Narkanda, 60 km from Shimla, turns white on Saturday. Tribune photo
Current Events :
Tribune News Service
Shimla, March 14
Social Justice and Empowerment Minister Dhani Ram Shandil told the Vidhan Sabha during the Question Hour today that the state government would consider raising ex gratia relief to families of martyrs from Rs 5 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.He was replying to a question of Anirudh Singh, Congress MLA from Kusumpti, who suggested that the ex gratia relief should be increased to Rs 20 lakh as given to two jawans from the state who died in the recent Pathankot terror attack and pleaded that the same analogy be applied to other martyrs.Shandil said there were two categories for giving compensation to those who died during war and others who laid down their lives in special operation and the grant was decided on case to case.At this stage, Leader of the Opposition PK Dhumal, who was joined by MLA Inder Singh, said “martyrs are martyrs” and there should be no discrimination in amount of relief.
New Delhi, April 6
India has taken up at a “fairly high level” with China the issue of Beijing blocking its bid to have JeM chief and Pathankot attack mastermind Masood Azhar as designated terrorist by the UN, Foreign Secretary S Jaishankar said today.Asserting that India will continue to pursue the matter with China in the context of the UN, he also noted that the government has had a “backing and forthing” on the issue with the Chinese.”My sense is that the particular issue that you referred to is something we have taken up with the Chinese. We have taken it up at a sort of fairly high level and we will continue to pursue this with the Chinese,” Jaishankar said.He was replying to a question during an interaction on India’s position on China blocking for the second time country’s bid at the UN to get Azhar banned.At the same time, he indicated that the issue was not going affect India’s relationship with China in other areas.“This is an issue to be pursued with the Chinese in a UN context. I would not like to give the impression that somehow this is going to overflow into other areas. We have had a backing and forthing with them on this issue. We have to wait and see where this goes,” he said.Last week, China stopped UN sanctions committee from designating Azhar as terrorist, maintaining that the case “did not meet the requirements” of the Security Council.This is not the first time China has blocked India’s bid to get Pakistan-based militant groups and leaders proscribed by the UN.The UN had banned the JeM in 2001 but India’s efforts for slapping sanctions on Azhar after the 2008 Mumbai terror attack also did not fructify as China — that has veto powers — did not allow it apparently at the behest of Pakistan again.Last July, China had similarly halted India’s move in the UN to take action against Pakistan for its release of Mumbai terror attack mastermind Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, saying its stand was “based on facts and in the spirit of objectiveness and fairness” with Beijing again claiming at the time that it was in touch with New Delhi. — PTI
“Iss se to Angrezon ka raj hi accha tha” (The British rule was better than what we see now), said an old soldier from Haryana the other day. Having born, brought up and educated in a much bigger joint India, At the age of 21, I, like lakhs of others, bid a forced goodbye to my home and shifted to a truncated India at 21 years after Partition. I loved staying in erstwhile India, which was very peaceful till the time the maverick politicians did not sow the seeds of dissention and religious divide among gullible people. Consequent to Khattar’s announcement in Rohtak on February 15, that the government would wait till March 31 for the report of the committee dealing with the Jat reservation, the latter became restive and started blocking roads and carrying out protest marches. The non-Jats resented this and began anti-reservation marches, resulting in clashes between Jats and non-Jat groups. This was followed by burning of shops, houses, vehicles, business establishments and offices. Shamefully, on February 22 at Murthal on NH 10, women were forcibly pulled out of cars by goons, dragged to the fields and gangraped. Their cars were burnt, their husbands were looted and beaten up. There was a discernible division between the ministers and bureaucrats on the basis of caste. This resulted in the collapse of the state machinery. The Haryana police failed to grapple with the worsening situation. At best, some of them acted as a shield between the clashing groups. The rest stood as if nothing had happened. On February 18, rioting