Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has ordered a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into allegations of Pakistan links of Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi's British wife Elizabeth Colburn. Sarma alleged that Colburn had visited Pakistan after her marriage and that there are apprehensions of ISI infiltration into the Chief Minister's Office when Gogoi's father, the late Tarun Gogoi, was the chief minister. Sarma also shared screenshots of social media posts by Ali Tauqeer Sheikh, an advisor of the Pakistan Planning Commission and a former colleague of Colburn, claiming that the relationship between the Gogois and Sheikh appeared to be "deeply rooted." Sarma's allegations have been rejected by the Congress as "laughable and entertaining."
'This was a decision taken and executed by Prabhakaran and his intelligence chief Pottu Amman. Both were convinced that the assassination would not be linked to them.'
Srikanth Kondapalli on the significance of Chinese military official Gen Ma Xiaotian's visit to India.
Sitharaman said that Indian startups have made and are making big contribution to the defence industry both in India and abroad.
Key provisions of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) which came into law this year may violate certain provisions of India's Constitution, a report issued by an independent research wing of the United States Congress has claimed.
The cost of acquiring the advanced light helicopters from the state-run Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) has been estimated at Rs 3,850 crore while a batch of rocket ammunition will cost Rs 4,962 crore, the defence ministry said.
The ministry of defence in September 2021 signed a Rs 21,935-crore contract with Airbus Defense and Space SA, Spain for supply of 56 aircraft.
The defence ministry, in March, had circulated an office memorandum to the three services and various ministries and departments on the planning for the 2024 parade, they said.
The two ships are part of the series of eight anti-submarine warfare shallow water crafts which are under construction in CSL.
China has protested to India over Chief of Defence Staff General Bipin Rawat's reported remarks about Beijing constituting the "biggest security threat", the Ministry of Defence here said on Thursday.
The Supreme Court on Monday said the ministry of defence cannot take law in its own hands by issuing communication on payment of One Rank-One Pension (OROP) arrears in four instalments.
As many as 54 Indian soldiers, who were captured as prisoners of war during battles of 1965 and 1971, are still believed to be in Pakistani jails, according to an RTI reply.
The Philippines Navy this month alleged that the Chinese ships used water cannons to attack its ships.
Reliance Defence Limited and Russia's leading developer and manufacturer of Air Defence Missile Systems 'AlmazAntey' have decided to work jointly on the entire range of Air Defence Missile and Radar Systems that are required for Indian defence forces.
Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Thursday met Defence Minister A K Antony in New Delhi. Rajapaksa and his Indian counterpart Shashikant Sharma had discussed increasing the frequency of joint exercises, training of Lankan officers in Indian institutes, supply of non-lethal defence equipment and other issues.
Russia said on Monday that the Vostok 2022 military exercises will be held from September 1 to 7 in different locations in the Far East and the Sea of Japan and involve more than 50,000 troops from China, India and several other countries.
Ways to strengthen military ties and sale of Japanese amphibious aircraft to Indian armed forces are expected to be discussed during the meeting of the Defence Ministers of the two countries in New Delhi in New Delhi.
'General Naravane was a soldier's soldier,' the defence ministry said.
The procurement proposals were approved by the Defence Acquisition Council headed by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the ministry said.
Describing the DAD as the "guardian of defence finance", he emphasised the need to bolster the internal vigilance mechanism so that any suspicious activity can be detected and reviewed immediately.
"Today there is a government in the country which cannot compromise even on one inch of the country's borders," the prime minister added.
According to officials, the list of 101 items includes towed artillery guns, short range surface to air missiles, cruise missiles, offshore patrol vessels, electronic warfare systems, next generation missile vessels, floating dock, anti-submarine rocket launchers and short range maritime reconnaissance aircraft.
The defence ministry on Thursday accorded its approval to procure 30 MQ-9B Predator drones from the US to crank up the surveillance apparatus of the armed forces, especially along the frontier with China, people familiar with the development said.
"These three officers have primarily been held responsible for the incident. Their services have been terminated by the central government with immediate effect. Termination orders have been served upon the officers on August 23," it said.
The document, which was uploaded on the defence ministry's website, was removed on Thursday morning following publication of a media report based on it.
President Trump made these remarks on Monday while talking to reporters aboard Air Force One on his way back to Joint Base Andrews from Florida.
The procurement will come at a cost of Rs 38,900 crore.
Pakistan has rejected India's action over the March 9 accidental firing of a supersonic BrahMos missile that landed in its territory as "totally unsatisfactory, deficient and inadequate" and reiterated its demand for a joint probe into the incident.
Why can't the Indian government propose to the Chinese a corridor circumambulating the Holy Mountain where people from both sides could perform the yatra again? asks Claude Arpi.
Most of the scanty 6.35% rise in the defence budget is accounted for by manpower and running expenses.
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.
India on Friday said it accidentally fired a missile two days back that landed in Pakistan and that the "deeply regrettable" incident was caused by a technical malfunction in the course of its routine maintenance.
'We see the defence industry as one of the leading sectors, which will significantly contribute to the growth of the Indian economy, but more importantly, bring atmanirbharta to national security.'
"The meeting demonstrated the depth of India-France bilateral partnership, especially in the defence sector, that has significantly strengthened in recent times. Both leaders resolved to take the relationship to the next higher level," said a statement issued by the ministry after the 35-minute meeting.
Singh's comments that the nuclear option should not be resorted to is a message to Russia as well as Western powers backing Ukraine, people familiar with the matter said. Ukraine does not have any nuclear arsenal.
India is pursuing sales to South East Asian countries that are wary of Chinese aggression, including Vietnam and the Philippines.
In order to have protection against drone attacks, all the three defence forces including the Army, Navy and Air Force have signed contracts for acquiring DRDO-developed anti-drone systems.
The Defence Ministry said his tenure will be remembered for the 'resolute reply' to the Northern adversary in Eastern Ladakh and for a determined push towards self-reliance in defence besides embracing niche and disruptive technologies to fight future wars.
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.
The utility helicopters will be used in attack missions as well as for search and rescue and surveillance operations.
