Current Events :
Over 93 years after it was established, the Indian Military Academy (IMA), Dehradun, will witness a historic moment when the first batch of women cadets for permanent commission take the ‘Antim Pag’ (final step) from the academy’s hallowed parade ground on culmination of the passing out parade of the Spring Term – 2026, scheduled for June 13.
Eight women cadets of the pioneering batch will be pipped as Lieutenants alongside their male counterparts after having completed a four-year grueling training regimen, including the first three years at the National Defence Academy (NDA) Kharakvasla.
The first batch of 17 women cadets, including 10 for the Army, six for the Air Force and three for the Navy had passed out from the NDA in June 2025 and proceeded to their respective service academies for pre-commission training.
NDA alumni have a one-year training programme at the IMA, whereas the training period for direct entry cadets after graduation is 18 months. While permanent commission has been extended to women officers across all arms they are a part of following directives of the Supreme Court, they are still not eligible to join the IMA directly and have to become officers either through the NDA or the Officers Training Academy (OTA) in Chennai.
Since its inception in October 1932, IMA has trained close to 68,000 officers, including about 3,000 from more than 30 friendly foreign countries. Women officers from foreign countries are trained at OTA.
In 2021, the Supreme Court had directed the Central Government to admit women in the NDA following a suit filed by several aspirants for a permanent career in the Armed Forces. Subsequently, the first batch was admitted in 2022. By early 2026, a total of 158 women cadets have joined the NDA, according to government figures.
The Armed Forces began inducting women officers in streams other than medical in 1992, initially only under the short service commission. After some women officers took recourse to legal action, the Supreme Court directed in 2020 that women officers also be granted permanent commission. In 2022, entry of women soldiers into the rank and file was also opened in some branches under the Agnipath Scheme.
As the maiden regular batch of women cadets at the IMA prepares to take its first out of the academy after wearing the two stars of a Lieutenant of their shoulders, the achievement of becoming the first woman to pass out from the IMA as an officer goes to Sai Jadhav, who became a Lieutenant in the Territorial Army (TA) in December 2025.
After completing her six-month training at IMA alongside 15 male officers, Sai, who is an MBA, was assigned to the TA’s 130th Ecological Battalion of the Kumaon Regiment. The TA is a trained volunteer force of gainfully employed civilians who can be called to supplement the regular Army and serve in an emergency.
The entry of women into the Indian Armed Forces dates back to 1888, with the formation of the Military Nursing Service, though it was then staffed with British personnel. The first Indian nurses were enrolled in 1914.
In 1958, for the first time, women doctors were granted regular commissions in the Army Medical Corps on the same terms as men. Following limited roles in support and logistics branches during the formative years after induction in 1992, women officers now form part of almost all combat arms and services except the Infantry and the Armoured Corps. In 2014, the Army increased the annual vacancies for women officers from 80 to 144.
Major Arshdeep Singh Gill, a brave officer of the Army and a resident of Sector 79, Mohali, has been awarded the Kirti Chakra, the country’s second-highest peacetime gallantry award, for his exceptional courage and devotion to duty. The honour was conferred by President Droupadi Murmu during the Defence Investiture Ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
Major Gill, who serves with The Armoured Corps and 1 Assam Rifles, displayed extraordinary bravery, leadership and determination during a challenging counter-insurgency operation in Manipur. During the nearly 84-hour-long operation, he led his team from the front and successfully carried out action against militants, ensuring the successful completion of the mission.
According to Army sources, Major Gill demonstrated remarkable courage and professionalism despite adverse and highly dangerous conditions. In recognition of his gallant actions and outstanding service, he was selected for the prestigious Kirti Chakra award.
The achievement has brought immense pride to Punjab and the nation. Family members, friends and well-wishers have expressed happiness and admiration over the honour bestowed upon him. Officials associated with the armed forces and security agencies have described his accomplishment as an inspiring example for the youth of the country.
Major Gill’s recognition is being seen as a testament to selfless service, courage and unwavering commitment to the nation, reflecting the highest traditions of the Indian armed forces.
Army authorities who seized a Havildar’s mobile phone while probing possible espionage allegations instead found videos and images of women engaged in private acts recorded in a washroom at Command Hospital (Western Command), Chandimandir. He was subsequently dismissed from service and sentenced to one year’s rigorous imprisonment after a District Court-Martial found him guilty.
The Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) has now granted bail to former Havildar More Sandip Sadashiv.
Sadashiv, 45, was posted at HQ 474 Engineer Brigade in 2020. On June 24, 2022, he reported to Command Hospital (Western Command), Chandimandir, for treatment of a skin infection and was admitted on June 30 after being diagnosed with scabies.
