On July 4, three braveheart air warriors of the Indian Air Force led by Wing Commander Mandeep Singh Dhillon, Commanding Officer of the Tezpur-based Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH) unit, met with a tragic end when their helicopter crashed in the hills of Arunachal Pradesh.Co-pilot Flight Lieutenant PK Singh and Sergeant RY Gujar, the flight gunner, were among the other aircrew members involved in the mission involving evacuation of the landslide-hit civilians.A constable from Aruna-chal also died in the crash.On the ill-fated day, the crew reportedly evacuated 169 civilians to safety.(Follow The Tribune on Facebook; and Twitter @thetribunechd)For “Mandy”, as Wing Commander Dhillon was fondly known, saving lives was intrinsic to his life and profession. Never the one to shy away from volunteering on such mercy missions, his grooming came about at this very ‘Hovering Angels’ unit — his first operational unit and unfortunately, his last.On a hill-flying mission in the Tawang sector last year on May 19, upon learning that a number of Army jawans were injured in a vehicle accident, Mandy volunteered to evacuate them. In a series of sorties, he evacuated 13 soldiers from Jaswantgarh to Khirmu, a helipad some distance away.With nearly 4,000 hours of flying experience, including 1,200 captain hours on the ALH alone, Dhillon was one of the highly experienced helicopter pilots. Air Vice Marshal Manavendra Singh, erstwhile Commodore Commandant of ‘Hovering Angels’, was Dhillon’s first Commanding Officer in 2000. He recalls, “Mandy was one of the very bright and upcoming officers. In no time, he achieved his operational status.” “Besides being a thorough professional, he was one of the most loved persons in the station. What a great loss!” said Air Commodore KVR Raju, Air Officer Commanding, Tezpur.A second-generation IAF officer, Mandy Dhillon, who hailed from Patiala, was destined to follow in his father’s footsteps. From being a cadet at the Rashtriya Indian Military College to the NDA, followed by the Air Force Academy, it was only natural for him to opt for the helicopter stream.“Perhaps he wanted to add to the legacy of his father, Sqn Ldr PS Dhillon (retd), who was a Flight Engineer in Mi-4 helicopters in 1970s,” said Group Captain PB “Papa” Nair, Dhillon’s NDA coursemate. An avid sportsperson and an excellent cross-country runner from his school days, Dhillon imbibed much of his athletic prowess from his father, who was also a national coach in athletics.From the initial sense of shock to denial, slowly but surely, the ALH unit Dhillon once nurtured for over a year is coming around, as the pilots have once again taken to the skies in their angelic missions of saving lives.Recalling their life together in their near 14 years of matrimony, his wife Prabhpreet Kaur Dhillon describes her husband as someone who was very compassionate and helpful. Having grown up herself in the Air Force way of life (her father retired as an Air Commodore), Prabhpreet was well acquainted with the high-risk profession of her pilot husband.“He would always volunteer for such rescue and relief missions ahead of others. He just wanted to help others in every possible way and also performed ‘seva’ in langars at the gurdwara wherever possible,” she recalled. “He was a loving husband and a doting father to our daughter Sehaj and son Eshar.” On that ill-fated day, she wanted her husband to take their daughter to the Station Medicare Centre as she was running fever. “But he said he would not be able to, as he had to go for a flood relief mission. And, in the process of saving other lives he ended up losing his own life,” said Prabhpreet, wistfully remembering her last conversation with him.Despite her profound loss, Prabhpreet, as the first lady of the unit, was seen consoling family members of others who had lost their near and dear ones in the tragic accident.“Her courage in the face of adversity and personal tragedy was both astounding and admirable,” said Air Cmdr Raju.The “antim ardas” is being solemnised at their residence in Patiala.(Contributed by Smriti Rana Singh, a former Tribune staffer)

It is high time that Maj Gen Satbir Singh must stop his business show for own propaganda at Jantar Mantar. He must take the legal course as continuous  agitation at Jantar Mantar has already ruined the reputation of Ex-servicemen. The Public has already comparing this agitation with Trade unions,thus loosing all the credibility and respectability  and sympathy from the Public.

