Tribune News Service

Jalandhar, January 15

A host of events, including wreath-laying ceremony, weapon and equipment display, mini marathon and band display, were organised at Vajra Corps headquarters in Jalandhar Cantonment on Friday.

The events were organised as part of Army Day celebration and to commemorate 50 years of victory of 1971 war under the theme of Swarnim Vijay Varsh 2021. Numerous civil dignitaries, veterans, ex-servicemen and families witnessed and participated in the events.

Mini marathon was flagged off by Arjuna Awardee Brigadier Harcharan Singh (retd) and Major General Raju Baijal. The audiences were enthralled by the live performance of military bands which played the martial tunes enthused the crowd with their majestic display and skills.

The equipment display under the theme ‘Know your forces’ was also organised which included infantry weapons, artillery guns, surveillance devices which was educative and widely appreciated. The events kindled the pride and patriotic fervour among all, especially the school children. The saga of sacrifice and heroism of Indian Army was celebrated through the events.

Patriotic fervour in air

The equipment display under the theme ‘Know your forces’ was also organised which included infantry weapons, artillery guns, surveillance devices which was educative and widely appreciated. The events kindled the pride and patriotic fervour among all, especially the school children.

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, January 15

The Army today demonstrated an offensive swarm drone system during the annual Army Day parade here.

The system was tested using 75 indigenously designed and developed drones, which executed an array of artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled simulated offensive missions. Such drones will be needed in close tactical battle.

One such project is the AI offensive drone operation. The project symbolises the beginning of Army’s tryst with autonomy in weapon platforms.

“This demonstration is recognition of the Indian Army’s ability to embrace emerging and disruptive technologies to transform itself into a technology-enabled force,” the Army said in statement.

The Army is investing heavily in AI, autonomous weapon systems, quantum technologies, robotics, cloud computing and algorithm warfare in order to achieve a convergence between the Army’s war-fighting philosophies and the military attributes of these technologies.

Army Day is celebrated on January 15 every year in recognition of Field Marshal KM Cariappa’s taking over as the first Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Army from Sir Francis Butcher, the last British Commander, in 1949.

It is celebrated in the national capital as well as at all six Army Command Headquarters in the country.

The Cabinet Committee on Security’s approval for the procurement of 83 upgraded Tejas fighter jets for the Indian Air Force (IAF) signals a significant push to accelerate the slow and difficult march towards self-reliance in the defence sector. The nearly

Rs 47,000-crore deal has been described as a game-changer; it would, according to the Defence Minister, act as a catalyst to transform the Indian aerospace industry into a self-sustaining ecosystem. Last year, an import embargo was imposed on 101 defence items, a new Defence Acquisition Procedure was put in place and Foreign Direct Investment in the sector was raised from 49 to 74 per cent under the automatic route. The government may have made clear its intent to support indigenous defence manufacturing to stem the dependence on expensive high-tech foreign imports, but the real test lies in putting that into practice and ensuring results.

Tejas is flying high, but it has been a long and arduous journey for the Light Combat Aircraft. The Mark-1A fighters will have several ‘improvements’ over the 40 Mark-1 jets ordered by the IAF earlier. The indigenous content level is expected to be 60 per cent, up 10 per cent, by the time the entire delivery is rolled out and there will be greater collaboration with private vendors. It is not only the largest make-in-India deal in the defence sector, but also the biggest for fighter jets since the government in the mid-1990s okayed the purchase of 272 Sukhoi-30MKI jets from Russia. The first lot of the upgraded version of the Tejas platform is to be made available by 2023 and the last by 2027. Public sector giant Hindustan Aeronautics Limited has a challenging task at hand and will have to step up its production rate.

The IAF at present has 30 fighter squadrons (16-18 planes each) against the requirement of 42 in case of a simultaneous two-front war. The Air Force is banking on the Tejas to add to its strength, and be the ‘backbone’ of the fleet.

New Delhi, January 15

Around 300-400 terrorists trained in camps across the Line of Control (LoC) are ready to sneak into Jammu and Kashmir, Army Chief General MM Naravane said on Friday.

In his speech during the Army Day Parade, he also said that there had been 44 per cent increase in ceasefire violations, which reflects Pakistan’s sinister design.

Pakistan often provides cover fire to help terrorists sneak into Jammu and Kashmir.

General Naravane said India’s active operations and strong counter-infiltration grid not only inflicted heavy losses on the enemy but they contained infiltration attempts as well.

He said the Army killed over 200 terrorists in counter-terror operations and on the LoC last year, adding these measures have provided people of Jammu and Kashmir relief from terrorism.

“Strong response is being given to the enemy on the other border. Pakistan continues to provide safe haven to terrorists. In the training camps, across the LoC around 300-400 terrorists are ready to infiltrate,” he said.

“There was an increase of 44 per cent in the ceasefire violations last year which is proof of Pakistan’s sinister plans. There were also attempts to smuggle weapons using drones,” he added.

There were efforts to smuggle weapons into India from across the border using drones and tunnels, he mentioned.

General Naravane said the Indian Army was working towards reorganisation and modernisation in order to increase its war fighting capability.