On July 25, 2022, Military Intelligence personnel confiscated his mobile phone to examine it for confidential information linked to suspected espionage. He was discharged from the hospital two days later.
Examination of the phone revealed 28 videos and images of women engaged in private acts inside a washroom.
He was charged under Section 354C of the Indian Penal Code, which criminalises watching or capturing images of a woman engaged in a private act without her consent. Army authorities alleged that he used his mobile phone to record videos and capture images inside the women’s washroom at the hospital between July 21 and July 25, 2022. The washroom was located opposite the ward where he had been admitted.
A District Court-Martial in Ambala found him guilty and sentenced him to one year’s rigorous imprisonment. He was also dismissed from service and reduced in rank. The punishment was promulgated on March 24 this year.
During a hearing before the Chandigarh Bench of the AFT on May 29, the tribunal noted that Sadashiv had already spent more than nine months in custody. His counsel, Rajesh Sehgal, sought suspension of the sentence pending disposal of the appeal, arguing that the punishment awarded was less than three years.
The bench of Justice Sudhir Mittal and Lt Gen Ravendra Pal Singh observed that the appeal, filed this year, was unlikely to be decided in the near future.
“Thus, the application is allowed. The remaining prison sentence of the appellant is suspended during the pendency of the appeal. The appellant shall be granted bail subject to his furnishing bail and surety bond…,” the tribunal said.
An Indian mariner was killed and two others were reported missing at sea following a US military attack on a merchant vessel —Settebello — off the coast of Oman on Wednesday.In response, New Delhi tonight issued a demarche to US Chargé d’Affaires Jason Meeks in protest against the attack.
Meanwhile, amid fresh escalation between the US and Iran, President Donald Trump warned against possible military action, saying, “We’re going to be attacking them, and attacking them very hard.”
Trump’s warning came hours after Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan — all of which host US troops — came under Iranian fire. It was the second time this week that back-and-forth strikes have tested a two-month ceasefire.
On Settebello, the UK Maritime Trade Operations said it received a report of an incident some 20 nautical miles (nearly 40 km) northeast of Sohar, Oman. “The local authorities have reported a tanker has experienced a fire in the engine room and are on the scene assisting with the evacuation of the crew. The vessel has reported one casualty while two crew members are missing,” it said.
Sources in India said the two missing mariners “have not been accounted for” on board the vessel. Another 21 mariners — all Indians — on board the ship have been rescued by the Omani authorities. Settebello was supposedly moving around as “a dark ship”, meaning its automated identification system was not switched on. The ship has not sunk, the sources said.
The Ministry of External Affairs condemned the attack on the commercial vessel. “Our Embassy in Oman is closely monitoring the situation and proactively coordinating with the Omani authorities in the ongoing search and rescue operation,” an MEA statement said.
The continuing incidents of attacks on shipping in the region are deeply worrisome and a direct result of the ongoing conflict in the region, the statement said. The MEA reiterated the immediate need for de-escalation of tension and the conclusion of ongoing negotiations for a diplomatic solution.
The targeting of commercial shipping and civilian infrastructure in the region must end, and free and unimpeded navigation and commerce through the international waterways in the region in keeping with international law must be restored at the earliest, it said.
Meanwhile, tensions between the US and Iran escalated sharply after Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) said it launched drone and missile attacks against US-linked military targets in Bahrain, Kuwait and Jordan in response to American strikes on southern Iran.
Earlier, the US Central Command said it carried out “self-defence strikes” against Iranian targets in response to the downing of a US attack helicopter — the Apache — over the Strait of Hormuz.
The US Central Command said it struck Iranian air defence, ground control stations and surveillance radar sites near the Strait of Hormuz with precision munitions.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi warned that Iran would “leave no attack or threat unanswered”, raising fears of further escalation between the two countries.
The IRGC claimed that it launched a drone attack against the US Fifth Fleet in Bahrain and added its Aerospace Force launched long-range missiles at an airbase in Jordan that hosts US military personnel. The IRGC claimed the attack destroyed four key targets, including F-35 fighter jet hangars and a command-and-control centre, though the claims have not been independently verified.
The Kuwaiti army said its air defence systems were intercepting “hostile aerial targets”.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Wednesday signed a Rs 449-crore contract with Bengaluru-based Accord Software and Systems Private Limited for the procurement of 20 Enhanced Capability Global Navigation Satellite System (ECGNSS) jammers for the Indian Navy.
The contract has been signed under the ‘Buy (Indian-Indigenously Designed, Developed and Manufactured)’ category and was inked in the presence of Defence Secretary Rajesh Kumar Singh in New Delhi.
