Sikh soldiers in the Army will soon get specially designed helmets. The Ministry of Defence has issued a request for proposal (RFP) to buy 12,730 helmets under the emergency procurement procedure.
Process underway
MoD to buy 12,730 helmets — 8,911 large and 3,819 extra large in size
Will be indigenous in design & make; will have a centre bulge, cover entire head
To withstand bullets and temperature ranging from -20°C to 45°C
The proposal seeks to procure 8,911 large and 3,819 extra large helmets which should be indigenous in design and make. During military operations, Sikh soldiers have been wearing “bulletproof patkas” that cover a portion of the head. The ballistic helmets will be used to cover the entire head, said sources.
The design requirements specify that the helmet should be able to suit the head size of Sikh troops and should have a centre bulge design. It should facilitate unhindered use of communication radio handset, in-service night vision devices, personal spectacles and respirators.
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Captain Shiva, peacekeepers to Sudan break gender barriers
The New Year bodes well for gender parity in the armed forces as it began with two historic developments. Captain Shiva Chauhan from the Corps of Engineers became the first woman officer to be operationally posted at the challenging frontline post of the Siachen Glacier. Proving the naysayers wrong, she has showed that unflinching commitment towards a goal is the key to mastering the arduous physical training needed to qualify for deployment on the world’s highest battlefield. To best serve in the 20,000-ft-high zone, the soldiers, irrespective of their gender, have to ace endurance and survival drills and learn ice wall climbing and avalanche and crevasse rescue operations, besides battling frostbite and chilly winds to come up trumps. Captain Shiva’s feat has paved the way for other women to follow suit.
Then, before the first week of 2023 ended, came the proud moment for India as it sent the largest-ever all-woman platoon (comprising two officers and 25 soldiers of varying ranks) to the UN’s peacekeeping force for deployment in the hostile Abyei area on the Sudan-South Sudan border. Female soldiers are known to be better at engaging with women and children who suffer in conflict situations. Their roles during the humanitarian crisis include conducting patrols and dialogue with locals, information-gathering and perception management. These jobs are critical components of the peacekeeping process.
The appointment of the first woman — Major Gen Kristin Lund of Norway — as Force Commander in a UN peacekeeping operation (in Cyprus) in 2014 was a watershed moment, acknowledging the shift to engaging more women in these hitherto male-dominated areas. Her performance in various top positions of duty has repeatedly affirmed that women are exceptional in the prevention and resolution of conflicts, negotiations, peacekeeping, humanitarian responses and post-conflict reconstruction, peace and security. Major Gen Lund is an inspiration for female soldiers. Before her, the courageous women stars of the Israeli army, who broke major gender ceilings, have kept the flag flying high. But despite all the strides, some gender barriers remain to be overcome by women warriors, particularly in combat roles.
Post killing spree, LeT front warns Sikhs living in J&K
At a time when the Centre has gone on a spree of anti-terror crackdown by banning two proxy organisations of the dreaded Lashkar-e-Toiba and the Jaish-e-Mohammad and declared four individuals “terrorist” in the past four days, one of the LeT proxies, The Resistance Front (TRF), has issued a warning to the Sikh community living in Jammu and Kashmir against helping the police.
In an open letter, the proxy for the Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Toiba, has recently said that several Sikh youth in J&K have been “working as Special Police Officers (SPOs) in the Police Department under the garb of civilian cover; hence, we openly declare that any person, irrespective of religion, who works as an SPO, will be treated as an agent of the RSS…”
“Further, some persons from the Sikh community allow the use of religious places as meeting halls for political persons. No such further incident will be tolerated and the committee concerned will be responsible for it,” it said. The group threatened by saying that this was the final warning and “you must stop such things, otherwise you would not have place in Kashmir”. It said, “Don’t become a scapegoat like Kashmiri Pandits, and don’t get provoked by the fascist regime’s saffronisation talks; we are fully monitoring the situation…”
Verify Canadian varsities, Indian envoy warns students
Indian High Commissioner to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma says though 99 per cent of the Canadian institutions are genuine, about 10 private institutes have fleeced several students with false claims
Indian High Commissioner to Canada Sanjay Kumar Verma has cautioned Indian students to make proper checks before joining private universities in Canada.
In an exclusive interview with The Tribune, Verma said though 99 per cent of the Canadian institutions were genuine and offered world-class education, about 10 private institutes had fleeced several students with false claims.
“Several visas (sought on the basis of these institutes) were rejected, causing hardships to students and their families. I have more concern about India where falsified information is being spread by unscrupulous agents and recruiters sitting in India itself. The most disturbing aspect is that students are taking decisions based on factually incorrect information provided by these unscrupulous recruiting agents,” he said.
