Sanjha Morcha

Lt Col Parmar cremated with full state honours

Lt Col Parmar cremated with full state honours

Army jawans salute the martyr at Holta Army Cantt. Photo: Ravinder Sood

Our Correspondent

Palampur, September 29

The mortal remains of Lt Col Rajneesh Parmar, who died in a chopper crash in Bhutan, were consigned to flames this evening with full state honours at Akshana temple, Nanao, in the presence of a large number of people, who had come from far-flung areas to pay tributes to the officer.

A pall of gloom descended on the village, 15 km from here, this afternoon when the body of 42-year-old martyr was brought to his native village. Rajneesh had lost his life when an Army chopper crashed near Yongphulla in Bhutan on Friday. Parmar was posted in the Northeast to train the officers of Bhutanese army.

Earlier in the morning, his body was airlifted to the Army helipad at Holta Cantonment, 3 km from here, in an Army helicopter where it was received by senior Army and civil officers.

During a brief halt at Holta Cantonment, Major General AK Samantra of the DAH Division of the 9th Core laid wreath on the body on behalf of the Army and paid condolences to his family. Later, his body was taken to his house at Maranda.

His body was received by local residents, family members, relatives and officials of the district and police administration.

Vipin Singh Parmar, state Health Minister, laid a wreath on behalf of Chief Minister Jai Ram Thakur. Earlier, he called on the family of the martyr at his residence.

 


CRPF out of ration cash

Most personnel in the 3-lakh-strong CRPF — the country’s largest paramilitary force and its counter-insurgency spearhead — are paid a Rs 3,000 “ration allowance” along with their monthly salary. Officials said the troops spend the sum on their meals at their camps’ mess and canteen.

Most personnel in the 3-lakh-strong CRPF — the country’s largest paramilitary force and its counter-insurgency spearhead — are paid a Rs 3,000 “ration allowance” along with their monthly salary. Officials said the troops spend the sum on their meals at their camps’ mess and canteen.Telegraph file picture

Central Reserve Police Force personnel are set to be starved of their monthly “ration allowance” by the Narendra Modi dispensation that swears by national security, apparently because of a cash crunch triggered by the economic crisis that the government denies.

Most personnel in the 3-lakh-strong CRPF — the country’s largest paramilitary force and its counter-insurgency spearhead — are paid a Rs 3,000 “ration allowance” along with their monthly salary. Officials said the troops spend the sum on their meals at their camps’ mess and canteen.

An internal communication the CRPF has sent to its formations across the country says the allowance will not be paid with September’s salaries because the home ministry is yet to release a tranche of Rs 800 crore despite reminders in July, August and this month. The Telegraph has a copy of the communication, dated September 13.

“This is the first time the ration allowance has been stopped. We spoke to ministry officials last week about the pending money and they mentioned the faltering economy,” a senior CRPF officer at the Delhi headquarters said, adding that the ministry had not cited any official reason.

He said the allowance frees personnel from having to constantly watch their pockets while buying food. “It helps personnel to keep themselves fit for fighting militants and Maoists,” he added.

The CRPF officer said: “The decision to withdraw the allowance goes against the Prime Minister’s claims of strengthening the forces to keep them in fighting shape.”

The CRPF battles insurgency in Jammu and Kashmir, the Northeast and the Maoist belt.

The internal communication said the force had nudged the home ministry on July 22, August 8 and September 9 “for allotment of additional fund amounting Rs 800 crore so that continuous ration money allowance could be drawn with regular pay but allotment of additional budget is still expected from MHA”.

“As no reserve fund under COR (cash on reserve) is presently available, therefore it is not feasible to draw ration money allowance from the pay of September 2019. Hence, stop drawal of ration money allowance from the pay of Sept ’19 till further orders. Please inform all concerned personnel accordingly.”

Contacted, CRPF deputy inspector-general (intelligence) Moses Dhinakaran played the issue down, saying the ration allowance had been increased slightly this year and the fund got exhausted in July after arrears of Rs 22,194 were paid to personnel.

“It will be resumed once we get the additional funds from the home ministry,” he said.

He declined comment on the ministry’s failure to release the money despite repeated reminders.

All non-gazetted CRPF personnel — constables, head constables, assistant sub-inspectors, sub-inspectors and inspectors — receive the ration allowance.

Sources said the force headquarters was receiving frantic calls from personnel across the country, asking about the imminent stoppage of the allowance.

“Most personnel got panicky after learning about the stoppage. It’s very difficult to keep up the morale of troops posted in hostile conditions under these circumstances,” a senior CRPF officer said. “Like the army, a paramilitary force marches on its stomach.”

