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I will send my grandson to join Indian Army: father of Pathankot martyr

The bodies of two Himachal Pradesh martyrs Rana, 50, and Jagdish Chand, 58, of village Basa Gola in Siyunta area of Chamba district were consigned to flames with full state honours today –

Holding back his tears, Havaldar Sanjeevan Rana’s father Rattan Singh, himself an ex-servicemen, said his son’s supreme sacrifice for the nation while fighting terrorists will not go to waste.

“Let Indian government muster the courage and give a befitting reply to the terrorists’ country (Pakistan). Jab tak Pakistan ko eent ka wajib pathar se nahin diya jayega, hamare jawan shaheed hote rahenge ( Till Pakistan is not given a befitting reply, Indian jawans will keep attaining martyrdom like this,” he said.

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Rana was cremated in his village Sehwan, near Shahpur in Kangra district.The bodies of two Himachal Pradesh martyrs Rana, 50, and Jagdish Chand, 58, of village Basa Gola in Siyunta area of Chamba district were consigned to flames with full state honours today after the Army and Airforce brought the bodies wrapped in tricolour to their native place. Both were retired army personnel and were serving as Defence Security Core at the Pathankot airforce base station. Jagdish Chand, who was transferred to Pathankot from Leh only few days ago, had killed one terrorist by snatching his weapon before other militants gunned him down. Transport minister G S Bali and Col (Rtd) Dhani Ram Shandil were flown from Shimla in a government helicopter to attend the cremation of the Jawans. People numbering in hundreds bade a tearful adieu to the gallant jawans as Shubam, son of Sanjeevan Rana, performed the last rites. A pall of gloom descended on the area and slogans of ‘Bharat Mata Ki jai’ rent the air. “I have also fought three wars against Pakistan. But my son has outdid me by making a supreme sacrifice. It’s a rare act of heroism and his sacrifice will be remembered. I also feel equally proud for other martyrs who gave their blood to Bharat Mata to protect its dignity and honour. I will send my grandson to the Indian army,” Rattan Singh said. Equally gloomy scenes were witnessed at Basa Gola village where body of Jagdish Chand was consigned to flames with full state and military honour. Forest minister Thakur Singh Bharmouri, Deputy Commissioner Chamba M Sudha Devi and Local SP were among the hundreds who paid tribute to the martyr. “We are a family of soldiers. Of four brothers, three are serving/and had served the Indian army. Our father was also ex-armymen. It’s a loss to the family but I think with his (Jagdish) sacrifice, nation has gained a pride. He (Jagdish) killed a terrorist before his martyrdom, is not a small thing,” says Budhi Singh, his brother and a retired armymen. Chief Minister Virbhadra Singh expressed grief over the death of two soldiers from Himachal Pradesh and announced a financial assistance of Rs 20 lakh to the families. “Hav Sanjeevan Rana and Hav Jagdish Chand sacrificed their lives for maintaining the unity, integrity and security of the nation. Brave soldiers of Himachal Pradesh had always made supreme sacrifices for sake of the country,” the chief minister said. State Governor Acharya Devvrat has also expressed grief over the tragedy. During Kargil war, Himachal Pradesh had lost 52 soldiers, 15 of them were from Kangra. Capt Vikram Batra and Sepoy Sanjay Kumar were conferred Paramvir Chakras for their bravery and valour during the war. – See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/i-will-send-my-grandson-to-join-indian-army-father-of-pathankot-martyr/#sthash.btBHegEf.dpuf

 

US navy to take charge of largest destroyer – the $4bn USS Zumwalt

Ship, designed to be 50 times more difficult to detect on radar, is powered by electricity and has guns which can hit targets 100 miles away

The US navy is ready to take ownership of the Zumwalt, its largest and most technologically sophisticated destroyer.

The first Zumwalt-class destroyer heads down the Kennebec River after leaving Bath Iron Works in Bath, Maine.

Sailors’ uniforms and personal effects, supplies and spare parts are being moved aboard the 610-foot (186m) warship in anticipation of crew members taking on their new charge, said Capt James Kirk, the destroyer’s skipper.

