Rolls-Royce opens first defence service delivery centre in Aisa to support Indian Armed forces and HAL

Rolls-Royce has opened a new Defence Service Delivery Centre (SDC) in Asia, located at the Manyata Embassy Business Park in Bengaluru. Co-located with the Rolls-Royce Engineering Centre, the SDC will offer localised engineering support to improve frontline capability of Indian Air Force (IAF) and Indian Navy (IN) aircraft, and to Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

The Centre was officially inaugurated by Mr Dominic McAllister, British Deputy High Commissioner, Bengaluru, in the presence of Rolls-Royce executives including Mr Kishore Jayaraman, President – India & South Asia; Mr Lee Doherty, Senior Vice President - Defence, Asia Pacific; and Mr Shaun Agle, Vice President Customer Services India Defence.
According to Mr Doherty: “We put our customers at the heart of our business, and the opening of our first Service Delivery Centre in India demonstrates our commitment to be closer to our customers to ensure they get the best possible aftermarket support and outstanding customer service which they have come to expect from us. With a highly skilled team, fully trained in engineering services, supply chain and operational support, we will continue to provide maximum engine readiness and availability.” The Centre will be providing defence customers in India with services such as fleet management, services engineering and supply chain co-ordination. It will also be the base from which Field Service Representatives can be rapidly dispatched to frontline bases, subject to contract coverage, to provide on-ground technical support. The aim is to deliver the optimum support possible to over 750 aircraft engines which power the Indian Armed Forces, including: the Adour, which powers both the Hawk Advanced Jet Trainer and the Jaguar combat aircraft; the Gnome engine, which powers the Sea King; and the Dart, which powers the HS748. It also provides coverage for AE2100 and AE3007 engines that power the C-130J and the Embraer 145, respectively. The SDC also will have the capability to support new engine fleets.
Additionally, the SDC will support HAL by enabling “state of the art” supply chain management that will also combine with improved in-country support for manufacturing, assembly and test & repair capabilities.
This SDC is based on a highly successful model operated by Rolls-Royce at Royal Air Force Marham, UK for RB199 and also in use for the US Navy Adour F405 in Kingsville. The support system puts engineering and services staff on-base, working closely and collaboratively with the service to increase efficiency and communication.  Mr Agle explained “This Service Delivery Centre has been configured specifically for the Indian Armed Forces and HAL with Bangalore being a logical location close to Engine Division. Overall this contributes to the broader Make in India agenda through skills development and increasing self-sufficiency. The overriding goal is to improve availability of ‘engines-on-the-wing through a step change improvement of in-country responsiveness for current fleets as well as for future Defence programmes.”
Mr Jayaraman explained what it means to India’s growing aerospace capabilities: “The opening of this Service Delivery Centre marks the beginning of a new chapter in the strong partnership that has existed for over eight decades between India and Rolls-Royce. It demonstrates our commitment to support India’s growth capabilities by encouraging knowledge transfer, building highly skilled teams and developing the Indian aerospace ecosystem.”
About Rolls-Royce Holdings plcRolls-Royce’s vision is to be the market-leader in high performance power systems where our engineering expertise, global reach and deep industry knowledge deliver outstanding customer relationships and solutions. We operate across five businesses: Civil Aerospace, Defence Aerospace, Marine, Nuclear and Power Systems.
Rolls-Royce has customers in more than 150 countries, comprising more than 400 airlines and leasing customers, 160 armed forces, 4,000 marine customers including 70 navies, and more than 5,000 power and nuclear customers.
We have three common themes across all our businesses:

• Investing in and developing engineering excellence
• Driving a manufacturing and supply chain transformation which will embed operational excellence in lean, lower-cost facilities and processes
• Leveraging our installed base, product knowledge and engineering capabilities to provide customers with outstanding service through which we can capture aftermarket value long into the future.
• Annual underlying revenue was £13.8 billion in 2016, around half of which came from the provision of aftermarket services. The firm and announced order book stood at £80 billion at the end of 2016.
• In 2016, Rolls-Royce invested £1.3 billion on research and development. We also support a global network of 31 University Technology Centres, which position Rolls-Royce engineers at the forefront of scientific research.
• Rolls-Royce employs almost 50,000 people in 50 countries. More than 16,500 of these are engineers.
• The Group has a strong commitment to apprentice and graduate recruitment and to further developing employee skills. In 2016 we recruited 274 graduates and 327 apprentices through our worldwide training programmes.

HUNT FOR ANTI MATERIAL RIFFLES

In a bid to strengthen Army’s infantry and held it in operations in Jammu and Kashmir, Army has started the process to procure around 1,500 anti-materiel lightweight rifles capable of damaging targets like battle tanks, low-flying helicopters and bunkers. The process to procure such kind of sophisticated weapons was pending for the past quite some time.

Official sources told the Excelsior that a Request for Information (RFI) for purchasing the rifles which should have a range of at least 1.8 kilometers with a calibre of 12.7 mm/0.50, has been issued. The light weight rifles will boost operational capabilities of the troops both along the borders as well as hinterland.

“The light weight rifle was a long pending demand of the Army. Earlier also, the process had been initiated to procure this weapon by floating the Request for Information. However, the previous efforts didn’t materialize due to varied reasons. This time, the process to purchase the weapon would be set into motion after May 15 when the deadline for Request of Information will be over,” they said.

“The ammunition which should be available for the rifles include armour piercing incendiary and tracer, saboted light armour penetrator, armour piercing explosive incendiary and high explosive armour piercing incendiary,” sources said, adding all these requirements have been made cleared in the Request for Information floated by the Army Headquarters.

The interested manufactures have been asked to respond to the RFI by May 15.
The procurement of the anti-materiel rifles has been long overdue after the Government had scrapped a deal for it in 2005.

At present, the Army is using South African weapons which are not very light and that is why, it was decided to procure the lightweight rifles whose weight will not be more than 15 kg each.
South African firm Denel was banned by the then UPA Government in 2005 after allegations that it had paid kickbacks to secure a deal with the Indian Army in 2002 to sell 1,000 NTW-20 anti-materiel rifles, along with 3,98,000 rounds of ammunition.

Under the deal, 700 rifles were to be purchased directly and the remaining 300 license-produced in one of the factories of India’s State-owned Ordnance Factory Board.
Only 400 rifles had been inducted into the Army and the remainder put on hold after the 2005 blacklisting.

An anti-materiel rifle (AMR) is a rifle that is designed for use against military equipment (materiel) than against enemy troops.

As per the RFI, in case of foreign vendors, the Army asked them to explain whether they will be ready to offer Transfer of Technology (ToT) to the Indian industry for licensed manufacturing of the weapons. They have also been asked as to whether ToT will be offered for sub-systems.
The manufacturers have also been asked to give details about cost of annual maintenance, product support package and training of the crew.

State-run Ordnance Factory, in association with the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), had developed an anti-materiel rifle called `Vidhwansak’ in 2007. The rifle was offered to the Indian Army but it chose not to induct it due to weight issues.
Sources pointed out that the Army was in search of very light weapons, which would be easy to carry and operate by the Army jawans.

According to sources, the Defence Ministry was very keen that the Army requirements for the frontiers as well as the hinterland are met expeditiously and it was in this context that Global Request for Information has been floated to purchase the light weight rifles.

Sources said the Army is confident of getting encouraging response globally for the light weight rifle.

Offered Line of Credit is for Military Supplies

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina arrived in India on a four-day visit on Friday. During the trip she will hold wide-ranging talks with her Indian counterpart, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who was at the airport to receive her as a special gesture.

During Hasina's visit, which is her first after Modi assumed office in 2014, the two sides will sign at least 25 pacts in various key sectors including civil nuclear cooperation and defence but any agreement on the Teesta water sharing is unlikely to be inked.

Modi and Hasina, who is staying at the Rashtrapati Bhawan, will hold comprehensive discussions on Saturday. India is also set to announce a line of credit of $5 billion to Bangladesh for military supplies.

Apart from a "courtesy call on" by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj, Hasina's schedule on Friday included events at the Bangladesh High Commission.

Officials said, "It will be a visit without water”, indicating that a pact on Teesta river waters is not on the cards. "The central government will not go ahead with the agreement on Teesta without taking West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on board and she has been opposing it stridently citing water crisis in the state." However, the two sides are looking at inking a framework agreement on civil nuclear energy which will provide for extensive cooperation in the sector including setting up of nuclear reactors in Bangladesh by India.

"It will be a very special visit. We hope the visit will take the ties between the two countries to new level," Sripriya Ranganathan, joint secretary in the Bangladesh-Myanmar division of the external affairs ministry told reporters.

On the Teesta pact, she said the “agreement remains work in progress...We have not reached a closure on it." The Teesta deal was set to be signed during the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Bangladesh in September 2011, but was postponed at the last minute due to objections by Mamata Banerjee.

Teesta water is crucial for Bangladesh especially in the leanest period from December to March when the water flow often temporarily comes down to less than 1,000 cusecs from 5,000 cusecs.