Armed forces personnel, unlike their paramilitary counterparts, receive free rations. So do the two paramilitary forces under the army’s operational control: Assam Rifles and the National Security Guard.

It could not be confirmed whether the ration allowance was being stopped also in the remaining central forces: the Border Security Force, Central Industrial Security Force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police and the Sashastra Seema Ba


Northern Command chief opens tech symposium

Our Correspondent

Jammu, September 27

The North Tech Symposium-2019, an annual event organised under the aegis of the Northern Command Headquarters, was inaugurated by Lt Gen Ranbir Singh, GOC-in-C, Northern Command, on Friday.

The event based on the theme, “Empowering northern theatre with contemporary technologies to meet dynamic operational challenges” had active participation from nearly 100 defence companies, including MSMEs, DPSU and Simulator Development Division.

The symposium served to showcase cutting-edge technologies and innovative products providing solutions to complex challenges faced by the security forces in the Northern Command and also acted as an ideal platform for mutual exchange of ideas between the defence industry and the Army.

The technologies and products on display covered a wide canvas, prominent being surveillance and situational awareness, tactical mobility, firepower, soldier, force protection, communications, combat medical, robotics, simulators, training aids and many others.

The symposium achieved great success in building an Army and industry relationship with the common objective of developing customised and effective solutions for the Army and progress towards self-reliance in the defence industry to align with the government initiative of Make in India.

 


Govt nod to NSG base in Amritsar

Govt nod to NSG base in Amritsar

The base to be developed on 120 acres would help in swift counter-terror operations in Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh. Reuters file

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 26

The Punjab Government has approved the Centre’s plan to set up a base of the National Security Guards in Amritsar. The base to be developed on 120 acres would help in swift counter-terror operations in Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir and Himachal Pradesh.

Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh had pushed for setting up of such a base in Pathankot in 2017 during a meeting with then Home Minister Rajnath Singh. The development hold significance in view of attempts to revive militancy in Punjab and fresh threats from across the border.

Home Secretary Satish Chandra told The Tribune that the government had started the process to identify land for setting up a base for the NSG. “We will acquire land for the NSG base. The setting up of such a base has become quite imperative in the state,” he said.

Already, the state Special Operations Group (SOG) is fully functional. The need for SOG arose after the attack on the Pathankot Air Force base in 2016. The NSG teams from New Delhi were called in to eliminate the terrorists hiding in the base.

Sources in the Police Department said the NSG base in Amritsar would be ideally located so that commando teams can be swiftly moved in the state besides Jammu and Kashmir.

 


Pak terror groups use Chinese drones to airdrop 80 kg weapons in Punjab for J&K

The entire consignment, using the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) network, was supported by Pakistan’s spy agency Inter Services Intelligence and orchestrated through Germany and Lahore; the ultimate aim — to fuel terror attacks in Jammu & Kashmir.

Five people have so far been arrested by Punjab Police in connection with the drone drops.

At least eight drone sorties, carrying a total of 80 kg of weapons (arms and ammunition), were sent across the border into Punjab by Pakistan-based Khalistani terror groups between September 9 and 16, officials in security agencies and the Punjab Police have confirmed on condition of anonymity.

The entire consignment, using the Khalistan Zindabad Force (KZF) network, was supported by Pakistan’s spy agency Inter Services Intelligence and orchestrated through Germany and Lahore; the ultimate aim — to fuel terror attacks in Jammu & Kashmir.

The details of these drops have emerged following investigations that led to and following the September 22 weapons seizure at Tarn Taran district; the eight payloads were dropped in Amritsar and Tarn Taran.Police recover a half-burnt drone that was used for smuggling weapons into Punjab from Pakistan.

Five people have so far been arrested by Punjab Police in connection with the drone drops, with one 22-year-old Subhdeep held on Tuesday. Investigators said he was from Amritsar district and was radicalised by the prime accused in the case, Mann Singh, and another accused, Akashdeep, in Amritsar jail. The other four people, suspected to belong to a terror module, were arrested from the outskirts of village Chohla Sahib in Tarn Taran on Sunday. They were using a white Maruti Swift with a Punjab registration number.

The investigation involved multiple agencies – the Punjab Police, central security agencies, the Border Security Force, the Indian Air Force – and prima facie found that multiple Chinese commercial drones with 10 kg payloads have been used in the weapons drop operations across the border. The drones, the investigation reveals, may have been launched from locations 2 km inside Pakistan and made to travel the distance of five kilometres at a height of 2,000 feet, and then dropped off the weapons after descending to 1200 ft. The payload was slung from the platform using Chinese mountaineering ropes.