Today Maj Gen Satbir is harping on and stating that what govt has given is not OROP. If so he should come out with definite  points and bring out the deficiencies  and anomalies of the Pay/Pension Structure. We are doubly sure that Maj Gen Satbir has nothing calculated else he should circulate to all veterans or email to all , so ensure support from ESM Community

What he has been doing i Slogans at Jantar Mantar against the Govt and even involved in mimickery  of the RM Arun Jately and Honorable  PM Narinder Modi like a Joker acting. These reports have gone to the concern Ministers through vigilance which is keeping an 24 hours eye  and which is the root cause of their anger and holding up and depriving the ESM from the legitimate  balance issues of OROP.

Maj Gen Satbir is damaging the entire  ESM community for his own self interest of Political ambition and to get himself elected as Chairman of IESM ( Indian Ex-Servicemn Movement) . 

The last but not the least any mature  ESM with pride will advise him to stop his acting School Drama at JM and get on to the business of taking up the case in the Court.  

There were Volunteers  Advocate more than 21 who had offered free services to fight the case of OROP in court including Shri Ram Jethmalani, Than where  is the delay ,Maj Gen Satbir must stop burning fire at JM which is costing Rs 12000/- per Day and now 80% of ESM do not want that the  agitation to Continue and it will  also stop misusing of the donated funds by the ESM.

Even if the advocate had to be paid than there  are more than RS 2 crore collected in the bank and has 25 Lakhs in the new Account opened by Satbir. The huge amount collected  from donations is the root cause and was earlier and during JM initial agitation as Maj Gen Satbir cannot afford to apart away from it.  He has only used ESM and other organisation and left them as they wanted account of collections at JM. Till today he has not done even a single welfare work of ESM in any State or assisted any Martyrs  families or widows .

Col Charanjit Singh Khera

Ex-Media Adviser UFESM

Jantar Mantar

SUPREME COURT RULING

New Delhi, July 9

Weeks after the Army rejected an indigenously built assault rifle, the government has decided to speed up the procurement process for over 1.85 lakh high-calibre guns to replace the ageing INSAS rifles.The Army has been pressing for fast-tracking the supply of the 7.62×51 mm guns and particularly sought immediate procurement of at least 65,000 rifles to enhance its fire power in border areas.Already nearly 20 gun manufacturers, including a number of foreign entities, have responded to the request for information (RFI) for the assault guns and steps are being taken to speed up the procurement process, official sources said.Last month, the Army rejected the 7.62×51 mm guns built by the state-run Rifle Factory, Ichapore, citing poor quality and ineffective fire power. The Army is badly in need of the assault rifles and the contract for the guns is likely to be finalised in next few months. Sources said there were “excessive number of faults” in the guns manufactured by the rifle factory and “complete redesigning of the magazine” was needed. — PTI

Nikhila Pant Dhawan

Tribune News Service

Bathinda, July 7

A week within Bathinda Tribune highlighted the bad condition of Shahid Nand Singh Chowk, the Defence Services Welfare Board took the initiative to renovate it. The roundabout is popularly called Fauji Chowk.Deputy Director, Defence Services Welfare Board, Bathinda, Colonel Sarabjit Singh Sangha, said, “We have a provision under which we can renovate and reconstruct roundabouts in the city, which we do preferably before Republic Day and Independence Day celebrations.“Recently, a heavy vehicle rammed into the roundabout due to which several red sand tiles started falling off. We took the initiative before the Independence Day celebrations,” he said.He added that since this time the renovation didn’t need much money, the DSWB spent from its own funds.“If the renovation and maintenance had required more funds, we would have written to the Deputy Commissioner for it,” he said.The Bathinda Development Authority had handed over the repair and maintenance work of Fauji Chowk to Omaxe Group, which was also to beautify it as part of its corporate social responsibility project.All repair and maintenance work done at the roundabout was undertaken entirely by private firms and no money was spent by the BDA, clarified the BDA chief administrator Sanyam Aggarwal. As the project deal with the previous private sponsors is over, the BDA is looking for a sponsor, possibly Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited or the Army. After holding a competition to get the city’s roundabouts designed by various architects from across the country to display the history of Punjab and Bathinda and depict the rich culture, it had handed over the build-operate-maintain project of Fauji Chowk to Omaxe and ITI Chowk to Mittal Group.

Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria. ANI

Islamabad, July 6

Pakistan on Thursday expressed concern over the reported sale of advanced weapons to India by some countries, saying it would undermine the strategic balance in the region.“Pakistan will continue to raise its voice at the international fora which should objectively assess its actions and policies towards South Asian region,” Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria said at his weekly media briefing.His comments came amid reports that the US has cleared the sale of predator Guardian drones to India.Zakaria said Pakistan was alive toward the issue of its national security which would be safeguarded at every cost.He also rejected allegations about presence of the Haqqani network in Pakistan and said that it was just “rhetoric” and effort to shift blame on his country.“The killing of a number of commanders of Haqqani network in Afghanistan clearly indicate that the group is based in Afghanistan and not operating from Pakistan,” he said.He also claimed that in Pakistan there was no organised presence of any terror outfit like the Taliban, Jamaat-ul Ahrar, IS and al-Qaeda.Zakaria said that during the visit of the US delegation headed by Senator John McCain, matters pertaining to Afghanistan were discussed.He repeated Pakistan’s support for an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process. He alleged that New Delhi was against peace in the war-torn country.The spokesperson also said that there are reports of Indian forces using ammunition containing chemical agents and precursors in Kahsmir.“We call upon the international community, particularly, relevant International organisations to initiate investigations into these reports,” he added. — PTI Pakistan Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria. ANI Islamabad, July 6 Pakistan on Thursday expressed concern over the reported sale of advanced weapons to India by some countries, saying it would undermine the strategic balance in the region. “Pakistan will continue to raise its voice at the international fora which should objectively assess its actions and policies towards South Asian region,” Foreign Office spokesperson Nafees Zakaria said at his weekly media briefing. His comments came amid reports that the US has cleared the sale of predator Guardian drones to India. Zakaria said Pakistan was alive toward the issue of its national security which would be safeguarded at every cost. He also rejected allegations about presence of the Haqqani network in Pakistan and said that it was just “rhetoric” and effort to shift blame on his country. “The killing of a number of commanders of Haqqani network in Afghanistan clearly indicate that the group is based in Afghanistan and not operating from Pakistan,” he said. He also claimed that in Pakistan there was no organised presence of any terror outfit like the Taliban, Jamaat-ul Ahrar, IS and al-Qaeda. Zakaria said that during the visit of the US delegation headed by Senator John McCain, matters pertaining to Afghanistan were discussed. He repeated Pakistan’s support for an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace process. He alleged that New Delhi was against peace in the war-torn country. The spokesperson also said that there are reports of Indian forces using ammunition containing chemical agents and precursors in Kahsmir. “We call upon the international community, particularly, relevant International organisations to initiate investigations into these reports,” he added. — PTI

