluding day of the 48th All-India Sainik Schools’ Principals Conference at Sainik School, Kunjpura, in the district on Friday.

The admission would be given only after the completion of necessary infrastructure. Besides, they also decided the inclusion of cadets joining the Naval Academy as criteria for awarding Raksha Mantri Trophy, while earlier the NDA entry cadets were considered for the trophy.

The principals also gave approval to decrease the tuition fee up to Rs 50,000 per year from the existing Rs 1 lakh, appointment of counsellor for cadets, revision of upper age limit for PGT from 35 to 40 and implementation of the General Financial Rules, 2017, for giving more financial powers to the principals.

Group Captain P Ravi Kumar, inspecting officer, Sainik Schools’ Society, chaired the conference and exhorted the principals to work on the decisions taken in the meeting.

The conference was inaugurated by Union Minister of State for Defence Dr Subhash Bhamre on Thursday

Says existing version has aged equipment, upgrade too costly

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, October 21

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has told the Ministry of Defence (MoD) that getting more of the existing version of Sukhoi-30MKI fighter jets is not an option to bolster numbers to the dwindling jet fleet.

The Sukhoi-30MKI, in its present version, is not an option for the future — next 20 years or so — as its avionics, protection suite, engine and radar is now a generation previous to what is currently available, the IAF has informed the MoD, sources told The Tribune.

The Russian origin twin-engined, Sukhoi-30MKI — a frontline jet of the IAF — is produced by public sector undertaking Hindustan Aeronautics Limited under licence from Russia. At present, the IAF has 247 Sukhoi jets in its fleet and another 25 are expected to be added over the next 24 months, taking the total to 272.

The IAF is operating with just 31 squadrons (16-18 planes in each) as against the requirement of 42. Among these, some 130 odd planes are MiG 21s and MiG 27s, which should have been phased out a decade earlier, but are still flying due to their non-replacement with the LCA Tejas.

Even as upgrade of the existing fleet would be expensive at $10 billion (around Rs 75,000 crore) and could take almost a decade, the sources said the plane is good for now but cannot be for the future is its existing version.

The Russians have offered to upgrade it to a ‘super Sukhoi’, which if implemented, will give the aircraft almost fifth generation (latest) capabilities. It talks about its effectiveness in multi-role, AESA radar, more powerful electronic warfare suite like jamming systems, along with high performance engines, the AL-41F turbofan (same as the latest Sukhoi 35).

The Sukhoi-30MKI, which in the past two decades has seen some changes, has a mix of electronic systems from a number of countries. The radar and long-range sensor is Russian. The navigation and heads-up display systems are from Thales of France. The electronic warfare systems and targeting pods are Israeli and the computers and ancillary avionics systems are Indian. The upgrade will be difficult to implement and the US can impose sanctions under the CAATSA (Countering America’s Adversaries Through Sanctions Act) for dealing with Russians.

Also, the existing upgrades of the Mirage 2000 jets and the Jaguar are running years behind schedule. The Sukhoi-30MKI belongs to heavier class of aircraft which is optimised for ‘air superiority’ roles to dominate the skies but lacks the ‘multi-role’ requirements which IAF wants and has floated a tender to get 114 such jets.

247Sukhois in fleet

• At present, the IAF has 247 Sukhoi jets in its fleet and another 25 are expected to be added over the next 24 months
• The avionics, protection suite, engine and radar of Sukhoi-30MKI is now a generation previous to what is currently available
• The Indian Air Force is operating with just 31 squadrons (16-18 planes in each) as against therequirement of 42

On November 19, a Russian made AN-32 of the Indian Air Force’s transport fleet will take to the skies from a base in the Western Sector using a mix of Aviation Turbine Fuel and Bio-Fuel. This would be the first ever IAF aircraft to use the fuel mix.

After transporters, the helicopter fleet will fly using Bio-Aviation combination. “It will be a gradual move, and ultimately fighters like the Su-30MKi, and Mig-29 will also be flying using Bio-Aviation Fuel, “ said a senior IAF officer who didn’t want to named.