Chinese batteries recovered from  the drone that crashed in Tarn Taran, Punjab.

Chinese batteries recovered from the drone that crashed in Tarn Taran, Punjab. ( Sourced )

With drone activity also being seen in Punjab’s Ferozepur district, the IAF and BSF have been asked by the Punjab police to intercept these unmanned aerial vehicles through low-level radars and destroy them. Officials fear that they could also be used to carry and drop off bombs.

The interrogation of those arrested has revealed that KZF’s Germany-based operative Gurmeet Singh Bagga in coordination with his Pakistan-based chief Ranjeet Singh aka Neeta have made deliveries of at least four weapons, grenades, electronics, and fake currency through drones. The deliveries were made on the intervening nights of September 6/7, 9/10 and the last one on 15/16. The last drone crashed at Rajoke Village, Khalra police station, in Tarn Taran, near a border drain which is 2km from the fencing on the international border with Pakistan. The entire operation came to light after the discovery of the burnt drone, whose eight Chinese batteries were stripped off by the accused on instructions from across the border. “ It has also been revealed that such deliveries took place on four different dates, mostly between 9.30 pm and 10.30 pm with the drone making two sorties within an hour,” said a senior Punjab Police official. As many as five AK-47 rifles, which weigh about four kilograms with magazine, four Chinese pistols , nine HE grenades, Rs 10 lakh fake currency, 1000 rounds of ammunition and two electronic receivers were recovered by the police from the accused.

The main concern of Indian security agencies is the revelation that entire consignment was meant for Islamist groups in Kashmir. “ We are not very clear as to how many other consignment has made their way into Kashmir using similar modus operandi and with the help of Pakistan based Sikh terrorists,” said a senior security official.


Jeep captured from Pak in 1971 stands as ‘war trophy’ in army camp near Leh

Jeep captured from Pak in 1971 stands as ‘war trophy’ in army camp near Leh

A Pakistani jeep captured by the 3 Grenadier Regiment in the 1971 war, stationed in the unit”s camp, 40 km from Leh. PTI

Leh, September 8

All of 48 years and maybe more, the ‘Jarpal Queen’, a symbol of India’s triumph against Pakistan, travels through the length and breadth of India as a ‘war trophy’ of the Indian Army.

The ‘Queen’, named after Jarpal in Pakistan, is actually royalty on four wheels, a Willys jeep, sleek, shiny and in shipshape condition, the object of lavish attention at the 3 Grenadier Regiment’s camp, 40 km from Leh.

The vehicle, with Urdu script on its sides, is a “war trophy” captured from Pakistan during the 1971 conflict.

Once fitted with a recoilless gun, this US-origin jeep now travels across India as a prized possession of the Regiment, which has ensured the almost 50-year-old vehicle moves like a well-oiled machine.

“We captured it during the Jarpal war and it was used by the Pakistani army as a part of their attack plan at Shakargarh border, in Jarpal area of Pakistan. So, it was named Jarpal Queen. From that war, India has two Param Vir Chakra medals,” said Colonel (retd) J S Dhillon.

The two Param Vir Chakra awardees were Colonel Hoshiar Singh from the Grenadier Regiment and Second Lieutenant Arun Khetrapal from the Armoured Regiment.

“It is a ‘war trophy’ and was shown to VIP guests and was also used during guard of honour for senior officers. It is in great condition and runs very smoothly,” said Dhillon, a Sena Medal recipient who was commissioned in the 3 Grenadier Regiment in 1982 and now heads the Indian Institute of Skiing and Mountaineering, Gulmarg, under the Ministry of Tourism.

He said the ‘Jarpal Queen’ had gone wherever the Regiment has been stationed. Jaipur, Kupwara, Shimla, Poonch, Meerut, Ferozepur… the list is long.

In 1988, when the Regiment was in Ferozpur in Punjab, the jeep was registered with the Punjab transport department for it to be driven on the road.

“We took a number, insured and registered it. As far as I can recall, except the regiment’s UN mission to Eithopia, the jeep has gone everywhere with them,” said Dhillon.

The jeep has also been witness to numerous border skirmishes with the neighbouring country, particularly during the regiment’s stints in Jammu and Kashmir.

