Indian Army News & Discussions

[RPK]

ExWeb interview with Col. Anand Swaroop: The Indian Army is ready to face the South Pole challenge

Polar News Explorersweb - the pioneers checkpoint

The Indian Army is trained, ready and motivated and wants to face the challenge, says the leader of the group, Colonel Swaroop to ExplorersWeb. The eight men will attempt an unassisted, unsupported expedition from Hercules Inlet to the Geographic South Pole with guides Devon McDiarmid from Canada and Svante Strand from Norway.

ExWeb’s Correne Coetzer caught up with Anand in Punta Arenas while they wait for the runway at Union Glacier to be cleared so that the Ilyushin flights can take off. Meanwhile ALE’s skeleton staff who flew in with the Twin Otters works around the clock to clear the snow.

ExplorersWeb: How do you feel at the moment, being in Punta and getting the South Pole vibe?

Anand: Well, our flight to Antarctica has got delayed due to weather on Antarctica. We are just waiting for it to clear and move. It’s a bit tense situation as we have that much less time to make it to the South Pole. Otherwise, we are ready and eager to move.

ExplorersWeb: Are the teammates the 10 names on your website? How do you know each other?

Anand: We are now 8. Hem Chandra and Nim Bahadur are not in the final team. We are all from the Indian Army. We did not know each other prior to May 10, 2010 when we got together and after a thorough selection camp formed a team.

ExplorersWeb: It is quite a large group – how do you plan to stay together during the day?

Anand: Well, it’s not that large a team. When we climb in the Himalayas we are usually 20. So relatively it’s a small team. We move together and stay two each in tents. Staying together is easy as there is no other place to go.

ExplorersWeb: What made you decide to do this expedition?

Anand: We have climbed most of the major challenges in mountaineering in Indian Himalayas. We were looking for worthwhile challenges and doing polar expeditions is definitely one and we just chose that.

ExplorersWeb: How did you prepare for this expedition?

Anand: We had a 6 weeks selection camp in Indian Himalayas followed by 4 weeks ski training in Greenland.

ExplorersWeb: What are you looking forward to on the expedition?

Anand: We are looking forward to safe and successful expedition. We hope to gain immense experience in polar journey through this expedition.

ExplorersWeb: What are you not looking forward to?

Anand: Injuries, bad weather, et al.

ExplorersWeb: Anything else?

Anand: Thanks for interviewing us. We are ready, trained and motivated. Ready to go and face it.

 

[rajgoynar]

Army attempts to clear confusion over Adarsh ownership



In an attempt to remove confusion over the ownership of the controversial Adarsh Co-operative Housing Society, a presentation was made early last week at the army chief’s office by the Indian Army’s Pune-based southern command.

The army tried to prove the land belongs to the defence forces. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is carrying out a preliminary enquiry, before making a case for investigation.

Lieutenant General RK Swamy, chief of staff of southern command, was in Delhi for the presentation as the Mumbai-Gujarat area falls under the southern command.

The presentation had facts and figures drawn from defence estates records of 1958 and said the land was acquired in exchange for a plot in Mumbai’s Santacruz area.

The defence ministry had asked the army, navy and the directorate general defence estates (DGDE) about the security implications of having the 31-floor highrise building in the vicinity of the naval area and whether the land on which it stands is its property and how was it transferred to the building authorities.

DNA tried to contact the present DGDE, Ashok Harnal, but he refused to comment.

The army has also shown concern over how an ecological park of the mid-90s got converted into a residential building.

The army was in de facto possession of the plot since the early 1990s and had used it as a training location.




Army attempts to clear confusion over Adarsh ownership - Mumbai - DNA

 

[Water Car Engineer]

http://livefist.blogspot.com/2010/11/avionics-architecture-of-indias-light.html

 

[RPK]

Engineers celebrate 230th Corps Day at Chandimandir @ www.punjabnewsline.com

Engineers celebrate 230th Corps Day at Chandimandir

CHANDIGARH: While all three wings of Engineer Corps of Indian Army celebrating their 230th raising day nationwide, the celebration by the Engineers of Western Command with traditional fervor and Zeal is on here at Chandimandir also.