Issues like combating terrorism, containing radicalism and enhancing security cooperation between the two countries are likely to figure prominently, besides stalemate over the Teesta pact during talks between Modi and Hasina.

The West Bengal chief minister has accepted an invitation by the government to attend the launch of some projects between the two countries as well as a lunch to be hosted by Modi in honour of Hasina.

On the agreements, Ranganathan said another pact on formalising regular defence engagements will also be signed. To boost trade, the two sides are likely to announce setting up of another set of trade facilitation huts along the borders in the northeastern region.

Hasina will visit Ajmer on Sunday and will meet Indian business leaders on Monday.

Minister of State for Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Babul Supriyo is the minister-in-waiting for the Bangladesh PM.

79 Killed since 2011 government told Lok Sabha

A total of 48 military aircraft and 21 helicopters were lost to crashes since 2011 in which 79 people were killed, the government told Lok Sabha today.For a country that features among the world's top five defence spenders, armed forces personnel losing lives in crashes and malfunctioning machines is a stark irony. 

A total of 48 military aircraft and 21 helicopters were lost to crashes since 2011 in which 79 people were killed, the government told Lok Sabha today. 

Replying to a question, Minister of State for Defence Subhash Bhamre said all such incidents and accidents are thoroughly investigated and preventive actions taken based on probe reports. The figures bear a stark reminder to a report by a Parliamentary panel that slammed the ‘ad-hocism’, and the ‘casual and lackadaisical’ approach of the government in allocating inadequate amounts for the Defence budget.

BSF has set up two new posts Kanker district, Chhattisgarh

The Border Security Force has set up two new posts in the Naxal affected Kanker district of Chhattisgarh to facilitate road construction projects. Both the company operated bases (COB) were set up last week in the highly sensitive region of Kanker bordering with Maharashtra,” Inspector General, Frontier Headquarters of BSF in Bhilai, Mahendra Singh said. One BSF post has been set up at Kanhargaon village which is on the border of Kanker and Gadchiroli (Maharashtra) to ensure security to the Bande-Irpanaar road (36 km long) and the other at Charre Marre village for the Antagarh-Amabeda road (35 km long), he said. The road between Bande and Irpanaar villages goes through dense forests along the Chhattisgarh-Maharashtra border which is considered a Maoist den. The route connecting Antagarh tehsil to Amabeda village passes through some hilly forests where also the ultras are quite active. n view of the attempts made in the past by Naxals to thwart development works in these areas, the paramilitary force has been tasked to ensure safety to the construction work and the people engaged in it, the IG said. “It is only roads that will help in mobilisation of security forces, economic activity, government schemes, hospitals and ambulances to reach the tribal areas,” he said. Singh said these roads are the most important tool in fighting the Left Wing Extremism in the area. Presently, five different roads are being laid under the security cover of the BSF in Kanker. Notably, the BSF has eight battalions (nearly 8,000 personnel) in Chhattisgarh, all concentrated in Kanker district, which is around 150 km from state capital Raipur. The BSF Frontier Headquarters is at Bhilai in Durg district of the state. The paramilitary force ensured security to the construction of four roads in 2015 and eight in 2016 in Kanker, as per an official release.The BSP personnel succeeded in instilling a sense of security among the local population and bringing peace and order by carrying out an extensive operation against Maoists in the area, the release said.

The Armed Forces have projected requirement of some 700 helicopters.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has asked public sector company Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) to ramp up production, speed up existing under-development projects and start out-sourcing work for light utility helicopters (LUH) and light combat helicopter (LCH). HAL, produces some 22-24 advanced light helicopters (ALH), the Dhruv, annually and some 200 of these are flying. 

The requirement is huge. The armed forces have projected the need for some 700 helicopters. The three armed services need 484 of the LUH-type to replace Cheetah/Chetak fleet of helicopters for which the Army requires 259, IAF 125 and Navy around 100 such helicopters equipped with anti-submarine warfare (ASW) capabilities. The Army and the IAF need some 180 attack helicopters. The Coast Guard and other paramilitary forces have their own requirements which are nearly 100 copters.

The MoD wants HAL to produce up to 85-90 copters per annum of these three types – the Dhruv, LUH and LCH. HAL is making a 5.5-tonne-class LCH, which is currently under development and undergoing weapons integration. Prototypes of the LCH and the LCH are ready but need operational clearance. Out-sourcing of some work had been suggested on the lines of global manufacturing practices.

Some 100 copters – are needed annually to meet the needs of the three armed forces, the Central Armed Police Forces, the Coast Guard and smaller friendly nations. While HAL continues to be a major player, some of the production can be given to a selected private partner.

Long Range Air-defense missiles for Indian Armed Forces

Israel has been supplying India with various weapons systems, missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles over the last few years, making India one of Israel’s largest buyer of military hardware. 

Israel Aerospace Industries has been awarded a $2 billion Indian military hardware deal, considered to be “the largest defense contract in Israel’s defense industries’ history.”

IAI announced on Thursday that it has signed a mega-contract worth more than $1.6 billion to provide advanced medium- range surface-to-air missiles (MRSAMs) to the Indian Army. The balance of some $400m. in contracts has been awarded to Rafael Advanced Defense Systems.

According to IAI, the MRSAM provides the “ultimate protection against a variety of aerial threats.” It was jointly developed for the Indian Army by IAI and India’s Defense Research and Development Organization (DRDO) in collaboration with Rafael and IAI/ Elta. Several Indian companies and other private vendors also took part in its development.

In its existing version, MRSAM is operational with the Indian Air Force, Indian Navy and Israel Defense Forces. The system includes an advanced phased-array radar, command and control, mobile launchers and missiles with advanced active radar radio frequency (RF) seekers, the company said.

IAI will also supply additional long-range surfaceto- air missile (LRSAM) air and missile defense systems for Indian aircraft carriers.

IAI president and CEO Joseph Weiss stated: “Over the past 25 years, IAI has worked with the Indian defense industries and armed forces in many areas as part of our strategic partnership. The current contracts represent an enormous expression of confidence by the government of India in IAI’s capabilities and advanced technologies.”

Weiss added that “this contract award also recognizes the professionalism of all of Israel’s defense industries. We at IAI are proud to be leading this flagship project after a long and joint development process.”

President Reuven Rivlin spoke with Weiss and congratulated him on the signing of the deal with India. According to Rivlin’s office, the two men spoke about the foundations for the deal during Rivlin’s visit to India four months ago and of the importance it played in strengthening the aerospace industry in Israel.

The deal comes three months before Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is due to arrive in Israel for a state visit. His visit, which will coincide with the 25th anniversary of diplomatic relations, comes at a time when the arms trade between the two countries is growing.

In June, more than 50 Indian defense companies will be showcased at the ISDEF exhibition in Tel Aviv, at the largest national pavilion at the exhibition.

In February, ahead of the Aero India exposition in Bengaluru (Bangalore) which saw over a dozen Israeli companies showcasing their military technology, the Defense Ministry’s international cooperation director, Brig.-Gen. (res.) Michel Ben-Baruch, said there has been a “strengthening of cooperation between Israel and India in many fields” in recent years, with the most prominent area being defense technology.

Israel has been supplying India with various weapons systems, missiles and unmanned aerial vehicles over the last few years, making India one of Israel’s largest buyers of military hardware. Over the last five years, bilateral non-defense trade between the countries has averaged $4.6b. per annum and defense trade has seen annual sales worth more than $1b.

India is one of the largest importer of arms, with a 14% share in global imports between 2011 and 2015, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. After Russia and the United States, Israel is the largest source of key defense equipment for India as well as in other areas, such as agriculture and water management.

To Pursue Integrated Security Projects in India

Dynamatic Technologies signed a cooperation agreement with Magal Security Systems Ltd. This new cooperation aims to answer the Indian increasing market demand for high-end security products and solutions for critical infrastructure, among other, to provide combined integrated border management solutions (CIBMS) aimed to address the challenges in securing our borders.

Magal S3 has unique experience in perimeter security technolog ies and complex technological security projects, among other, defending Israel's borders, whilst Dynamatic Technologies has been a partner of Indian Defence and Security establishment for over 3 decades.

Udayant Malhoutra, CEO & Managing Director of Dynamatic Technologies commented. "We intend to bring in smart perimeter and security management technologies that include intrusion detection and prevention on a real time basis. These technologies will be offered to Military establishments to prevent infiltration by terrorists. Additionally, these systems can be used to secure ports, airfields, industrial buildings, commercial establishments and other critical assets across the country. This furthers

Dynamatic's initiatives to successfully Indigenise critical Military Industrial Capabilities under the national "Make in India" program. Magal S3 has unparalleled knowledge and experience in integrated border security and we are excited to be working jointly with them."