Verma pointed out that students must follow a checklist provided online by Canada’s IRCC (Immigration, Refugees Citizenship Canada) before investing huge money in seeking a life in the foreign country. He said his office was also concerned about the use of Canadian soil by gangsters and pro-Khalistani elements. “This issue is of particular concern,” he said. Nearly 10 gangsters and drug smugglers, besides members of radical organisations, are stated to be operating from Canada and causing violence in Punjab
The High Commissioner said his office was constantly working towards facilitating more talks between the Indian and Canadian authorities on such issues as part of measures to build trust. “It is imperative for India and Canada to keep talking on such sensitive matters at the political and diplomatic level so that positive results emerge and speedy action can be taken against the anti-national elements,” he said.
Indian-origin Manpreet Monica Singh has been sworn in as a Harris county judge, becoming the first woman Sikh judge in the US.
Singh was born and raised in Houston and now lives in Bellaire with her husband and two children.
Singh’s father immigrated to the US in the early 1970s. “It means a lot to me because I represent H-town (a nickname of Houston) the most, so for it to be us, I’m happy for it,” she said at the oath ceremony.
India deploys women platoon in Abyei for UN peacekeeping misson
India, among the largest troop-contributing countries to UN peacekeeping, is deploying a platoon of women peacekeepers in Abyei, the country’s largest single unit of female Blue Helmets in a UN mission since 2007.
Country’s single largest women peacekeepers unit since 2007
This will be India’s largest single unit of women peacekeepers in a UN mission since 2007
As of October 31, 2022, India second largest contributor to UN peacekeeping missions after Bangladesh
5,887 Indian troops and personnel deployed across 12 missions, Bangladesh deployed 7,017
The move heralded India’s intent of increasing significantly the number of women in peacekeeping contingents.
India’s Permanent Mission to the UN said in a statement that the platoon of women peacekeepers will be deployed in Abyei as part of the Indian Battalion in the United Nations Interim Security Force, Abyei (UNISFA) on January 6, 2023.
“This will be India’s largest single unit of women Peacekeepers in a UN Mission since we deployed the first-ever all-women’s contingent in Liberia in 2007. It will also herald India’s intent of increasing significantly the number of Indian women in Peacekeeping contingents,” the statement said.
The Indian contingent, comprising two officers and 25 other ranks, will form part of an engagement platoon and specialise in community outreach.
ndia has 25-odd airfields along the Himalayan border capable of launching air operations across the hilly terrain into the Chinese mainland. Therefore, high-tech fighter aircraft, such as the J-20B, need not necessarily do the job in terms of objectives, as their radar missile combination would also be compromised in the high terrain. Another important consideration would be the efficacy of ground attack and air defence weaponry.
Pipe dream: The Chinese are seeking to replace the existing AL-31 F2 turbofan on the J-20 with the indigenous, more powerful WS-15. PTI https://cdn.vuukle.com/widgets/audio.html?version=1.0.3 Advertisement
Gp Capt Murli Menon (Retd)
Defence analyst
While much has been written about the two armies’ capabilities amid the India-China standoff, a comparison between the air forces has been scarce. A recent article in Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post has raved about the touted ‘supermanoeuvring’ capabilities of the upgraded J-20B ‘Mighty Dragon’ Generation 5 interceptor/air superiority fighter, reportedly slated for mass production since last July.
The lessons learnt by the Chinese from the Indian Su-30MKI vs US F-15s during the Red Flag exercise of suboptimal use of ‘thrust vectoring’ or ‘supermanoeuvrability’ (which seeks to enable harsh defensive manoeuvring against aerial missile threats or even better, achieve advantageous weapon launch parameters during close combat with an adversary) have been used to refine their upgraded J-20B stealth platform. This, in itself, indicates a doctored proposition as the Indian Su-30MKIs allegedly wove circles around the Americans during those engagements! They had procured some thrust vector control (TVC) Su-35 aircraft from Russia, possibly to reverse-engineer the technology.
The images (albeit unclear) accompanying the South China Morning Post article appear to indicate changes in airframe-control surfaces for enhanced manoeuvrability and an enlarged spine fuel tank capacity. Now, whilst the Chinese are past masters at info/psychological operations/warfare campaign, especially against neighbours, suffice to say that everything mentioned in the article need not necessarily be gospel truth; sans any authentic kinetic or computer fly-off against established fighter technologies from the West and even India (such as the Su-30MKI or the impending Tejas 2 or Advanced Medium Combat Aircraft, AMCA), these comparisons would remain speculative.
The Chinese are seeking to replace the existing AL-31 F2 turbofan on the J-20 with the indigenous, more powerful WS-15 to achieve an enhanced thrust-to-weight ratio. But this will remain a pipe dream until the WS-15 indigenous manufacturing project gains fruition. But then, why should the Chinese be seeking supermanoeuvrability as a preferred option for the J-20B, if indeed the advantage of TVC is negated by the disadvantage of a rapidly decaying speed vector and consequent vulnerability to “follow-on” attacks by the adversary?.
Quite clearly, the Chinese author praising the unique thrust vector capability of the J-20B does not understand if it is indeed a plus point in design or rather a handicap in close combat. The renowned vectoring in forward flight (or ‘VIFFing’ as colloquially known) had proved tremendously advantageous to the Royal Navy Harriers fighting Argentine fighter resistance during the Falklands War of 1982. So it does appear that the Chinese are hell-bent on achieving air superiority as an attribute for their air force in any future air war against the Americans over Taiwan. But the crux of the issue would be air combat training, a perennial weak area for the People’s Liberation Army Air Force.