took an ugly turn in Rohtak when the rival protesting groups clashed and threw stones at each other and the police. After that, the BSF troops were deployed. On February 19, the protesters clashed with the police and the BSF personnel. Three persons were killed and more than 100 injured when the security forces opened fire to control the rioters. The police personnel vanished from the scene of violence and even abandoned their posts on February 20. The Army was airdropped at Rohtak on the same day. The Army carried out a flag march in Rohtak on February 20. The violence by now had spread to several towns in Haryana. After the Army was deployed in parts of Hisar on February 22 and despite the curfew, armed mobs looted, ransacked and burnt down at least 20 houses at village Dhani Pal. The policemen and an Army column, as per the media reports, failed to control the mob. According to the rule book, law and order is a state subject, it should be controlled by the state police in conjunction with the state armed police. When the situation goes out of the hands of the police, the paramilitary forces are called in, If they too blink, then the Amy, which is government’s last resort, is called in to restore order. Soon after their deployment on this duty, both police and paramilitary forces start looking over their shoulders for the Army to come and control the situation. Because of this mindset, they do not take the situation seriously. If commanders of these forces are taken to task for dereliction of duty (as it happens in the Army), they will willy-nilly accomplish their task. Displaying the might of the Army had a catalytic effect on the civil population during the British regime because it was kept away from the people. Its sudden appearance on he scene did, therefore, ring a warning bell in the minds of the trouble makers. The flag marches by the Army have become very common. That is why they have lost their effect these days, thanks to the deteriorating law and order situation in the country. These marches are undertaken by the Army when it comes on the scene to create a deterrent in the minds of undesirable elements and to restore confidence among the peace-loving citizens. But unfortunately, the flag marche achieve none of these objectives. On the contrary, these marches can do more harm than good as the marching or mounted columns present a good target to the trained and well-equipped trouble makers. Given the current situation in the country, every move by the troops in the disturbed areas should be tactical and not ceremonial.After the deployment of the Army in Haryana on February 20, there was hardy any media coverage about it. This was unusual as the Army always comes in for praise whenever it is deployed to quell disturbances. The only mention about it was that “the Army column (in Hisar) failed to control the mob.” There was a whisper in certain quarters that, like the police, the Army also gave a short shrift to law and order in Haryana. Accountability has become the worst casualty in modern India. It is a free-for-all situation and you can get away even after committing a heinous crime, provided you have tonnes of money and /or political support. Ironically, the hedge has started eating the crop. It has become a fashion to wear religion and caste on one’s sleeves and brag about it loudly. Surprisingly, all our problems stem from indecision of the politicians. This reminds one of what William James said: “There is no more miserable human being than one in whom nothing is habitual but indecision”. Who will stem the rot?The writer, a retired Colonel, is a defence columnist.
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col charanjit Khera(Retd)
Gen secy
Sanjha Morcha
Narkanda, 60 km from Shimla, turns white on Saturday. Tribune photo
Bhanu P Lohumi
Tribune News Service
Shimla, March 12
The higher reaches and tribal areas experienced fresh snowfall while the mid and lower hills were lashed by intermittent showers and hailstorm.The widespread rain and snowfall in the region reduced the winter rain deficit between January 1 and March 12 from 50 per cent to 17 per cent. More rain is predicted in the next two days.The rain caused landslides in the interior areas, blew off roofs and uprooted trees at some places in Kangra, Sirmaur and Mandi districts. Traffic was halted in the interior areas of Kullu, Lahaul-Spiti and Shimla.The Rohtang Pass recorded 90 cm of snow while the Dhauladhar range in Kangra and Churdhar range in Sirmaur have turned white. It has been snowing there since yesterday.Keylong in the tribal areas recorded 35 cm of snow while Kalpa, Bharmaur, Kothi and Hansa received 12 cm, 11 cm 10 cm and 5 