Monthly Archives: August 2018

Lt Gen Rajan Sharawat, AVSM, VSM, the General Officer Commanding (GOC) Rising Star Corps conducted a detailed review of the operational preparedness of formations and units in the Pathankot sector, with a focus on the integration of advanced Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS) and Counter-Unmanned Aerial Systems (CUAS) technologies. During the visit, the GOC commended the troops for their tech-driven operational excellence and indigenous innovations, highlighting the ongoing efforts under Swadeshikaran Se Shaktikaran to strengthen self-reliance in defence capabilities. The review emphasized the Corps’ commitment to leveraging cutting-edge technology for enhanced situational awareness, rapid response, and maintaining a high state of combat readiness in the strategically vital sector. More Read Indian Army Releases First Pictures of Bhairav Battalion Commandos NSG Commandos Summit Mt Satopanth Ahead of Everest 2026 Mission Indian Navy Inducts ‘Mahe’ – First Indigenous Anti-Submarine Warfare Shallow Water Craft Built by CSL

Praises Tech-Driven Excellence in Pathankot Sector GOC Lauds Troops’ Innovation and Self-Reliant Tech Integration in Pathankot Sector.

Read More: https://www.ssbcrack.com/2025/10/lt-gen-rajan-sharawat-reviews-operational-readiness-praises-tech-driven-excellence-in-pathankot-sector.html

Tasked to conduct cross-border operations, reconnaissance and disruption missions, the Bhairav units will relieve Para-Special Forces for strategic assignments.

Mayank Singh

Lt Gen Ajay Kumar, Director General (Infantry), Indian Army. (FIle Photo |

NEW DELHI: Indian Army’s transformation bid will touch another milestone as plans are afoot to get specialised Bhairav Light Combat Battalions operational within six months.

Lieutenant General Ajay Kumar, Director General of the Indian Army’s Arm of Infantry, said on Wednesday that five Bhairav battalions are now fully functional. Four more are currently in the process of being raised, and the remaining 16 will be operational within the next six months.

“Designed to be lean and lethal, these battalions are built for rapid, high-impact operations along India’s borders with China and Pakistan,” he said, speaking to reporters ahead of the Shaurya Diwas celebrations. The Shaurya Diwas is celebrated on October 27 to commemorate the air-landed operations in 1947 at Budgam Airport in Jammu and Kashmir.

Infantry is the Army’s largest fighting arm, with more than 400 units. The need for such specialised battalions was realised to fill the gap between a conventional infantry unit and the Special Forces. Tasked to conduct cross-border operations, reconnaissance and disruption missions, the Bhairav units will relieve Para-Special Forces for strategic assignments.

As earlier reported by The New Indian Express, Bhairav battalions will be deployed on special tasks and assignments to inflict damage on the enemy. However, these units will not be as heavily armed nor tasked with strategic operations like Special Forces units.

This year’s discussions will focus on Op Sindoor, employment of air power in multi-domain warfare

Units that included Punjab-based Armed Forces personnel decorated with the Maha Vir Chakra for gallantry during the 1965 India-Pakistan War will be felicitated by Governor Gulab Chand Kataria. The ceremony will take place at the ninth edition of the Military Literature Festival (MLF) scheduled to be held from November 7 to 9.

The Commanding Officers of 11 Army and Air Force units, along with their senior JCO, are expected to attend the event.

The family of Chaman Lal, a railway firefighter who was awarded the Ashoka Chakra during the war for battling a blaze that had engulfed an ammunition and petroleum train, will also be felicitated.

The Governor, who will inaugurate the festival, will also honour the veterans from Punjab who had participated in the 1965 war, the diamond jubilee of which is being commemorated this year, or their surviving kin.

Chairperson of the MLF Association, Lt Gen TS Shergill (retd), said that the theme of the event this year is “Heartland and Rimland Powers in Multi-domain Warfare and India”.

He further said that the western, southern and eastern edges of Eurasia have been categorised as Rimland, with central and northern areas being the heartland and this entire region has immense geo-strategic significance.

This year’s discussions will focus on contemporary national and international issues such as the conduct of Operation Sindoor and employment of air power in multi-domain warfare, multi-domain threats from Pakistan and China, challenges in the maritime domain, role of energy in the changing geopolitical scenario and changing dynamics in Af-Pak region and Iran.

