In a major move, the Narendra Modi government has delegated “substantial” financial powers to the Army, the Navy and the Indian Air Force to strengthen perimeter security at sensitive military installations across the country, the defence ministry said today.

In a major move, the Narendra Modi government has delegated “substantial” financial powers to the Army, the Navy and the Indian Air Force to strengthen perimeter security at sensitive military installations across the country, the defence ministry said today. Defence Minister Arun Jaitley has fixed strict timelines to ensure that the works are undertaken on priority and in a time-bound manner to ensure full security at the critical defence assets, it said. The vice-chiefs of the three services have been empowered to place orders, procure equipment and carry out civil works without seeking approvals of the defence ministry.

“In an unprecedented move, the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has decided to delegate substantial financial powers to the Armed Forces for undertaking works for perimeter security of sensitive military installations,” the ministry said in a statement. Official sources said following the decision, each of the three vice chiefs will be able to spend at least Rs 800 crore annually in strengthening perimeter security at the sensitive bases. A total of 3,000 sensitive bases, including 600 highly sensitive installations of the Army, the Navy and the Air Force were identified by the forces months after the daring attack on Pathankot air base last year.

The decision came at a time when Indian army is locked in a face-off with the Chinese army at Dokalam and confronting rising incidents of cross border attacks in Jammu and Kashmir. The defence ministry said the move to give financial powers is aimed at expediting the decision-making process involved in the modernisation of the security apparatus of airbases and defence installations. “The financial delegation represents a significant jump in the powers currently exercised by the services,” the ministry said.

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A security audit of defence bases was carried out on the recommendation of a committee headed by Lt Gen Philip Campose which was set up after the terror attack on the forward Pathankot air force base last year. The committee was asked to recommend measures to beef up security at the military bases. The armed forces had together sought Rs 2,000 crore to strengthen security infrastructure at all “highly sensitive, sensitive and moderately sensitive bases” during the current and next financial years. The sources said following the security audit, revised standard operating procedures (SOPs) were sent to the commands of all three services to revamp their security management, including putting in place a multi-tier security structure.

A parliamentary panel had in March come down hard on the defence ministry for failing to take any concrete measures to beef up security at frontline military bases, and said the scenario is as “vulnerable” as has been “exposed” during the Uri and Pathankot terror attacks. The Campose Committee had submitted its report to the defence ministry last May. The parliamentary panel had said security arrangements at military establishments were dynamic in nature and called for maintaining a robust and strong response mechanism to emerging threats.

The officially patronised, owned and controlled Chinese Media has mounted a “Media War” on the Doklam impasse. This approach affords official deniability for the Chinese regime, whilst, simultaneously upping the ante in the build-up to the tensions. Towards the same, my article in today’s THE CITIZEN

The spark that lit the first embers of ‘Arab Spring’ for the Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, was majorly stoked by the emerging Media landscape. Independent ‘voice’ of the masses via the social media platforms, facilitated the space for civic engagement and connect, free from the clutches of the dictatorial and authoritarian diktats of the then ruling Arab regimes.

Cyber-activism was the death knell for regimes in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya to Syria, where the mass discontentment and consciousness found solace and expression against the ruling dispensations.

The totalitarian regime in Beijing kept a wary Hawkeye as the events unfolded on the fellow-totalitarian regimes in the Middle East and North Africa, drawing inferences and lessons, to nip in the bud, any loose talk of ‘Jasmine Revolution’ in China.

The ‘Arab Spring’ reinforced the criticality of controlling media amongst the Chinese leadership to selectively censor certain content, as indeed, to propound and aggressively posture the governmental point of view. The increasingly consumer-driven economy of China devised its own unique formula and contours of ‘opening-up’ that entailed the ostensible freedom of press and opinions, albeit, with blanket ban of content from Western sources or from platforms like Google, Facebook, YouTube, Twitter etc. that could prick the bubble of propagandist reality of the regime.

This affords a responsibility on the officially patronised media houses to globalise state propaganda and propound Chinese positions internationally. Complex ownership interlinkages have ensured that China now has the most sophisticated and restrictive media controls (The 2017 Freedom of Press Index notes a worsening trend as President Xi Jingping ensures strict adherence to ideological and national alignment of the media to the regime positions). So Media, along with the CPC (Communist Party of China) top-brass and PLA (People’s Liberation Army) fuels the essential totalitarian resilience to bolster its regime legitimacy in China.

