India’s first Military Literature Festival in Chandigarh 

India’s first Military Literature Festival (MLF) will be held in Chandigarh in December as a tribute to the armed forces, whose contributions to the nation remain etched in history as iconic events, Punjab Local Bodies and Tourism and Culture Minister Navjot Singh Sidhusaid on Friday.

The MLF will be held in Chandigarh from Nov 28 to 29, 2017. Sidhu told media here that Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, himself a military historian and author, was pioneering this initiative, which is being jointly promoted by the Punjab government and the Chandigarh Administration with the objective of spreading awareness about the subject among people.
Top thinkers, authors, historians, curators and experts related to defence matters will participate in the event, he said.

“With Punjab standing tall in terms of Param Vir Chakras won by its men, the festival is an apt and glowing tribute to the grit, courage and fearless determination of the country’s defence personnel,” Sidhu said.

 

 Punjab Chief Minister’s Senior Advisor, Lt. Gen. T.S. Shergill (retd), said military literature had ancient roots, with the longest poem, the Mahabharata, being all about warfare.

 He also spoke about the relevance of technology to military and literature, underlining the importance of promoting all aspects of the subject.

A two-day military literary festival, the first such event in the country that would focus on contemporary thought and promote recent publications on defence and national security, is being organised here by the Punjab Government from Nov27 to 28.Sources said the modalities and programme of the event were being worked out and different themes explored. Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had held a meeting in this regard yesterday.“Books published recently are being shortlisted and their authors would be invited to talk about their work. Panel discussions on the topic would also be held,” an official said. Besides, there could also be talks by eminent persons on current military issues and other aspects of national security as well as subjects like war stories, military history and acts of gallantry, the official added.The idea of a military literary festival was mooted by Governor VP Singh Badnore earlier this year while releasing a book on the legendary Saragarhi battle authored by the CM. He opined that a number of senior and distinguished retired defence officers, including close to a 100 lieutenant generals, were based in Chandigarh and their expertise and experience should be a source of enlightenment for others.

The Military Literature Festival

Opening Ceremony	08 December	10:00 to 11:00	Lake Club
Tea	08 December	11:00 to 11:30	Lake Club
Panel Discussions	08 December	11:30 to 13:45	Lake Club
Lunch	08 December	13:45 to 14:35	Lake Club
Panel Discussions	08 December	14:45 to 18:15	Lake Club
Mega Social Evening	08 December	19:00 onwards	Capital Complex
Dinner (By Invite Only)	08 December	20:00 onwards	CM Residence
Panel Discussions	09 December	10:00 to 13:30	Lake Club
Lunch	09 December	13:30 to 14:30	Lake Club
Panel Discussions	09 December	14:30 to 16:45	Lake Club
Closing Ceremony	09 December	17:00 to 18:00	Lake Club
Tea	09 December	17:00 to 17:30	Lake Club
Dinner with Concert (By Invite Only)	09 December	20:00 onwards	Hotel Mt View

  FOR REGISTRATION OPEN SITE

http://www.militaryliteraturefestival.com

Military lit fest: Dalrymple, Rikhye to be in attendance

Army men pay tributes to Sepoy Vrahma Pal Singh, who was killed in Pulwama. Tribune photo

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, November 7

The Army today paid tributes to its comrade who was killed during an anti-militancy operationin Pulwama district on Monday evening.In a solemn ceremony at Badami Bagh Cantonment, Lt Gen JS Sandhu, Corps Commander, Chinar Corps, and all ranks paid homage to the slain soldier.“In a show of solidarity, officials and representatives from the state government and other security agencies also joined in paying their last respects to the martyr, Sepoy Vrahma Pal Singh,” an Army spokesman said.Singh sustained bullet injury during an anti-militancy operation at Kandi Aglar in Pulwama district. He was provided immediate first aid and was evacuated to the 92 Base hospital, but succumbed to the injuries.“The mortal remains of the martyr were flown for last rites to his native place, where he would be laid to rest with full military honours. In this hour of grief, the Army stands in solidarity with the bereaved family of the martyr and remains committed to their dignity and well-being,” the spokesman added.Hailing from Shaujana Rani village in Bulandshahar, Uttar Pradesh, 30-year-old Singh had joined the Army in 2004. He is survived by his wife, two daughters and a three-year-old son.

Rosh rally was held at Pathankot by UFESM Pathankot along with Sanjha Morcha on 01 Nov 17 to condemn Central  Govt for the following follies 

1.Illtreating veterans and ladies at Jantar Mantar on 30 Oct 17.

2.Misusing  Armd Forces as a labour force for Civil jobs to fulfil  political goals, thereby degrading their War Potential.

3.Telling lies to Nation that OROP has been given to Veteran’s. PM is now sayings that it will be given in stages, while addressing Jawans at GUREZ on Diwali.

4.Making One Man Commission Report (Justice Reddy)to address OROP anomalies Public.Same is laying with Govt  since last year.

Brig Prahald Singh

President UFESM pathankot and

Chairman Sanjha Morcha

Congress woos farmers, employees in election manifesto. Tribune photo: Amit Kanwar

Pratibha Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, November 1

The ruling Congress in Himachal Pradesh on Wednesday released its manifesto, promising to strengthen the farm sector by granting interest-free loans to farmers, creation of 1.50 lakh jobs in the government sector and free laptops to 50,000 college students.