Mere assurances won’t do, the Captain must deliver on many fronts

CAPT Amarinder Singh comparatively is an honest politician who would like to have no gap between what he has promised and what he is doing. But there are interest groups operating, each vying to have its own pound of flesh and, sometimes, they get the better of him. He knows this dilemma like Shakespeare’s Hamlet, who wishes to disentangle himself from the temptation to do what he must do for the sake of justice, for the welfare of the State. There is also another distinction as Amarinder Singh is an elected leader in a democracy and should be aware of the transitory nature of his office.  The Congress that has come to power after 10 years has its task cut out and set in its election manifesto. It also knows too well that if unimplemented, the manifesto might come to haunt it. If there are good omens, there are bad signs too. At one stage, the new government was able to conduct hassle-free procurement of wheat soon after it came to power — some 11.5 million tonnes against last year’s 10.6 mt at a whopping cost of Rs 21,000 crore. The Akalis had fumbled during the last two seasons. The fight against the drug menace that has nearly ruined a generation of Punjabi youth is making some notable successes. Some big fish have been caught, supply routes are being disrupted and there is an effort to break the politician-police-smuggler nexus. But it would require a stronger political will at the level of Amarinder Singh and his party leadership to break this nexus. He is fortunate to have a seasoned former leader of the Opposition, Sunil Jakhar, as state president. He is proving his mettle in keeping the party united and defusing the crisis. It was Jakhar who prevailed upon the CM to disband truck unions that had turned into a mafia and were extorting crores of rupees every year from traders and truck operators. But efforts to streamline the sand mining business and break the powerful politician-bureaucrat nexus has run into rough water with one of his ministers allegedly found with his hands in the till. Amarinder Singh knows that it has adversely impacted  the image of his government and has weakened his resolve to fight corruption. The Congress, despite its best effort to have a smooth ride during the first budget session, faced a united Opposition and rough conditions. There should have been not even a semblance of unity between the two arch rivals, the Akali Dal and the AAP.  Another area which is causing troubles is the government’s lack of promised serious efforts to end the monopoly of the cable operator control system. For this reason, many a television channel was either killed or stopped in the tracks from coming to Punjab. It has given near-monopoly to a channel allegedly owned by none other than former Deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Badal. While the CM has clearly stated not to hold any probe by the vigilance department, his local bodies minister Navjot Singh Sidhu has declared a war on Punjab’s ‘cable mafia’ and asserted that Fastway Cable Network ‘bullied Reliance Communications, which was laying cables for 4G mobile services, to lay its cable too, for free’. If what he said is true, there is a serious case of punishing the guilty and bringing back the Rs 680 crore of evaded taxes and create a level-playing field for all cable operators and television channels like Day and Night and ABP. Some have been waiting desperately to start operations. The government failed to bring in legislation to end Fastway’s hold on the cable network, though the irrepressible Sidhu — replying to Congress MLA Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa during question hour — had said, ‘It is a miracle that a company that started with Rs 25 lakh as capital showed profit of Rs 30 crore during its first year. Like a big fish, it ate away the small fish. It created a monopoly by intimidating cable operators. It rendered over one lakh youth jobless.’  The CM, as it is clear from the latest Cabinet meetings, would be risking much if he ignored the demand for a probe and a new law to regulate cable networks. Also, the wayward transport department that had become a fiefdom of the Badals for the benefit of the family-owned luxury passenger transport has to be rid of the syndicates, where even some Congress bigwigs have developed a stake.  The CM loses nothing if he acts tough as there is a strong support among Congress MLAs. Is it not the party’s major commitment made to the people? Another area where he spent long hours designing a strategy is the agriculture crisis. With adverse market conditions and daily disturbing news of more and more farmer suicides, he announced a slew of measures. He claims in an article in a leading daily that there should be no doubt about his intention to fulfill the promise of loan waiver. He writes, ‘Can anyone deny that the small and marginal farmers were the ones most acutely affected by the debt burden, and by waiving their loans up to Rs 2 lakh we have brought lakhs of them back from the brink of economic devastation?’ The government is not paying much heed to the crisis of landless agricultural labourers who are the worst hit. Recent studies suggest that the number of suicides by them was higher than farmers. But how does one explain the continued suicides by famers?  The agrarian crisis is, no doubt, a national problem. The NDA government has been tackling it for the past three years. PM Narendra Modi, who promised the farmers the moon by increasing their profit by 50 per cent, went back on his promise, declaring it was not possible. Instead, there were new promises: doubling farmers’  income by 2022 and a second Green Revolution. The government has not disclosed from what level of income it would double. From insurance, made compulsory in many states, farmers have paid their premium but during the kharif season last year, only 23 per cent claims were settled. The less said the better about the soil cards.  In these times of grave crisis, more farmers are falling in the debt trap. A bumper harvest during the last two years has meant a bumper crisis. What is the solution before Punjab?   Enterprising farmers like Avtar Singh offer good hope. The 60-year-old owns — along with his two brothers — just three and a half acres of land at Tira village, 10 km from Chandigarh. He grows turmeric, his farming being totally organic. He cleans stems, grinds turmeric and packs it neatly to sell to consumers. Quality sells and he makes a neat Rs 4 lakh. In another half acre, he prepares vermin-cultured compost and earns another Rs 7 lakh. Punjab grows organic food in over 12,000 acres and this is on the rise.  Let Amarinder Singh sit with hardy peasants like Avtar Singh and learn how to tide over the crisis. He would discover that experts living in comfortable rooms, drawing huge salaries, are of little use. The writer is a Chandigarh-based journalist

