Lt Gen Dalbir Singh Suhag, whose appointment as Army chief had kicked up a row, on Thursday took over as the next head of the 1.3 million strong force succeeding Gen Bikram Singh who is retiring.
Army chief General Deepak Kapoor on Thursday met his United States counterpart and other top ranking military officers and discussed various issues including joint training and exercises between the two countries. General Kapoor, who is on a five day visit to the US, met Joint Chiefs of Staff committee Chairman Admiral Mike Mullen, US army chief General George W Casey Junior and Central Command Chief General David H Petraeus in Washington.
Defence ministry says the focus was on suitability and merit for the selection of the new Army chief.
Disengagement of Indian and Chinese troops has started at two friction points in Demchok and Depsang Plains in the Eastern Ladakh sector, defence officials said.
"There have been no intrusions or major face-offs in the area of responsibility of Eastern Command since the friction erupted in Ladakh," he said.
The Army chief is likely to visit Jammu and discuss the recent and ongoing counter-terrorist operations and the casualties that have been suffered in the recent terror attacks there, defence sources said.
'It could take the form of sporadic LoC violation through heavy artillery and mortar fire, focusing on border villages where the Hindu Dogra population is predominant.'
The number of active terrorists in the valley is at its lowest in the last 34 years, General Officer Commanding of Chinar Corps Lieutenant General A D S Aujla said.
The launch of the first-ever direct train service from Delhi to Kashmir would be a big turning point in the Valley's mood and its integration with India. He had to thwart it at any cost, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
The Indian Army's XIV Corps -- better known as the Fire and Fury Corps -- has a unique responsibilty since it guards India's borders with China and Pakistan as well as the Siachen Glacier.
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.
'If China shows greater concerns for Indian interests, ties could improve. Otherwise, the thaw could be short-lived.'
December 16, 1971. A Day Never To Be Forgotten.
The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Army to put its "house in order", saying that it feels that it has not been "fair" to the women officers who have alleged delay in promotions after being granted permanent commission on the directions of the top court in 2020.
It is yet another move by the governments of the two neighbouring nations to enhance mutual trust and understanding.
The General Officer in Command of south Kashmir-based Victor Force, Major General B S Raju, who visited Fayaz's residence on occasion of chahrum (the fourth day mourning), praised the "brave family" of the officer and said the army will always stand by them.
'Beyond the 'sir' and the 'salute', there was a man who cared about his soldiers and that's what made him a great leader.' Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw's grandson Jehan remembers the man who was the soldier's soldier.
'It is in the interest of China and Pakistan to give a bad name to the Indian Army and remove AFSPA 'completely' from the north east.' 'Hopefully, better sense will prevail and the ground realities of the army countering insurgency in the north east acknowledged,' asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
India had better be prepared. Munir could be back at our throats soon, even within the next 12 months, warns Shekhar Gupta.
Cornered Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam chief V Prabhakaran, who is still holed up in a small strip of land in embattled north, may flee from the island using a submarine, a top Sri Lankan army official said on Friday."Prabhakaran, who is present in the no-fire zone along with his son Charles Anthony, Tigers' intelligence chief Pottu Amman and Sea Tiger chief Soosai, might have retained a submarine to escape from the island," said an army official.
Besides his strategic and tactical acumen, it was his amazing personality, quick wit and ability to remain unflustered under any circumstances that stood him apart from almost any leader one has read about or known, recalls Lieutenant General Syed Ata Hasnain (retd).
Lieutenant General Harinder Singh, General Officer Commanding of the Leh-based Fire and Fury Corps laid a wreath at the iconic Kargil War Memorial in Drass on behalf of the nation and paid tribute to the gallant heroes, Col Kalia said.
Over 400 militants are holed up in around 42 camps close to the Line Of Control while 175 Hizb and Lashkar-e-Tayiba ultras are present in hinterland, with most of them being inactive, the army aid.
Khan took strong exception to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) allegations against him and said the spokesperson of the army's military wing was not even born when he represented Pakistan in the world.
Security forces sieved through the dense forests of Gadole in Kashmir Valley's Anantnag district for the seventh day on Tuesday, one of Jammu and Kashmir's longest anti-militancy operations that has claimed the lives of three officers and a soldier.
'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.'
Voicing concern over recruitment of educated Kashmiri youths into terror outfits, a top army commander has said that eyes cannot be shut to the "tragedy" that "alienation and lack of opportunities" was driving local youngsters towards the gun and the Centre and the state government need to introspect to address these issues.
'5465 was over 17,000 feet -- our eyes were out of the sockets by the time we got to the top.' 'We had not eaten in 2-3 days and climbed in extremely difficult terrain.' 'I was there for 5-6 days, but had to be evacuated because I started vomiting blood.'
Wrapping up his two-day visit to Ladakh, Gen Naravane said the Indian Army has undertaken precautionary deployment in some areas and that the force is well prepared to safeguard the territorial integrity of the country.
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.
In a major embarrassment to the Indian Army, the national flag was held upside down at a function in presence of senior army officers in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir.
The Armed Forces Tribunal has held that a former army commander showed bias towards a brigadier under whose command some of the major victories were achieved in the 1999 Kargil conflict and directed that the affected officer be considered for a notional promotion.
'The precision strikes were well planned and excellently executed. The world will be studying this operation.'
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 grilling of Brigadier-General Dyer by Akshay Kumar's Sir C Sankaran Nair, as shown in Kesari 2, is purely an imaginary sequence, proves Utkarsh Mishra.
"We noticed some suspicious movement in the Hathlanga area near the LoC. The infiltrators were challenged and three of them were killed," an Army officer said.
Glimpses from the Indian Air Force air show in Udhampur.
'They mean business, but business as usual is unacceptable to them'
"The proposal for the appointment of the three joint secretaries of the DMA including Major General Narayanan, Rear Admiral RK Dhir and Air Vice Marshal SK Jha has been sent to the government for final approval," defence ministry sources told ANI. Sources said the DMA has also sent a proposal for the appointment of lieutenant general rank officers for appointment as additional secretaries in the ministry.
The army rescue teams have been operating throughout the night along with the teams from civil defence, police and the NDRF, trying to remove the debris from the affected area.
