Monthly Archives: August 2018

An Su-30MKI and a Mirage-2000 crashed mid-air while practising close-combat manoeuvres along with a third aircraft
While the findings will reveal the exact reason behind the incident, sources said two fighter jets crashed mid-air while practising close-combat manoeuvres along with a third aircraft. File.
The investigation into an accident involving two Indian Air Force (IAF) fighter jets, an SU-30MKI and a Mirage-2000, is complete, and the Court of Inquiry (CoI) findings will be sent to the Air Headquarters after due process, in what is a case of mid-air collision during close combat manoeuvres.
“The CoI is complete and the findings are with the Command. After requisite processing (which also includes legal vetting) it will be sent to the Air Headquarters,” a defence source said.
While the exact reason behind the incident will be revealed by the inquiry findings, sources said the two fighter jets crashed mid-air while practising close-combat manoeuvres along with a third aircraft. The pilots of the third jet are key witnesses in the inquiry in addition to the flight data recorders and other digital evidence and the two pilots of the ill-fated aircraft who ejected safely.
Key Witnesses
On the morning of January 28, the two ill-fated aircraft along with another fighter jet took off from the Gwalior air base in Madhya Pradesh on a close combat training mission when the incident occurred. The Mirage crashed immediately in Morena, resulting in the death of Wing Commander Hanumanth Rao Sarathi, while the Sukhoi flew for some distance and crashed in Bharatpur, Rajasthan, giving time for the two pilots to eject safely. A CoI was immediately ordered which was headed by an Air Commodore.
The Gwalior airbase is home to IAF’s Mirage-2000 fleet as well as the premier training establishment, Tactics and Air Combat Development Establishment (TACDE), the equivalent of the U.S. Navy’s ‘Top Gun’ academy.
Air Accidents
The Parliamentary Standing Committee on Defence, in a report tabled in March 2022, had expressed concern over air accidents and the Defence Ministry had replied that there were 105 aircraft accidents during each year of the Eleventh and Twelfth Five-Year Plans.
“The number of aircraft accidents has reduced from an average of 13 accidents per year in 11th plan (April 01, 2007 to March 31, 2012) to an average of 8 accidents per year in 12th plan (April 01, 2012 to March 31, 2017). During 13th five-year Defence plan, an average of six accidents per year have taken place. In last Financial Year (2020-21), the accident rate was the lowest in last 50 years,” it said.
A parliamentary standing committee report of February 2021 noted that in the past two decades, the IAF had flown approximately 2.5 lakh hours per year, with the available inventory of aircraft. It added that during the period, the IAF had put in dedicated effort to reduce the number of accidents.
“Comparing safety records in a block of five years, it is evident from the data given below that accident rate has decreased considerably in the last two decades,” the report said.