Amir Karim Tantray
Tribune News Service
Jammu, July 4
The 166 Military Hospital of Jammu completed 47 years on July 1, after being raised on July 1, 1970, as a military hospital in place of a section hospital of 148 Base Hospital. It was renamed 166 Military Hospital in 1978.
The hospital is strategically located with all specialised and diagnostic services available under one roof and is the centre of medical activity during active operations and hostilities.
In the last one year, 73 snake bite cases have been treated and 2,150 cataract surgeries of veterans have been carried out here. More than 2,500 out-patients are seen daily and on an average, there are more than seven to eight caesarean cases and challenging cases in orthopaedics, surgery and medicine department. At any given time, the bed occupancy is 95 per cent and above. Keeping up the pace with rapid technological advances, this hospital has adopted the guidelines of the National Accreditation Board of Hospital (NABH) and in the next six months, the hospital is likely to get accreditation. The Military Hospital in Jammu has left no stone unturned in providing latest specialised medical services.
Brigadier Tathagata Chatterjee, a haematopathologist, assumed command of this hospital in November 2015. In the last two years, using his administrative acumen and vision, he has made efforts to improve the working of this hospital.
The hospital is now equipped with the state-of-the-art 1.5 Tesla MRI, the only functional one in the whole Command Zone as of today.
A new AC plant for operation theatre and the ICU has been installed. The piped oxygen, air and vacuum supply to the wards and departments of this hospital has been started. A new centrifuge machine has been installed in the blood bank of the hospital.
The auditorium is equipped with a movie projector for clinical lectures and the screening of movies for patients.
The hospital is connected via campus wide area network, the outpatient services, departments. Medical stores of the hospital, too, have been automated in terms of generation and maintenance of patients’ records.
One of the busiest hospitals in North India
The 166 Military Hospital of Jammu is one of the busiest zonal hospitals in North India
This 600-bed hospital acts as a referral hospital for patients of Poonch, Rajouri, Akhnoor and Samba
It provides cover as a garrison hospital for the troops and families of the Army, Air Force and GREF located in and around Jammu and Nagrota
In addition, casualties of the BSF and the ITBP are also treated at this hospital

Our Correspondent

Doda, June 30

The Army today organised a disaster preparedness programme for all government departments with an aim to spread awareness regarding management of such situations in an efficient and organised manner.The programme was organised by 10 Rashtriya Rifles at Police Lines, Doda, where the Army carried out a joint exercise on disaster management in collaboration with the departments of civil administration, police, CRPF, SDRF, fire brigade, PWD, IRP and medical.The objective of the programme was to train and keep the entire department under single umbrella in such a situation and for better coordination in future.A real-time fire-fighting practice was also carried out jointly by the fire brigade and Army personnel followed by a rescue operation by an NGO, Chenab Rescuers.