Army chief General Bipin Rawat had visited Jammu and Kashmir on Thursday to review the operational preparedness of the troops deployed in the state.
From massed band's 'Shankhnaad' to Navy's lilting 'Mission Chandrayaan', mellifluous tunes reverberated across the Raisina Hill in the heart of Delhi as India's rich heritage and towering accomplishments were celebrated during the Beating Retreat ceremony on Monday.
Nearly 13.04 per cent voter turnout was recorded till 9 am on Wednesday in 43 assembly constituencies in Jharkhand where voting is underway in the first phase, officials said.
In the combined raid of the navy, armour and engineering forces, along with air force support, about ten tunnel shafts were destroyed, and four buildings of associated terrorist infrastructure were destroyed, the IDF said.
The dastardly dimensions of the attack are gradually sinking in even as the Government of India announced its immediate diplomatic and other retaliatory measures. It is generally expected to be followed up with punitive military action across the LoC, sooner than later, observes Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished commentator on Kashmir affairs.
In a statement, the ministry of defence said the official winners were picked by panels of judges.
Several areas in Muslim-majority Murshidabad, including Suti, Dhulian, Jangipur and Shamsherganj, have witnessed violent protests against the Waqf (Amendment) Act that spiralled into communal violence, sparking the exodus.
The ceremony will begin with the massed band's "Agniveer" tune which will be followed by the enthralling tunes like "Almora", "Kedar Nath", "Sangam Dur", "Queen of Satpura", "Bhagirathi", "Konkan Sundari" by pipes and drums band, the defence ministry statement said.
President Droupadi Murmu conferred 26 Shaurya Chakras (seven posthumous) to personnel of the armed forces, Central Armed Police Forces and state/Union Territory Police during a defence investiture ceremony.
A leading Kuki-Zo organisation in Manipur has demanded a judicial probe into the killing of 10 youths in a gunfight with the CRPF, raising questions about the paramilitary force's neutrality. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF) also reiterated its demand for a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo community in the state, where ethnic violence between Kuki tribals and Meiteis has claimed over 250 lives since May last year. The ITLF claimed the post-mortem reports showed the youths were shot from the back, suggesting they were not engaged in a gunfight when they were killed. The organisation further alleged that CRPF personnel stationed nearby refused to intervene during an attack on Zairawn village, where a woman was killed. The ITLF has called for a political solution to the ongoing conflict, urging the Union Home Minister to consider a separate administration for the Kuki-Zo people.
The security cover of External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar has been upgraded from the 'Y' category to 'Z', official sources said on Thursday.
Eight firearms and 112 rounds of ammunition were recovered from different districts of violence-hit Manipur during search operations by security forces, police said.
In a significant step towards restoring peace in Manipur, representatives of the warring Meitei and Kuki communities met face-to-face for the first time since ethnic violence erupted nearly two years ago. The meeting, facilitated by the Union Home Ministry, aimed to enhance trust and cooperation between the communities and find a roadmap to restore normalcy in the state.
The funeral of 12 Kuki-Zo youths, including 10 killed in a gunfight with the CRPF in Jiribam district, will take place in Churachandpur on Thursday. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF) has called for a complete shutdown in Churachandpur in honour of the deceased men. The funeral will be attended by Mizoram Chief Minister's Adviser H Ginzalala.
The total capacity of these 32 earmarked hospitals is 1,890 beds, a senior official said.
The Indian Army guards the Line of Actual Control -- India's border with China -- along with the ITBP.
'When so many young Baloch men and women are willingly volunteering as fighters and even suicide bombers.'
You think Naxals or Maoists are killing more CRPF jawans, then read this.
He said in the last five years, under the leadership of Prime Minister Modi, the role of zonal councils has changed from advisory nature to action platforms.
'The Indian Army won't induct anyone who has killed Indian soldiers.' 'That's why the army respects these reformed men so much -- they're on the frontline now, protecting India.'