New Delhi: External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar on Thursday said that G20 Foreign Ministers’ meeting reflected the concerns of the global south and came out with an Outcome document and not a collective statement as there were differences on Ukraine issue which could not be reconciled.
“If we had perfect meetings of minds on all issues and captured it fully, it would have been collective statement but there were issues on which there were divergences…There were differences on Ukraine issue which we could not reconcile,” Jaishankar said at a press conference here.
He said on bulk of the issues which concern the Global South, the developing countries, there was considerable meeting of minds.
“And a considerable meeting of minds has been captured by the Outcome document. If we had a perfect meeting of minds of all issues and captured it fully then obviously it would have been a collective statement,” he said.
Jaishankar said that the Chair Summary outlined the concerns of the Global South and “it is just on two paragraphs that were not able to get everybody on the same page.”
Paragraphs three and four of the Outcome document were taken from the G20 Bali Leaders’ Declaration and were agreed to by all member countries except Russia and China.
Answering a query on the impact of Ukraine conflict, Jaishankar said it is impacting the global south.
“Of course, it is. It is not something new. In fact, India has been saying this very strongly for pretty much close to a year that this is affecting… In fact, today, in my own session, I actually used the word saying for much of the global south, this is a make-or-break issue that the cost of fuel, the cost of food, the cost of fertilizer…The availability of fertilizer which means next year’s food. These are all extremely pressing issues,” he said.
“If you see, some of the countries who were already struggling with debt, who were already impacted by the pandemic. For them, the knock-on effects of this conflict coming on top of that. It is a matter of very, very deep concern for us. Which is why we kept focus in this meeting on the concerns of the global south. We feel these are the most vulnerable countries. It is not credible to talk about the future of the global economy and the multilateral order if we are not able to really address and focus on the issues of those who are most in need,” Jaishankar said.
He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his remarks had said that G20 countries also had a responsibility towards those not in the room
“There were five important points in the Prime Minister’s address. One, he noted that multilateralism is in crisis today. And, in terms of preventing future wars and fostering international cooperation which were two primary tasks it had failed. The second point he made was that it is important to give a voice to the global south because world was sinking … a lot of countries actually regressing on their sustainable goals pathway were witnessing challenging debts,” he said .
“The third point he made was that the discussions which we were beginning at that time. He recognised that these discussions were affected by the geopolitical tensions of the day but asked us all as foreign ministers to remember that we had a responsibility for those who are not in the room. And therefore, he urged that we draw inspiration from India’s civilisation ethos and focus not on what divides us but on what unites us,” he added.
Jaishankar reiterated PM Modi’s concerns about the challenges that the participating countries should address which included the impact of the pandemic, the lives lost in natural disasters, the breakdown of global supply chains, debt and financial crisis.
He said that G20 group have individually and collectively an obligation to contribute to international growth and prosperity, adding that these can be implemented through sustainable partnerships and goodwill initiatives.
“On its part, India has undertaken development projects in 78 countries and has actively encouraged exchanges and capability building. During the Covid pandemic, we made a conscious effort at contributing to global solutions even while looking after our own. Today’s situation demands that we continue to live up to our international responsibilities. G20 must be sensitive to all our partners’ priorities and economic concerns, especially those more vulnerable. We must ensure demand-driven and sustainable development cooperation based on country ownership and transparency. Respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity are essential guiding principles for such cooperation,” he said.

Can’t sacrifice our people just for nothing, says top Ukraine official

Kyiv, March 1

Russian forces carried out relentless attacks on Bakhmut on Wednesday, trying to encircle the small eastern Ukrainian city and claim their first major prize for more than half a year after some of the bloodiest fighting of the war. Ukrainian forces are fiercely resisting a Russian attempt to seize the small city of Bakhmut and are throwing massive extra reserves into the bloody battle, Yevgeny Prigozhin, founder of Russia’s Wagner mercenary force, said.

At the same time, Alexander Rodnyansky, an economic adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, said Ukraine’s military could pull back from the key eastern stronghold of Bakhmut. “Our military is obviously going to weigh all of the options. So far, they’ve held the city, but if need be, they will strategically pull back,” Rodnyansky said.

“We’re not going to sacrifice all of our people just for nothing.” The battle for Bakhmut, in Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region, has become a symbol of Ukrainian resistance as defenders hold out against relentless shelling and waves of Russian troops taking heavy casualties in a months-long campaign to capture it.

Rodnyansky noted that Russia was using the best troops of the Wagner Group, a private military company led by a rogue millionaire with longtime links to Russian President Vladimir Putin, to encircle Bakhmut. Recent drone footage shows the scale of devastation in the city, while Zelenskyy has described it as “destroyed.”

Meanwhile, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said Moscow would not review its suspension of the New START nuclear arms treaty until the US changed its policy on Ukraine, Interfax reported. — Agencies

‘Won’t rejoin n-treaty until US changes stance’

• Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov says Moscow will not review its suspension of the New START nuclear arms treaty until the United States changed its policy on Ukraine
• Vladimir Putin last week announced Moscow’s suspension of its participation in the deal, accusing the United States of trying to inflict a “strategic defeat” on Russia

China, Belarus call for ceasefire, dialogue

• China President Xi Jinping and Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus called for a ceasefire and negotiations to bring about a political settlement to the Ukraine conflict.
• After both leaders met, Xi stated that the core of China’s stance was to call for peace and encourage talks. The security concerns of all be respected, he added.