cm of snow. Narkanda, Kharapatthar, Sangla and Chitkul also received fresh snowfall.Fresh snowfall in upper Manali and Rohtang has hampered the clearance operation on the Manali-Rohtang-Leh road. Two women were injured when a tree fell on their house near Palampur while a storm hit Pachhad and Sarahan in Sirmaur district.Bharmaur received 150 mm of rain while key tourist resorts of Dalhousie and Manali received 91 mm and 82 mm of rain followed by Hansa 76 mm, Saloni 75 mm, Kothi 71 mm, Dharamsala 58 mm, Shimla 45 mm, Jogindernagar 42 mm, Bangana 40 mm, Kangra 39 mm, Bhuntar, Sujanpur Tira 38 mm and Solan 32.5 mm.The Met Department has predicted heavy rain, thunderstorm and squall at isolated places in the mid and higher hills tomorrow and rain/snow in the region over the next three days.Kangra highway inundatedThe state highway passing through this temple town was flooded today following heavy rain and lack of proper drainage system near the old bus stand.Kangra experienced 30 mm rain in the past 24 hours, leaving the state highway inundated. Residents gathered at the spot and protested the non-availability of a proper drainage system. They raised slogans against the administration. — OCAvalanche warning in Kullu, ChambaAn avalanche warning has been issued for the higher areas of Himachal Pradesh. People have been advised to stay away from these places over the next 24 hours. The advisory has been issued by the Snow and Avalanche Study Establishment (SASE), part of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). ‘Medium danger’ avalanche warning exists in areas of Lahaul-Spiti, Kullu, Chamba and Kinnaur districts. — PTI
Army Chief visits Siachen with words of praise for soldiers
Chief of Army Staff General Dalbir Singh Suhag interacts with soldiers in Siachen on Friday.
Tribune News Service
Jammu, April 1
Chief of the Army Staff General Dalbir Singh Suhag today visited Siachen to review the situation following recent avalanches in which 12 soldiers and a porter were killed.
“The Army Chief visited the sites where soldiers lost their lives at Siachen in the recent avalanches. He interacted with the soldiers serving at Siachen and commended them for their outstanding work in difficult conditions. He exhorted them to be careful of the threats of avalanches,” said defence spokesperson Col SD Goswami.
The Army Chief also met the porters who maintain the posts in difficult conditions at Siachen.
General Dalbir Singh was accompanied by Northern Command chief Lt Gen DS Hooda and 14 Corps Commander Lt Gen SK Patyal.
On March 25, two soldiers on patrol duty were buried under an avalanche in the Turtuk area of western Siachen.
A porter died on February 27 when he fell into a 200-foot-deep crevasse in Siachen’s northern glacier.
His body was found 130-foot-deep after the rescue teams cut through frozen snow and ice.
On February 3, 10 soldiers were buried under a major avalanche which wiped out an Army post on Siachen Glacier. While nine of the soldiers were found dead, Lance Naik Hanamanthappa Koppad, buried under 25 feet of snow, was found alive in a critical condition six days after the avalanche had hit the Sonam post.
Lance Naik Hanamanthappa, however, succumbed to hypothermia among other ailments at Research and Referral Hospital in New Delhi on February 11.
Following the death of nine soldiers on February 3, Pakistan’s High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit had suggested withdrawal of Indian and Pakistani armies from the strategic glacier.
NEW DELHI: Chinese troops again entered almost six-km deep inside Indian territory near the Pangong lake area of Ladakh region on March 8, but a patrol of Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) sent them back in two hours, sources told HT.
Sources said a platoon of at least 11 Peoples Liberation Army (PLA) men led by a Colonel-rank officer crossed over LAC between India and China at ‘Finger VIII’ Sirjap-I area close to the lake.
The Chinese troops were engaged by the ITBP men deployed there. “The ITBP men showed banners and told the Chinese troops to go back. After a two-hour long verbal duel, the Chinese men went back. Such incidents keep on happening because of difference of perception on the LAC,” said a security official requesting anonymity.
Several times Indian troops have intercepted Chinese troops along the banks of the 90 sq km Pangong lake, two-third of which is in China. India and China had a three-week long stand-off in the Depsang plains of Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO) in May, 2013. China has also managed to construct a road up to Finger-IV area which also falls under Sirijap area and is 5-km deep into the LAC.