It was Singh's second meeting with the chiefs of the Army, Navy and the Air Force for the second straight day on the issue.
Amid this unrest came the verdict of the Allahabad high court on June 12, 1975 that found Gandhi guilty over discrepancies in the electoral campaign, which led to the Emergency on the night of June 25.
The funeral of 10 Kuki-Zo youths, who were killed in an alleged gunfight with CRPF, has been delayed pending the release of post-mortem reports. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders' Forum (ITLF), representing the Kuki-Zo community, is exploring the possibility of conducting a second autopsy in Churachandpur. The youths' bodies were airlifted to Churachandpur from Assam's Silchar town on Saturday. The incident follows a series of clashes between security forces and militants in the region. The post-mortem examination of the 10 Kuki-Zo youths, who ITLF claimed were village volunteers as against the Manipur government's assertion that they were militants, was conducted at Silchar Medical College and Hospital (SMCH) in Assam. The bodies have been kept in the local hospital morgue for the time being.
'It is ensured that no adversaries or people who oppose Tahawwur Rana's philosophy are housed in the same ward or jail.' 'Additionally, it is ensured that he does not have any prior contacts within that jail.' 'So, the lodgment of such a high-profile prisoner is done very carefully.'
Of the 59 assembly constituencies, three have been categorised as 'sensitive' and 590 localities marked as 'vulnerable,' according to the police.
As many as 725 companies of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) will be deployed in West Bengal for the conduct of forthcoming assembly elections, CRPF chief Kuldiep Singh said on Thursday.
A 32-year-old man chargesheeted in the deadly terror attack on a Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) convoy in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district five years ago has died of a heart attack in the Government Medical College Hospital in Jammu, officials said.
They had earlier been arrested by the Manipur police in September last year when they were allegedly extorting money by wearing police uniforms and carrying sophisticated weapons, the officials said.
After the three armed forces, it is now the turn of the central police organisations (CPOs) and paramilitary forces (CPMFs) to raise a pitch for 'parity' in pay scales with their military counterparts.
"The prime minister asked them to deploy the full spectrum of our counter-terror capabilities," an official source said.
The skirmish took place in the forest near Mangnar village under Barsur police station limits, he said.
The government is undertaking a comprehensive modernisation programme to prepare the police and paramilitary forces of the country for newer challenges of terrorism, cyber crime and border security, Union Home Minister Amit Shah said in New Delhi on Wednesday.
A suspected Pakistani terrorist and a Central Reserve Police Force jawan were killed following the terrorist attack on the village near the International Border (IB) on Tuesday evening, which also left a civilian injured.
The "eyeball to eyeball" deployment and the dynamic internal security situation in the JK make Northern Command the most unique theatre.
As part of a new rotation policy of paramilitary forces' squads at the Republic Day parade, the contingents of two other forces -- the Central Reserve Police Force and Central Industrial Security Force -- have been taken out of the event this time, officials said.
Autopsy reports of the victims of the Jiribam killings in Manipur have revealed brutal injuries, including multiple bullet wounds, severe trauma, and missing body parts. The reports, released on Wednesday, detail the horrific injuries suffered by the victims, including a 10-month-old infant, who had both eyeballs missing and a bullet injury to the knee. The killings, which took place in November, are part of the ongoing ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups in Manipur.
'We need to be very vigilant as we are passing through some fraught times.'
As the bugle was sounded for the retreat, the Raisina Hill complex lit up in a riot of colours, the illumination provided by LEDs rather than the traditional incandescent bulbs.
'This is not the first time that a large contingent of Assam armed police led by senior officers attacked and destroyed farm huts, crops and plantations of Mizo farmers.' 'There have been a series of such intrusions in the past and the pace of such intrusions increased in the recent past.'
The security agencies have been warning that militants belonging to United National Liberation Front, People's Liberation Army and other banned groups had become part of the mobs and carrying out sneak attacks on security forces as well as giving directions to the agitators.