Chief of Defence Staff to deliver keynote address

Chief of Defence Staff, Gen Anil Chauhan, will deliver a keynote address on the concluding day. A British delegation will discuss the shared heritage between the militaries of India and Britain

Homage to martyrs, a bravehearts motorcycle rally, weapons and equipment display, exhibition of military paintings and stamps, screening documentaries, horse show and dog show are other events being organised.

Notably, the two 1965 war recipients of the highest gallantry award, Param Vir Chakra, Lieutenant Colonel Ardeshir Burzorji Tarapore and Company Quartermaster Havildar Abdul Hamid belonged to Maharashtra and Uttar Pradesh, respectively.

IAF takes decision in view of festival season

The Indian Air Force (IAF) has allowed a seven-hour window for flight operations during the ongoing repair and maintenance work on the runway of the Shaheed Bhagat Singh International Airport from October 26 to November 6 to facilitate the movement of passengers during the festival season.

The runway will be available for civilian flight operations from 5 am to 12 noon daily during that period. During the second phase of maintenance work, an 18-hour window — from 5 am to 11 pm— has been planned from November 7 to 18.

The IAF had earlier announced the complete closure of the runway for civilian flight operations during the two-week period for maintenance and repair of the single-strip runway. However, the maintenance project has now been divided into phases to avoid inconvenience to the passengers in the peak festival season.

The IAF authorities have issued a revised notice to airmen (NOTAM) for the closure period from October 26 to November 6, from 12 noon to 5 am (next day).

From November 7 to 18, the airport will remain closed from 11 pm to 5 am (next day) during low traffic hours. During this phase, the airport will be available for flight operations for 18 hours a day.

Meanwhile, the Chandigarh International Airport Authority (CHIAL) officials, UT and Mohali administrations, and other stakeholders held a review meeting today to discuss the action taken report (ATR) regarding the unusual bird activity in the vicinity of the airport threatening flight safety.

Chandigarh MP Manish Tewari and Anandpur Sahib MP Malvinder Singh Kang had addressed the issue of the serious flight safety hazard due to increased bird activity during the Airport Advisory Committee meeting held on October 12. Tewari, chairman of the 13-member committee, said, “It is a serious issue and steps are being taken by taking along administrative officials of the Tricity. All actions taken after October 12 meeting will be reviewed again on November 1. Effective waste management and remedial actions are being done on a priority.”

The announcement comes as a major relief to passengers who are travelling to celebrate festivals with family members and attend marriages of their near and dear ones.

Officials said polymer modified emulsion work was being carried out on the runway.

More than 50 flights operate from the airport daily. It operates direct service to 21 destinations — 19 domestic locations and two international destinations

296 scanners put up in last 3 months

As many as 1,000 scanners will soon be installed along the 4,096-km India-Bangladesh border to digitally maintain a database of infiltrators — including Bangladeshi citizens entering Indian territory illegally, as well as Indian nationals crossing into Bangladesh illicitly. The initiative will help the BSF track their movements and activities more effectively.

Sources told The Tribune that in the last three months, 296 scanners have already been deployed along the Bangladesh border. These devices have helped maintain biometric records of infiltrators, giving the Border Security Force (BSF) a much clearer understanding of the people who cross the border illegally in either direction.

This first-of-its-kind initiative will see an additional 1,000 scanners installed along the Bangladesh border in the coming months. The scanners record fingerprints of individuals caught attempting to cross the border illegally.

BSF officials noted that, in many cases, the same individuals attempt to enter Indian territory repeatedly, even after being caught and imprisoned previously. Most of these repeat offenders are smugglers, and due to their large numbers, maintaining records manually has been nearly impossible, a senior BSF official said.

Since the scanners have been installed, biometric details of infiltrators are recorded whenever they are arrested. This enables the BSF to track both their movements and profiles. For example, if a Bangladeshi infiltrator is caught while attempting to smuggle cattle, their biometric record can verify whether they had previously been caught for other activities or smuggling attempts, the official explained.

Similarly, several Indian nationals are intercepted while entering India after having crossed into Bangladeshi territory illegally. In such cases, biometric data helps track their movements and maintain accurate records.

The scanners also help in cases where Indian farmers accidentally cross into Bangladesh. Their details can be verified quickly, preventing unnecessary penal action against them, officials added.