A full-scale war broke out between India and Pakistan over East Pakistan in 1971. It ended with surrender of 90,000 Pakistani troops and led to the creation of Bangladesh. — PTI


J&K: Time for strategic review by Lt Gen Syed Ata Husnain

J&K

The general perception in the Indian public’s mind is that the abrogation of Articles 35A and 370 had led to a situation where the J&K issue is done and dusted. That is furthest from the truth although I believe it is currently advantage India, at least temporarily. While India has for the first time after 25 years aggressively opted to change the existing status quo, the triggers that it has caused have given rise to a series of fresh threats which it needs to take stock of. It was last on February 22, 1994, India messaged the world that all territories of J&K including those not under its direct control belonged to India and it would aspire to regain them. That was a unique case of political consensus when all parties came together in a Joint Parliamentary Resolution to stake India’s claims in the wake of aggressive diplomacy by US Assistant Secretary of State Robin Raphael against India. Pakistan took advantage of that situation to press allegations of human rights violations and attempted to internationally take India to the cleaners; something which never ceased since then.

In 25 years since 1994, India has attempted to change the strategy of dealing with J&K in any domain only twice. First was in 1996 with the return to democracy. The second was the secret backroom dialogue on the ‘four point formula’, from 2004 to 2007, with intent to territorially resolve J&K; it failed. Since 2008, there have been ups and downs but a policy resolve towards the adoption of fresh strategy has been elusive, until now.  The decision to adopt proactive military response without a Pakistani military initiative was taken in 2002; it did then and has continued to keep Pakistan under pressure. Why the status quo ruled the roost was due to there being governments in New Delhi and Srinagar which remained happy at that as long as the security situation remained under control. The Separatist leadership led their lives with full government support. The government had the fond hope that it could one day do a ‘Mizoram’ with them; militants coming over ground, fighting elections and forming the government. To be frank, the one time both Article 370 and 35A could have been done away with and the people of J&K brought on board towards full integration was after the victory of 1971. Kashmir may have reacted with turbulence for some time but with Pakistan cut to size and 93,000 prisoners of war in India, there could have been nothing better.

The Government of India is hopefully aware of the fact that the major issue due to which an impasse has existed this long in J&K, has been the absence of strategic policy which has forced the security forces too to follow a policy of summer and winter strategies without ever looking at the larger picture and having a strategic aim. The recent statements by the Raksha Mantri, Shri Rajnath Singh, on PoK and No First Use in the nuclear domain may not be policy statements but do indicate a change in mindset towards a clearer strategy. However, for the short term, India has to cater to increased Pakistani efforts towards internationalisation and upping the ante through high-profile terror acts. The feasibility of street turbulence at high pitch appears comparatively low. The efforts to control the latter many times compromise the pace and effectiveness of counter-terrorist operations.

As the government readies itself for what could be a temporary phase of violence through enhanced attempted infiltration and street turbulence, it needs to continue to build a long-term strategy.  This should aim at emasculating Pakistani capability of calibration and neutralise the efforts at internationalisation through high levels of diplomatic and intellectual engagement. Second, it must equally focus on PoK, Gilgit and Baltistan taking a cue from the Raksha Mantri; these cannot remain one-off personal utterances. Third, of which the first portents seem to be emerging, remains the necessity of getting the civil administration to have a self-belief that this proxy war is not just the business of the Army, JK Police and CAPFs; it’s a hybrid proxy war which needs to be addressed comprehensively. Seeing the J&K Chief Secretary and Principal Secretary Home giving media briefs appears to spell for me a change in tack. That is the way forward.

There are four other things which fall in the strategic domain. First is human rights (HR). Peaceful protest is very much a right but vicious stone-throwing does not fall in that category. There is going to be a manipulated assault on India in the domain of HR internationally. I sense it and can only recall the strategy of political consensus as the best response; who can forget the face of Atal Bihari Vajpayee leading the Indian delegation to the first ever UNHRC conference at Geneva in Jun 1994.

The second is the dire necessity to continue with even greater vigour  the targeting of the ecosystem or nexus which has come to dictate terms in Kashmir. Especially finances, media, separatist rabble-rousers and radical members of the clergy require a separate campaign under the aegis of people who understand the nuances.

Third is intense information warfare with ‘fake news’ becomes the core of the Pakistan strategy. Countering this with existing machinery is a losing battle because Pakistan has developed its propaganda machinery rather well. Ours must not be an incremental approach towards developing the counter machinery; it cannot be ad hoc anymore and needs structures more than ever before.

Fourth and last is the need for a strategic ‘hearts and minds’ campaign but not the Operation Sadbhavana variety of the Indian Army, which incidentally delivered hugely where it needed to deliver, at the tactical level. Now is the time for involvement of the state in entirety, every department and every element of the administration has to join the effort towards engagement with the populace. Town hall types of meetings to resolve pending issues, youth engagement schemes, women empowerment, intra-state contacts with Jammu division, mutual adoption of towns of the Valley with those of Jammu, seminars and meetings between like-minded professionals. The scope is only limited by our imagination and inability to inspire commitment.