 Saar Koursh, CEO of Magal-S3 commented, "We are very pleased with this cooperation. We are confident that this cooperation will enable us to increase our presence in the Indian security and HLS market, eventually position ing ourselves, together with Dynamatic as first choice turn-key contractors and solution providers for Indian governmental and private sector customers. We are confident that combining Dynamatic and Magal-S3 proven technological capabilities, past experience and knowledge of the Indian market, will benefit both - Dynamatic and Magal-S3. Last but not least, we were pleased to learn that both managements share sim ilar set of values, a factor that will most likely increase synergy and anticipated cooperation."

Ex-Indian Naval Officer sentenced to death

Pakistan army chief on Monday approved the execution of alleged Indian spy Kulbhushan Jadhav after a military court found him guilty of "involvement in espionage and sabotage activities" against the country, a development that could further strain the India-Pakistan ties.
The death sentence to Jadhav, 46, was confirmed by army chief Gen Qamar Javed Bajwa after the Field General Court Martial (FGCM) found him guilty of "all the charges", said the military's media wing Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR).
 
"The spy has been tried through Field General Court Martial under Pakistan Army Act and awarded death sentence," it said and added that the FGCM found Jadhav "guilty of all the charges."According to the ISPR statement, Jadhav, a Commander in the Indian Navy, "confessed" before a Magistrate and the court that he was "tasked by RAW to plan, coordinate and organise espionage/sabotage activities aiming to destabilise and wage war against Pakistan by impeding the efforts of Law Enforcement Agencies for restoring peace in Balochistan and Karachi." 
adhav was "arrested" on March 3 last year by Pakistani security forces in the restive     Balochistan province after he reportedly entered from Iran. Pakistan has alleged that Jadhav was "a serving officer" in the Indian Navy and deputed to the Research and Analysis Wing (R&AW).
 
The Pakistan Army had released a "confessional video" of Jadhav after his arrest. India has   acknowledged that Jadhav served with the navy but denied he has any connection with the government. "The individual has no link with government since his premature retirement from Indian Navy," the External Affairs Ministry had said in a statement in March last year.
 
India had demanded Consular access to Jadhav, but Pakistan repeatedly denied Indian officials access to him. The ISPR statement, however, said Jadhav, alias Hussein Mubarak Patel, was "provided with defending officer as per legal provisions"Pakistan army's decision today is expected to further strain the ties between India and Pakistan. The two countries have been at loggerheads over several issues, including on Pakistan's support to terrorism, since the terror attack on an Indian army base in Uri in Kashmir in September last year by Pakistan-based militants killed 18 Indian soldiers.Ten days later, India launched "surgical strikes" against militant "launchpads" in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Leading Pakistani experts viewed the announcement about Jadhav's death sentence as an unprecedented move, saying it will send a strong message to foreign countries engaging in spying activities in the country.
 
"Pakistan has sent a message that if somebody does such activities here, it will hand them severe punishment. Those operating against the state will face a similar fate," Defence analyst Ikram Sehgal told Dawn newspaper.

A mechanism to be placed To prevent a terror attack

India is putting in place a comprehensive defense mechanism to shield its airports against potential terror attacks after an assessment that extremist groups might choose soft targets, such as "vulnerable" public installations and aviation hubs. 

The federal Civil Aviation Ministry, which directly owns most of the airports through its operational arm, has asked the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) to prepare the security plan. CISF, raised in 1969 and a part of India's Central armed Police Force, is responsible for security at many of India's civil aviation centers. 

"The Home Ministry has put airports on the list of installations that are 'vulnerable' to terror attacks. A counter-terrorism plan would list all that is required to be done, in the case of a terror attack and prepare airports against terror attacks. We have asked CISF to prepare that report," said an official in the aviation ministry. 

A counter-terror plan will list out the standard operating procedures in the event of a terror attack at any of our airports. There are 98 operational airports in India, of which 26 are categorised hypersensitive. Of the 56 airports categorised as sensitive, CISF manages 37, while the rest are managed by the respective state police. 

Airport operators currently pay to the government for CISF guarding its airport from the accruals of a services fee of Rs 130 per passenger. However, the levy is not enough to fund the cost of providing security. The government is working on a plan to provide CISF security at all airports in the country. The matter is, however, stuck due to paucity of funds, with CISF deployment costing more than that of the state police force. 

"Our airports are not only not prepared as much as they should be, but also requires a plan post a terror attack. The bigger issue at hand is to get in touch with the state governments and that cannot be done unless the home ministry pitches in," said an official. 

The state governments will also play a key role in its implementation, as security is a state subject. As part of its plan to bring state governments on board, the aviation ministry had written to states, asking them to prepare their intelligence wings to protect aviation establishments. 

Security of airports has become a bigger concern for the government, especially after various European airports became terrorism targets. The aviation ministry has now asked the government to fund the cost of providing security at airports.

"All these will be synchronised as part of the counter terror plan, and we expect that the decision will be taken soon," said a ministry official. 

MoU signed between BDL and L&T

India is eyeing the export market for the indigenously developed torpedoes by the NSTL (Naval Science & Technology Laboratory), Visakhapatnam.

To push this initiative the Government has facilitated a memorandum of understanding between the Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL), a defence public sector unit and the L&T. The objective is to export Torpedoes (LWT-XP), designed and developed by NSTL.

According to a press release, the MoU was signed by V Udaya Bhaskar, Chairman & Managing Director, BDL and Jayanth Patil, Head of Defence, L&T. They exchanged documents of the agreement in the presence of Union Minister of Defence & Finance, Arun Jaitley and his deputy Subhash Bhamre recently. Top executives of both companies and the Chief of DRDO, S Christopher were present.

The Hyderabad-based, BDL which is the main producer of all indigenously developed missiles will manufacture the torpedoes. It has several production units in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

The NSTL is a leading research lab, under the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO), which is supporting the Indian Navy. It has developed the torpedoes, which are being inducted into the Naval battle ships.

The L&T, one of India’s leading construction and Infrastructure giants has diversified into the defence sector with expertise and production strengths in missiles, guns and armoured vehicles.

India has always rejected China’s claims that Arunachal Pradesh is “south Tibet”

China today upped the ante on its strong disapproval of the visit of the Dalai Lama to Arunachal Pradesh.

Using the state-run media to attack India, China also picked on Junior Home Minister Kiren Rijiju for taking the stand that Arunachal Pradesh was an integral part of India and also for accompanying the Tibetan spiritual leader on his visit. “If New Delhi chooses to play dirty, however, Beijing should not hesitate to answer blows with blows,” said an edit in The China Daily.

India has always rejected China’s claims that Arunachal Pradesh is “south Tibet” and India’s decision to give its nod to the Dalai Lama for his visit to Tawang has enraged China.Yesterday,

China summoned Vijay Gokhlae, India’s Ambassador to China, to protest India’s decision. This is only the second time in the past eight years that China has summoned the Indian envoy; underlining how “upset” China was with India.In a veiled reference to Kashmir, the state-run Global Times (GT) ran an aggressive line asking India to see sense in its leverage with China.Most newspapers in China pointed out that India was using the Dalai Lama as a “spiritual tool” to gain leverage. China has accused the spiritual leader of having a separatist agenda, a charge that has been denied by the Dalai Lama and India.Rijiju visits border postNew Delhi:

Kiren Rijiju, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs, on Wednesday visited Saluicegate Border Outpost of Sashastra Seema Bal in West Kameng district of Arunachal Pradesh to interact with the security personnel there in the wake of China threats following Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama’s visit to the north-eastern state. Rijiju is learnt to have stayed at the post for half an hour and appreciated the staff for their dedication. TNSTakes on Rijiju"Rijiju might think himself cute in borrowing a line from Beijing’s diplomatic representations, but he has ignored the fundamental distinction here: Like Taiwan and any other part of China, Tibet is a part of the Chinese territory no matter whether New Delhi agrees or not" Edit in state-run The China Daily

Spokesman says ambiguous declaration cannot substitute for verifiable arms control and restraint measures

 "Pakistan has long maintained that the ambiguous no-first-use declaration is not verifiable and hence nothing more than an empty political statement," said Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria.

The spokesman added that such ambiguous declaration cannot substitute for verifiable arms control and restraint measures.

"Pakistan has to consider capabilities and not intentions, which can change anytime," said Zakaria in its weekly briefing.

Recent reports suggested India may be considering revisiting its "no-first strike" policy, allowing its nuclear establishment to carry out a pre-emptive nuclear strike against Pakistan in the event of a war.

According to a media report, this would not only formally change India`s nuclear doctrine, which bars it from launching a first strike, but would loosen its interpretation to deem pre-emptive strikes as defensive.

Earlier, former Defence Secretary Lt. Gen. (retd) Naeem Khalid Lodhi claimed that Pakistan possesses second strike capability against India.

The second strike provides a military with the capability to hit back at an enemy in a situation where its land-based nuclear arsenal had been neutralised.

The nuclear deterrence, said the former Defence Secretary, had been augmented by the second strike capability, efficient delivery systems and effective command and control system.