SUBEDAR JOGINDER SINGH PARAM VIR CHAKRA – 23 – 24 OCT 1962 by MAJ GEN HARVIJAY SINGH

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Tawang – elevation 3,048 metres (10,000 ft) in the northwestern part of Arunachal Pradesh then NEFA. Bum La Pass (15, 200 Ft) located 37 km away from Tawang by road. A 26-km Bum La Tawang foot-track was the shortest approach to Tawang. 3 km southwest of Bum La, west of the foot-track stood the feature called ‘Twin Peaks’. 1st Battalion, the SIKH Regiment was responsible to deny this approach to the Chinese. Delta Company was deployed at Tongpeng La, a pass situated a km southwest of the ‘Twin Peaks’. Between the ‘Twin Peaks’ and Bum La, existed an Inspection Bungalow (IB). 11th Platoon of Delta Company, under Subedar Joginder Singh, deployed at the nearby IB ridge and set up defences to halt the Chinese advance in their tracks. 7 (Bengal) Mountain Battery provided artillery cover with the artillery observation post officer located at Tongpeng La. At dawn on 20 Oct, a JCO of the Assam Rifles outpost at Bum La noticed hundreds of Chinese soldiers preparing for an attack. He alerted the 11th platoon (23 troops). Joginder promptly despatched a section of about 10 men under Havildar Sucha Singh to reinforce the Bum La-post.

The attack came at 4.30 AM on 23 Oct with volleys of mortar and anti-tank guns followed by an assault on the Assam Rifles post at 6 AM. Sucha Singh’s Section killed several Chinese before withdrawing to the IB ridge. Having overrun the Assam Rifles outpost, with the objective of capturing ‘Twin Peaks’, the enemy launched an assault on IB ridge. Subedar Joginder Singh had prepared his defences well. Other than this the troops were ill-prepared – logistically they had: a stock of four days’ rations, no snow boots, only canvas made jungle shoes, no winter clothing and limited ammunition. The gunfight began soon; mortars and artillery guns engaged the enemy with effect and mounting casualties compelled the Chinese to retreat. Even the SIKHs suffered and only 17, half the platoon, survived the Chinese offensive. Having repulsed the first wave, Joginder sent three men to the company HQs to fetch ammunition. The Chinese attacked again in greater strength, an echelon climbed unobserved from the right flank. The assault was far more ferocious. Joginder took a machinegun burst on his thigh. Dripping blood, he tied a field dressing on his wound. Joginder refused to be evacuated and continued screaming instructions. He manned a machine gun and inspired his men to hold ground.

They forgot their fear and stood fast with their leader. When the 2-inch mortar exhausted its bombs, Lance Naik Santokh Singh manning the mortar leapt up and killed two Chinese with the barrel before he was shot dead. However, the platoon suffered serious losses and soon the Chinese were swarming all over the IB Ridge. The Company Commander sensing a loss of the position, as a final resort, radioed Joginder if he could direct SOS fire on himself. (This meant calling Artillery Fire onto own position – causing serious casualties to own as well as the enemy troops who were now swarming the defensive position) …… Subedar Joginder Singh’s answer was ‘Yes’. The enemy was shocked. Joginder had readied the remaining platoon for a head-on, final attack. Shouting ‘Bole So Nihal Sat Sri Akal’, the SIKHs killed a score of Chinese soldiers in the bayonet charge …. The Chinese never expected the SIKHs would leave their trenches and charge with such intensity.

The Chinese troops however came in waves and continued to clamber up overpowering Joginder in close quarter combat. All but four soldiers from the platoon perished. Badly wounded Subedar Joginder Singh was taken prisoner, the other three gave the slip, trekked to the main defences at Se La, and narrated the ringside account of the battle that raged for four hours. No one had expected the locality to hang on for so long and so resolutely against 100s of Chinese. A Chinese surgeon informed Subedar Joginder Singh that his leg had to be amputated. He refused because he was due for promotion as a Subedar Major. He thought that if amputated, he would lose his due promotion. The valiant Subedar unfortunately, passed away due to gangrene soon after.

The Indian Government awarded Sub Joginder Singh the Param Vir Chakra for his leadership and gallantry. Out of the 23 men only three men survived, the rest died fighting at IB Ridge. Indeed, a ‘Battle of the Last Man to the Last Round’. On learning that Joginder was awarded the Param Vir Chakra, Chinese army, in a mark of respect, repatriated his ashes with full military honours – No tribute can be greater. A memorial has been constructed at Bumla to honour the brave soldier. This memorial is like a temple visited by all before being deployed in the region. The ‘spirit’ of Subedar Joginder Singh continues to guard the icy slopes of the treacherous Tawang region.