The army has long been deficient in artillery, the modern battlefield's most lethal killer, says Ajai Shukla.
Twenty Indian Army personnel including a colonel were killed in a clash with Chinese troops in the Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh on the night of June 15 in the biggest military confrontation between the two countries in over five decades.
The meetings were organised on Sunday at Nathu La in Sikkim and Bum La and Kibithu in Arunachal Pradesh, he said.
Sources in the security establishment said the force is also set to get sanctions from the Union Home ministry to raise at least nine fresh battalions soon. They said in order to bolster troop numbers along the 3,488 km long Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, as many as 60 companies have been ordered to move towards the front in various areas like Ladakh, Uttarakhand, Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh.
With the two armies again in a face-off at multiple points, there is apprehension of renewed clashes.
'Under General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) Xi Jinping, Beijing has stepped up its aggressive foreign policy toward New Delhi. Since 2013, China has engaged in five major altercations with India along the Line of Actual Control (LAC),' said a brief issued by US-China Economic and Security Review Commission.
....a long-term boundary agreement is reached between the two countries.
What is it that China seeks and why has the Ladakh border become and remained hot for two years and what is going on in Arunachal Pradesh?, asks Aakar Patel.
'Not a single bullet was fired, but we were warning the enemy not to continue with their antics!' IAF Veteran Air Commodore Nitin Sathe finds out how the Light Combat Helicopter, which will be inducted into the IAF on October 3, was designed, developed and flown.
India on Wednesday delivered a strong message to China that the 'unprecedented' incident in the Galwan Valley will have a 'serious impact' on the bilateral relationship and held the 'pre-meditated' action by Chinese army directly responsible for the violence that left 20 Indian Army personnel dead.
General Bipin Rawat was given the guideline by the prime minister to achieve the integration of the three forces by the 75th year of India's Independence. This should be carried forward with utmost speed.
BrahMos Aerospace, an India-Russian joint venture, produces the supersonic cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, ships, aircraft, or from land platforms.
China hiked its annual defence budget by 7.1 per cent.
"Few shots from 30,000 feet! Mid air refuelling of #RafaleJets on their way to #India," the Indian Embassy in France tweeted
The ED said in a statement that it has attached the properties including land, building and structure and plant and machinery of Jarandeshwar Sahkari Sugar Karkhana at Chimangaon, Koregaon, Satara worth Rs 65,75,00,000 under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering in a case related to Maharashtra State Co-operative Bank (MSCB).
The government is set to begin the process soon to appoint the next Chief of Defence Staff with Army Chief Gen MM Naravane emerging as the front-runner for the top post that fell vacant following the demise of Gen Bipin Rawat in a helicopter crash.
Vice Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General C P Mohanty on Thursday carried out a comprehensive review of India's military preparedness in eastern Ladakh on the first day of his three-day visit to the region where Indian and Chinese troops have been locked in a bitter standoff for over a year.
Four-nation grouping Quad on Tuesday launched a major new initiative for the Indo-Pacific that allows the partner countries to fully monitor the waters on their shores and help ensure peace and stability in the region, a move that comes amid China's increasingly intimidatory behaviour.
"We are capable of properly resolving the issues between us through dialogue and consultation. We do not need the intervention of the third party", he said.
Outgoing Indian envoy to China Vikram Misri on Monday had a virtual farewell call on Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi during which he said that "certain challenges" had overpowered the vast opportunities in the bilateral ties last year and hoped that with continued communication the two sides would be able to resolve the current difficulties.
The Blinken visit indicated that the Biden administration is still somewhat tentative about the specifics of its relations with India, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan, who has served multiple stints at India's embassy in Washington, DC.
However, the deployment in the frontline areas has remained the same and the troops from both sides remain in an eyeball to eyeball situation at several locations in that sector.
The document, which was uploaded on the defence ministry's website, was removed on Thursday morning following publication of a media report based on it.
Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian, during a media briefing in Beijing, said that China's position on the border related issues is clear and consistent. "We have been following the important consensus reached by the two leaders and strictly observing the agreements between the two countries," he said, apparently referring to the directions of Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after their two informal summits, asking the militaries of the two countries to take more confidence building measures to maintain peace and tranquillity along the borders.
'Both sides should, therefore, focus on easing tensions in the friction areas by refraining from any actions that may lead to an escalation in the situation'
China has been an aggressor against India along the Himalayan border, a top American diplomat nominated by President Joe Biden as his next envoy to Beijing has told lawmakers, stating that the US must hold the Chinese government accountable for failing to play by the rules.
The CRPF has lost 108 personnel to COVID-19, the highest among the central forces that function under the command of the Union home ministry, according to data.
He said both sides reaffirmed to sincerely work towards complete disengagement of the troops along the LAC.
The Congress on Friday questioned the silence of the government on the veracity of a video which purportedly shows injured Indian soldiers in captivity of the Chinese and said if it is genuine, then Prime Minister Narendra Modi must ensure that China is held globally accountable for indulging in war crimes.
"After the Major General-level talks on Wednesday, the talks are expected to be held over the next few days in Chushul at multiple levels to find solutions to the dispute in specific areas," sources said.
The two armies had mutually decided not to resort to use firearms during face-offs in sync with provisions of two agreements on border management.
At an online media briefing, External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Anurag Srivastava gave a run down of the events along the LAC in the eastern Ladakh region and held China responsible for the Galwan Valley clashes off June 15.
The Indian Army has been pitching for a faster disengagement process in areas like Hot Springs, Gogra and Depsang to bring down tension in the mountainous region.
With the Indian Army having blocked the PLA several kilometres inside India, hundreds of soldiers from both sides remain in a tense face-off.
"Our patience is a sign of our self-confidence, but no one should make the mistake of testing it," Gen Naravane said.
It has been argued that India should have held back on disengagement from the Kailash Range, using that as a trump card to force Chinese concessions in areas such as Depsang, where they hold the advantage.
"I still have not heard a credible explanation as to why they chose to bring that size of forces to that sector of our border. Now, if peace and tranquility is disturbed and attempts are being made to change the LAC status quo unilaterally and large forces are brought to the border in contravention of written agreements, then obviously the relationship will be impacted," he said.
A popular Chinese blogger, detained earlier this year for his comments regarding military casualties of Galwan valley clash with India, has been sentenced to eight months in prison.
Pawar said he was upset that his three sisters were dragged into this.
In an address at the annual general meeting of industry chamber FICCI, Singh said the 'unprovoked aggression' on India's Himalayan frontiers is a reminder of how the world is changing and how existing agreements are being challenged.
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