Awantipora, January 15

The Indian Army has changed its standard operating procedure (SOP) for anti-terror operations in Jammu and Kashmir to now focus on ensuring surrenders during live encounters notwithstanding the threat to the lives of its personnel – a policy that has helped save the lives of 17 youths in the last six months.

On the occasion of Army Day on Friday, four Rashtriya Rifles (RR) units working under the Victor Force, which combats terrorist activities in south Kashmir and parts of central Kashmir, were awarded the coveted Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Unit Citation.

The units – 50 RR, 44 RR, 42 RR and 34 RR – have been involved in multiple counter-terrorism operations and have ensured seven surrenders since September last year when it was decided to make efforts to bring the misguided youths back to the mainstream.

The citations to the four units drawn from Kumaon, Rajput, Assam and Jat regiments of the Army were presented by Chief of Army Staff Gen MM Naravane in the national capital.

Videos of some of the surrenders, accessed by PTI, show that in spite of grave risks, the Army brought parents of the terrorists to the encounter site and convinced them to drop arms.

In one of the videos, a terrorist, Zahid, has an emotional reunion with his father, who is seen weeping and telling his son that it is a rebirth.

General Officer Commanding of the Victor Force Major General Rashim Bali, who has been supervising surrenders during live encounters, feels that this has generated tremendous goodwill among the local population.

This has given a reassurance to the local terrorists that the avenue of their return to the national mainstream is open. “For those who want to join the national mainstream, we are committed to accept surrenders, even by putting our lives at great peril,” he said.

At the same time, Major General Bali made it clear that relentless operations will continue against those who pick up guns and resort to violence.

In some of the videos, surrendered terrorists could be seen praising the Army for providing them an opportunity to shun the path of violence.

The new strategy of the Army came into effect last year when Shoiab Ahmed Bhat of the Al Badr terror group expressed his desire to lay down arms during an ongoing encounter.

He was part of the group which had killed a jawan of the Territorial Army in south Kashmir’s Shopian district, but this did not deter the Army personnel in ensuring his surrender and handing him over to police after questioning. PTI

Archit Watts

Tribune News Service

Muktsar, January 15

Gurpreet Singh (28) and Gurpreet Kaur (22), residents of Sector 47, Chandigarh, are camping with their eight-month-old son Ashmeet Singh at the Singhu border for over a month now.

They had reached Singhu border on December 13 by boarding a tractor-trailer from Rajpura town in Patiala district. Speaking over the phone, cab driver and theatre artist Gurpreet Singh said, “Saade kol zameen nahi, par zameer hai (We don’t own land, but we have conscience). We are followers of Guru Gobind Singh. We have come here to create history. Initially, my wife and some relatives had some fear in their minds, but now, they are proud of my decision. We have celebrated my son’s first Lohri here and my birthday as well. Initially, we stayed in a trailer, but later got a waterproof tent. We clean other tents here as sewa.”

He added, “My mother is 76 years old and a widow. She is staying alone in Chandigarh. Though some neighbours daily tell her to call us back home due to the prevailing cold weather, she says we should come back only after the black laws are repealed.”

About his earnings, Gurpreet said, “I used to drive a cab and earn Rs 20,000 a month. I am not working presently, but I think that if the farmers won’t be able to survive, how will we survive? This is the protest for everyone’s survival.”

His wife Gurpreet Kaur said, “We are here to show Prime Minister Narendra Modi that we are Punjabis and know very well how to fight for our rights and win.”

Meanwhile, some people are giving them ‘shagun’ to keep their spirits up. “The protest has created history as from 95-year-olds to eight-month-old kids are present here for the past two months. I go to meet Ashmeet daily to know about his well-being, which infuses a positive energy in me,” said Ravneet Brar, spokesperson, Bhartiya Kisan Union (Kadian).

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, January 15

Led by Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee president Sunil Jakhar and joined by several ministers and legislators, a large number of Congress workers today set out on a protest march from the Congress Bhawan here to Punjab Raj Bhawan, demanding the repeal of farm laws. However, they were immediately stopped by the cops from marching towards Raj Bhawan, forcing the party leaders to stage a dharna near the Congress Bhawan.

Addressing the protesters, Jakhar said the central government was behaving in an arrogant manner and did not have any respect for democratic practices and public opinion. “It is the arrogance of the central government that is preventing it from repealing the laws which have been outrightly rejected by the farming community across the country,” Jakhar said, while warning against the prolonged stalemate on the issue.

He said it was after a long struggle by the Congress that constitutional institutions had been set up and strengthened, and now the BJP was trying to undermine all such institutions as it had hardly any value or respect for them. “Arrogance of the central government was not only challenging but undermining the democratic and constitutional institutions of the country,” he said.

Paying glowing tributes to the farmers who laid down their lives during the ongoing protests, party leaders said they were the martyrs of the movement and held the Modi government responsible for their martyrdom.

“The way the central government was responsible for pushing our soldiers into the death trap in Galwan heights by the lack of will and planning, in a similar way the government is accountable for pushing our farmers to death,” he said.

BJP leaders gheraoed for 3 hrs

Won’t let them hold any meet: Farmers