The Centre on Wednesday announced a raft of post-retirement employment possibilities for 'Agniveer' like priority in recruitment to the central armed police forces (CAPF) and Assam rifles but that failed to assuage the concerns of the opposition Congress which warned the 'transformative' 'Agnipath' scheme will reduce the operational effectiveness of the armed forces.
On his last day in office as the Chief of Army Staff, General Bipin Rawat on Tuesday paid tribute to martyrs at the National War Memorial in New Delhi on Tuesday. General Rawat remembered the brave personnel who had sacrificed their lives in the service of the nation. He also received his farewell Guard of Honour as the Army Chief at the South Block.
Top commanders of the Army on Thursday carried out a comprehensive review of India's overall security challenges including in eastern Ladakh as well as other sensitive areas along the Line of Actual Control with China on the first day of a two-day conference, people familiar with the development said.
Under the new plan, the two Deputy Chiefs of Army Staff have been given new and specific responsibilities to lessen the burden of the Vice Chief of the Army Staff, the general who virtually runs the 1.3 million-strong Indian Army on a day-to-day basis
Defence minister Rajnath Singh said Neerj Chopra's "golden victory" at the Tokyo Olympics is a historic and proud moment for the entire country, including the Indian armed forces.
In an address at a seminar, the army chief said senior military commanders of India and China are holding talks to iron out modalities for de-escalation of tension in eastern Ladakh.
The scheme is aimed at slashing the salary and pension bills of the three services, which have been increasing rapidly.
Based mainly on his reconnaissance reports, the Indian Army went ahead with the mission to occupy the Siachen heights under the Operation Meghdoot.
General K S Thimayya served as chief of the army staff from 1957 to 1961.
The talks between India and China on the border row in eastern Ladakh have helped 'build trust' and the situation in the region has been normal since the disengagement in the Pangong Tso areas in February, Chief of Army Staff General M M Naravane said on Thursday, exuding confidence of resolution of the 'remaining issues'.
The Chief of Army Staff is scheduled to hold extensive talks with the top civilian and military brass of Nepal including his counterpart General Purna Chandra Thapa on a range of key issues such as further boosting the management of the nearly 1,800 km-long border between the two countries.
United States Chief of Army Staff General Raymond T Odierno, who recently returned from India, has denied that growing military ties and joint exercises between Washington and New Delhi were an attempt by the US to co-opt India to 'triangulate' or 'contain' China, reports Aziz Haniffa.
Singh said in a statement in the Lok Sabha that all efforts were being made to save IAF Group Captain Varun Singh, the lone survivor of the crash near Coonoor in Tamil Nadu on Wednesday, who was on life support at the military hospital in Wellington.
General Bipin Rawat, India's first Chief of Defence Staff who died in a tragic helicopter crash in Tamil Nadu, was an exceptional leader, a valued partner and a strong proponent of US-India defence ties and helped deepen the bilateral strategic partnership, top US officials have said.
The army chief also appealed the cadets to keep abreast with new technology to counter the contemporary challenges.
Describing former Pakistan chief of army staff Lt Gen (retired) Shahid Aziz as an imbalanced personality who indulged in uncalled for character assassination, former president and army chief General (retired) Pervez Musharraf justified the 1999 Kargil War and stated that there was absolutely no need to inform everyone about the operation.
If the government of the day would like to set in place a smooth and well-planned changeover and facilitate the incoming chief to chalk out his action plan well in advance, the announcement of a successor needs to be done early, observes Colonel K Thammayya Udupa (retd).
Celebrating its 89th anniversary, the Indian Air Force on Friday put up a dazzling show with 75 aircraft, drawn from its vintage and modern fleet, performing skilful manoeuvres also marking the platinum jubilee year of India's Independence.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will unfurl the national flag from the ramparts of the Red Fort on Sunday to celebrate the country's 75th Independence Day and two Mi-17 1V helicopters of the Indian Air Force (IAF) will shower flower petals at the venue for the first time ever.
The India Army troops rose to the occasion to the challenges along the northern border as likely contingencies and possible options were war-gamed beforehand, Army Chief Gen M M Naravane said on Wednesday, referring to the eastern Ladakh standoff with China.
'As a course mate who has followed closely this star on the Bombay Sappers firmament, my heart swells with pride to see his extraordinary brilliance and focus; his commitment and his dedication; his hard work; and his technical as well as tactical knowledge,' says Colonel K Thammayya Udupa (retd) of his batchmate General Manoj Pande who will take over as chief of the army staff on May 1.
Indian troops were maintaining their "posture" along the border with China while infrastructure development in the frontier areas was on track, Army Chief Gen M M Naravane said on Thursday, days after personnel of the two countries were locked in two separate incidents of violent face-offs. Gen Naravane said the incidents in Eastern Ladakh and North Sikkim involved aggressive behaviour by Chinese and Indian troops resulting in minor injuries to personnel from both the sides.
'The decision has been taken in view of the regional security environment.'
'If I talk about my parents' sacrifices, this conversation will never end,' says Lieutenant Loveneet Singh.
He visited areas falling under the operational command of the Rising Star Corps, including Kathua, Samba, Jammu and Pathankot, to review the security situation.
India and China have agreed to soon hold the 10th round of Corps Commander-level talks to take forward the de-escalation process in eastern Ladakh, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said on Thursday.
Bipin was the brightest among our coursemates and went on to become the first CDS of the country. I believe that all those who have known him and Madhulika will miss them very much, observes Lieutenant General Himalaya Singh (retd).
Singh paid tributes to soldiers killed in the Kargil War at a memorial in Dras sector.
Former Army Chief Gen VK Singh, Vice Chief of Army Staff SK Singh, Lt Gen BS Thakur (director general of military intelligence), Major General SL Narshiman (additional director general of public information) and Lt Col Hitten Sawhney appeared before the court in the case filed by Lt Gen (retd) Tejinder Singh. All the five were granted bail by metropolitan magistrate Jay Thareja on a personal bond of Rs 20,000 each
His comments came in the midst of the disengagement process between Indian and Chinese armies in Pangong Tso areas in eastern Ladakh where the two sides have been locked in a nine-month standoff.
The army is celebrating the 17th Kargil Vijay Diwas to commemorate the victory in the war against Pakistan.
On his first day as CDS, General Rawat paid tribute at the National War Memorial in the heart of New Delhi near India Gate. He wore the uniform representing his parent service.
B D Pande was Punjab's governor during Operation Bluestar. In this excerpt from his memoir, In the Service of Free India: Memoir of a Civil Servant, Pande reveals what really went on behind the scenes during those dark days in India's history.
'The statement that Indian Air Force is supporting arm to the other two services is incorrect and wrong'
General Officer in Command of the strategically located XV Corps Lt Gen B S Raju said the Summary of Evidence has been completed but refused to give away any details of the outcome.
'Why wouldn't so strategically-minded an adversary, such as China, not militarily exploit to the maximum Indian timidity, stupidity, and cupidity all along the LAC and legitimate, as it has done so often in the past, the fait accompli of incremental territorial grabs which, by the way, is its strategy and policy as implemented on the ground?'
Gen K M Cariappa was the first Indian Army chief to be decorated with the title in 1950.
"Numerous rounds of talks have taken place with the Chinese counterparts to deescalate the situation without compromising on India's stand of 'complete disengagement and immediate restoration of status quo ante'," the defence ministry said.
The experts also said China's military 'misadventure' may have been driven in part by President Xi Jinping's attempt to show 'gains somewhere" after the growing global criticism against his country over the origin of COVID-19.