Pakistan in January 2017 attained the credible "second strike capability" after successfully test-firing nuclear capable submarine-laun­ched cruise missile (SLCM) Babur-III.

US Ambassador to United Nations Nikki Haley recently voiced concerns over the India-Pakistan tensions, saying Washington wanted to play a role in de-escalation.

The move, however, was promptly rejected by India, which has for long argued that Kashmir is a bilateral dispute, and will not accept any third-party mediation over it.

Pakistan, on the contrary, has welcomed the offer of mediation to resolve the longstanding issue. "The world`s concerns have been developed in the backdrop of the deteriorating human rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir," he said. 

"We welcome the statement of Ambassador Nikki Haley, expressing concerns over the rising tensions between Pakistan and India and the offer of mediation."

The spokesperson regretted that India reacted negatively to the US offer.

"India wants to speak of terrorism! We also insist on speaking of terrorism, which forms one of the elements of the comprehensive dialogue process. We need to address the Indian-sponsored terrorism in Pakistan. Kulbhushan Jadav and many other examples are irrefutable proof of Indian involvement in Pakistan," he said.

Indian Navy needs over 100 multi-role helicopters positioned on its most important warships

To meet the urgent helicopter requirement of the Indian Navy, India is expected to discuss acquiring Sea King CH-124 helicopters during the coming visit of Canada’s defence minister Harjit Sajjan. Speaking to FE on condition of anonymity, sources said: “At this time Canada is in the process of decommissioning four of its Sea King CH-124 helicopters.

These four have very little hours of flying logged in, and four that were decommissioned last December were recently upgraded.” The helicopters, though being decommissioned, are still in condition of being flown.

“The Indian Navy has Sea King helicopters that have reached the end of their lives and are constantly being upgraded. The Indian side is likely to talk about these machines as these could bridge the gap and to support the depleting Indian Navy fleet as the acquisition process for new helicopters is not making any headway,” they added. Several procurement processes under various categories of helicopters, naval utility, multi-role helicopter (MRH), naval multi-role helicopter (NMRH), are all stuck due to re tendering or blacklisting of AgustaWestland.

Price negotiations for 16 MRHs with Sikorsky S-70B multi-role helicopters were stuck initially due to difference in base pricing and later the company was taken over by Lockheed Martin, which has further complicated things. Officials said that this deal will also guide the process for procurement of the much larger deal 126 NMRHs. The tender for over 100 NUHs was reissued last year but the shadow of AgustaWestland threatens it.

The depleting fleet of the Indian Navy search & rescue helicopters — AW Sea Kings and the Sikorsky UH-3H — are both lined up for the life extension. Every major warship is earmarked to carry at least two helicopters on board to be deployed in various roles. But the last multi-role helicopter to join the fleet was two decades ago.

However, replacements for these are yet come. The Indian Navy needs over 100 MRHs to be positioned on board its most important warships; however it has just about two dozen operational helicopters.

These helicopters play a critical role of hunting submarines, taking on threats like enemy ships and sending early warnings about incoming aircraft and missiles to the fleet.

The current strength of the Indian Navy is 150 warships, including two aircraft carriers, and less than one-third of the required number of helicopters available, thus forcing the navy to “pick and choose” their deployment and tasking helicopters. A senior Indian Navy officer told FE, “Helicopters are crucial in supporting ships or responding to distress calls on the high seas. But currently the numbers are so less that several ships are sharing a helicopter. ”

Israel Aerospace Industries' Elta Systems has won the tender to supply radars to the Indian Army by being the lowest bidder

 Under the tender, Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) will supply 66 new-generation 3-D surveillance and tracking radar to the Indian Army under technology transfer. The radar has been developed by Elta especially for the Indian Army. The closest rival was Thales from Netherlands.

The radar will be equipped to track wide variety of platforms including low-level high-speed fighter aircraft, hovering helicopters, low ultra-light aircraft and UAVs.

Indian Army will operationalize these high mobility and low power consuming radars in difficult Himalayan terrain bordering Pakistan and China. Indian Army has asked for radars which can provide accurate range, azimuth and elevation angle measurements for each target, and capable of differentiating between different type of threat.

The Elta radar will track multiple targets in all weather conditions and its most important feature is its ability to be deployed fast. It will replace Flycatcher Radar which was manufactured in collaboration with HSA and supplied to the army in 1987

Indian defense ministry had issued global tender in 2012 to Selex Sistemi Integrati of Italy, Raytheon of the United States, Thales, IAI, and Rosoboronexport of Russia.

India and the UK are jointly making Engines for fighter jets of the future

India and the UK are jointly making one of the most powerful engines for fighter jets of the future and the first such engine will be unveiled within a year.

The gas turbine engine, the very latest in technology, is being developed in collaboration between UK’s Rolls Royce and India’s Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) and Gas Turbine and Research Establishment (GTRE), said Stephen Phipson, Head of Defence and Security Organisation, Department of International Trade, UK.
He was interacting with mediapersons along with UK Secretary of State for Defence Sir Michael Fallon here after the India-UK Strategic Defence Dialogue. The UK delegation held talks with the Indian side led by Defence Minister Arun Jaitley.“This is a very high-thrust engine. It has the highest thrust possible in a jet engine,” said Phipson, who accompanied Sir Fallon at the press briefing. He, however, refused to divulge the details.
Rolls Royce develops engines for leading global plane manufacturers, including military aircraft produced by countries such as the US
Sir Fallon said the UK and India were looking forward to having a defence and security partnership for a sea-borne aircraft carrier besides extending defence equipment cooperation to enable companies to collaborate on air defence missiles and gas turbine engines.“We are working on inter-operatability. We can include doctrines and training,” said Lt Gen Mark Poffley, the Deputy Chief of Defence Staff, UK’s Ministry of Defence.
The two countries are looking to hold bilateral exercises in all three domains - Army, Air Force and Navy..

Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Hanwa Techwin signed a contract on Friday to manufacture the K9 Vajra-T tracked, self-propelled artillery guns for the Indian Army

India and South Korea on Friday signed two agreements to build artillery guns for the Indian Army and for collaboration in shipbuilding. One of them is an Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA) between the governments while the other is a manufacturing agreement between two private companies.

The Inter-governmental Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for defence industry co-operation in shipbuilding was signed by Ashok Kumar Gupta, Secretary Defence Production from India and Chang Myoung-Jin, Minister of Defence Acquisition and Programme Administration (DAPA), South Korea.
India has already nominated Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL), Visakhapatnam while South Korea will designate their shipyard soon. The MoU was conceived under the overall umbrella of the ‘Special Strategic Partnership’ between both sides, Defence Ministry said in a statement.“The MoU will come into effect from the date of signature by both sides and will be initially valid for a period of five years and would be automatically extended for further successive five year at a time,” the statement added.
Contract with L&TThe two sides will identify specific projects to work on and this cooperation is expected to enable HSL to upgrade and modernise its facilities.Indian engineering conglomerate Larsen & Toubro (L&T) and Hanwa Techwin of South Korea signed a contract on Friday to manufacture the K9 Vajra-T tracked, self-propelled artillery guns for the Indian Army.
“The first of the guns should be delivered within this financial year,” said Jayant Patil, head of defence and aerospace, L&T. Deliveries would be completed in 42 months.

CRPF force walked into Maoists' trap in Sukma and they were attacked from all sides

Twenty-five CRPF jawans were slaughtered in one of the deadliest attacks by Maoist rebels on Monday. 

Around 300-400 Leftist insurgents ambushed and outgunned 99 troopers deployed to help with the construction of a road through the Maoist stronghold of Sukma in Chhattisgarh. This was one of the three biggest attacks on security forces in seven years, and the second in the last one and a half months. In 2013, 27 people, including Congress functionaries V C Shukla, Mahendra Karma and Nand Kumar Patel, were killed in an ambush by Maoists in Darbha valley. On March 11 this year, 12 CRPF personnel of a road opening party were ambushed in Sukma, barely 20km from Monday's attack site. 
In a statement, CRPF said there were "tell-tale signs from the ground" indicating that a considerable number of Maoists could have been eliminated in the gun-battle. CRPF sources said a "road opening party" of its 74th battalion, deployed to provide security for road construction, had walked about 2km from the Burkapal camp in Sukma when it came under attack from all sides in the dense jungle that has been a base of the red insurgents. They used their familiarity with the terrain to ambush the jawans around 12.30pm. The CRPF contingent returned fire and managed to keep the attackers at bay until 1pm. The attackers looted arms, ammunition and radio sets before retreating.The CRPF personnel had split into two groups. One team had ventured 1.5km deep in the jungle when it came under heavy fire. Eleven jawans died on the spot while six others, including an inspector, were seriously injured.With rebels taking away their radio sets, the survivors couldn't call for help. The second group, alarmed by the failure of their colleagues to call them at a scheduled time, went looking and walked into the ambush, sources said.In all, 24 personnel were killed while one died while being taken to hospital. "The troops replied in a befitting manner but taking advantage of their geographical position, Maoists succeeded in inflicting losses to CRPF," the paramilitary force said in a statement.The attack sparked suspicion of intelligence failure. PM Modi called the attack "cowardly and deplorable". "The sacrifice of martyrs will not go in vain," he tweeted. Home minister Rajnath Singh, who will visit Sukma on Tuesday, said the government has taken the attack as a challenge.