IANS

Toronto, March 2

Foreign nationals who are in Canada as visitors and who receive a valid job offer will be able to apply for and receive a work permit without having to leave the country, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has announced.

The move, an extension of a Covid-era temporary public policy that was set to expire today, has now been extended by two years, until February 28, 2025.

Visitors applying under this public policy who held a work permit within the last 12 months will also continue to be able to request interim work authorization to begin working for their new employer more quickly.

Prior to this temporary policy change, those applying to work in Canada would typically need to apply for their initial work permit before they came to Canada.

If they were already in Canada with visitor status when they were approved for a work permit, they would need to leave the country to be issued their work permit.

With this policy in place, leaving Canada isn’t necessary.

Those looking to benefit from this temporary public policy must have valid status in Canada as a visitor on the day they apply, and have a job offer that is supported by a labour market impact assessment (LMIA) or an LMIA-exempt offer of employment.

An LMIA is an application that an employer makes to Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) to evaluate if hiring foreign workers will have a positive, neutral or negative impact on the Canadian economy.

If ESDC deems the impact is negative, the employer will not be eligible to hire foreign nationals, according to CIC News.

Under the policy, applicants must also submit an application for an employer-specific work permit no later than February 28, 2025.

IRCC said that continuing this policy makes visitors an option for employers in Canada, many of whom are facing significant labour shortages during a period of economic expansion.

There was an overall decrease in the number of vacancies to 848,000 from over one million, according to Statistics Canada data from December 2022.

However, key sectors like healthcare, food and social assistance still need more employees to fill in-demand positions.

Centre may send 30-40 CAPF companies to Punjab: Sources

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 2

Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann met Union Home Minister Amit Shah here today and sought funds to help check the supply of drugs and weapons from across the border.

A statement from Mann’s office read: “The Chief Minister, who called on Amit Shah at his office on Thursday, apprised him about the use of drones for supply of drugs and weapons from across the border.” The CM sought Shah’s “intervention” in combating the challenge effectively.

During the 40-minute meeting, the CM spoke about the arrests made by Punjab’s Anti-Gangster Task Force. He also briefed Shah about the circumstances leading to the Ajnala incident. Underscoring the need for better coordination between the Centre and the state, he sought liberal funds for modernising the police to check infiltration and drone attacks. Sources here said that based on the request by the Punjab Government, the “current situation” and the upcoming Hola Mohalla, the Centre has decided to send 30-40 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) to Punjab by March 6.

Tribune News Service

Satya Prakash

New Delhi, March 2

Ending the 73-year-old system of the government appointing the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners, the Supreme Court on Thursday ordered the creation of a three-member panel comprising the Prime Minister, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha or leader of largest opposition party and the Chief Justice of India to select them.

In a unanimous verdict, a five-judge Constitution Bench led by Justice KM Joseph said the CEC and ECs should be appointed by the President on the advice of the three-member panel.

The Bench made a “fervent appeal” to the government/ Parliament to consider bringing in the necessary changes to put in place a permanent Secretariat for the EC and charging its expenditure to the Consolidated Fund of India to make it “truly independent”.

This norm will continue to hold good till law is made by Parliament

Cites appointment of Goel ‘in tearing hurry’

The apex court questioned the “tearing hurry” and the “lightning speed” with which the government appointed the Punjab-cadre IAS officer, Arun Goel, as Election Commissioner

Appointment mustn’t be overshadowed by even a perception that a ‘yes man’ will decide the fate of democracy. — Justice KM Joseph-led Bench

Incumbent CEC and his two deputies should resign from their posts: Cong

“This norm will continue to hold good till a law is made by Parliament,” said the Bench, which also included Justice Ajay Rastogi, Justice Aniruddha Bose, Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice CT Ravikumar.

It gave the examples of the Lokpal and CBI Director whose appointments were done by broad-based panels, which included the CJI and LoP to prescribe the new system of appointing the CEC and ECs. Justice Rastogi delivered a separate concurring judgment to say that the grounds for the removal of Election Commissioners should be the same as those of the Chief Election Commissioner.

Noting that “Our Constitution took a visionary step by extending franchise to everyone,” the Bench declared the right to vote in direct elections to be a fundamental right.

