Our Correspondent

Hamirpur, February 7

The Himachal Pradesh Ex-Servicemen Corporation (HPESC) will train SSB (Services Selection Board) aspirants to help them join defence services as commissioned officers.Col BC Lagwal, chairman, HPSEC, said the corporation would train candidates who clear the written examination for National Defence Academy (NDA) and Combined Defence Services (CDS). He said that as many as 26 candidates trained by the HPESC were selected in the last few years. Col Lagwal said the corporation had identified land and equipments were being arranged to provide training. He said different hurdles, including crawling, rope climbing, bar walking net climbing, high and long jump, etc. would be set up.Col Lagwal said the wards of defence personnel would be trained free of cost.The Himachal Pradesh Ex-Servicemen Corporation (HPESC) would give Rs 25 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Welfare Fund during the CM’s visit to the district. Col BC Lagwal said the fund would be given from the corporation’s profit. He said the HPESC was grateful to the CM for his support and concern for the ex-servicemen.

Rs 25 lakh for CM’s fund

• The Himachal Pradesh Ex-Servicemen Corporation (HPESC) will give Rs 25 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Welfare Fund during the CM’s visit to Hamirpur. Col BC Lagwal said the fund would be given from the corporation’s profit. He said the HPESC was grateful to the CM for his support and concern for the ex-servicemen

Azamgarh (UP): ‘Colonel’ Nizamuddin, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose’s driver and INA veteran, died on Monday in his native village of Dhakwa here after a prolonged illness. Born in 1901, he is survived by his wife Ajbul Nisha, three sons and two daughters. Nizamuddin, who served in the Indian National Army from 1943-45, proclaimed himself to be one of Netaji’s most trusted lieutenants. PTI

Tribune News Service

Shimla, February 25

Former Union Minister and Rajya Sabha MP Anand Sharma today said it was for the first time that a Prime Minister had tried to gain political mileage by highlighting the achievements of the Army such as surgical strike during election rallies.Addressing a press conference here, he said such acts of the PM only belittled the sacrifices and achievements of the Army. “The Army does not belong to the Prime Minister or the BJP but to the entire nation,” he said. Neither the Congress nor the NDA government headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee ever tried to take such credit. Sharma said even during the 1971 war when over one lakh Pakistani army personnel surrendered, the Congress did not capitalise on this victory. “Even during the Kargil War when Vajpayee was the Prime Minister, the Army was never dragged into the political arena,” he remarked. He advised the PM to exercise restraint and maintain a balance in his speeches.He lamented that Modi had brought the standard of political debate to a low. “We can’t stoop to the level of Modi when he compared us with a Pakistani terrorist Ajmal Kasab,” he said. He took strong exception to the remarks made by Modi not just about the Congress and Rahul Gandhi, but also about leaders of other parties like the Samajwadi Party (SP) and the BSP.He said the PM was an authoritarian who only believed in adopting a confrontationist approach and not engaging in dialogue. “I would like to advise the PM not to treat his political opponents as his personal enemies,” he said.He also lashed out at the pernicious campaign of the RSS and the BJP against Rahul Gandhi. “They have launched a campaign against him as they fear that he will take on their party,” he said.Sharma said despite none of the reasons cited by Modi for demonetisation, including fighting corruption, black money and terror-funding being justified, the PM is unwilling to debate the issue. “He is accountable to the nations as the GDP has gone down, almost four crore to six crore jobs lost, 70 per cent of the factories have closed down and the unorganised sector has been the worst hit,” he said.

Advice to Modi

• The Congress did not capitalise on the 1971 war victory when over one lakh Pakistani army personnel surrendered
• Even during the Kargil War, when Vajpayee was the PrimeMinister, the Army was never dragged into the political arena
• He advised the PM to exercise restraint and maintain a balance in his speeches

Army men carry the coffin of Lance Naik Ghulam Mohiuddin Rather, killed in Thursday’s ambush in Shopian, during his funeral procession in Anantnag district on Friday. Tribune Photo: Amin War

Majid Jahangir

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, February 24

A day after the killing of three soldiers, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat today made it clear that “anti-militancy operations will continue with vigour and action will be taken against those indulging in stone-throwing to disrupt such operations”.General Rawat had rushed to Srinagar hours after the Shopian attack to assess the security situation. The Army has lost nine men, including an officer, in less than two weeks.During two high-level meetings at the headquarters of the Army’s counter-insurgency divisions — Victor and Kilo Force — the Army Chief listened to officers engaged in anti-militancy operations.The officers, sources said, informed the Chief about the dual challenges — one from militants and another from stone-throwers. He was also briefed about the recent four operations in which the Army had suffered casualties.Sources said the Army Chief expressed concern over the high number of the Army casualties during these operations. “The Chief made it clear that the anti-militancy operations will continue with vigour. At the same time, he said, strict action will be taken against those who hurl stones and interfere in such operations,” a source said.Despite General Rawat’s stern warning last week, the youth in Kashmir continue to hamper anti-militancy operations.Meanwhile, a defence spokesman in Srinagar said the Army Chief along with Northern Command and Chinar Corps chiefs Lt Gen D Anbu and Lt Gen JS Sandhu visited Victor and Kilo Force Headquarters.The spokesman said the Army Chief also reviewed the collaborative measures of security forces towards ensuring peace and calm in the region. He interacted with local commanders and troops and urged them to continue discharging their duties with utmost professionalism.“Reinforcing the need to maintain high vigil, the Army Chief also discussed the issue of stone-pelting during Army operations and impressed upon all to synergise efforts with other security agencies in dealing with such situations effectively,” the spokesman said.