Stress on joint planning, integration of armed forces, ‘surgical strikes’

In a major revision of its war-fighting methods, India today announced a new doctrine that focused on ‘joint planning and integration’ of the armed forces and use of ‘surgical strikes’ to counter terror; expressed concern at foreign powers in the Indian Ocean; talked about the use of technology; and predicted future wars to be ‘ambiguous, short, swift and lethal’.
Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba, Chairman of the Chiefs of Staff Committee (COSC), released a revised version of the “Joint Doctrine Indian Armed Forces — 2017” in the presence of Army Chief General Bipin Rawat and Chief of Air Chief Marshal BS Dhanoa.

It lays down a broad framework to approach conduct of operations across all domains of conflict — land, air, sea, space and cyberspace. “The doctrine will also serve as a reference document for all three services to plan integrated operations,” a spokesperson of the Ministry of Defence said. This is the first revision of the doctrine since 2006.

It talks about future response to terror provocations could be in the form of ‘surgical strikes’. The doctrine says New Delhi remains concerned about the presence and role of external powers (read as China) in the Indian Ocean.

Radicalisation of youth by social media platforms is reportedly listed as a challenge to national security.
Today’s stand-off precision munitions with satellite control systems have altered the physical component of conflict. The character of future wars is likely to be ambiguous, short, swift, lethal, intense, precise, unrestricted, unpredictable and hybrid.
Joint operations by the armed forces are the most essential requirement of future wars.

India to manufacture arms under Make in India

The government is in “advanced stages” of formulating a new policy to increase domestic defence manufacturing and reduce dependence on imported high-tech military equipment, Finance and Defence Minister Arun Jaitley said on Friday.

“India is the world’s largest arms importer, spending some 1.8 per cent of its GDP (gross domestic product) on defence. It imports about 70 per cent of defence equipment, a proposition which the government wants to change,” Jaitley said at an event organised by the industry body CII.“We are in the advanced stages of formulating a policy where we can ensure that instead of just being buyers, on the strength of technological and other tie-ups, India also becomes a manufacturing economy,” he said.Jaitley, however, did not give additional details on the proposed policy. “The response that we have from domestic and international industry has been quite encouraging,” he added. The government has pledged to spend $250 billion by 2025 on weapons and military equipment.He also promised not to spring any surprises in fixing tax rates under the goods and servicestax (GST) regime, saying they would not be “significantly different” from the current levels

.He, however, said companies should pass on to consumers the benefit of reduction in taxes under the GST, which will eliminate the current compounding effect of different central and state levies.On the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB), the minister said the abolition of the 25-year-old agency was in the final lap and this would set the stage for more reforms in the foreign direct investment policy.

He also said some “tough steps” were required so that India increasingly became a tax-compliant society. “I am now in the final stages of doing away with the FIPB because 90 per cent of the investment in India comes under the automatic route. So for the balance 10 per cent, do we need multiple forums to give approval or (do) we need just one forum in one ministry?” Jaitley also sounded a note of caution on protectionism, saying the world should debate whether it would make the global economy more efficient or sluggish. The minister, however, took comfort from the fact that voices of protectionism are not heard in India.

“...You suddenly found a contrarian trend now moving in the developed economies itself. The reasons would be different in each economy and the trend really is can we reverse this whole process. And that’s a little worry which does exist,” Jaitley said, while referring to the growing voices of protectionism, especially in the United States.

Army to speed up work on erecting the barrier in view of rising infiltration

With infiltration across the Line of Control (LoC) on the rise, the Army is all set to accelerate work on installing a smart fence to replace the existing border fence following successful trials.

The existing one called the Anti-Infiltration Obstacle System (AIOS) is located about 700m from the LoC. The double-row fence consisting of concertina wire was constructed between 2003 and 2005.

High degradation“The present one has a high rate of degradation due to snow and has to be repaired after every season which costs about Rs. 50-60 crore every year,” a senior officer told The Hindu . Also, over time infiltrators have devised ways to cross it.

A proposal has been in the works for sometime to install a smart fence which will also enable round-the-clock real-time surveillance. The plan gained momentum after the Pathankot and Uri terror attacks last year in which terrorists crossed the LoC and attacked military installations.
The fence has already been tested and installed along a 50km stretch on a trial basis. The project would be implemented by the Army Corps of Engineers, the officer stated.

Surveillance features“The smart fence stretching about 700 km will have enhanced surveillance features with sensors integrated and also has better survivability,” the officer said, but did not elaborate on the specifics due to the sensitivity of the information.

Infiltration across the LoC peaked last year in the aftermath of the surgical strikes by the Army on terror camps in September. Attacks on military installations have also gone up dramatically over the last two years. The border fence forms the first line of defence in the three-tier counter-infiltration grid.

1,000-crore estimateThe new fence will be erected in place of the existing one and is expected to cost around Rs. 1000 crore. Army sources said they have received in-principle approval for the project and have been assured required funds. The project will be undertaken in phases. Under Phase-I, vulnerable areas and where most damage has occurred will be covered. The rest of the fence will be replaced in the second phase.

Turkey To offer drones during Erdogan’s visit

Turkey is keen on expanding defence industrial cooperation with India and will offer its armed unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) during the upcoming visit of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, said Ilnur Cevik, senior adviser to the Turkish President on Saturday.
He indicated that Turkey’s support to Pakistan on Kashmir at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation was likely to continue.

“A defence cooperation agreement has to be signed. It is in the offing and a draft is being prepared. The head of defence industry of Turkey is part of the delegation,” Mr. Cevik told The Hindu on the sidelines of a discussion at the Observer Research Foundation.
Mr. Cevik said that the areas of cooperation were aviation, space and ammunition, etc. “India is strong in aviation and space ... We produce armoured personal carriers. Some of the ammunition we need can be procured from India ... We can introduce India to our successful drones. We have produced drones which are identifying and killing Kurdistan Workers Party terrorists. They would be discussed,” he said.

On Pakistan’s continued support to cross-border terrorism and Kashmir, he said the issue was for the two countries to discuss.
“On Kashmir, don’t pull us into the kind of problems between India and Pakistan. We are trying to build our relationship with India. You have to sit and solve the problems, but this does not mean that once we have achieved a strong relationship, we will not be an innocent bystander. It means the kind leverage on our side, he said speaking at the discussion on India-Turkey relations,” he said. Stating that Turkey was trying to promote relations with India, while its brotherly ties with Pakistan continued, Mr. Cevik said, “We are trying to rediscover old friends.”

The Indian Army will have a free hand in devising retaliation against the mutilation of two soldiers by Pakistan army regulars working in concert with terrorist organisations.

Sources said the government is determined not to let what they called an act of "unprovoked aggression" go unpunished, with defence minister Arun Jaitley publicly articulating the stand after highlevel deliberations over the fresh provocation from Pakistan. "The sacrifice of soldiers will not go in vain," he said."Bodies of soldiers being mutilated is an extreme form of barbaric act. The government of India strongly condemns this act. The whole country has full faith in our armed forces which will react appropriately ," Jaitley said, emphasising that "such acts don't happen even during war".

Sources said the Army , like in the aftermath of last year's attack on its camp in Uri, will have a free hand to retaliate. "They will decide the timing and the manner," said a source, underlining that Army chief General Bipin Rawat was an "action-oriented man".Gen Rawat had played a key role in the planning and execution of `surgical strikes' carried out to avenge the Uri attack. "The Army may not act immediately , but will strike for sure," the source said.
Although some accounts from the ground pointed to the possibility that the actual act of mutilation may have been carried out by terrorists, the government views the outrage as the handiwork of Pakistan army .BJP also promised swift retribution. "This act will not go unpunished as under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Army has not been restrained from responding to Pakistan's unprovoked ceasefire violations," a leader said.Besides the need to keep the morale of soldiers high, there are strong political reasons why the government will like the Army to punish Pakistan's military-terror complex once again. The beheadings, coming amid growing turbulence with stone-pelters increasingly getting bolder to harry the armed forces and just after the slaying of 25 CRPF troopers, threaten to put a question mark on the government's "tough-on-terror" posture. The impression of a slide on the issue of national security can erase the memo ry of `surgical strikes' which helped the government earn plaudits.
Remarks of opponents underlined the risk. Congress's Ahmed Patel, who was in Gujarat for the launch of the party's assembly campaign, took a jibe at the government for giving only "lectures and speeches". CPM's Sitaram Yechury spoke along the same lines, saying whatever was done had not proved to be a deterrent, a not-so-subtle reference to the `surgical strikes'.The government has also decided to let the Army establish "area dominance" in J&K to quell stone pelting, in a decision which is likely to see the armed forces acquiring more autonomy in areas which have seen the most violent protests.The decision stems from the recognition that at this point in time, CM Mehbooba Mufti lacks the political capital to persuade the stone pelters to give up violence.

