'The biggest game changer has been the belief among Maoists that they can surrender and join the mainstream'
'Operation Sindoor had three objectives.' 'One, destroy the Lashkar-e-Taiba headquarters at Muridke and the Jaish-e-Mohammed headquarters at Bahawalpur.' 'Second, deter and defend any counterstrike by Pakistan.' 'And third, if they persist, demonstrably deliver counterforce punishment.' 'All of the three boxes, the IAF checked,' points out Shekhar Gupta.
A Pakistan that is more secure in its relations with the US is also one that might well wish to indulge in another cross-border misadventure.
Five soldiers were killed and five others were injured when an Army vehicle carrying them skidded off the road and rolled down into a gorge in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district. The accident occurred in the Gharoa area when the vehicle was on its way to Banoi in the district. Rescue teams have recovered five bodies. The vehicle plunged into a gorge, approximately 300-350 feet deep.
'I have been touched whenever I have known him personally as a human being.'
What drives Pakistani men to join its military, despite the toll it takes on them?
Chief of the command Lt Gen Alok Kler and his deputy Lt Gen K K Repswal are at loggerheads for the past several months over the role, charter and duties of various appointments as well as on running of the command that takes care of security along the borders in Rajasthan and Punjab.
"I mentioned to sir (Ratan Tata) that the son of a fellow army officer was handicapped below the waist and needed a job," he told PTI from Pune where he now lives. "Vijay Bisht, son of my then colleague in M&G area HQ Lt Col B S Bisht, had sustained severe leg injuries after falling from a horse and I came to know he was looking for a job," he added. Tata said the needful would be done. And it was.
The situation along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh is stable but sensitive and not normal, Chief of Army Staff General Upendra Dwivedi said on Tuesday on the dragging military standoff between China and India in the region.
'Munir is clearly insecure and hence he needs the prop of a field marshal.'
The Pakistan government is unlikely to order a probe into the audacious terror attack on the Army's General Headquarters in Rawalpindi which rocked the troubled nation last Saturday. According to sources, the Gilani government fears that any such inquiry could lead to the downfall of the government, in similar fashion to the Junejo government, which fell apart, following the Ojhri camp tragedy in 1988.
Singh reached Udhampur on a two-day visit on Friday, his second trip to Jammu and Kashmir post-Operation Sindoor. He visited Kashmir on May 15, days after India and Pakistan reached an understanding to stop military actions against each other.
Khan will remain in jail as he is convicted in many other cases.
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.
Sources have revealed that at least five hardcore terrorists affiliated with banned terror outfits Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) were killed in Indian strikes in Pakistan on May 7th. The strikes targeted nine terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Among the dead were Mudassar Khadian Khas, a LeT leader, and Hafiz Muhammed Jameel, the brother of JeM founder Maulana Masood Azhar. Other notable casualties included Mohammad Yusuf Azhar, a brother-in-law of Masood Azhar, and Khalid alias Abu Akasha, a LeT operative. The Pakistani military and government officials were present at the funerals of the slain terrorists.
Official confirmation from the government is still awaited, and more details are expected soon.
Mrs Gandhi's power ebbed and peaked with the times. Mr Modi's has almost been constant, barring the few months of hard dip after the 240 seats of 2024, points out Shekhar Gupta.
India has to fill in all the critical gaps in missiles, ammunition, sensors and stockpile in the fastest possible manner, focusing on the critical instruments that worked this time, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
'Five months after the elections in February 2024, the Pakistan army has not been able to break Imran Khan's resolve and break his political party.'
In what was perhaps the most critical meeting before full-scale war broke out, Shastri defined India's immediate war objectives to his defence minister, army, and air force chiefs: 'To defend against Pakistan's attempts to grab Kashmir by force and to make it abundantly clear that Pakistan would never be allowed to wrest Kashmir from India; To destroy the offensive power of Pakistan's armed forces...' A fascinating excerpt from Shiv Kunal Verma's must-read 1965: A Western Sunrise India's War With Pakistan.
The Army on Friday said the search operation in the forest area of Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri to flush out any hiding terrorists was still underway, a day after two foreign terrorists of proscribed Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) outfit including the mastermind behind various attacks were eliminated.
The latest diplomatic row between India and Canada will not impact bilateral military engagement and the Canadian Army will take part in the conclave of the Indo-Pacific army chiefs in Delhi next week, a senior Indian Army official said on Wednesday.
'With a military-led strategy to counter terrorism emanating from Pakistan, India has clearly signalled that it would respond decisively to future terrorist threats.'
India needs to be technologically and militarily prepared to defend itself from both Pakistan and China, alerts Ramesh Menon.
Asim Malik's shift to the important DG, ISI post comes as something of a surprise now, but it indicates the army chief's confidence in him, notes Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
Pakistan claims it was a mosque and an educational complex that were hit in the strikes at Muridke, located at about 40 km from Lahore.
Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan emphasized the need for constant high military preparedness, citing Operation Sindoor as an ongoing example. He also highlighted the importance of 'information warriors, technology warriors and scholar warriors' in future warfare.
If General Asim Munir, Pakistan's new army chief, wants to help defuse the current polarised atmosphere and shepherd civilian politicians towards negotiations on an acceptable date for elections, he may need to distance himself from any perception of needless hostility to Imran Khan, explains Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W, India's external intelligence agency.
Kapur, who is being investigated by the CBI on charges of possessing assets disproportionate to his known income, headed the list of candidates for promotion as DG, Ordinance.
He was honoured 'in recognition of his commendable military prowess and immeasurable contribution to further fostering the long and friendly association with India'.
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.
'By convention, the prime minister is technically kept in the loop for the DG, ISI's appointment.' 'It remains to be seen if Prime Minister Imran Khan is able to indicate any preference by then,' says Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan Desk at the Research and Analysis Wing, India's external intelligence agency.
Briefing reporters at his office, Army Day Parade Commander Major General Salil Seth said, "Artificial Intelligence is being used for the first time to identify the best marching contingent. As you know all the marching contingents do drills and do drills correctly."
Displaying 'ARMY' on private transport is an attempt to milk the respect and reverence that the common citizen has for a person in the armed forces, observes Colonel K Thammayya Udupa (retd). By writing 'ARMY' and displaying regimental insignias, we expect a few misdemeanours to be overlooked.
Army chief General Deepak Kapoor on Saturday reiterated that the country's army was 'ready to act in the manner the political leadership wanted it to'.General Kapoor, who reached Srinagar on Saturday morning and visited the forward areas along the Line of Control in Kashmir to assess the situation, also met senior army officers."The tensions have come down with the passage of time," he said.
Chawdhary announced this after laying a wreath at the Amar Prahari memorial at the BS Headquarters in Jammu in remembrance of the fallen soldiers.
Lt General Rashad Mahmood has been appointed as the Chief of General Staff in a major reshuffle in the Pakistan Army at the general headquarters in Rawalpindi.
India has called Pakistan's nuclear bluff with Operation Sindoor and sent a psychological message to state-sponsored terrorists: nobody is untouchable and no place in Pakistan is safe for you, government sources said on Sunday.
Three civilians picked up by the Army for questioning after the terrorist ambushed two Army vehicles on Thursday at Dhatyar Morh between Dhera Ki Gali and Buffliaz in Poonch were found dead on December 23.
The timing of these transfers, while being projected as routine, is significant in both strategic and political terms, asserts Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at the Research and Analysis Wing, India's external intelligence agency.