A broad strategy must be evolved and tweaked as we progress because without it crisis time may loom ahead and arrive faster than we can imagine.


CRPF seeks Rs 800 crore from govt to pay jawans’ ration money

CRPF seeks Rs 800 crore from govt to pay jawans’ ration money

New Delhi, September 29

A delay in government sanction of additional funds of Rs 800 crore for the CRPF has prompted the paramilitary force to order stopping the ration money allowance (RMA) for its troops this month, a senior official said on Sunday.

The Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), meanwhile, denied reports that jawans have “run out” of ration money due to this reason and said the allowance for September will be paid shortly.

The allowance is given to jawans and non-gazetted officers of the force for their daily meals and is included in their monthly salaries.

The CRPF said the issue occurred as the RMA for the 3.25 lakh-strong force was revised recently by the government.

“On account of the revision of the ration money allowance made by the MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) on July 12, Rs 22,194 per head ration money (in arrears) was paid to around 2 lakh CRPF personnel in July,” the force said in a statement.

This amount, it said, is more than six times the monthly ration allowance of jawans and other non-gazetted rank officers.

“Process for payment of ration money (about Rs 3,600) for this month is in progress and it will he paid shortly and hence the contention that jawans have run out of ration money is incorrect, baseless and preposterous and there is no crisis whatsoever,” it said.

The CRPF, according to a communication issued to its formations early this month, has sought sanction of ‘reserve funds’ worth Rs 800 crore from the Union Home Ministry to pay the revised RMA to its troops.

The force has made at least three communications to the ministry in the past.

It said the RMA will be provided to troops in receipt of the additional budget from the ministry. — PTI


No Internet, 3 online bids cancelled

No Internet, 3 online bids cancelled

Azhar Qadri

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, September 27

The ongoing Internet shutdown has affected the working of the state government as the administration ordered cancellation of three more online bids due to lack of response.

The online bids were cancelled by the state government’s Town Drainage Division, the Department of Hospital Engineering and by the Executive Engineer, Mechanical, SKIMS Hospital.

In a public notification, the Town Drainage Division said it cancelled an e-tender as it could not be uploaded on the website “due to non-availability of Internet service”.

In another notification issued by the office of the Executive Engineer, Mechanical, the online tender seeking to provide medical gas facility to the operation theatre of Vet Lab at SKIMS Hospital has been cancelled. It said the bid was cancelled due to “poor response”.

In a third such public notification within a day, the state government’s Department of Hospital Engineering said it has cancelled an online tender for augmentation of 630 KVA transformer by 1 MVA transformer with 800 KVA servo stabiliser and other allied works at SKIMS MCH Bemina.

The cancellation of the online bids has come in the wake of the ongoing Internet clampdown in the state which came into effect on midnight of August 4, hours ahead of the abrogation of Article 370.


AFT disposes of 250 cases in two days

AFT disposes of 250 cases in two days

The Bench directed the government to release disability benefits to disabled veterans whose claims had been rejected administratively by the authorities.

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 24

The Chandigarh Bench of the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) disposed nearly 250 cases in two marathon sessions on September 23 and 24 by constituting a special Bench in view of the acute shortage of adjudicating members.

Most of the cases disposed off pertained to pensionary benefits of disabled soldiers. Justice Virender Singh, Chairperson, AFT, who is also a former Chief Justice of Jharkhand High Court, sat with Vice Admiral AG Thapliyal for two days at Chandigarh to clear matters relating to the disabled soldiers and other retirees, some of them in their 80s and 90s.

The Bench directed the government to release disability benefits to disabled veterans whose claims had been rejected administratively by the authorities.

Many of the affected soldiers were veterans of various wars and military operations.

The Supreme Court in a plethora of decisions had asked the Central government to grant disability pensions to soldiers incurring diseases, while in service reminding that the rules are beneficent and liberal in nature and soldiers cannot be asked to prove service-connection of their disabilities since the same is a presumption under law.

Most Benches of the Armed Forces Tribunal in the country are virtually non-functional with just three Judicial Members being available out of the total sanctioned strength of seventeen.

These three Members will also retire by December 2019.

The Chandigarh Bench has the heaviest workload and pendency.

Justice Mohammad Tahir of the Chandigarh Bench has also been travelling to other Benches where no judicial member is available for disposing pending cases.