According to the MoD, the ECGNSS jammers are designed to degrade the satellite signal acquisition and tracking capabilities of an adversary’s global navigation satellite system receiver. The systems can also spoof signals and carry out deceptive jamming operations.
Thirty years after an Indian mountaineer disappeared in the death zone of Mt Everest during one of the most tragic expeditions in the country’s climbing history, the government is planning an unprecedented mission to bring his mortal remains home.
In a rare and highly complex operation, the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) has initiated the process to retrieve the body of Lance Naik Dorje Morup, who died during the 1996 Everest expedition that became part of the infamous Mt Everest disaster that year.
Official documents exclusively accessed by The Tribune reveal that the ITBP has floated a tender to hire a high-altitude recovery agency capable of conducting what mountaineering experts describe as one of the most challenging body retrieval missions ever attempted by India. Morup’s remains are believed to be lying at an altitude of around 27,700 ft on Everest’s northern, Tibet-facing slope, deep inside the mountain’s notorious “death zone”, where oxygen levels are insufficient to sustain human life for prolonged periods.
The proposed operation, scheduled between June and September 2026, would involve a team of elite Sherpas climbing above 8,000 metres to recover the body and transport it down the mountain before repatriating the mortal remains to India through Nepal.
According to the tender document, the operation would require the deployment of at least six highly experienced Nepali Sherpas, preferably Everest summiteers, with expertise in technical retrieval operations above 8000 metres. The selected agency will also have to secure permissions from the Chinese authorities in Tibet, arrange transportation across the Tibet-Nepal border, complete legal formalities for repatriation and ensure preservation of the remains, which have been exposed to sub-zero temperatures for nearly three decades. The mission is to be conducted with full adherence to religious and cultural protocols.
Morup was among three ITBP climbers who disappeared during the 1996 expedition, one of the deadliest seasons in Everest’s history. The team was attempting the summit from the mountain’s North Face in Tibet.
According to accounts of the expedition, on May 10, 1996, Subedar Tsewang Samanla, Lance Naik Dorje Morup and Head Constable Tsewang Paljor pressed ahead for the summit after three members of their six-man summit team turned back amid deteriorating weather conditions.
A fierce blizzard later engulfed the mountain and none of the three climbers returned to the camp.
Over the years, the body of a climber lying near a cave on the Northeast Ridge route became a grim landmark for mountaineers and came to be known as “Green Boots” because of the distinctive green Koflach mountaineering boots visible on the body.
The identity of the climber has long been the subject of debate, with some mountaineers and researchers identifying the body as that of Paljor, while others have suggested it could be of Morup. However, the ITBP tender document accessed by The Tribune lists “Green Boots” alongside Morup’s name, indicating that the force believes the landmark body to be that of the missing Lance Naik.
Recovering bodies from the death zone is considered among the most perilous tasks in mountaineering. Even moving a deceased climber a short distance at such extreme altitude can require several Sherpas and exposes rescuers to grave risks from avalanches, storms, falls and oxygen deprivation.
Sources told this newspaper that the process was still at a preliminary stage and that weather conditions in the coming months would largely determine whether the operation could ultimately be carried out.
The ITBP’s decision to attempt the recovery after three decades is being viewed not only as a formidable logistical undertaking but also as a gesture of remembrance towards a soldier who died while carrying India’s Tricolour to the roof of the world.
Twelve senior Bangladeshi civil servants landed in Karachi last month for an executive leadership programme organised by Pakistan’s Higher Education Commission and Civil Services Academy. The training began with an engagement at the National Institute of Public Administration in Karachi, alongside visits to key public institutions in Pakistan’s financial capital. The delegation then proceeded to Lahore’s Civil Services Academy, the institute that had trained bureaucrats of undivided Pakistan before 1971. This marked the first such institutional exchange between Islamabad and Dhaka in over 50 years.
The development is significant because until recently, Bangladeshi officials trained in India. The Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration (LBSNAA), Mussoorie, hosted mid-career officials under agreements formalised since 2014. Although a training cooperation agreement for 2025-2030 has been renewed, no Bangladeshi officer has visited LBSNAA since the Sheikh Hasina’s ouster in 2024.
Bangladesh emerged from the traumatic events of 1971. The Pakistan army’s war crimes are deeply embedded in its national identity. During Hasina’s 15-year tenure (2009-24), Pakistan was largely treated as a pariah partner, while the Awami League drew much of its political legitimacy from the liberation war narrative.
