Monthly Archives: August 2018

• To foster the spirit of national integration, solidarity and develop camaraderie among cadets from Gujarat and J&K, ‘Ek Bharat Shresht Bharat’ camp was conducted by NCC, Srinagar, at the JAK LI Regimental Centre, Rangreth, on Sunday.
• An Army statement said Lt Gen AK Bhatt, Chinar Corps commander, paid a visit to the camp and was delighted to meet the jubilant cadets. After presenting a guard of honour to the corps commander, the cadets presented a remarkable cultural programme, highlighting the rich heritage of the nation.
• Lt Bhatt complimented the cadets for their impeccable parade and the cultural programme. He also urged the cadets to make full use of the opportunity to share their views and opinions and participate in sports, cultural, educational and recreational activities. Srinagar, TNS

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Ramban: A cache of arms and ammunition was recovered from a hideout at Kalimasta in Gool following a four-day-long joint search operation by the Rashtriya Rifles Uniform Force and the police in Ramban on Friday. Police sources said the arms and ammunition were found from a cave in the Kalimasta forest. The recovery includes one AK-56 rifle, .303 rifle, 7.63-mm Star pistol, a UBGL grenade, one magazine each of AK-56 rifle, .303 rifle and 7.63-mm Star pistol, 126 rounds of AK-56 rifle, six rounds each of .303 rifle and 7.63 Star pistol, besides UBGL hand grenades, two RPG rounds, explosive material and utility items such as clothes, blankets and utensils. OC

Recoveries made by Army in Kupwara sector today incl this foldable/ collapsible ladder…walls are no longer a hindrance..

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, May 23

Lieutenant General Cherish Mathson, General Officer Commanding in Chief, Sapta Shakti Command, on Wednesday reviewed the conduct of the ongoing exercise Gandiv Vijay in Rajasthan. The Army Commander was accompanied by Lieutenant General PC Thimmaya, General Officer Commanding, Chetak Corps.The two-month long training exercise aimed to train commanders and soldiers in their offensive tasks concluded on Wednesday. The exercise validated the concept of speedy mobilisation and dispersed deployment of offensive forces with the ability to converge at a point of decision.During the exercise, synergy between mechanised forces, infantry, artillery, engineers, elements of Special Forces and Air Force was practiced and fine tuned. An array of modern sensors was deployed and the participating troops got an opportunity to operate in a transparent battle field.While interacting with the Army Commander on conclusion of the exercise, the participating troops conveyed their satisfaction on the content and conduct of the exercise.

Jammu, May 22

A 70-year-old woman was among the two people injured as Pakistani Rangers opened fire and lobbed mortars along the International Border in Jammu and Kashmir early on Tuesday, triggering panic among border residents and forcing many to take shelter in government-run camps.“The cross-border firing and shelling continued unabated and has spread to all sectors from Akhnoor to Samba along the IB,” a senior BSF official told PTI.He said BSF troops guarding the border retaliated effectively and exchanges between the two sides were continuing when the reports last came in.Inspector General of Police, Jammu, SD Singh Jamwal, said one person was injured in the fresh firing in the worst-hit Arnia sector of Jammu district.Madan Lal Bhagat, a resident of Pindi Charkan village of Arnia, was hit by splinters in the abdomen and foot after a mortar shell hit his house in the early hours of Tuesday, the officials said, adding that he had been admitted to Government Medical College.Police said a 70-year-old woman identified as Kaushalya Devi was also injured in the firing.Jamwal said police parties had been deployed and were helping people shift to safer places from affected areas.Jammu Divisional Commissioner Hemant Kumar Sharma said relief camps had been activated at safer places all along the IB, especially in RS Pura and Arnia sectors, which witnessed heavy mortar shelling by Pakistan over the past two days.Hundreds of people had reported at these camps set up in educational institutes and other government buildings, Sharma said, adding that adequate facilities had been made available at these camps so that the displaced people did not face any problem.He said all schools vulnerable to Pakistani shelling had been closed along the IB as a precautionary measure. PTI

Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, May 16

“Guardians of Governance (GOGs) are playing proactive role in ensuring effective implementation of administrative reforms and various development and welfare schemes of the government with zeal and dedication.The positive results of launching the unique and innovative scheme are quite visible on the ground level,” said the Senior Adviser to the CM, Punjab, Lt General TS Shergill while adding that keeping in view the success of the scheme, the state government has decided to extend the GoGs’ existing strength of 2,900 to 6,000 by end of the year.It would also achieve the target of bringing all the villages under the umbrella of the scheme to ensure transparent, hassle-free delivery mechanism of different public utility schemes at the cutting edge level.Lt Gen T S Shergill, who was chairing the meeting of SBS Nagar GoGs at Rattewal (SBS Nagar), on Wednesday said as per filing reports on various issues by GoGs were concerned, Tarn Taran district was going on top where maximum percentage of issues highlighted by the GoGs, had been addressed while in rest of the state the address rate is eighty percent. He asked DC Amit Kumar and SDM Aditya Uppal to act swiftly on thereports as soon as they get them from GoGs.Speaking on the success rate of the GoG’s working, Gen Shergill said the motive behind bringing out the scheme had been much attained. After the issues by the GoGs were highlighted, the district administration and the state government are getting a huge success to sort out them out within a stipulated time while earlier it was not easy to deal with these type of issues due to the want of a proper channel, he added.Urging the sarpanches and other public representatives of the villages to cooperate with the GoGs positively to redress their problems, he said the concept of GoG was devised for the betterment of society and to plug the loopholes in the use of development grants and effective implementation of welfare schemes.Deputy Commissioner Amit Kumar asked the GoGs to work as eyes and ears of the administration.

Ajay Banerjee

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, May 13

In what will be a significant step towards India’s ‘Act East policy’, India and Vietnam will conduct their first bilateral naval exercise later this month, marking the continued upswing in relations.The exercise will be conducted in Vietnamese waters in May-end. The exercise will be conducted in what China’s considers its backyard. To put it in perspective, it’s like the navies of China and Bangladesh practising in Bay of Bengal.A flotilla of three Indian warships — INS Shayadri, INS Kamorta and INS Shakti — is on its way to Vietnam, sources said while confirming the first-ever bilateral exercise at sea. Two of these ships on Sunday reached Thailand on a separate visit and one reached Malaysia. The warships will go to Vietnam before heading to the Pacific Ocean for a joint exercise called ‘Malabar’ with the US and Japanese navies.The naval exercise comes just four months after the armies of the two countries conducted their first-ever land–based exercise in January-end this year at Jabalpur in Madhya Pradesh.India-Vietnam relations have gained momentum in the past decade. In November 2009, the two countries had signed a memorandum of understanding on defence cooperation. This was preceded by strategic partnership agreement in 2007.During PM Narendra Modi’s visit to Vietnam in 2016, the bilateral relationship was elevated from a ‘strategic partnership’ to a ‘comprehensive strategic partnership’. Modi had, in his first year in office in 2014, said: “Our defence cooperation with Vietnam is among our most important ones.”India is already training the Vietnamese navy in operating its small fleet of Russian-origin Kilo-class subs and has announced an increase in its efforts to train more personnel. India and Vietnam have set a target of $15 billion in bilateral trade by 2020, from $7 billion at present.WHY it’s significant

• Vietnam is one of the six countries locked in a maritime territorial dispute with China in hydro-carbon rich South China Sea
• Its seabed holds trillions of cubic feet of gas and billions of barrels of crude oil
• Indian warships INS Shayadri, INS Kamorta and INS Shakti will participate in the exercise

Srinagar, May 3

The Army on Thursday said it held an interactive session with nomadic Gujjars and Bakerwals from Banali, Barnet, Pakhlan and Batangi villages of north Kashmir’s Salamabad area. The Army said it discussed their impending migration towards Western Massif and both tribes put forward their views and established a common understanding on maintaining harmony and peaceful environment in the area.“The Army assured full cooperation and assistance to the communities in terms of medical assistance and security. They were also informed about the medical camp scheduled at Karamthal in July,” the Army said.Meanwhile, the Army on Thursday said it had conducted a pre-recruitment and physical fitness training camp ahead of a recruitment rally at Larnoo in Anantnag district. “With the aim to train and prepare youth for an upcoming recruitment rally, the Army is carrying out pre-recruitment and physical fitness training for youth of Larnoo,” the Army said. — TNS