During the hearing, the top court had questioned the “tearing hurry” and the “lightning speed” with which the government appointed Punjab-cadre IAS officer Arun Goel as Election Commissioner even as Attorney General R Venkataramani defended the mechanism followed in appointing the CEC and ECs.

“A person who is weak-kneed before the powers that be cannot be appointed as Election Commissioner. A person who is in a state of obligation or feels indebted to the one who appointed him fails the nation and can have no place in the conduct of elections, forming the very foundation of democracy.

“An independent person cannot be biased. Holding the scales evenly, even in the stormiest of times, not being servile to the powerful, but coming to the rescue of the weak and the wronged, who are otherwise in the right, would qualify as true independence,” it said. “It is important that the appointment must not be overshadowed by even a perception that a ‘yes man’ will decide the fate of democracy and all that it promises,” the Bench noted.

The verdict came on petitions seeking a Collegium-like “independent” mechanism to appoint the CEC and ECs. Such a Collegium could consist of the PM, CJI and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha to select the CEC and ECs, the petitioners suggested.

Several successive governments failed to introduce a law on the appointment of Election Commissioners, it said. It lamented that “a large section of the media has abdicated its role and become partisan”. “The impact of ‘big money’ and its power to influence polls, and the influence of certain sections of media also make it absolutely imperative that the appointment of the Election Commission becomes a matter which cannot be postponed further,” it said.

Dear Sir,

Army officers have higher stress but lower quality of life than other ranks: DRDO study*I served in five regimental tenures in three engineer regiments over 14 years out of 32 years.
My findings are JCOs enjoy all perks including a sahayak and take no or least responsibility. I have also seen when you made a Subedar with 29 years of service as Presiding officer of canteen stock taking, he immediately rushes to the Adjt of the Engr Regt and pleads to make a three month old 2Lt (in our times) so that if something goes wrong the 2Lt is hanged. I am convinced if you reduce the strength of JCOs in units and fmn HQs by 50% and increase the strength of the officers by 25%, the Govt of India will save tons of money and efficiency of the Army goes up. (Army HQ issued letters to make JCOs more responsible by making them President of various boards of officers)

The respondents for the study were 150 male personnel aged between 25 to 45 years
While the Indian Army personnel have moderate levels of occupational stress, the levels of psychological well-being and quality of life amongst the rank and file is good, a new study undertaken by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has revealed.
In the occupational hierarchy, officers were found to have highest stress levels but lowest levels of psychological well-being and quality of life, whereas junior commissioned officers (JCOs) reported the highest level of psychological well-being and quality of life followed by other non-commissioned personnel.
Moderate stress levels can be due to the strenuous nature of work, role ambiguity, frequent postings, separation from families and danger/threat amongst various other reasons. The usual demands of multiple deployments exposing the personnel to regular stressful conditions have shown enormous deterioration in psychological and physical health conditions including, lower morale, more mental health problems, and more stress-related work problems, according to the researchers.
“The Indian Army’s role is to protect the whole nation and not an individual or a group, by ensuring national security and national unity, by defending the nation from external aggression and internal threats, and maintaining peace and security within its borders. The great importance of this duty puts tremendous stress on army personnel. Recent media reports indicate over four times more soldiers die battling stress rather than fighting militants in North-East or Kashmir,” the study says.
Undertaken by four scientists at the DRDO’s Defence Institute of Psychological Research (DIPR), New Delhi, the study was published on July 22. DIPR’s core work area is personnel selection research, organisational behaviour, stress and combat stress management, soft-skill development and the human factor in man-machine interface.
The respondents for the study were 150 male personnel aged between 25 to 45 years who were posted in one of the largest training centres of the Army and have had experiences in field and counter-insurgency areas. These included 50 officers, 50 junior commissioned officers (JCO) and 50 non-commissioned ranks.
Researchers found occupational stress to be negatively correlated with psychological well-being as well as with the quality of life, whereas psychological well-being and quality of life were found to be positively correlated
Analysis of descriptive statistics by researchers has shown that, in the Occupational Stress Index, the total mean is high on all three occupations (hierarchical) levels. Among all three levels, officers have reported the highest level of occupational stress, followed by JCOs. Non-commissioned personnel reported a slightly lower level of occupational stress than JCOs.
“One of the reasons of the above findings might be an officer holds a position of authority and therefore has more work responsibility and management responsibility as compared to JCOs and non-commissioned personnel, leading to higher levels of stress,” the study states. “Moreover, officers are responsible for decision making, planning, and execution of various activities. In the Indian Army, JCOs have longer years of service than officers, due to which officers accord JCO’s great respect and have a great amount of influence in their welfare and morale. Hence JCO’s have lower occupational stress level than officers,” the study adds.