Experience from past episodes in fighter engine manufacturing does not suggest dramatic capabilities with the Chinese aircraft manufacturing industry, regardless of their tendency to ‘steal’ technology from the West. In the earlier case of the FC-1 (later JF-17) programme, the plan was to use Russian RD-33 engines (same as those on our MiG-29s) till Russian President Vladimir Putin himself declared that the transfer of technology would not be made available to the Chinese.
So, it is doubtful that the Chinese would remain at the mercy of Russian technology for engines, lest the entire aircraft programme flounders. Engine manufacture, especially from the ‘raw material’ stage, is challenging and has been the bane for industries in China and India (our own sad story of the Kaveri engine is typical)..
Another key hindrance, especially for high-altitude fighter operations, would be the tailoring of fuel-metering jets on the engines to prevent a ‘rich cut’, especially during start-up.
The Indian Air Force (IAF) learnt to adapt to this peculiar requirement whilst learning to maintain the MiG-23BNs, MiG-23MFs and MiG-29s at Leh and Thoise. Ahead, the IAF could also think of operating fighters from Daulat Beg Oldie (DBO). Our experience found that it is easier to operate western-technology aircraft from high altitudes such as Mirages and Hawker Hunters. So, would it be for the Rafales and perhaps the Tejas and the advanced medium combat aircraft down the line as our technicians are proficient in these tweaks? The Chinese have been doing limited J-10 operations periodically from their high-altitude air bases such as Hotan and Lhasa Gongga.
But operationally, these bases pose stringent load penalties. On the other hand, India has 25-odd airfields along the Himalayan border capable of launching air operations across the hilly terrain into the Chinese mainland. Therefore, high-tech fighter aircraft, such as the J-20B, need not necessarily do the job in terms of objectives, as their radar missile combination would also be compromised in the high terrain. Another important consideration would be the efficacy of ground attack and air defence weaponry..
Traditionally, Russian and Chinese missiles, more so the air-to-air ones, have not been proven in air combat, unlike the ones employed in various air operations since World War II and Vietnam War by the Americans and their NATO allies.
The Chengdu Aerospace Corporation hopes to roll out 200 J-20Bs in the next five years, an amazing one aircraft or so per month over four production lines, which is remarkable by any standard. The aircraft is meant to bridge the technology gap with the American F-35 and F-22 and a naval version using TVC is also supposedly slated. The older J-20As flew across the Taiwan straits last year during the standoff over Nancy Pelosi’s visit. In any case, the Chinese would not in the long term accept Russian engine technology for their J-20Bs.
Celebrate the odds, be the winner, says Major DP Singh
“If you wish to give up anything, give up ‘giving up’. That’s the message I wish to give everyone and that’s the reason I run every day.”
This was the key takeaway from an address by Major DP Singh, the Kargil War survivor and India’s first blade runner, as he spoke as the chief guest at the inaugural ceremony of the new academic session at the PGI. The event was attended by key functionaries, heads of the departments and newly joined residents while observing the Covid-appropriate behaviour, at Bhargava Auditorium on the PGI premises here today.
“Losing a part of the body does not lead to disability. Losing the will to fight our odds does. Odds are in the head and not in the heart. Celebrate odds and be the winner,” stated Major DP Singh, while he narrated his journey from being declared ‘dead’ in an Army hospital in July 1999 during the Kargil War to 14 years hence, returning as India’s first blade runner, showing the world how the invincible spirit in a true warrior can make a handicap into a ‘handy- capable’ person.
Motivating the newly inducted doctors, Major DP Singh said, “Always remember an acronym, ‘ASK’, to be successful in life. It stands for attitude, skill and knowledge.” He shared that ‘attitude’ was the most important aspect in life and that if one focused on one’s goal with the right attitude, the other two factors would automatically fall in place.
He concluded, “Failure is important in one’s life as it teaches one to absorb shock and learn to adapt to difficult situations. So, don’t be scared of failures, lead the change and not wait for others to begin.”
Earlier, Prof Vivek Lal, Director, PGI, while welcoming the chief guest, recounted the valour of the braveheart. Lal said, “Major DP Singh’s journey from soldier to a marathon runner, who overcame all odds, even cheated death, is stuff for celluloid.”
The PGI Director urged residents “to emulate Major DP Singh’s exemplary courage, unwavering commitment and ‘never-say-die’ attitude in the face of even worst of the circumstances.
Lal stated that in the past 59 years, the institute witnessed a spectacular expansion from 230 beds to over 2,200-bed facility, setting high ideals of medical professionalism in mitigating the pain and sufferings of those ailing and becoming the last port of call for patients with many serious and chronic illnesses.
Prof R Sehgal, Dean (Academics), conducted the pinning ceremony of resident doctors who had joined the institute in the July 2022 and January 2023 sessions.
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