The Global Times is the most famous Chinese media face internationally, that typifies the ultra-nationalistic jingoism and is credibly accused of maintaining the official CPC line – earning it the left-handed compliment as the ‘China’s Fox News’ ! The subtle nudge to the publication by the Chinese regime, allows the regime to maintain optics of official sobriety, while the publication adopts a more populist, belligerent and nationalistic line that is completely aligned to the regime positions on all contentious issues.

The spooking of India’s NSG bid was presented as, “India wants to be the first exception to join the NSG without signing the NPT. It is morally legitimate for China and other members to upset India’s proposal in defense of principles” and adds, “US backing adds the biggest impetus to India’s ambition. By cozying up to India, Washington’s India policy actually serves the purpose of containing China.

The US is not the whole world. Its endorsement does not mean India has won the backing of the world”. It incredulously contextualised Hafiz Saeed and Dalai Lama simultaneously when it stated, “New Delhi is dissatisfied with Beijing’s stance over its membership bid to the Nuclear Suppliers Group and its request to name Masood Azhar, head of Pakistani militant group, to a UN Security Council blacklist. Therefore, Delhi attempts to play the Tibet card against Beijing. In fact, China has never thought of making trouble for India, and is handling these issues in accordance with international practices and UN regulations”.

Therefore the latest round of spewing surrogate fire from the Dragon’s den, was expectedly carried out by Global Times, in particular. The recent Dokalam standoff has manifested in six thousand soldiers from the two nuclear-armed countries, staring down each other in an dangerous portent – ably aided by ‘cover-fire’ from Global Timesthat insists that India be taught a, “bitter lesson” and suggesting “New Delhi’s regional hegemony is swelling to a tipping point.

The country has to pay for its provocations”. The controlled Chinese media is effectively voicing the shriller and more war-trumpeting messages for both internal and external constituencies, to flank the diplomatically measured tones emanating from the governmental sources that lacks the populist bite. Specific counter-fire from India is retaliated via the Chinese media that states, “Indian Army Chief General Bipin Rawat previously said that India was ready for a two-and-a-half front war (Pakistan, China and against internal extremists), and China responded by suggesting India “not forget history lessons,” referring to the 1962 border conflict in which China won an overwhelming victory. India’s Defense Minister Arun Jaitley then remarked that India is not what it was in 1962, and China responded by saying neither was China”.

This unwarranted media tonality offers the invaluable option of official deniability, whilst, upping the ante in the lead-up to any issue. This has repeatedly occurred on Chinese twitch-spots like Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, South China Sea conflicts or sending messages to the West, and in particular to the US. Behind the curtains of an ostensibly independent brand identity, Global Times has the genealogical link to the stuffy and turgid mouthpiece of the Chinese Communist Party, People’s Daily – however, it has been ‘allowed’ and ‘encouraged’ to own a very bellicose voice, as compared to its parent body to do the Chinese state’s bidding in a more effective manner.

So, should the war-mongering editorials from China be taken seriously by India? Yes and No, Yes because beyond the bureaucratese, the real Chinese position, logics and rationales are subsumed in between the fiery editorial lines – and No, because the text seeks to posture a lot more than the real official intent. China has undeniable expansionist tendencies and it rarely shies away from playing realpolitik – from Hafiz Saeed, NSG, permanent UNSC seat to Doklam, it runs with the hare and hunts with the hound.

Henry Kissinger the cold-war warrior and long term China observer noted presciently on China, “The art of crisis management is to raise the stakes to where the adversary will not follow, but in a manner that avoids a tit for tat” – it is here that we need Bhutan to effectively call the Chinese bluff, and unambiguously puncture suggestions of an Indian vassal-state, as suggested in Chinese editorials, “India controls Bhutan’s defense and diplomacy, seriously violating Bhutan’s sovereignty and national interests”.

Like in the South China Seas, the restive South Asian neighbourhood needs to offer a consolidated position against the Chinese instincts and double-speak. While a military stand-down from Doklam is not at all an option for India, neither should an escalation to a warlike situation, be the only other option. Doklam has long-term strategic import for India and Bhutan, as indeed all other countries in the region.

(Lt. General Bhopinder Singh (Retired) is former Lt Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands & Puducherry)

In the long run, clashes on the LoC serve no purpose. Pakistan should know that it cannot alter geography nor sustain militancy in the Valley for long. India must realise war-mongering does no good. Both the nations should seek to rediscover the usefulness of the 2003 ceasefire agreement for enduring peace.