The Zumwalt is the first new class of warship built at Bath Iron Works since the Arleigh Burke slid into the Kennebec river in 1989. The shipyard is expected to turn the destroyer over to the navy this week.

“We’ve overcome lots of obstacles to get to this point,” said electrician John Upham, of Litchfield. “I think everybody in the shipyard is proud of the work we’ve done.”

 

 

The ship features an angular shape that makes it 50 times more difficult to detect on radar; it’s powered by electricity produced by turbines similar to those in a Boeing 777; new guns are designed to pummel targets from nearly 100 miles away (160kms). Advanced automation will allow the big ship to operate with a much smaller crew than on current generation of destroyers.

The final cost of the Zumwalt is expected to be at least $4.4bn.

The original concept for the land-attack destroyer was floated more than 15 years ago then underwent several permutations. The final design called for a destroyer with a stealthy shape and advanced gun system that can fire rocket-propelled projectiles with pinpoint accuracy.

But the growing cost forced the navy to reduce what was originally envisioned as a 32-ship program to just three ships. The loss of economies of scale drove up the cost of the individual ships.

The USS Zumwalt passes Fort Popham at the mouth of the Kennebec River in Phippsburg, Maine.

The slow-going and rising costs were little surprise after the General Accounting Office warned that the navy was trying to incorporate too many new technologies into the ship.“Zumwalt was a challenge to assemble because of all the new technologies, but sea trials show it is a world-class warship with unique capabilities,” said Loren Thompson, senior defence analyst with the Virginia-based Lexington Institute.

Some of the ship’s 143 crew members have been in Bath for more than two years to prepare for the day they take control of it. The sailors will continue training to prepare the ship to be formally commissioned into service as USS Zumwalt at a ceremony in October in Baltimore, Kirk said. From there, the ship will travel to its homeport in San Diego for further tests and trials.

Shipbuilders in Bath are busy on the second ship in the class, the Michael Monsoor, which will be christened next month. Work also is under way on the third and final ship, the Lyndon B Johnson.

Jay Wadleigh, president of the largest union at the shipyard, said Bath Iron Works was selected for the job because the navy knew it would be done right.

“I think the way the Zumwalt performed on the three different sea trials was better than anybody expected – us, the navy and the company,” he said.

After gunfight, an extensive clean-up op Blasts heard as 20-30 rocket shells, grenades detonated in controlled environmen

After gunfight, an extensive clean-up op
The damaged JKEDI building after the gunfight ended at Sempora in Pulwama district of south Kashmir on Tuesday. Tribune Photo: Amin War

Azhar Qadri

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, February 23

Security forces began a lengthy clearance operation today to sanitise the multi-storey building at Sempora, which had been taken over by militants and turned into a bunker.The bomb disposal squads spent the entire day painstakingly searching for unexploded bombs and disposing those off.A police official said blasts were heard throughout the day and between 20 and 30 explosives — unexploded rocket shells and grenades — were detonated in a controlled environment.Sanitisation of the five-storey building, housing headquarters of the Jammu and Kashmir Entrepreneurship Development Institute (JKEDI), was expected to be completed by the evening, he said.Explosives were strewn on the JKEDI campus during the past three days with security forces battling three militants who had taken over one of the three multi-storey buildings.The building where militants had taken shelter, housing offices of the JKEDI, suffered extensive damage during the past three days, drawing emotional laments from the institute’s employees.“It was really painful to see a state-of-the-art structure up in flames. It is not an office but a house to us, where we have spent our days like family,” said Azmat Hussain, a JKEDI employee.The gunbattle on the campus began on Saturday afternoon. Five security force personnel and one civilian were killed during the first two days in the paramilitary convoy ambush and subsequent gunbattle.Three militants holed up in the building were killed on Monday when security forces fired a barrage of rockets at the building.The three militants were later buried by police personnel in the Sheeri area of Baramulla district in north Kashmir, nearly 100 km from the gunbattle site.The police initially took the bodies to the Buniyar locality in Baramulla, but residents objected and told the police that many militants had already been buried there, said a police official.The police had recently stopped handing over bodies of foreign militants to civilians to avoid large processions during their funerals.Meanwhile, several localities in south Kashmir observed a shutdown over the death of the militants. The shutdown was observed in parts of Pulwama, Anantnag and Kulgam districts in south Kashmir.In Pampore, close to the site of the gunbattle, the police foiled an attempt by local residents to hold a funeral in absentia for the militant trio.This led to clashes between the two sides. However, funerals in absentia for the militants were organised in Tral, Awantipora and Samboora towns of south Kashmir.