Tribute paid to slain soldiers

• Army chief General Bipin Rawat paid tribute to the three soldiers (Lance Naik Ghulam Mohi ud Din Rather, Sepoy Vikas Singh Gurjar and Sapper Sreejith MJ) killed in the recent militant attack at Shopian
• Wreaths were also laid on behalf of Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti by two ministers Abdul Haq Khan and Ghulam Nabi Lone
• Officials of the civil administration and security agencies also paid tribute to the martyrs at a solemn function held at the Badami Bagh cantonment

Despite matric being minimum qualification, graduates & postgraduates also appear for test

Aspirants take a physical fitness test at the Army recruitment rally in Ludhiana on Wednesday. Tribune photo: Himanshu Mahajan

Nikhil Bhardwaj

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, February 22

The minimum qualification for joining the Army in the ongoing recruitment drive for 14 vacancies in the 152 Infantry Battalion (Territorial Army) Sikh is Class X only, but graduates and post-graduates are also appearing for the recruitment.It is the penchant for wearing olive green, according to some of them, which is dragging them to the venue near Jagraon Bridge.As many as 6,400 youth have appeared in the recruitment rally so far and many of them are graduates and post-graduates from various streams. Some termed unemployment as reason behind joining the Army, but many categorically said the craze and penchant to wear olive green was the main cause.Rohit Sooden, who has a BSc degree from Himachal Pradesh, said: “I had a dream to wear olive green since my childhood. No one from my family is in the Army, but my father has always motivated me to join the Army. I came all the way from Himachal. I hope my hard work and passion will yield results.”Another candidate Sunny Sharma, who came from Kathua in Jammu and Kashmir, is a post-graduate in Hindi, has completed BEd and is now pursuing MEd, said, he wanted to join the Army to serve the country and countrymen. “Presently, I am teaching at a private school, but my ultimate target is to join the Army. Even if I don’t get through this time, I will continue to try my luck in future,” he said.Manish Kumar from HP, who has done BCA, said he could not find a suitable job despite completing his graduation, adding that now he was trying for the Army. “My foremost reason to join the Army is to serve the country. This employment will also give me bread for my entire life. Apart from a good salary, the Army offers many other facilities as well so this is obviously a great choice,” he said.

Highlights

• Only 578 of total 6,400 candidates have cleared the physical test so far
• The pass percentage stands at 9% only
• A total of 3,000 candidates from Punjab appeared, of which 325 cleared the physical test
• From J&K and Himachal Pradesh, 900 appeared, of which 99 cleared the physical test
• From Haryana and Delhi, 2,500 appeared and only 154 passed the physical round

Simran Sodhi

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 20

China today praised as well as taunted  India over its record-breaking satellite launch last week. While China, in its state-run media, praised India for its ability to send commercial satellites into space at a low cost, in the same vein it also taunted New Delhi for lacking the technological ability to launch multiple satellites into various orbits. China, of late, has used commentaries and articles in the Global Times (GT) to indicate to India and other countries its stand on various issues. The GT article today praised the launch and said it was “India’s latest triumph for its space programme”. Further on, the article pointed out that what India needs “to do is to avoid the conflicts among satellites, which involves lots of calculation and data analysis, but is not a tough task”.The article quoted Zhang Yonghe, director at the new technology department of the Shanghai Engineering Centre for Microsatellites, who said that, “The launch indicated that India can send commercial satellites into space at lower costs, giving the country’s competitiveness in the global race for the burgeoning commercial space businesses.” Zhang also said India’s record-breaking launch would speed up China’s commercialisation of rocket launches. He also credited India for doing a better job in promoting its launch services internationally as compared to China.Last week, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched 104 satellites on a single rocket, breaking the record set by Russia in 2014 when it launched 37 satellites in a single mission.