Maj Gen V K Bhatt, Chief Engineer Western Command and Colonel Commander of Bombay Sappers along with other officers, retired officers and other ranks joined in a solemn wreath laying ceremony to pay homage to the martyrs at ‘Veer Smriti’, the War Memorial of Western Command today. The entire fraternity of the Corps of Engineers in the tricity of Chandigarh, Panchkula and Mohali are attending the celebrations.


The Corps of engineers, one of the oldest arms of the Indian Army, established in the year 1780 consists of three major wings namely Combat Engineers, Military Engineering Service and Border Roads. The Corps also provides officers to the Military Survey and Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO).


The main role of combat engineers is to provide mobility to own forces by constructing bridges, tracks and helipads; on the other hand the Corps denies the same to the enemy by creating such as laying mine-fields and demolition of bridges.


The military engineers are mainly responsible for the design, construction and maintenance of all works, buildings, airfields, dock installations, etc. They are also engaged with additional Services such as military roads, water and electricity supply, drainage, refrigeration, furniture, required by the Army, Navy and Air Force.


The Border Roads Organisation (BRO) is another major arm of the Defence service which is playing a vital role by constructing national highways, airfields, buildings and bridges. The Border Roads, by constructing a large number of roads in once inaccessible areas of the Himalayas, Rajasthan and North Eastern States have contributed significantly to their economic development.

 

[sudhir007]

When the Indian Army impressed the US Army

Indian Army has received an overwhelming pat on its back from the US forces for the professional manner in which it went about carrying out tasks assigned to it in Yudh Abhyas 2010. The 14-day combined training exercise enhanced relationships between the two militaries and expanded operational and cultural knowledge between Indian and US soldiers.

Lt Col Christopher Cassibry, commander of 1st Squadron (Airborne), 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, leads the colour guard during the November 14 closing ceremony of combined training exercise Yudh Abhyas 2010 at Buckner Physical Fitness Centre on Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson

“This two-week exercise brought these soldiers together for this increasingly complex exercise. What we’ve done here through Yudh Abhyas is important. It’s important to this relationship between our two countries,” said Brig Gen Raymond Palumbo, commanding general of the US Army in Alaska.

Approximately 750 soldiers from the 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, 79th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (National Guard) and Indian army soldiers from the 62nd Infantry and 5th parachute Regiment Brigade participated in Yudh Abhyas 2010 and filled the formation during the ceremony.

“I thought the outcome of this exercise was great. As far as our training objectives, we met all of them,” Maj Edward Berg, brigade judge advocate, 4th ABCT, 25th ID, said, adding, “The thing that will last for me, that I will remember most, is just the time getting to know my counterpart and creating that friendship.”

“We had a great time getting to know each other on a personal level as well as a professional level,” Berg added. “I think it’s important not only personally to make friends with people from different nations, but also professionally as we go more towards joint operating environments.”

“It’s been great working with the Indian army. They are very professional,” said Spc Justin Coates, infantryman in Charlie Troop, 1-40th CAV. “They really know what they are doing, and I felt confident with their ability to jump.”

“They have been able to adapt to our differences very quickly. So seeing them perform so well in this unfamiliar environment is amazing. From talking to them and working with them, I’ve learned that even though we wear different uniforms, we still share the same lifestyle,” said Sgt Randy Henrion, team leader with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron (Airborne), 40th Cavalry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division.

Yudh Abhyas 2010 included a command post exercise that focused on combined peacekeeping operations, a field training exercise that included several combined missions, marksmanship and tactical training highlighted by a Javelin live-fire, a combined US and India airborne jump, as well as various cultural activities and social exchanges.

The exercise was significant within all levels involved, Palumbo said.

It strengthened national bonds between India and the United States, it brought two allied militaries together on the same field, and gave each individual participant a chance to experience an unfamiliar culture and establish new friendships.

“It’s great that we brought two professional armies together for something like this. I think we’ve created great friendships for the future,” Major Edward Berg, brigade judge advocate, 4th ABCT, 25th ID said.

Soldiers and leaders from both armies presented gifts to commemorate the bonds established through the training event, and bid farewell to each other to conclude the ceremony and Yudh Abhyas 2010.

Yudh Abhyas is a regularly scheduled bilateral, conventional-forces training exercise, sponsored by US Army, Pacific and the Indian Army.

The exercise is designed to promote cooperation between the two militaries to develop US Army Pacific and USARAK relationships with India and promote interoperability through combined military decision making process, battle tracking and manoeuvring forces, and exchange of tactics, techniques and procedures.

