Indian Defence Review

Remembering the undefeated Sarvatra (Lt Gen) Sagat Singh

6th Dec 1971 Afternoon, 10 Bihar had just finished a hard fought battle of Akhaura and were taking care of their wounded and silently mourning their dead brothers-in-arm. They had not slept of 2 days and had been in action continuously. In that saddened, gloomy and tired battlefield, a helicopter landed and a 6 feet...

OROP – another wild goose chase?

In infancy days of the National Security Guard (NSG), the then Deputy Prime Minister-cum-Home Minister LK Advani arrived to review their annual day parade. As he alighted from the car, he was received by the DG NSG who merely mentioned that the ‘boys’ expected ‘something’ from him. After reviewing the parade,...

India’s Defence Budget for 2019-20: The Disturbing Trends

The General Budget for 2019-20 can be pigeonholed as a ‘wish list’ for infrastructure to propel India to a $5 trillion economy by 2024. The new Finance Minister has sought to change the syntax from ‘consumption driven’ high growth to ‘investment driven’ growth; where government will provide the enabling...

Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi – Cat with 10 Lives?

Amidst ‘dead or alive’ speculations about Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, chief of ISIS, he emerged in a video on April 29, 2019, talking to three others with faces blurred. Baghdadi accepted new pledges of support from extremist groups in Burkina Faso and Mali, praised attacks against French forces, Easter Sunday bombings...

Two Year Membership of UNSC: Euphoria Over Crumbs!!!

There has been much euphoria in the media over India being backed by 55 members of the UN for a seat as a non-permanent member of the UNSC for which votes will be cast in June 2020 for a two year tenure starting from 1st January 2021. India has been a non-permanent member of the UNSC seven times earlier starting way...

US-Iran conflict could spark Western Pacific

The US-Iran conflagrating war of words is raging. President Donald Trump has tweeted, “Any attack by Iran on anything American will be greeted with tremendous and overwhelming force. In some areas, overwhelming will mean destruction. No more John Kerry and Obama!” After US imposed fresh sanctions on Iran, Iranian...

Remembering the undefeated Sarvatra (Lt Gen) Sagat Singh

OROP – another wild goose chase?

India’s Defence Budget for 2019-20: The Disturbing Trends

The Great Kashmir Betrayal

A recent report of the Home Ministry has made public a fact that was known to many but did not get the due visibility in the media and hence remained confined to a few. Ever since, Amit Shah has occupied the all- important chair of the Union Home Minister, the ministry has got a new fillip because of his perceived image...

Exemplary valour prevented Kargil from going the 1962 way

The Sino-Indian war of 1962 can never be erased from the country’s collective consciousness, though it is extremely doubtful whether successive political dispensations have learnt any lessons at all, except for occasional acts of bravado as a sop to public sentiments. The wounds and the abiding sense of betrayal had...

Talking to Hurriyat

Speaking at a function on June 22, 2019, J&K Governor Satya Pal Malik asserted that the situation in J&K is changing and separatist Hurriyat Conference leaders were ready for talks with the Centre. He added, “The ones who turned back Ram Vilas Paswan from their door, they are now ready for talks. The stone pelting...

KRAS receives $100 M Order from RAFAEL for manufacturing BARAK-8 MRSAM missiles’ kits

At a ceremony, RAFAEL Executive Vice President & General Manager of the Air & Missile Defense Systems Division, Brigadier General (ret.) Pini Yungman, presented to Kalyani Rafael Advanced Systems Ltd, India (KRAS) a $100 Million contract for manufacturing 1,000 BARAK-8 MRSAM missiles’ kits which in turn would be...

Boeing appoints Surendra Ahuja as Boeing Defence India leader

Boeing has announced the appointment of Surendra Ahuja as managing director of Boeing Defence India (BDI), based in New Delhi. Ahuja will lead BDI in alignment with Boeing’s accelerated growth strategy for India. This includes the execution of current and future programs across all BDI business sectors in a...

India’s 5G Network

As the 5G networks begin taking shape world over, medical researchers are raising fears of health hazards from 5G. These include overall adverse effects on health and the DNA, leading to cancer, tissue deterioration and disruption of cell metabolism and the like. But then, medicos also warn of radiation effects because...

OHCHR has no understanding of dynamics of Kashmir issue

The fatuous approach of the United Nation towards understanding the dynamics of the Kashmir issue came to the fore...

General Qamar Bajwa: De-facto dictator of Pakistan

A change in command of the Pakistan Army normally gives way to a degree of romanticism that the new Chief will be...

Pompeo’s India Visit – America’s ‘Mutt & Jeff’ Persists

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s June 26-27 visit to India was the first high-level visit by a US official after Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government came to power a second time. Pompeo met PM Modi, EAM Jaishankar and NSA Ajit Doval. Pompeo’s visit was significant for the Indo-US Strategic Partnership and future summits between President Trump and PM Modi; meeting on sidelines of...

Union Government is addressing Kashmir with clarity and confidence

Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, chose to visit Kashmir before his maiden address in Parliament. Apparently, he wished to get a grip of the situation there before speaking. He sat through a detailed briefing on all political, social and security aspects with emphasis on the current...

Red Star over Tibet

Rumours recently circulated about the Dalai Lama restarting negotiations with China. Nine rounds of fruitless talks were held between 2002 and 2010 between Lodi Gyari Rinpoche, the Dalai Lama’s Special Envoy and Zhu Weiqun of the Communist Party’s United Front Work...

Hurriyat should opt for realistic, people centric political engagement

The more things change, the more they stay the same! This old phrase can be most aptly applied to the theatrics of talks that the Hurriyat stage-manages every time a new Government takes charge in the centre. This time there were two differences in the script. First, the NDA...

Insurgency in Rakhine: Need to talk to Arakan Army

There was an unnoticed report in the media that said that the Arakan Army – its increasing strength, growing popular acceptance of its military role should be of national and international concern. National concern- because a new front is being opened in the West near Bangladesh and Indian border and second with the disturbed condition in the Rakhine the possibility of the seven hundred thousand Rohingyas of retuning to Northern Rakhine...