HUMAN COST: Army officers paying tribute to Naik Muddasar Ahmed (inset) in Jammu, who was killed in a ceasefire violation by Pakistani troops along the LoC in Rajouri sector of J&K. Escalation of tensions is a losing proposition for both the countries. PTI

Arun Joshi

THE escalating tension and killing exchange of fire at the Line of Control that divides Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan is nothing but a lose-all proposition. No one gains from these clashes which have become a regular feature since 2008  — five years after the armies of India and  Pakistan were able to seal a historic ceasefire agreement on the borders. It was to cease hostile activities on the LoC that had resulted in action and loss of lives  until 2003. As the things stand today, soldiers and civilians from both sides have been killed. Hundreds of people have fled border villages as their homes and fields receive the raining mortar shells and gunfire. Schools have been shut. A tragedy of unknown proportions was averted on July 18 when the Army, police and civil administration evacuated more than 200 children from schools. They were trapped because of unrelenting shelling by Pakistani troops in Nowshera villages in the Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir. Nobody would have owned the tragedy that was, fortunately, averted by the administration’s timely action. India would have claimed that its villages were shelled by Pakistan and the latter would have made a counter-claim  that  it  was retaliating to  unprovoked fire from the Indian side. Both sides accuse each other of opening unprovoked fire and claim they only retaliate. If the two sides  are to be believed, neither side initiates gunfire. However, this is not a fact.Human tragedies on the two sides have become a recurrent feature.  The answer to the evolving critical situation is not what generals of the Pakistani army say that they “would teach  India a lesson  with  their retaliation”. The Pakistan army chief Qamar Javed Bajwa has spent most of his time in visiting the  LoC and urging  his troops there to  target Indian villages and posts in the garb of retaliation to the “unprovoked” firing by Indian troops. The Pakistan army has counted many instances when the shelling by the Indian Army  left their soldiers and civilians dead. The brunt of the shelling is felt the most by the border population. The rhetorical assertions of the Home Minister Rajnath Singh, when he said, “We will not count bullets at borders”, are not true. That strategy has not paid off. It  has only escalated tensions. India has to buy the ammunition, while ammunition is doled out to Pakistan by the United States.Looking at Pakistan army’s geo-political designs, the fact that is that it has a vested interest in  escalation of the tension at the LoC. There are multiple goals that it wants to achieve by this violent mindset. The escalating tensions on the LoC immediately bring international attention to the Kashmir issue. This is an old tool with Rawalpindi to bring pressure on India to resolve  the Kashmir issue. This is also used to sabotage the peace talks between Delhi and Islamabad and has been witnessed since the times of the Prime Minister Inder Kumar Gujral in the 1990s. Whenever a step is  taken for bilateral talks or  meeting of the Indian and Pakistani leaders on the sidelines of international summits, Pakistani guns boom on the LoC. Apart from that, Pakistan has an all-time interest in keeping the LoC volatile — for it pushes terrorists to the Indian side to replenish the militant cadre in Jammu and Kashmir. This  gives a psychological boost  to the existing cadre of militants since it delivers a message that Pakistan is backing them with men and war machines  in their fight against the Indian troops.  The  Indian Army has to prevent that and  act against the armed infiltrators who come through ravines, rivers, forests, and  mountainous passes. Intruders have both the traditional  and the new routes at their disposal. because of the tough terrain through which the LoC passes. The advantage of topography for the militants is a definite disadvantage for the Indian Army. Each and every inch of the 740-km LoC cannot be secured  even if all of the Indian Army is deployed along the dividing line.  Even the best of devices and technology cannot beat  inclement weather and the hostile terrain to gain an advantage over the intruders. Ultimately it is test of soldiers’ physical and  psychological  strength that helps them detect the intruders. Neutralising  highly motivated and trained terrorists is not an easy task. Pakistan has diverted most of them from its western borders with Afghanistan and hardened them  with arms training in the rugged mountains.  They wreak havoc on the LoC. Also, they get the benefit of  cover fire from  Pakistani troops.  This leaves the Indian Army with no option but to retaliate  with twin objectives of neutralising  intruding terrorists  and silencing the guns of Pakistani troops. The culture of flag meetings in defusing tensions has almost vanished. Now the Director General of Military Operations talk on the hotline and there are diametrically opposite versions circulated to media after that.  Indians claim that Pakistan army has been warned against the misadventure, while the Pakistanis say they have told India that enough is enough. The  best course is to pick up  pieces of the ceasefire agreement, which has been shred into pieces as of now, to rebuild peace. Such clashes serve no purpose. Pakistan should know that it cannot alter the geography nor can it  sustain militancy in the Valley for long. India should recall 2004  when the ceasefire was most effective  and the infiltration was reduced to a trickle. It doesn’t require knowledge of rocket science  to do so. It requires will to restore peace. A war-like situation serves no one’s interests.