The government tonight notified the 7th Central Pay Commission (CPC) with revised emoluments for the three armed forces, while addressing a few core anomalies and leaving out some for resolution later on.

The pending ones include non-functional upgrade (NFU), a kind of pay increase without promotion as given to civilian employees. Also on the pending list is higher military service pay (MSP) for junior commissioned officers (JCOs). They rise from the lower ranks (jawans). The 7th CPC has clubbed the MSP of JCOs and jawans at Rs 5,200. The demand is to have it at Rs 10,000 for the JCOs.

Announcing the changes, Defence Minister Arun Jaitley said the issue of NFU was sub judice but added three of the demands had been accepted.
Jaitley listed these saying the pay matrix had been extended from 24 to 40 stages (allowing the pay scale to grow); the index of rationalisation of pay for Lieutenant Colonels and Colonels will be fixed at a ratio of 2.67 instead of 2.57; and pay protection for Major Generals, who on getting promoted from the rank of Brigadier used to see their pay getting reduced.

The Cabinet also approved the retention of percentage-based regime of disability pension implemented post 6th CPC, which the 7th CPC had recommended to be replaced by a slab-based system.
A slab-based system would have resulted in reduction in the amount of disability pension for existing pensioners and a reduction in the amount for future retirees. The benefit of the proposed modifications will be available with effect from January 1, 2016, that is the date of implementation of the 7th CPC recommendations.

The CPC for the forces had been held in abeyance since August when the Chiefs of the three armed services — Army, IAF and Navy — collectively wrote to the PM seeking redress.

Pension revision formulationThe Cabinet has approved changes to the method of revision of pension of pre-2016 pensioners and family pensioners based on suggestions made by the committee chaired by Secretary (Pensions) constituted with the approval of the Cabinet. The modified formulation of pension revision approved by the Cabinet will entail an additional benefit to the pensioners and an additional expenditure of Rs 5,031 crore for 2016-17 over and above the expenditure already incurred in revision of pension as per the second formulation based on fitment factor. 

Engines to be Assembeld in Ranchi

Rolls-Royce has inked a pact with Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) under which the former's MTU Series 4000 engines will be assembled at GRSE's Ranchi facility and later installed in naval vessels. 

As per the agreement, Rolls-Royce's 12V and 16V 4000 M90 type engines will be assembled in GRSE's diesel engine plant in Ranchi. An option for the local production of parts in the future was also agreed, Rolls Royce said in a statement. 
Besides, the agreement includes the transfer of MTU technology related to assembly, testing and painting. 
GRSE is a public sector unit while MTU is a brand of Rolls-Royce Power Systems. "This agreement strengthens our long-standing and successful partnership with MTU. It is an important contribution to our indigenisation programme in line with the government's Make in India strategy," GRSE CMD Rear Admiral (ret.) V K Saxena said. Under the partnership, the PSU plans to achieve 40 per cent indigenous content progressively for MTU 4000 series engines, he added. 
MTU India CEO Praveen Mohan said the company is delighted to continue and deepen its co-operation with GRSE. "India is one of the most important growth markets for MTU," he added. MTU and GRSE have a long-standing relationship spanning over three decades which started with the assembly of MTU Series 538 and 396 engines in Ranchi .. 

Meeting note stresses on better coordination, two new joint command centres, underlines development push.

An increase in the number of flying hours for the Indian Air Force (IAF), commando training by the Army for the District Reserve Guard (DRG), use of India Reserve Battalions (IRBs) instead of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) for road-opening duties, and more joint command-and-control centres — these will be some of the key agenda points when union Home Minister Rajnath Singh chairs a meeting of 10 Naxal-affected states on Monday.

The DRG are a wing of Chhattisgarh Police comprising mostly of villagers and surrendered Naxals, similar to the erstwhile Special Police Officers (SPOs). IRBs are elite armed police units in each state, who are trained to deal with specific situations.
On April 25, a day after Maoists killed 25 CRPF personnel in an ambush in Sukma, the deadliest attack on security forces in Chhattisgarh in seven years, Singh had said the government would review its anti-Naxal strategy. Earlier, on March 11, Maoists had killed 13 CRPF personnel, also in Sukma. Five days after the April 24 attack, security forces in Chhattisgarh had called off all road-opening duties for the next “10 days to a fortnight”.

Officials said Monday’s review meeting has been divided into two segments: the first session will focus on security aspects, while development issues will be taken up during the post-lunch session.
While the Centre has ruled out any direct involvement of the Army in areas hit by Left-Wing Extremism (LWE), there is a plan to “explore increasing number of flying hours by IAF carrying security personnel for operations” in the red corridor, says the agenda note for the meeting. The Indian Army will be asked to provide training to the DRG, a top government official said, adding that states will also be directed to identify and construct temporary stations for the landing of aircraft in remote areas to facilitate operations by security forces.

Also on the agenda is a discussion on stepping up operations led by states, with the help of central armed police forces (CAPFs). Only one such joint command-and-control centre — in Jagdalpur in Chhattisgarh — is operational currently. There is a plan to start joint command centres in Singhbhum (Jharkhand) and Gaya (Bihar), according to the agenda note.

The May 8 meeting is likely to be attended by the district magistrates and superintendents of police of the 35 worst LWE-affected districts, officials said. A total 106 districts in 10 states, including Chhattishgarh, Jharkhand, Odisha and Bihar, have been declared Naxal-affected.
The note says that the Centre has taken a serious view of the infrequent “meeting of unified command”. Singh is likely to take up the matter with Chief Ministers, and urge them to ensure there are meetings more often. Reports have indicated that the unified command in Naxal-affected States are not meeting regularly.

There is a proposal to “redeploy” the CRPF, enhance security at their camps with “installation of CCTVs to ward off any attacks by Naxals”, who may also try to loot weapons, bulletproof jackets and communications equipment. The Centre will also instruct state police chiefs to conduct inter-state joint exercises, since many of the strongholds of the Maoists are in the border areas of two or three states.

Other points on the agenda include strengthening of intelligence networks at the district level, and filling vacancies in the state police forces. The Home Ministry will also lay emphasis on the use of modern technologies by security forces, including increased use of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and body heat sensors.

On the development front, the MHA, along with other central ministries and state governments will focus on road projects, electrification of villages, and improving telecommunications networks, officials said.

Pakistan summons Iranian envoy over army chief's threat to strike cross-border terror camps

Pakistan today summoned Iranian ambassador to express its concern over Iran army chief's remarks that Tehran will hit "safe havens" of terrorists in Pakistan until Islamabad takes steps to stop militants from carrying out cross-border attacks.

Iran's state news agency IRNA yesterday quoted Major General Mohammed Baqeri as saying that "unless Pakistan control(s) the borders, arrest(s) the terrorist and shut(s) down their bases...we will hit their safe havens and cells wherever they are".Baqeri's remarks came after Iranian border troops were killed in a clash with militants.
Ten Iranian border guards were killed by militants last month. Iran said Jaish-al-Adl, a militant group, had shot the guards with long-range guns, fired from inside Pakistan.Pakistan's Foreign Office (FO) said in a statement that the Iranian Ambassador to Pakistan was called for "conveying Pakistan's concerns"."It was conveyed to the Iranian Ambassador that such remarks were against the spirit of brotherly relations existing between the two countries," it said."The Iranian side was urged to avoid issuance of such statements that could vitiate the environment of fraternal relations," it said.

The Foreign Office said recently the frequency of high-level exchanges from both the sides has strengthened the bilateral cooperation and during the visit of the Iranian Foreign Minister to Islamabad on May 3, the two sides agreed to enhance cooperation on the border issues.

The porous Iran-Pakistan border has long been plagued by drug smugglers and Sunni militants, both of whom occasionally clash with Iranian security forces.

A defence acquisitions council meeting, chaired by minister Arun Jaitley, ‘covered substantial ground’ on the strategic partnership policy

TIMES New Delhi: The government is now getting set to clear the much-awaited “strategic partnership” (SP) policy to boost the private sector’s role in defence production. Under it, a select few Indian private sector companies will be nominated to jointly produce fighters, helicopters, submarines and armoured vehicles in India in collaboration with foreign armament majors.

The defence acquisitions council (DAC), chaired by defence minister Arun Jaitley, “covered substantial ground” on the SP policy in an over two-hour meeting on Monday evening. “Things are moving forward. The SP policy is likely to be cleared in the next DAC meeting later this month,” said a source.

As was earlier reported by TOI, the SP policy seeks to create capacity for arms production in the private sector on a long-term basis, over and above the capacity and infrastructure that exist in the defence PSUs and ordnance factories.