Like in the last edition in Babina in India, this time too the Indian soldiers tried out several US-made weapons, including the Javelin Anti-Tank Guided Missile.

The Indian Army is buying at least 400 of the Raytheon-made weapons and the two sides are discussing a proposal to produce them under license and the Indian defence public sector Bharat Dynamics Limited.

 

[rajgoynar]

Indian artillery inflicted maximum damage to Pak during Kargil



New Delhi: The Indian artillery, assisted by the Bofors gun and multi-barrel rocket launchers among others, caused the maximum damage to the Pakistani Army during the Kargil war, a fact now admitted by neighbour.

As per the official list of Pakistani soldiers who have been killed during the war period, put up on its website by the Pakistani Army, about 190 of the over 400 dead were killed because of shelling by the Indian Army.

The reasons for the maximum number of deaths given by the Pakistani army was "En Arty shelling" or "En shelling". 'En' stands for Enemy, an obvious reference to Indian troops.

The Indian soldiers also killed another about 160 of regular Pakistani Army men in exchange of fire with their hand-held assault weapons or as Pakistan puts it, "En Action".

Besides the exchange of fire, the Indian Army men also killed about 90 Pakistan Army personnel by shooting them down.

The reason given to such deaths was "En fire".



Even the Indian Air force, which bombarded certain territories captured by a mixture of Pakistan troops and militants, killed regular armymen.

It was not just the Indian Army that Pakistan had to fight but also rolling stones and avalanches. About 30 enemy troops died in this category.

Interestingly, one of them was killed in lightning. Among other reasons for deaths given were also helicopter crashes.

The Pakistan Army which had been denying its role in the conflict has quietly put the names of 453 soldiers and officers killed in the battle on its website.

The names of those who died in Kargil are tucked away in a list of thousands of personnel killed while on duty that has been posted in the "Shuhada's Corner" (Martyrs Corner) of the website.

The very first page of the long list of martyrs includes the names of Capt Karnal Sher and Havildar Lalak Jan, who were both killed on July 7, 1999 in Kargil and awarded Pakistan's highest military award, the Nishan-e-Haider.

Several others were posthumously given other gallantry awards like the Tamgha-e-Jurat (Medal of Courage).

A majority of those who died in Kargil were soldiers from the Northern Light Infantry (NLI), a paramilitary force that was made a regular regiment of the Pakistan Army because of its performance in the 1999 conflict.

During the Kargil conflict and in subsequent years, the Pakistan Army insisted that none of its regular soldiers were involved in the hostilities.

 

[SpArK]

Indian Armed forces facing shortage of over 15,000 officers​

​

NEW DELHI (PTI): The three wings of the armed forces are facing a shortage of over 15,000 officers, Lok Sabha was informed Monday.

"In Army, there is a shortage of 12,510 officers. The Navy is short of 1,747 officers and the Indian Air Force (IAF) is short of 1,016 officers of its sanctioned strength," Indian Defence Minister A K Antony said in a written reply to a Lok Sabha query.

He said the authorised strength of officers in the Army was 47,864 officers, in the Navy 9,719 while the IAF has a sanctioned strength of 12,211 officers.

Antony said the shortage of officers was attributable to a number of factors including tough selection procedures, difficult service conditions coupled with perceived high degree of risk involved in service career.

He said a number of steps have been taken to do away with the shortage and attract a large number of youth to join the armed forces.

Indian Armed forces facing shortage of over 15,000 officers - Brahmand.com

 

[Spitfighter]

^^I'm pretty sure the number was higher a few years ago, I wonder if we've made any progress in this regard.

Edit: Yup, turns out we have. It was 24,000 three years ago.

http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/Army-facing-shortage-of-officers/219929/

 

[sathya]

indian army despite getting the major share of budget not getting as many weapons as air force or navy..
so many deals are cancelled, repeated or kept pending
MOD, ARMY has to do some thing over it
army thread is not going as interesting as others.
we need some success carrot here

 

[jatayu]

Our defence budjet is very low. you can say china spends less percentage of its GDP than us, but remember PLA salariy is not paid from their defence budjet. we need to allocate atleast 3.5%

 

[Ammyy]

............