On an average, IAF flies over 100 transporter and over 500 helicopter sorties in a day. “Using Bio-jet blended fuel is a commitment towards lowering the oil import bill and lower the carbon footprint and strengthen the farm-based economy,” Wing Commander Anupam Banerjee, the IAF spokesperson said.

Two years ago, the IAF sent Wing Commander Asheesh Srivastava to study the use of Bio Aviation Fuel at the Centre for Air Power Studies (CAPS). Subsequently, the Indian Institute Petroleum and the Centre for Military Airworthiness & Certification and the Directorate General of Aeronautical Quality Assurance were roped in.

“If we do this well we may never need to import crude oil for our armed forces. This bio-jet product looks, smells and performs exactly like Aviation Turbine Fuel. If we are able to work this out as we anticipate, our aircraft, vehicles and warship can all bank on domestic reserves of indigenously developed and produced renewable fuel,” Dr Anjan Ray Director of the CSIR -Indian Institute of Petroleum said.

Every year, the IAF pays about Rs 40,000 crores for Aviation Turbine Fuel. With Bio-Aviation Fuel, the IAF expects its fuel bill to drop by about 10 per cent. “Initially, the plan is to use a 90-10 mix (90 litres of AFT mixed with 10 litres of Bio-fuel), gradually, as the supply and production of Bio-Fuel increases the plan is to move to a 75 -25 mixture,” a senior official involved with the process who didn’t want to be named said.

To ensure that production of Bio-Fuel doesn’t affect the land available for food-grains, Bio-Fuel will be produced only from non-edible oils that grow well in arid lands. Gujarat, for instance, offered 10,000 acres arid land to produce non-edible oilseeds. Other states that are keen to produce non-edible oil seeds and put up plants to produce Bio- Fuel include Punjab, Haryana, Chattisgarh, Uttrakhand and Telagana.

If the test flight that starts from November mid-week goes as planned, IAF will show-case its capability during the Republic Day fly past on January 26, 2019, a senior IAF official said.

Vijay Mohan
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, October 14

About 24 years after an incident of alleged extra-judicial killing took place in Manipur, a Major General and two Colonels are among seven Army personnel who have been awarded life imprisonment by a general court martial (GCM) for their alleged acts of omission and commission, it is learnt.

In its verdict pronounced on Saturday, the GCM has also ordered that the three officers be cashiered (dishonourable discharge with loss of service benefits) from service, while the other ranks are to be dismissed, sources said.

The GCM’s findings and sentence are subject to confirmation by higher authorities, in this case Chief of the Army Staff. The accused in the case, Maj Gen AK Lal, Col Thomas Mathew and Col RS Sibiren, JCOs Jagdeo Singh and Dalip Singh and NCOs Albindar Singh and Shivendar Singh had maintained that they were not guilty of the charges levelled against them.  They have a right to petition the convening authority against the GCM’s sentence and thereafter, depending upon the convening authority’s directions, approach the Armed Forces Tribunal for bail and associated reliefs.

A joint trial had been convened for the accused on the orders of the General Officer Commanding, 3 Corps, Dimapur, which began at Dinjan in Assam in late July.

Five charges under provisions of the Indian Penal Code, read with Section 69 of the Army Act, for murder and criminal conspiracy have been levelled against them, sources said  They have been attached to 2 Mountain Division at Dinjan for disciplinary proceedings.

The Maj Gen was, at that time, the commanding officer of a Punjab battalion deployed in anti-insurgency operations in Manipur and one of the Colonels was a company commander as a Captain.

The Maj Gen, incidentally, was dismissed from service by a GCM in 2008 for sexual misconduct with a woman officer, sources revealed. He has appealed against the order in the Armed Forces Tribunal. While the two Colonels are still serving, the other jawans have retired.

Hearings are also underway in the apex court over allegations of a large number of fake encounters by the Army and police in Manipur over the past few years.