Under the SP mechanism, six top Indian companies will initially be selected as SPs in the four segments of single-engine fighters, submarines, helicop- ters and armoured vehicles. But one company will be able to get nominated as the SP in only one segment at a time. The companies will be selected on the basis of adequate financial strength (Rs 4,000 crore in annual turnover over the last three fiscals, capital assets of Rs 2,000 crore etc), demonstrable manufacturing and technical expertise, existing infrastructure and the ability to absorb technology from their foreign partners.

The foreign companies or original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), in a separate but parallel process, will be selected primarily on the basis of the “range, depth and scope” of the transfer of technology they are willing to offer.

The government’s keenness to push through the long-awaited Strategic Partnership model in defence can be indicated by the fact that this was the only item on the agenda of the Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) meet on Monday evening that lasted for a marathon two-and-a-half hours.

Defence ministry sources said defence minister Arun Jaitley and his top aides cleared substantial ground that was described as having a “positive” outcome and a “movement forward” after the issue was discussed threadbare.

The meeting deliberated on the feedback received from the leaders of the Indian defence private industry on the power-point presentation titled “Revitalising Defence Industrial Ecosystem” made by the ministry on Thursday. Interestingly, the next DAC will be held either on Saturday or Monda y— a rare incidence of two DACs held so close to each other — to take up other items of military procurement and policy.Sources also said that after the next DAC, the SP Model issue may be placed before the Union Cabinet before the month ends.

The SP model is an effort to persuade broader participation of the private sector in defence under the ‘Make in India’ framework to ensure greater self-reliance and dependability of supplies essential to meet national security objectives. Under the model, select private Indian defence with major foreign makers will be allowed to exclusively make various military platforms for a specified period of time.

Britain today offered technology transfer to India for co-production of military platforms and weapon systems to jointly become “world beaters” in arms exports.
Britain’s Defence Secretary Michael Fallon also called for strengthening cooperation between the two countries to effectively deal with terrorism and extremism, calling them a major challenge facing the globe.

The British Defence Secretary is on a four-day visit to India aimed at enhancing security and defence ties.

During an interactive session at a leading think—tank on UK—India strategic ties, he referred to a spate of recent terror attacks including in London, St Petersburg and Egypt and said both India and the UK will have to work harder to deal with the menace.
“No country is immune from terrorism. India and the UK need to work hard to combat it,” he said, particularly emphasising on boosting cyber security cooperation to protect youths from radicalism and extremism.

Fallon refused to respond to a question on death sentence given to Kulbhushan Jadhav by a Pakistani military court.
On Indo-UK defence production, he said with innovation and collaboration, Britain and India can prove to be “world beaters“.
“We are looking at government-to-government framework for transfer of technology,” he said, on technology transfer to India in defence manufacturing.

The British Defence Secretary also gave a run down of reform measures taken by his country in the defence sector and said a partnership with India will provide an unprecedented opportunity to match the British experience with Indian brainpower.

U.K. Defence Minister signs White Shipping Information Agreement with Western Naval Command

Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Western Naval Command Girish Luthra on Tuesday signed an agreement on Sharing of White Shipping information with Secretary of State for Defence Michael Fallon, who is on a visit to India.

A twelve-member United Kingdom delegation, led by Michael Fallon, visited the Western Naval Command of the Indian Navy here.

Defence Minister Fallon in his interaction with Western Naval Command discussed on aspects related to Defence and Naval Cooperation, Maritime Security and current environment in the Indo-Pacific region, Progress on maritime issues, as outlined in the Defence and International Security Partnership (DISP) 2015.

The UK delegation also visited INS Kolkata, a frontline indigenously built stealth destroyer of the Indian Navy and was conducted around the ship.The Royal Navy and the Indian Navy have for long shared a healthy relationship of mutual respect, trust and professionalism. The two have engaged in a bilateral naval exercise named KONKAN 2004 onwards.

The last edition of the KONKAN series of exercises was held in December 2016 and INS Tarkash is scheduled to participate in KONKAN 17 off the coast of UK in May 2017.

The Indian Army looks set to go ahead with the indigenously developed Arjun Mk 2 Main Battle Tank

Sources told Sputnik that defense scientists of the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) saw the successful test of an anti-tank weapon with a strike range of five kilometers at a testing facility in Orissa state. Scientists test-fired high explosive anti-tank weapon from Arjun MK 2 in salvo mode against a decommissioned tank. Sources said the test was successful and it had the desirable impact on the target.

DRDO scientists have been developing the Arjun MK 2 Main Battle Tank since 2012. Arjun MK 2 is said to be a substantially improved and more capable version of the Arjun MK 1, 118 of which are now in delivery. But the Army has a problem with the weight of the tank: it weighs approximately 68 tons with scientists trying to lighten the load. Sources said scientists will use indigenously developed lighter high nitrogen steel in the baseline hull of the tank. They will also use all-aluminium road-wheels instead of all-steel road wheels and ventilators to reduce the weight.

Defense sources told Sputnik that the Indian Army wanted Arjun MK 2 to weigh 50-55 tons but the DRDO has conveyed its inability to bring it down to that level. The Army is said to have objected to the tank's 68 ton weight, saying it was too heavy and limited the area where it can be deployed.

In February this year, Bharat Electronics had unveiled a remote controlled weapon station (RCWS) for 12.7 mm gun of MBT Arjun Mk II battle tank at Aero India 2017 in Bengaluru. This enabled the soldier to aim and fire at aerial targets from the safe interiors of the battle tank. Presently, the 12.7 mm guns of all tanks are manually operated. The RCWS is armed with the 12.7 mm Russian NSVT heavy machine gun. Other weapons like 7.62 mm MG can also be fitted with it.

Deployment termed an assertive stance against China.

The Indian Navy has deployed one of its three Shardul-class amphibious warfare ships to provide surveillance support in the Indian Ocean Region, primarily against illegal fishing and smuggling.

The ship has been to the Mauritius and is now in Seychelles. The Indian Navy's deployment of the ship has been termed an assertive stance against China.

"The warship, during the initial phase of deployment, carried out joint Exclusive Economic Zone surveillance of Mauritius from 08-26 Mar 17 in close coordination with National Coast Guard, Mauritius. Post successful completion of joint EEZ Surveillance of Mauritius, the warship entered EEZ of Seychelles on 27 Mar 17 for Phase I of EEZ surveillance," said Indian Navy official.

The 124.8-meter-long, 5600-ton INS Shardul is a Landing Ship Tank (Large) whose primary role is to transport troops, vehicles, armaments and accomplish all objectives of an amphibious operation, which includes landing of combat equipment and personnel. INS Shardul has the capability to launch and recover Marine Commandos through sea as well as by helicopters. It can attain a speed of 15.8 knots and act as a ‘hospital ship' with facilities provided in containerized form as well as a ‘fleet tanker' for limited mission/ exercise.

Other measures decided on during the review

 The CRPF will insist on joint operations with states’ special forces instead of trying to hunt down Maoists on its own, the force has decided. The decision — part of the “strategy review” as announced by Home Minister Rajnath Singh after the Maoist ambush in Chhattisgarh that killed 25 CRPF personnel on Monday — will be discussed with various states facing Maoist violence. Other measures decided on during the review include reorganisation of force deployment with focus on operations instead of road protection.

The CRPF is also sending a “wish list”, as demanded by the Home Ministry, on state-of-the-art technologies it needs to counter Maoist threats. These technologies are likely to include Netra UAVs, thermal imaging cameras for night vision, laser-based equipment and gadgets to improve surveillance capabilities.

The CRPF team, led by acting DG Sudeep Lakhtakia, returned from the encounter site in Sukma on Thursday afternoon after a fact-finding exercise and briefed the Home Ministry about likely lapses, vulnerabilities of road protection exercise and steps required to be taken for a comprehensive review.

Sources said joint operations with state special forces would be a priority as it is the state police that is supposed to lead the offensive against Maoists. “In Chhattisgarh, operations are primarily carried out by CRPF with just one or two local police personnel assisting it. This needs to change. A strong contingent of state police forces, comparable in strength to a CRPF unit, should accompany the men on operations. They have local knowledge, intelligence and resources. That is how Maoism was defeated in other states,” said a Home Ministry official.

In Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal, which were the hotbeds of Naxalism, Maoist guerrillas were driven out by the efforts of special forces raised by state police. Andhra’s Greyhounds are still held as a model force to combat Maoists. Chhattisgarh is raising a force on the lines of Greyhounds, while Jharkhand has the Jharkhand Jaguars.

The force has also decided that it will not expose too many of its men to the vulnerabilities of the road protection exercises. “A reorganisation of force deployment is being discussed. The focus should be on operations. The more road protection exercises CRPF undertakes, the more vulnerable it is because of the predictability of such operations,” a CRPF official said.

The force believes that Netra UAVs will help it in operations between February and May, when Maoists conduct their Tactical Counter Offensive Campaign. Night vision equipment will help in movement in the dark and a plan for installing such devices on towers for night-long surveillance is also being discussed.