CBI begins graft probe against two army officers

NEW DELHI: CBI on Friday started an inquiry in connection with a Defence Ministry complaint seeking a probe into the alleged disproportionate assets amassed by two serving Major Generals of the army.

The agency received the reference from the Ministry and immediately began a “discreet” inquiry to ascertain whether the details given in the complaint should be taken up as preliminary enquiry or a regular case, sources said.

Sources said agency will look into the allegations and documents to determine future course of action. The Ministry had ordered a probe after receiving complaints against Maj Gen Ashok Kumar and Maj Gen S S Lamba, both AVSM awardees. Promotion of these officers to 3-starred rank of Lt Gen was stopped in September 2015.

CBI probe ordered into allegations against two Major Generals

The Defence Ministry has forwarded to CBI complaints received against Maj Gen Ashok Kumar and Maj Gen S S Lamba and has sought a reply,” defence sources said on Thursday.

The Ministry had in September red-flagged the promotion of certain officers following allegations of impropriety. Express photo by Ravi Kanojia

Taking note of allegations of wrongdoing, the Ministry of Defence has ordered a CBI probe into disproportionate assets of two serving Major Generals of the Indian Army.

The name of one of the officers had surfaced last September when it was alleged that bribes were being paid for promotions. Although the Army had then denied the allegations, sources said Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar took personal interest in the matter and a civilian staffer of the Ministry was shunted out about two months ago, suggesting that a probe had been underway within the Ministry.

Watch CBI To Probe Complaints Against Two Major Generals: Details
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Major General Ashok Kumar of Army Supply Corps and Major General S S Lamba of Army Ordnance Corps have been accused of holding assets disproportionate to their known sources of income, official sources said.

“The Ministry of Defence has forwarded the matter to the CBI. The matter was under the scanner since September when allegations of wrongdoing first surfaced. The CBI action is in line with zero-tolerance in the Ministry when it comes to corruption,” a Ministry official said.

The Army refused to comment on the CBI probe. Officials said the matter is with the Ministry of Defence and an internal inquiry will follow based on the directions of the Defence Minister.

Sources said Major General Ashok Kumar is slated to retire on February 29 and is serving in the Bengal Area. Major General Lamba, who is due to retire on January 31, is posted in the Delhi Area. Both officers were conferred the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) on Republic Day 2015.

The current matter pertains to a Special Selection Board (SSB) for promotion to the rank Lt General. In September, the Ministry started probing allegations of bribery and a nexus in promotion cases. Sources indicated that the results of the board were not declassified in light of an internal inquiry into allegations of wrongdoing.

In September, Minister of State for External Affairs Gen V K Singh, a former Army chief, had sought action against a senior Army officer in the matter. \”Shame is too small to describe this. RM (Raksha Mantri) must come down hard to cleanse the system,” Singh posted on Twitter.

– See more at: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-news-india/defence-ministry-asks-cbi-to-probe-complaints-against-two-major-generals/#sthash.GXe992bA.dpuf

French contingent rehearses for India’s Republic Day Parade

In a first, French soldiers will march down the Rajpath on Republic Day along with Indian troops in the presence of President Francois Hollande who is the chief guest for this year’s celebrations.

This is a the first time when a foreign army would be marching down the Rajpath along with Indian troops as part of the Republic Day celebrations.

Some soldiers have flown down from France to form a proper marching contingent.

The French soldiers are taking part in counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency joint exercise called ‘Shakti 2016’.

The 35th Infantry Regiment’s origin dates back to its raising in 1604 at Lorraine, France. The regiment has as many as 12 battle honours to its credit. The battalion has varied combat experiences, having served in Algeria, Africa, Iraq and Afghanistan, amongst other places.