New Delhi/Leh: In a fresh transgression in the Ladakh sector, Chinese PLA troops entered almost 6 km inside the Indian territory near the Pangong Lake area, leading to a stand-off between security personnel of the two sides,said security sources. The incident occurred on March 8 when a platoon of at least 11 PLA men led by a Colonel-rank officer crossed over the imaginary LAC at ‘Finger VIII’ Sirjap-I area close to the Pangong Lake, sources said. The Chinese soldiers entered in four vehicles from across the Thakung border post of India and reached 5.5 km inside the Indian territory. The soldiers were soon “countered and engaged” by a patrol of the Indo-Tibetan Border Police and they were locked in an “eye-to-eyeball” confrontation for a few hours after which the situation was defused and the other side retreated. PTI
Vijay Mohan
Tribune News Service
Chandigarh, April 1
As the armed forces continue to grapple with shortage of officers, a new Services Selection Centre (North) became operational today at Kapurthala, near Jalandhar, and is expected to help offset some shortfall.Last month, Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had told Parliament that there was a shortage of 9,106 officers (18 per cent) in the Army and 1,265 officers (15 per cent) in the Navy. The Air Force is reported to have negligible deficiency.The Army has drawn up a roadmap to fill the vacancies, but the process is expected to take another six to eight years to bring the shortfall from 18 to 12 per cent. While there is no deficiency in the higher ranks of Colonel and above, the problem lies at the junior officer level that forms the cutting edge. Battalions and regiments remain severely understaffed, raising operational, administrative and psychological issues.The screening and tests for the first batch of 80 candidates commenced today at the new centre. Candidates from Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and even Jammu and Kashmir will generally be called here for Service Selection Board (SSB) interviews. These states, according to last year’s figure, contributed over 24 per cent of the total cadets who became officers.The centre consists of two SSBs (No. 31 and No. 32). This is the fourth selection centre to be raised to select aspirants for the Army, the other three being at Bangalore, Allahabad and Bhopal. The Air Force and the Navy have separate SSBs. The Defence Ministry has approved seven new boards across the country, including two each for the Army and the Air Force and three for the Navy.The centre was earlier scheduled to commence functioning from September this year, but its early operationalisation would enable the centre to handle an additional 25 batches. It is expected to function provisionally at Kapurthala Military Station for two years till it is shifted to its proposed permanent location at Ropar where a state-of-the-art campus spread over 200 acres is under construction.Inaugurating the centre, Lt Gen KJ Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Command, said it was a pending demand of Punjab to open a selection centre in the state as aspirants from the North had to travel to far off places for SSB interview.
Neeraj Bagga
Tribune News Service
Amritsar, March 10
Mohana Singh, who is among the first batch of women fighter pilots set to join the Indian Air Force, is a product of the city’s Global Institutes. There are three women who will join the IAF as fighter pilots.Global Institutes vice-chairman Dr Akashdeep Singh felicitated her telephonically and observed that her trail- blazing success would inspire many young women to aim high, work hard and achieve glory. He wished her many more milestones in future also.He said it was a moment of great pride in the history of Global Institutes when the news came that its student Mohana Singh, who did her BTech in Electronics and Communication Engineering with 83.68 per cent marks in 2013, received the honour of being one of the first women fighter pilots in the IAF, a rare distinction achieved by only three women of substance, courage and conviction for the first time in India.Hailing from Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan, Mohana had joined the institute while her father Pratap Singh was posted here in the Army.She has brought laurels not only to her alma mater and family, but also to all women of the country with this feat. She has proved that for a woman of determination, sky is the limit. She can, like men, conquer all barriers and obstacles to attain her chosen goal.This is what Mohana has shown as possible. She was determined to make a mark in this exclusive male domain. She has shown to all Indian women that they can achieve what they want and make their life more meaningful and fulfilling professionally also. Mohana had been a focused and hardworking student during her studies at Global Institutes.The management, faculty and the staff were thrilled to hear the news. They sent congratulations to the distinguished fighter pilot and her parents on her grand professional success.