With Iran's top military official warning Pakistan of reprisals for sheltering Sunni militias attacking targets in Iran, three of Islamabad's neighbours have accused it of cross-border terrorism. Iran's warning that it might be considering its version of "surgical strikes" comes after 10 of its border guards were killed by a group identified as Jaish-al-Adl which Tehran believes is sheltered in Pakistan.

Sunni groups operating from Pakistan believe Shia-majority Iran does not conform to Islam and is a fair target for violence.Iran has echoed the charge frequently levelled by Afghanistan and India. Successive Afghan regimes have held Pakistan responsible for the resurgence of Taliban which has attacked development projects, kidnapped foreign nationals and sought to impose hardline Islam in its territory.Pakistan's sponsorship of Taliban is intended to ensure its control on territory in Afghanistan and is also a measure to pressure the incumbent government. It is also part of its 'strategic depth' doctrine, based on a calculation that Afghanistan must remain a subservient backyard.

The doctrine is linked to Pakistan's India strategy where its army and ISI arm and despatch terrorists for terrorist strikes in J&K and the rest of India. A dense network of "friendly" jihadi organisations operate in Pakistan and Afghanistan and train fighters for assignments in India. India has accused Pakistan of encouraging and sponsoring terrorist organisations like Lashkar-e-Taiba and Jaish-e-Mohammad as well as Hizbul Mujahideen who are responsible for terror attacks on Indian civilian and military targets.

After Lanka snub,China sub may head for Pak

India is keeping close tabs on the Chinese submarine currently prowling in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), which is now likely to head for Karachi after being refused permission to dock at Colombo+ , even as it has dispatched four warships on an overseas deployment to south-east Asia and southern Indian Ocean.

The Yuan-class conventional submarine was "picked up" by Indian Navy's Poseidon-8I long-range maritime patrol aircraft as soon as it crossed the Malacca Strait on April 19-20 as part of the 26th anti-piracy taskforce of the People's Liberation Army-Navy (PLAN).
PLAN has been regularly sending its nuclear and diesel-electric submarines to the IOR since December 2013 to extend its strategic reach in the region+ . "The pretext is anti-piracy patrols in the Gulf of Aden. But what role can submarines play against pirates and their dhows?" said a defence ministry source.

The Navy has tracked seven Chinese submarines in the IOR till now, with the first being a Shang-class nuclear attack submarine (SSN) from December 2013 to February 2014. "Two Chinese submarines, a nuclear one alternating with a diesel-electric one, are coming for three months each to the IOR every year. They usually come through the Malacca Strait, where they have to surface due to shallow depth, and exit through the Sunda Strait," he added.

They have included the Song and Yuan-class conventional submarines and the Shang and Han SSNs, with the PLAN yet to deploy its new Jin-class advanced nuclear submarines to the region so far. India, of course, lags far behind China in the underwater combat arena, with just 13 old diesel-electric and two nuclear submarines. China, in contrast, has well over 50 submarines.
China has also systematically forged extensive maritime links with several IOR nations, and is now even establishing its first overseas naval facility at Djibouti. Though China's primary aim may be protection of its trade and energy sea routes, India has reason to be wary of PLAN's expeditionary forays in the region.

India, on its part, is slowly but steadily stepping up military ties with Asean countries as well naval deployments to the Far East to strategically counter all this. Stealth frigates INS Sahyadari and INS Shivalik, anti-submarine warfare corvette INS Kamorta and tanker Jyoti, for instance, are part of the ongoing deployment to south-east Asia in pursuance of the "Act East" policy.

The induction of eight P-8I aircraft, under a $2.1 billion deal inked with the US in 2009, has also helped the Navy keep an "intelligent hawk-eye" over the IOR region. Another four P-8Is, packed with sensors and weapons for anti-submarine warfare, will join the force from July 2019 onwards at a cost of $1.1 billion.

Anti-submarine warfare will also be a major thrust area during the forthcoming Malabar exercise among India, the US and Japan in the Bay of Bengal in July, as was earlier reported by TOI.

L&T bags its biggest defence order worth Rs 4,500 crore to supply self-propelled guns to Indian Army

Larsen & Toubro bagged its biggest defence order worth Rs. 4,500 crore to supply gun systems to the Indian army, the engineering company said in a statement on Friday. 

L&T will supply 100 units of 155mm/52 calibre Tracked Self-Propelled Gun systems to the Indian army over 42 months. “This is our biggest order and it gives us revenue visibility for the next three and a half years,” Jayant Patil, head of defence and aerospace at L&T, told ET. 

L&T, supported by South Korean technology partner Hanwha Tech Win (HTW), had bid for this ‘Buy Global’ acquisition programme of the defence ministry in 2011. It beat three others to emerge as the sole qualified bidder after a series of user trials and evaluations, based on the performance of the K9 VAJRA-T self-propelled Howitzer. 

It beat three others to emerge as the sole qualified bidder after a series of user trials and evaluations, based on the performance of the K9 VAJRA-T self-propelled Howitzer.The K9 VAJRA-T gun is an enhanced version of HTW’s K9 Thunder, customised and co-developed by L&T and HTW to suit the specific requirements of the Indian army, including desert operations. 

HTW has sold over 1,000 units of the K9 Thunder self-propelled Howitzer, which are in service in Korea and other countries. “Our order pipeline is strong and we hope to bag some more big-ticket orders in the current fiscal year to contribute significantly to L&T’s order book,” Patil said. L&T has invested heavily in the defence sector and has built a shipyard that can build submarines.  

India-Pakistan ties may slide further: U.S. intelligence

‘Easing of tension depends on reduction in terror attacks’
The relations between India and Pakistan is likely to deteriorate further in 2017 and the easing of tension will depend on “a sharp and sustained reduction of cross-border attacks by terrorist groups based in Pakistan and progress in the Pathankot investigation,” according to a U.S. intelligence assessment of the security situation in the region.

Daniel R. Coats, Director of National Intelligence, told the U.S. Senate intelligence committee during a hearing on worldwide threat assessment that New Delhi’s growing intolerance to Islamabad’s “failure to curb support to anti-India militants” led to a deterioration in bilateral ties in 2016 and this could worsen in the current year.
Two major terrorist attacks in 2016 by militants crossing into India from Pakistan led to the slide in ties, and the “perceived lack of progress in Pakistan’s investigations into the January 2016 Pathankot cross-border attack” compounded it, according to the American assessment. “Increasing numbers of fire-fights along the Line of Control, including the use of artillery and mortars, might exacerbate the risk of unintended escalation between these nuclear-armed neighbours,” he said.
The assessment of the global security situation under the Donald Trump administration echoes a concern that dominated the previous Obama administration’s south Asia policy — the risk of Islamist terrorists laying their hand on Pakistan’s nuclear arsenal. “Pakistan’s pursuit of tactical nuclear weapons potentially lowers the threshold for their use. Early deployment during a crisis of smaller, more mobile nuclear weapons would increase the amount of time that systems would be outside the relative security of a storage site, increasing the risk that a coordinated attack by non-state actors might succeed in capturing a complete nuclear weapons,” Mr. Coats told the committee.
India’s military doctrine of cold start that aims to launch low intensity operation into Pakistan, and Pakistan’s declared willingness to respond with tactical nuclear weapons have been under scrutiny of American security strategists for a while. Mr. Obama made a mention of it at his address to the Nuclear Security Summit last year. Officials of the Trump administration have inherited that view of South Asia.
Pakistan-based terrorist groups will present a sustained threat to U.S. interests in the region and continue to plan and conduct attacks in India and Afghanistan, the official told lawmakers. “The threat to the United States and the West from Pakistani-based terrorist groups will be persistent but diffuse. Plotting against the U.S. homeland will be conducted on a more opportunistic basis or driven by individual members within these groups,” he said. Assessing that Pakistan will be able to manage its internal security, the official said anti-Pakistan groups will probably focus more on soft targets. “The emerging China Pakistan Economic Corridor will probably offer militants and terrorists additional targets,” he said.
Terror supportersMeanwhile, the U.S. Department of Treasury blacklisted three persons and an organisation based in Pakistan for supporting terrorists.A statement by the department said Hayat Ullah Ghulam Muhammad (Haji Hayatullah), Ali Muhammad Abu Turab (Abu Turab), Inayat ur Rahman, and a purported charity managed by Inayat ur Rahman, the Welfare and Development Organization of Jamaat-ud-Dawah for Qur'an and Sunnah, were supporting the Taliban, al-Qaeda, Lashkar-e-Tayyiba (LT), the Islamic State, and ISIS – Khorasan.
“These sanctions seek to disrupt the financial support networks of terrorists based in Pakistan who have provided support to the Taliban, al-Qaeda, ISIS, and LT for recruitment and funding of suicide bombers and other violent insurgent operations,” said the department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control Director John E. Smith.
“The United States continues to aggressively target extremists in Pakistan and the surrounding region, including charities and other front groups used as vehicles to facilitate illicit terrorist activities.”