The student-led uprising that toppled Hasina and sent her into exile in India opened space for a reset with Pakistan. Islamabad moved quickly. Cargo shipping resumed between Karachi and Chittagong, senior Pakistani officials travelled to Dhaka and structured cooperation expanded across trade, connectivity and governance.
Thus, the Bangladeshi delegation’s orientation in Karachi was equally symbolic. Exposure to institutions in Pakistan reflected Islamabad’s effort to familiarise Bangladeshi officials with the country’s trade architecture at a time of expanding economic engagement. While unresolved issues from 1971 remain, they are no longer being treated as a barrier to engagement. By de-hyphenating past issues from present realities, both sides seem to have found a new diplomatic space.
But, the training programme’s significance goes beyond this. These programmes are designed to shape how officials think about governance, statecraft, regional politics and national interests. For years, Bangladeshi officials attended training programmes in India and were exposed to administrative practices, governance models and strategic perspectives shared by New Delhi and Dhaka. Pakistan now has an opportunity to engage a new generation of administrators. This is why the exchange of ideas may prove more consequential than the exchange of goods.
Exposure to Pakistani institutions, policy debates and administrative traditions will now shape their perspectives. Pakistani analysts have argued that such exchanges should be institutionalised through long-term agreements so that the relationship is not left vulnerable to changing political cycles.
For decades, Dhaka-Delhi ties defined the boundaries of the Dhaka-Islamabad engagement. That constraint has loosened following political change in Dhaka. Religious affinities have also become more visible in the post-Hasina period.
This does not mean Bangladesh has abandoned the Liberation War as a foundational national narrative. Rather, the post-Hasina political order appears more driven by national interest. The visit of officials reflects the willingness of both countries to test the possibility of normalisation, and that in itself is a milestone.
Bill Gates told members of Congress on Wednesday that he “did not fully understand the extent” of Jeffrey Epstein’s crimes when he associated with the late convicted sex offender to raise money for his philanthropic foundation.
Gates also testified that he never witnessed any criminal conduct from Epstein. He accused Epstein of blackmailing him over his extramarital affairs.
“These affairs had nothing to do with my interactions with Epstein, but they were painful for my family,” Gates said, according to a copy of his opening statement. “Epstein was working to use information about my infidelities — in addition to many lies that he layered on top — to pressure me to re-engage with him.”
Congress has been investigating the U.S. Justice Department’s handling of the Epstein case. The billionaire’s testimony concerned his contacts with the convicted sex offender who ensnared women and girls from poor or unstable backgrounds.
The Microsoft Corp co-founder testified privately to the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which is investigating possible federal mismanagement in the cases against Epstein and his associate Ghislaine Maxwell and related issues.
US Representative James Comer, the Republican committee chairman, asked Gates in a March letter to appear for an in-person transcribed interview.
Gates hired Jake Greenberg, who was the oversight panel’s chief investigative official until December, to help him prepare for the appearance, the New York Times reported on Tuesday. A committee spokesperson told Reuters the panel has not worked with Greenberg since his departure.
Epstein pleaded guilty to a Florida state felony prostitution charge in 2008 and served 13 months in jail.
Federal prosecutors charged him with sex trafficking of minors in 2019. Epstein pleaded not guilty to those charges and died in what was ruled a suicide later that year before his trial.
Documents released by the Justice Department this year indicated that Gates and Epstein met repeatedly after Epstein’s 2008 prison term to discuss expanding the tech billionaire’s philanthropic efforts.
They also included pictures of Gates posing with females whose faces are redacted. Gates has previously said the relationship with Epstein was confined to philanthropy-related discussions and has said it was a mistake to meet with him.
Gates “took responsibility for his actions” in a February town hall meeting with employees of the Gates Foundation, a spokesperson for the philanthropic group told Reuters.
Gates’ relationship with Epstein has drawn in the Gates Foundation, which said in April it had begun an external review into its engagement with the late financier. Emails released in January by the Justice Department also showed communication between Epstein and the Gates Foundation’s staff.
The House committee’s probe includes authorities’ handling of investigations and prosecutions, plea deals, Epstein’s death, failures to combat sex trafficking, ethics concerns and delays in the release of government files.
The Justice Department’s release of millions of internal documents related to Epstein revealed his ties to many prominent people in politics, finance, academia and business, including President Donald Trump, who socialized extensively with Epstein in the 1990s and 2000s.
Former Attorney General Pam Bondi, fired by Trump in April, faced sharp criticism for her handling of the case. Some critics accused her of trying to shield Trump from scrutiny.
Trump opposed releasing the files until shortly before Congress overwhelmingly passed a law ordering their release.