ajoshi57@gmail.com

US Congressman Tulsi Gabbard

New York, July 15

India’s partnership with the US will be strengthened further if the two countries deal with the “unconventional” counter-terrorism threats together, US Congressman Tulsi Gabbard has said.Gabbard, the first Hindu lawmaker in the US Congress said security and counter terrorism are critical areas of the US and India partnership.The number of military-to-military engagement and exercises between the two nations exceed any other partner in the region and is only continuing to grow.She was addressing the FICCI-IIFA Global Business Forum organised here yesterday in partnership with the Asia Society Policy Institute.”From the top all the way to the Pacific Commander, there is a recognition of the benefit to continuing to strengthen this partnership, continuing to engage in ways that haven’t been before to ensure that the two countries are stable and that we are dealing with this unconventional counter-terrorism threat together because if we do that together we are stronger,” she said at the forum with the theme of ‘India and the United States: Partners in Progress’.Indian Ambassador to the US Navtej Sarna said the need for the US and India to cooperate both bilaterally and in other global foras as well as in the UN is extremely important.Gabbard, co-chair of the Congressional Caucus on India and Indian-Americans, said there is still “quite a lot of excitement” in Washington and a feeling of momentum around the visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the American capital for his first bilateral meeting with President Donald Trump.”Those of us on the US-India caucus feel it and believe it and those who have been working on the partnership over the years are saying over and over again this is the most exciting time in the friendship between our two countries” not only on the political front but also in areas of economic ties, technology, education, culture and arts.She noted that IIFA awards being organised in the city shows how much interest America as a whole has in films coming from India.”We at the US-India caucus are excited about the opportunities that exist that are mutually beneficial for both of us,” she added.Gabbard said there had been concerns over uncertainties and possible obstacles in the India-US relations under the Trump administration.”What we have seen come forward before, during and after Modi’s visit was that while heads of state can meet and have these important diplomatic talks and negotiations, the heart and backbone of the relationship exists not only at the government level but also in the private sector, businesses and research facilities that are not waiting for marching orders from anyone in government,” she said.Addressing the valedictory session, Sarna said it is important to underline that the support for the India-US engagement is clearly bipartisan and across the political spectrum.He termed the visit by Modi as “landmark”, saying the two leaders “hit it off” in terms of understanding, engaging each other and listening to each other concerns.        “There was convergence on strategic and defence issues, economic cooperation for the global good, cyber security and space,” he said.Gabbard added that the joint statement released at the end of the bilateral visit was “impressive and extensive” in covering the different sectors and areas, laying down the pathway forward for the two countries.She stressed that the US can also benefit and learn as India deals with different challenges and opportunities.Noting that India has a large worker base, she said job training is needed for that.”If we can look at some of the innovative ways of how some of the companies are providing that training we can use that in some of our communities where jobs have either been replaced by technology or whose industries have been shut down or shipped off to other countries,” she said.”As we are looking at new opportunities here whether it is in the middle part of the country or inner cities, we can see how countries like India are taking the best of technology and are able to empower people in their communities,” she said.Sarna added that he does not see contradiction in Modi’s focus on ‘Make in India’ and Trump’s call for ‘Make America Great Again.”Here are two countries that are wanting to grow and surely there must be a place in this world for the two countries to grow and help each other rather than at each other’s cost. The two countries are being positioned now as two engines of growth which are going to help each other grow,” he said, adding that there are tremendous opportunities in areas of energy and civil aviation where the two countries will need to depend on each other to grow and actually create employment opportunities in each other’s countries through this growth. —PTI