 

[sudhir007]

Orders of Battle - Orbat.com News (America Goes to War)

Second batch of two Indian mountain divisions under raising The first batch of two was for the Northeast; the second division will complete raising in March 2011. The next batch of two is for Ladakh, and we thought they would be raised in 2012-2014, but but it seems raising is already under way, because the divisions have been assigned numbers. We will be unable to give numbers until Mandeep Singh Bajwa, or South Asia correspondent, confirms and says its okay.
#

We're wondering if Beijing realizes how unnecessary and how stupid its provocations and efforts to intimidate India have been. Previously, India had a true offensive capability against China only in the Sikkim/West Bhutan area. But now India is building a major offensive capability for Ladakh, for Middle Arunachal, and for the extreme Northeast. India is to also add an independent armored brigade and independent infantry brigade to its forces in Ladakh, with the result that from two brigades its capability will increase four-fold.
#

And these four divisions are only the start. The Indian Army has asked for seven more divisions, of which three are likely to be approved soon, the rest will probably wait till the next round of Chinese provocations.
#

How has any of this helped China? For years it has gotten by with just two brigades and frontier troops in Tibet; now it will have to respond with a major counter buildup - which of course the Indians have foreseen, which is why the Army has asked for another seven divisions, which will require China to do yet another buildup. The Chinese ego has been boosted by picking on India, but all that China has succeeded in doing is making its position in Tibet very much more difficult.

(India had a total of 11 divisions - one infantry and ten mountain - for deployment against China prior to 1971. This came down to 9 divisions by the 1990s. By 2012-13 it will be up to 12.

 

[sathya]

*India's special forces expanding without 'adequate training or support'
The Indian Army has been criticised for planning to commission its eighth special forces (SF) battalion - the 11th SF - in early 2011 ...
26-Nov-2010

 

[jha]

 

[rajgoynar]

Pak has 43 terrorist camps, including 22 in occupied Kashmir: Indian Army chief




There are 43 terrorist camps in Pakistan, 22 of which are located in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, the then Indian Chief of Army Staff, General Deepak Kapoor, told US President Barack Obama's the then National Security Advisor (NSA), James Jones in 2009, a diplomatic cable unveiled by whistle-blower website WikiLeaks has revealed.

According to the leaked cable, during a meeting between senior US and Indian officials on June 26, 2009, General Kapoor told Jones that the "Pakistani military's statements regarding the Indian threat on its eastern border are wholly without merit. Even after the 11/26 terrorist strikes on Mumbai, he emphasized, India did not make any move of a threatening nature toward Pakistan."

"Kapoor alleged that there are 43 terrorist camps in Pakistan, 22 of which are located in Pakistan-administered Kashmir. Although the Pakistanis raided some camps in the wake of 11/26, Kapoor averred, some camps have reinitiated operations," said the document, which was classified as 'secret'.

It said that the Indian army chief "further asserted infiltration across the Line of Control cannot occur unless there is some kind of assistance and/or degree of support that is institutional in nature. He described several incidents of infiltration that occurred this year, including that of 40 terrorists in March who were found possessing significant ammunition and other equipment."

He said that India was worried that some part of the huge US military package to Pakistan would "find its way to the hands of terrorists targeting India,".

Furthermore, if "we can catch them (the infiltrators), why can't the Pakistani military?" the cable quoted Gen Kapoor, as saying. "There's a trust deficit between the U.S. and Pakistan but there's also one between India and Pakistan," he stressed.

When Jones asked him "how the Pakistanis react when the Indians confront them with these incidents," Kapoor replied that the Pakistanis "remain in denial mode, but fortunately today India's counter-infiltration posture is stronger than in the past."

Asked about the percentage of infiltrators that get through, Gen Kapoor "estimated between 15 to 20 percent, but cited the challenge posed by India's open border with Nepal," and asserted that this year (2009), at least 16 terrorists entered India through Nepal and then traveled to Kashmir. Throughout his remarks, Kapoor stressed that infiltration bids were "acts of aggression," said the cable, whose subject was "NSA Jones discusses US-India security.

Regarding terrorist camps in Pakistan, Jones told Indian Defence Minister A.K. Antony and Gen Kapoor that the US "will take up the issue with Pakistan.




Pak has 43 terrorist camps, including 22 in occupied Kashmir: Indian Army chief