A team of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and top officials of the J&K administration held a meeting here on Wednesday in which the issue of targeted killings also surfaced.
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Our Correspondent

Jammu, March 1

A team of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) and top officials of the J&K administration held a meeting here on Wednesday in which the issue of targeted killings also surfaced.

Home Minister Amit Shah has sent the team to the Union Territory to assess the security situation and review the work on various developmental projects.

The MHA team, headed by Joint Secretary, Lokhande Prashant Sitaram, held the meeting with senior officials, including Additional Chief Secretary (Home) RK Goyal and Director General of Police Dilbag Singh, at Civil Secretariat here.

During the discussion on the situation in the Kashmir valley, the recent targeted killing of Kashmiri Pandit Sanjay Sharma was also raised. The rising incidents of terrorism in Jammu division was another issue that cropped up during the meeting.

“Besides the movement of drones and improvised explosive device (IED) blasts, the officials also discussed individual terrorists operating from Pakistan. They also talked about need to strengthen intelligence network. The team of the Union Ministry of Home Affairs was informed that the police and other security forces had increased the vigil in rural areas of Jammu division after the attack at Dhangri village in January in which seven persons were killed,” sources said.

The Central Government’s team also discussed the issue of safety of Kashmiri Pandits who did not migrate from the Valley to Jammu and are staying at their native villages. The team will return to New Delhi on Thursday.

A view Gurdwara Kartarpur Sahib in Pakistan and Ramesh Singh Arora (right). PTI file
PTI

Islamabad, March 1

Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has appointed Sardar Ramesh Singh Arora as the Ambassador-at-Large for Kartarpur Corridor as part of efforts to attract Sikh pilgrims from across the world, a government notification said on Wednesday.

The leading Sikh leader will work in the position in an honorary capacity, the notification said.

Arora hailing from Kartarpur in Narowal is also the central general secretary of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) minorities wing. His family has been associated with the protection and welfare of the Sikh holy sites at Kartarpur.

His appointment comes as Kartarpur failed to attract the number of visitors Pakistan authorities had imagined after opening the critical holy site for Sikhs, especially those in India.

The Kartarpur corridor links Gurdwara Darbar Sahib in Pakistan, the final resting place of Sikhism founder Guru Nanak Dev, with the Dera Baba Nanak shrine in the Gurdaspur district in India’s Punjab state. The 4 km-long corridor provides visa-free access to Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit the Darbar Sahib.

In November 2019, Prime Minister Khan formally inaugurated the Kartarpur Corridor as part of the commemoration of the 550th birth anniversary of Guru Nanak at a colourful ceremony, paving the way for Indian Sikh pilgrims to visit one of their religion’s holiest sites in Pakistan without needing a visa.

Arora, 48, was elected as a member of the provincial assembly of Punjab for the second consecutive term in 2020, according to his profile on the website of the Punjab Assembly.

In his first tenure during 2013-18, he was the first parliamentarian in Punjab Assembly who came from the Sikh community since 1947.

Arora functioned as the chairman of the Standing Committee on Commerce and Investment during 2014-17; and as chairman of the Standing Committee on Human Rights and Minorities Affairs during 2017-18.

He played a prominent role in enacting “The Punjab Sikh Anand Karaj Marriage Act 2018”, making Pakistan the first country where Sikh Marriages Registration Act is enforced, according to his profile.

He also served as a member of the Evacuee Trust Property Board (ETPB) in the Government of Punjab; a member of the National Commission for Minorities under the Ministry of National Harmony during 2011-13; and as general secretary of Pakistan Sikh Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee during 2009-13.