'This is the first case in which we saw use of Starlink by smugglers.'
In a major anti-narcotics operation, the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) seized a vessel with six Myanmarese crew carrying 6,000 kg of contraband Methamphetamine near Andaman and Nicobar Islands, an official said on Monday.
After stopping the boat, the personnel found that all 11 crew members on board were Myanmarese and none of them were holding valid passports.
A Dornier aircraft of the Coast Guard, which flew over the area on Wednesday morning, found a 'thin oil sheen only 300 metres wide.
'The political leadership is very clear that we have to move towards the integration of the three services into theatre commands.'
Muthukrishnan was one of the passengers on the IAF flight that has gone missing in the Bay of Bengal.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday came down heavily on the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) for not granting permanent commission to a female officer, saying "we will not allow women officers to be humiliated".
For the first time in Independence Day celebrations, 'Vande Mataram' will be rendered at the Red Fort complex during the 79th anniversary on August 15, followed by the recitation of the National Anthem, marking 150 years of the National Song's legacy.
A probe into the biggest drug haul of 6,000 kg methamphetamine in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands has shown that the Myanmarese smugglers were using the Starlink satellite internet services for navigation through the mid-sea, a top police officer said on Thursday. Authorities suspect that the drug consignments may be linked to notorious international cartels, such as Tse Chi Lop's (the Chinese El Chapo) or Nemesio Oseguera Cervantes' (El Mencho) operations.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto have significantly advanced the India-Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, securing crucial agreements on defence, critical minerals, and maritime security, including BrahMos missile supply and Sabang port development.
The prompt approval to set up a radar station on the Andaman and Nicobar Islands signalled the Modi government's intent to deal with China on its own terms.
One of the refugees managed to contact the Rohingya Human Rights Initiative and give the coordinates which showed the ship drifting southeast of the Andaman Islands towards Aceh in Indonesia.
Glimpses from KAVACH, a joint military exercise conducted by the Andaman and Nicobar Command involving the army, navy, air force and coast guard.
The Centre has launched a Rs 350-crore project to set up radar sensors along the country's coastlines for surveillance to prevent terrorists from entering the nation to repeat the Mumbai-type attack.The radar sensors will be fitted on light houses at 46 locations, out of which 36 are on the mainland, six are in Lakshadweep Islands and four in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
At least 21 persons died on Sunday when the tourist boat carrying them capsized in the Bay of Bengal near Port Blair in the Andaman and Nicobar islands, official sources said. The boat carrying 45 people -- tourists from Kanchi Puram district of Tamil Nadu and Mumbai, and crewmembers -- sank on its way from Ross Island to North Bay.
The weather system over the South Andaman Sea and the adjoining southeast Bay of Bengal is very likely to move north-westwards and strengthen into a depression by Saturday, the Met Department said.
As the weather cleared in the morning, Navy, Coast Guard, Air Force and Union Territory administration started a joint evacuation drive and brought back all stranded tourists to Port Blair from Havelock and Neil islands of the Andaman and Nicobar archipelago.
Odisha is bracing for heavy rainfall early next week under the impact of a possible cyclone in the Bay of Bengal, which is likely to skirt the state and move towards West Bengal and Bangladesh, the Indian Meteorological Department (IMD) said on Friday.
The Navy chief also inaugurated the new Air Traffic Control building there.
The North Sentinel island is one of 29 islands in the Andamans where till June foreigners had to take special permission -- the RAP -- before being allowed to visit them.
Eyewitnesses to the boat tragedy also claimed that there was a blast before the capsize and that there was an hour's delay before the marine rescue team could reach the spot.
The plane went missing on Friday while flying from Chennai to Port Blair with 29 people on board.
The storm would continue to move north-northwestwards, intensify further and reach north Bay of Bengal near West Bengal and the adjoining north Odisha and Bangladesh coasts by the morning of May 26
The American had expressed a desire to meet the Sentinelese tribe, which is known to resist all contact with outsiders, often firing arrows at anyone who comes near.
'The Andaman and Nicobar Islands are an asset that any country aspiring to become a major power would give anything to own.' 'It is disappointing that India has not capitalised on this potential,' says Vice Admiral Premvir Das (retd).
After critically examining the ship 'M V Mu San' at Kakinada port, a team of scientists from Kalapakkam nuclear centre concluded that they found no 'CBRN (Chemical, Biological, Radioactive and Nuclear) traces' from the ship, which was detained by the Coast Guard off the Andaman waters in the first week of last month, official sources said in New Delhi.
The weather system moved west-northwestward and concentrated into a depression on Saturday at 8.30am, close to west of Andaman Islands, the bulletin said.
The search for the missing Malaysian airliner under India's 'Operation Searchlight' has been expended to the Bay of Bengal area 900km west of Port Blair by the navy, the defence ministry said on Friday.
The ministry of home affairs has identified around 1,700 km of fencing that needs to be done, BRO's additional director general (East) PKH Singh said.
'He needs to see results while he is in office.'
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday reviewed the preparations for Cyclone Yaas including the evacuation of people on the high seas as well as in vulnerable coastal areas and the safety of COVID-19 facilities.
India has put on hold its search operations for the missing Malaysian airliner as it is awaiting fresh instructions from Malaysian authorities who are likely to look into new areas for locating the plane.
'Unlike on the western and eastern borders where there is an enemy at the gate, here there is an invisible enemy which is building its own capability and can come into play at a time and place of his choosing.'
Airman Bhupat Singh's family is hoping that everyone is safe and the rescue team finds the aircraft soon.
Singh will succeed Admiral Sunil Lanba who retires on May 31.
The Indian Navy said it was in a high state of readiness to "deter, prevent and defeat" any "misadventure" by Pakistan in the maritime domain.
Mere shuffling of resources or cosmetic changes to prove a point would be counterproductive in the long run, observes Commodore Venugoptal Menon (retd).
"Chau violated all the norms. Moreover, he had also not informed the hotel (that he was visiting the area)."
With the search for missing Malaysian plane turning to India's neighbourhood, China has sought permission for sending its four warships into the Indian waters, causing a major dilemma for the authorities.
