"Operation Parakram" in 2001 was the "most punishing mistake" for the armed forces, former Navy chief Admiral Sushil Kumar said on Friday, maintaining the government then lacked any political aim or objective for deploying the army along the Indo-Pakistan border.
The Indian Army's broader reorganisation is inevitable as India's military doctrine adapts to the demands of the modern battlefield.
The Border Security Force (BSF) launched "Operation Sindoor" in retaliation to unprovoked firing and shelling by Pakistani Rangers along the International Border (IB) in Jammu. BSF troops destroyed three terrorist launch pads and targeted 76 Pakistani border outposts and 42 forward defence locations. The BSF action came after Pakistan launched heavy firing and shelling on 60 Indian posts and 49 forward positions, reportedly providing cover for an attempted infiltration by 40-50 terrorists.
In a composed and clear presentation, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi announced that nine terrorist facilities had been destroyed in the tri-services operation.
If the only superpower, which calls India an ally, sees the region through an India-Pakistan prism, it is unacceptable. Rather than endorse India's sphere of influence, this undermines it, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
The incident took place on the intervening night of April 8-9 near Dorangla village in Gurdaspur district. The Border Security Force (BSF) has issued an "alert" all along the 553 km of this front in Punjab and suspension of farming around the blast area.
When the country has been at war, the Opposition has buried its differences with the government, points out Aditi Phadnis.
The reality is that far from being friendless, India is better positioned in the world than at any point post-Cold War, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
'General Paddy was amongst the last line of generals who stood by his convictions and brooked no interference in matters which were his domain.' Lieutenant General Zameer Uddin Shah (retd) salutes his former chief who passed away on August 19.
The full-court press on India over Ukraine, the BBC 'documentary', the Oxfam report, the Hindenburg attack on Adani and obliquely on the Indian economy, and any number of other acts are signs that India is a target, warns Rajeev Srinivasan.
Over 68,000 Army soldiers, around 90 tanks and other weapon systems were airlifted by the Indian Air Force to eastern Ladakh from across the country for rapid deployment along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) after the deadly clashes in the Galwan Valley, top sources in defence and security establishment said.
Lt Gen Baggavalli Somashekar Raju will take over as the next vice chief of the Army Staff on May 1, the defence ministry said on Friday.
Present vice chief Lt Gen BS Raju would be succeeding Lt Gen AS Bhinder who is superannuating on February 28 at the South Western Army Command.
Gen Pande, who was serving as the vice chief, became the first officer from the Corps of Engineers to helm the force.
Lieutenant General Manoj Pande on Tuesday took over the reins of Eastern Command as its General Officer Commanding-in-Chief.
The No. 51 Squadron is to be retired by the end of September, "as per the plan", the defence sources said.
Maybe, the need for secrecy may have tied the government's hand from sharing details in Parliament. Still, it should consider the need of sharing the utmost within any consultative committee, so that relative secrecy is still maintained. But such a course should involve the prime minister or home minister, as it is much more serious than is being made out to be, argues N Sathiya Moorthy.
There is only one perpetrator, Hamas. It is a terrorist organisation. It is obscene to argue that until the Palestinian question is solved, anybody has the right to use terrorism as an instrument of policy, argues Shekhar Gupta.
'After Uri, the current government took public ownership of surgical strikes.' 'The question they need to ask themselves is did this bring about a change in Pakistan's behaviour towards us? The answer is no.' 'If there had been a change, then Pulwama would not have happened.'
The central government on Monday appointed Army Vice Chief Lieutenant General Manoj Pande as the next chief of Indian Army.
For Navy veterans who watched the huge vessel being towed away by a tug boat, it was an emotional moment as they stood near the Gateway of India, waving at the once 'floating town', aboard which they spent the best years of their career.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi condoled his demise, saying Kumar contributed towards strengthening the country's maritime security.
A major chunk of agriculture land along the Line of Control, which was left abandoned following mine laying activity during the Kargil war and Operation Parakram, has been de-mined by the army, bringing cheers to farmers in border areas near Jammu.
The Indian Army is not mobilising troops on the border with Pakistan in the wake of Mumbai terror strikes, a senior Army official said on Sunday scotching speculation in this regard.
The woman made her threat as the minister ended answering questions on his recent visit to China along with senior officials of his ministry, ONGC and other agencies.
The Indian Navy's flagship carrier, the INS Viraat will be decommissioned on March 6 after serving the nation for 30 glorious years.
The 'Sanghe Shakti' army exercises, being conducted by the Ambala-based 2 Corps, are scheduled to end later on Friday.
'Declared war was not there but there were attacks and counter-attacks and that is the reality,' the Union defence minister revealed.
The swing-wing fighter has been the backbone of ground-attack fleet of the Air Force for several decades
'There is no such thing as ultimate survivability.'
'It's all comparative -- who outperforms, who uses tactics, who optimises technology to the best is what makes the difference.'
Lt Gen N C Vij sad men from the special forces, specialised units of the army and air force were to be involved in the attack, which was called off at the last moment.
Army on Friday handed over about 37 acres of demined farmland to the villagers in the Akhnoor belt along the Line of Control in the Jammu district.
The MiG29K and MiG29KUB, the aircraft carrier's primary fighters, spent more time in the hangar than in the air, with fleet serviceability remaining below 50 per cent, reports Ajai Shukla.
'The Chinese fault lines are tremendous and we need to exploit them.'
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar wants the Modi government and BJP to reap the profit of the surgical strikes. But electoral history suggests a political party's ability to exploit military successes for poll gains has a mixed record.
'If you behave like a nail, the adversary will behave like a hammer.'
Unless each attack drone can be neutralised, India will be literally deploying elephants to stamp out ants -- and the ants may still survive! points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
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