India can develop space station, says ISRO chief

Indore, February 20

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chairman A S Kiran Kumar today said the country has the capability to develop a space station, but it needed a long-term approach and an ambitious planning.His comment follows ISRO display of technological prowess last week by launching 104 satellites in a single mission.”We have all the capabilities to set up a space station.The day the country takes the decision, we will ‘ok’ the project. Just draw a policy and provide us necessary funds and time,” Kumar said here.He was in the city to attend the foundation day ceremony of Raja Ramanna Center for Advanced Technology (RRCAT).”We still talk about what would be the immediate benefits of a manned space mission. That is why the country hasn’t made up its mind about when to invest in a space station,” he said.A long-term thinking was needed for setting up a space station, he said, adding “the sooner the better.” Kumar said ISRO was also mulling tying up with the industry to enhance the country’s satellite launching capability.Many more satellites were needed to keep a tab on the land and weather conditions and to enhance the communication network, he said.This would be possible with increase in the number of satellite launches, for which the country needed to enhance the basic infrastructure and reduce the cost of equipment, he added.The number of companies manufacturing small satellites has gone up across the world, but these companies could not launch them, therefore this area had immense commercial potential and India could tap it by enhancing the launch facilities, the ISRO chief said. — PTI

Ruined by spy scandal, ex-ISRO scientist fights for justice in SC

Satya Prakash

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, February 20

“The system I designed is being used in Chandrayaan, Mangalyaan and PSLV that launched 104 satellites in one go. But I am still fighting to get justice,” says former ISRO scientist S Nambi Narayanan whose career was ruined by the 1994 ISRO spy scandal.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd) On Monday, Narayanan (75) was in the Supreme Court to attend hearing on his petition for action against those who finished his career and sullied his reputation.“I have wasted 25 years of my life fighting a legal battle to get justice. I want those responsible for foisting a false charge on me to be punished,” Narayanan told The Tribune.The Kerala Police had arrested Mariam Rasheeda—a Maldivian woman on October 20, 1994 for over staying in India after the expiry of her visa. It turned into a sex-spy scandal allegedly involving two senior ISRO scientists, some businessmen and others. They were accused of passing on ISRO’s cryogenic programme secrets to the women who in turn supplied the same to Russia and Pakistan’s ISI.In 1996, the CBI probe cleared all the accused. It concluded that the entire scandal was fabricated by Kerala Police officers who had investigated the case.All the accused were discharged in May 1996. Along with the closure report, the CBI had also sent a confidential report indicting the state police officials.But following a change of guard in Kerala, the state government withdrew the consent given to the CBI to probe the case and asked the state police to re-investigate it.However, the Supreme Court in April 1998 quashed the state government’s decision and all the accused were freed.Rasheeda too was released in 2001. The Kerala High Court had in September 2012 ordered the state government to pay Rs 10 lakh as interim relief to Narayanan.Acting on his petition, the Kerala High Court had in October 2014 ordered action against the state police officials based on the CBI’s confidential report. But a Division Bench of the High Court reversed the order in March 2015.It’s this Division Bench verdict that Narayanan is fighting against in the top court now.On Monday, Sibi Mathew – one of the police officers indicted by the CBI – sought four-week adjournment but a Bench headed by Justice Dipak Misra declined to give that much time and fixed the matter for further hearing on February 23.Narayanan exuded confidence that he will get justice from the Supreme Court.

Hafiz Saeed

Islamabad, February 18

Mumbai attack mastermind and JuD chief Hafiz Saeed, who is under house arrest, has been listed under Pakistan’s anti-terrorism Act, a tacit acknowledgement of his links to militancy.Dawn News reported that the Punjab government had included the names of Saeed and one of his close aides, Qazi Kashif, in the fourth schedule of the Anti-terrorism Act (ATA). (Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)Three others — Abdullah Obaid from Faisalabad and Zafar Iqbal and Abdur Rehman Abid from the Markaz-i-Taiba in Muridke — were also included in the listThose listed face a barrage of legal consequences like travel bans and scrutiny of assets. Violation of the provisions may draw jail of up to three years and fine or both. — PTI

iStock photo for representation only.

Jodhpur, February 17

Suspected Pakistan spy Haji Khan, who was arrested earlier this month by the security agencies, had been using name of weathers as code word for passing on information to ISI and other agencies about the movements of the BSF, Army and Air Force, his interrogators have said.

According to an intelligence source, he used the word “cold” for BSF, “hot” for Army and “rain” for the Air Force.

“When border surveillance by BSF would be stepped up, he would convey to the Pak agencies it was too cold and the same was the method for the Army and Air Force,” the source said.

As per his disclosure earlier, he had been actively working for ISI and two other agencies for about past 3 years and has got about Rs 15 lakh from these agencies by way of deposits in his wife’s bank account in Pakistan or through hawala transaction to his cousin in Dubai.

“In order to extract information from the border guards or Army soldiers, he would sit with them near the bordering areas and offer them milk and tea of goat milk,” said the source.

Security agencies have been interrogating Khan since he was caught in Kishangarh in Jaisalmer district on February 11.

The agencies are trying to find out through interrogation what information, he has shared so far with the Pakistani agencies, and how important and serious were they in nature. — PTI