Tribune News Service

Mumbai, July 12

Taunting the Modi government over the recent terror attack on Amarnath pilgrims, the Shiv Sena has asked its ally to send “gau rakshaks” to fight militants in Kashmir.“We understand that none of the terrorists would have been be alive today, if they had cow meat in their bags instead of weapons…… our gau rakshaks should be sent to take on the militants in Kashmir,” Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray said. He was addressing a delegation of Ganesh mandals in Mumbai last evening.The party’s mouthpiece Saamna expanded on the subject further this morning by stating that the government should not remain satisfied by condemning the terror attack on social media. “You need a 56-inch chest to fight terrorism…. it is not enough to make statements on Twitter…,” an editorial in the newspaper said.The Shiv Sena mouthpiece went on to say that the government machinery in Kashmir had collapsed completely. “There is no government in Jammu and Kashmir. Terrorists have been given a free hand there,” the newspaper said. It added that the Modi government should abolish the special status given to it under Article 370 of the Constitution “within a week to show that Jammu and Kashmir is an inseparable part of India”.

PM SIR DID YOU FIND THE ANSWERS TO YOUR OWN QUESTIONS NOW  AS PM YOURSELF

Modi’s policies created space for terrorists in Kashmir: Rahul

New Delhi, July 12

Stepping up his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday accused him of pursuing policies that created space for terrorists in Kashmir.He also said that the prime minister’s pursuit of short- term political gains from the BJP-PDP alliance in the state has cost the country dear and resulted in sacrifices of innocent Indians.“Modi’s policies have created space for terrorists in Kashmir. Grave strategic blow for India.“Short term political gain for Modi from PDP alliance has cost India massively,” he said in a series of tweets.Gandhi also tweeted, “Modi’s personal gain = India’s strategic loss + sacrifice of innocent Indian blood.”The Congress vice president had yesterday termed the attack on Amarnath pilgrims as a “grave and unacceptable security lapse” and asked the prime minister to accept responsibility.Read: Rahul’s comments immature; Nehru to be blamed for Kashmir situation: BJPHe had also said that India will never be intimidated by terrorists.Opposition parties had also asked the government to introspect on its failure to prevent the “cowardly and ghastly” terror attack on Amarnath pilgrims despite reports of advance intelligence inputs.“The government needs to introspect as to why, despite advanced intelligence inputs, was there a failure to prevent this attack?” a resolution passed by 18 opposition parties yesterday said.The BJP, however, asked Gandhi to “rise to the occasion” and not do politics over the Amarnath terror strike after he attacked the PM. — PTI

Security men patrol Srinagar city amid tight restrictions on Saturday. Tribune Photo: Yawar Kabli

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, July 9

Life in Kashmir returned to normal after two days of restrictions and shutdown over the first death anniversary of militant commander Burhan Wani. The mobile Internet services and the broadband were also restored in the region today as the overall situation showed signs of improvement.Wani was killed in an encounter with security forces in south Kashmir’s Anantnag district on 8 July last year, and to mark his first anniversary, the region’s separatists had issued a weeklong protest calendar.Whereas the region witnessed a complete shutdown on Saturday coupled with security clampdown in major towns of the Valley on Burhan’s death anniversary, there were no restrictions today even as normal traffic on the city roads and inter-district highways resumed today. Being a Sunday, a majority of the markets and business centres, however, were closed in the summer capital. In the past two days, the police and paramilitary forces had virtually taken over all streets to stall rallies and protests planned to mark the slain militant’s first anniversary. Kashmir was virtually under siege with everyone confined to their homes and neighbhourhoods, as people feared a replay of last year, when Burhan’s killing led to the killing of over two dozen people in a single day.The authorities today also restored the mobile and broadband Internet services across Kashmir, two days after these facilities were suspended. However, only 2G services were working on mobile networks, as officials indicated that high-seed mobile Internet would be resumed after a review of the overall situation. The rail services between Banihal and Baramulla also resumed today.CRPF man injured in  attackA CRPF man was injured in a militant attack in south Kashmir’s Pulwama district late Saturday. Militants fired a grenade from a UBGL (under barrel grenade launcher) at a newly established joint camp of the CRPF and police around 11 pm at Aribal, Tral, injuring a CRPF man. TNS

Pak shells Poonch villages

Jammu: The Pakistan army today targeted villages and forward posts along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir’s Poonch district by resorting to heavy mortar shelling and firing automatic weapons in yet another ceasefire violation. However, there has been no loss of life or injury to anyone in the firing. PTI