Tribune News Service

Jammu, May 16

Amid raging controversy over construction of a building by Mamta Singh, wife of Assembly Speaker Nirmal Singh, near an Army ammunition depot at Nagrota, the J&K High Court, Jammu bench, on Wednesday issued notices to the civil and police authorities to file a compliance report regarding the earlier directions given in the case.In the case, the court has issued notices to three officers of Jammu — Divisional Commissioner, Deputy Commissioner (DC) and Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP). It directed them to file the compliance report before May 30.The court had, on May 7, issued an interim order after hearing a writ petition and adjourned the case to May 21.“As ad interim, subject to objections and till the next date before the bench, the state authorities, herein respondents, shall ensure that notification number 2772/DCJ/LHS/GN-Ban/Army/01/2015-963/13 dated 07.08.2015 issued by the respondent number 3 is strictly implemented in accordance with the all provisions of laws/rules and no unlawful/impermissible activity in the area is permitted,” the court had said in its interim order.As the construction is reportedly going on in the area, the petitioner approached the court for initiating contempt proceedings against the respondents for wilfully violating/flouting the interim order.It was mentioned in the writ petition that Mamta Singh continued with the construction of her multi-storey bungalow near the Nagrota ammunition depot despite the Army objecting to it.Nirmal Singh, as Deputy Chief Minister, had received a strong letter from the Army Commander of the 16 Corps telling him to halt the construction on the plot since it was illegal and a security risk to the ammunition depot and to the personnel who lived there.

New Delhi, May 13

After years of deliberations, the Army has finalised a mega Rs 15,000-crore project under which a range of ammunition for its critical weapons and tanks will be produced indigenously to overcome long delays in imports and address the problem of a dwindling stockpile.Eleven private firms would be involved in the ambitious project, the implementation of which is being monitored by the top brass of the Army and the Defence Ministry.The immediate aim of the closely guarded project — said to be the biggest ever initiative for the indigenisation of ammunition — is to create an inventory for all major weapons to enable the forces to fight a 30-day war while the long-term objective is to cut dependence on imports.”The overall cost of the project has been pegged at Rs 15,000 crore and we have set a specific target for the next 10 years in terms of the volume of ammunition to be produced,” a senior government official involved in the project said, refusing to elaborate further.Initially, ammunition for a range of rockets, air defence system, artillery guns, infantry combat vehicles, grenade launchers and various other field weapons would be produced under “strict timelines”, a source said.The production targets would be revised based on the result of the first phase of the implementation of the programme.The sources indicated the broad contours of the project were discussed at a conference of the Army’s top commanders here last month.The initiative is seen as the first serious attempt by the government to address growing concerns voiced over the last many years by defence forces over the fast dwindling stockpile of key ammunition when China has been significantly ramping up its military capability, an issue that has been discussed by successive governments.Army Chief General Bipin Rawat has been pushing for fast tracking the procurement of weapons and ammunition for the world’s second largest standing Army, considering the evolving security threats in the region.”The indigenisation of the ammunition project will be biggest such programme in decades,” said the official.In July last year, the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG), in a report tabled in Parliament, said a stock of only 61 types of ammunition out of 152 varieties was available, and these would only last for 10 days in the event of a war.According to laid down security protocol, the stockpile should be adequate for a month-long war.The sources said long delays in negotiations and subsequent procedural hurdles in the import of ammunition had adversely impacted the country’s defence preparedness and that was why the indigenisation programme had been initiated.Last year, the government had empowered the Army to directly procure ammunition and spares for 10 types of weapon systems and equipment after an internal review found the optimum level of “war stores” was not being maintained.Considering the Army’s demand, the government has already finalised one of the biggest procurement plans for infantry modernisation under which large numbers of light machine guns, battle carbines and assault rifles are being purchased at a cost of nearly Rs 40,000 crore. PTI