The manifesto lays thrust on strengthening the farm sector and proposes a Rs 1-lakh interest-free loan and 90 per cent subsidy on anti-hail net.Also read: BJP on backfoot in Himachal, says Vikramaditya Singh(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)The manifesto also attempts to woo employees, pensioners and daily wagers.

Our manifesto is a golden link in the chain of colossal progress in Himachal. Once again, we embark on this momentous journey

It says the contractual employees would be regularised in two years and pensioners would get substantial hike in pension. The VAT on petrol and diesel would be reduced and the GST limit would be enhanced from present Rs 10 lakh to Rs 20 lakh to give benefit to traders, a issue raked by the BJP time and again.The Congress also promises higher compensation to landowners in land acquisition for four landing and other road projects.It also proposes pension scheme for workers in unorganised sector and says marriage grant to daughters of widows would be increased to Rs 1 lakh.The manifesto released by Chief minister Virbhadra Singh, Health Minister Kaul Singh, who is also chairman of manifesto Committee and AICC general secretary Sushil Kumar Shinde claimed that Congress had fulfilled 95 per cent of poll promises and would implement the remaining promises and fresh promises in the next term, if voted to power.

Singh said his government has ensured speedy and uniform development of the entire state, which is visible on the ground and development and welfare of all sections of people would be the main poll plank.

Kaul Singh said the Congress provided government jobs to 75,000 youth during the present term and 1.50 lakh jobs would be given in the next five years. For land acquired by the government, four times the market value will be provided as compensation.

The manifesto also promises enhancement of pension by 5, 10 and 15 per cent after the age of 65, 70 and 75 years, additional increments to employees after fourth, ninth and fourteenth year of service, increasing daily wages to Rs 350 and free laptops to 50,000 college students.

The Congress also promised decentralisation of administrative and financial powers down to panchayat level and continue food subsidy scheme to control price rise.

Speaking to reporters, Virbhadra Singh said the BJP’s decision to filed P K Dhumal would have no impact on prospects of the Congress.

The Himachal Pradesh elections will be held on November 9 and the result will be declared on December 18.

• REGISTER YOURSELF FOR INDIA’S FIRST MILITARY LITERATURE FESTIVAL IN CHANDIGARH —-28TH&29 NOV 2017::

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Parents of Sepoy Mandeep Singh, who was killed while fighting infiltrators in Kupwara district of Jammu and Kashmir on Wednesday, at his cremation at Chahal Khurd village in Batala on Thursday. Senior Army officers and officials of the Gurdaspur district administration were present. The martyr’s father, Prem Singh, and mother Bhajan Kaur were inconsolable. Tribune photo

Tribune News Service

Amritsar, November 13

A one-day conclave of associate officers of National Cadet Corps (NCC) was held at Sri Guru Harkrishan International School here today.The conclave was organised by the 11th Punjab Battalion NCC.As many as 45 associate NCC officers (ANOs) from all three wings of defence –Army, Air force, Naval — took part in the conclave. The day-long event saw a number of activates to upgrade the skills of instructors, known as ANOs. These instructors are responsible for training young students who have opted for NCC in schools and colleges.NCC officials laid stress on improving the quality of imparting skills, ways to motivate students and enhancing knowledge. A tug of war contest was also organised on the occasion.Col Ashwani Kumar, Commanding Officer of the battalion, said, “It is a maiden effort to bring people together from the NCC to one platform. Our aim is to achieve great results.”

Ever since the Modi Government came to power with the substantial help of the ex-servicemen community, the question of pay, allowances and izzat for those serving in uniform and out of it has occupied centre stage. For a party that repeatedly invokes the fauji and has politically appropriated the surgical strikes for repeated unfurling in state elections (Himachal Pradesh is the latest example), the BJP has been stumped by its inability to match its election rhetoric with delivery on the ground.  Against the contextual background of the One Rank One Pension (OROP) conundrum and the inability of the government to resolve the rank parity issue, it is welcome that the Army has worked around a problem hanging fire for six years. For years the armed forces have lived with the notion that the civilian bureaucracy has nudged or massaged rules in its favour. Their hopes had arisen after the advent of the BJP government wrapped itself in olive green. If the restoring of gazetted officers status for JCOs is meant to divert the issue of rank parity with civilian bureaucrats, discontent will continue to remain high. Successive Defence Ministers have handed out assurances, just as it was with OROP. But a year after a committee set out to resolve the rank parity issue, a narrative has been rolled out to the effect that the Government will not permit any false rank parity. This was after heated exchanges in the correspondence exchanged between the Army and the civilian bureaucracy.In order to prevent the rank parity issue from becoming another issue of dissatisfaction like the OROP, the expectation among the armed forces is that the government needs to bite the bullet. If the downgrading of JCOs was an Army self-goal, the armed forces hold the civilians culpable for disturbing the equivalence and downgrading the status of service officers in the armed force headquarters. The anomaly was a hand-me-down from the UPA government that had been unable to resolve the issue for six years. This is a pointer to the tortuous nature of the task at hand.