4 civilians died in 1994

• In 1994, four civilians were picked up for interrogation and three days later, police were informed they had been killed in an encounter after they attacked Armymen
• Civilian organisations took up the issue and matter finally reached SC
• Apex court directed CBI to probe, following which a fresh FIR was registered by its Kolkata office

Gopeshwar, October 10

The portals of Hemkunt Sahib, one of the most revered Sikh shrines in the Garhwal Himalayas, were closed for winters on Saturday.

Over 2,000 pilgrims braved the cold weather to take part in the prayers that preceded the closure of the gates of the shrine, located at a height of 16,000 feet.      The gates were closed at 1:30 pm after the traditional prayers concluded.  Utsav Yatra, a 21-km religious foot procession, will go through Ghangariya to reach Govindghat.

Sardar Seva Singh, manager of the Gurdwara Trust, said over two lakh devotees visited the shrine this season. The gates of Hemkunt Sahib are closed every year in October due to heavy snowfall only to be reopened in May-June next year. — P

It’s becoming increasingly difficult to distinguish between the services and the diplomats these days.

Army chief General Bipin Rawat’s lecture at the General KV Krishna Rao memorial lecture was delivered with his usual aplomb and style. The chief is a great speaker, but parts of the lecture seemed to be rather inappropriate for someone of his stature. At one point, he was quoted as saying that “Russians are very keen on associating with the Indian Army because we are very capable. We are capable of standing for what is right for us based on our strategic thought process”. That in itself is an inexplicable statement.

The Indian Army’s thought process may be brilliant, but it still has to go through the political strategy decided by the powers that be. The decisions to buy or not buy further weapons systems from Russia — for instance, the Kamov helicopters or the space-based weaponry to which he referred also lies with the government of the day. Pointing out that these further buys are being favoured by the army is hardly likely to help a government that has negotiated the S-400 deal and is maneuvering diplomatically to avoid sanctions threatened under Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

The reverse can be said about the air force chief Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa’s able defence of the Rafale deal, wherein he brought out the threat and the rather desperate existing capability of the force. The chief’s statement was dignified, factual and did not go a step beyond what is expected of him as a service head. What is unfortunate is that he had to go on record at all. The PowerPoint slideshow by Air Marshal SBP Sinha of Central Command should have been more than enough. He was an intrinsic part of the team that negotiated the deal — including the price — and his word could hardly be questioned.

Further, Dhanoa is not one to make off-the-cuff statements. Therefore, his defence of not just the Rafale, but the S-400 while not required, unfortunately coupled the two arms deals. Social media is already wondering why the chief came into the picture at all. Meanwhile, Opposition parties will be waiting to sniff out a wedge in the air defence deal too, with a little help from their friends.

Service chiefs have traditionally stayed well away from the media glare, barring commemorative occasions like Army Day etc. There’s a reason for that. It shields them from the arrant nonsense spouted by political parties, particularly when they’re in Opposition. The fact that Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s statements have varied wildly even on the alleged price escalation of the Rafale is just one example. Other Opposition parties in their time have also done the same, though more effectively and with more credibility.

The scandal over the Bofors artillery guns — which incidentally broke the back of the Pakistanis at Kargil — led to deal-after-deal being scuppered by diffident bureaucrats and politicians alike. For instance, AK Anthony — who was once called the  “worst defence minister ever” — was famed for his ability to sidestep actually signing on to anything, unless it was made into a “Teflon deal”. As a result, the already lackadaisical bureaucracy in the Ministry of Defence took even longer to pass pending requests for equipment. It took 30 years for instance, for the army to get its deal for new M-777 howitzers.

The Indian Air Force brought out its Request for Proposal (RFP) for the Medium Multirole fighters in 2007 and has since been pleading its case for new fighters for decades, arguing that its fighter strength is well below (31) its very basic requirement of 42. It’s hardly surprising that the services are getting desperate. The threat is increasing while politicians squabble. This has to stop. But it has to be stopped by the politicians themselves. Service chiefs should not be seen as propagating or defending acquisitions from any country. They are the last repositories of trust of the public. We simply can’t afford to lose that. There’s far more at stake than a few aircraft.