The Indian Army held its Army Day Parade outside a cantonment area for the first time in Jaipur, showcasing military might and capabilities.
Kabir, the son of Col Manpreet Singh, who was killed fighting terrorists in Kashmir, believes his father will return home after receiving the Kirti Chakra. The 10-year-old boy, who lit his father's pyre 19 months ago, clings to the hope that his father is alive and well, despite the reality of his death.
Around 100 artistes heralded the parade, on the theme 'Vividata Mein Ekta (Unity in Diversity) that featured a grand presentation of musical instruments, demonstrating the nation's unity and rich cultural diversity.
For the first time a serving army officer was accused of terrorism.
>The Indian Army still uses old British-era names and recruits soldiers based on caste or region, which hurts national unity, argues Colonel K Thammayya Udupa (retd).
Several Indian Army personnel, including those from the Armoured Corps, Regiment of Artillery, and other units, will be awarded honorary commissions to the rank of Honorary Captain or Honorary Lieutenant ahead of Republic Day 2025. The Ministry of Defence released a draft gazette containing the names of those who will be receiving the honor. This prestigious award recognizes their contributions to the military and signifies their elevation to a higher rank.
India's highest peacetime gallantry medal, the Ashok Chakra, would be awarded to three Army personnel who laid down their lives while fighting militants in Kashmir.
The equestrian statue of the Maratha warrior king has been installed at the Army's 41 Rashtriya Rifles Maratha Light Infantry Regiment in the north Kashmir district which shares its border with Pakistan. Special prayers were held by a priest on the occasion.
Both the sides exchanged views on several prominent issues, including counter-terrorism.
The ultras were killed in an encounter with personnel of 26 Maratha Light Infantry regiment near Noadehing Bridge at Namsai in Assam-Arunachal boundary at around 10.15 pm on Sunday night, sources said.
The spokesman said this was a major infiltration attempt by heavily-armed militants to enter Kashmir and army soldiers had foiled it by not only killing all the intruders but also by the supreme sacrifice of Col Vasant.
An army officer was killed and a jawan injured in an encounter with militants while five persons were wounded in a grenade explosion in Manipur, the police said on Thursday.
Inclement weather conditions on Saturday prevented rescue teams from reaching the wreckage of a Kamov-28 helicopter of the Navy, which had crashed near Belgaum in Karnataka on Friday.\n
An army jawan was killed in a landmine blast while a border-fencing pillar was damaged when an improvised explosive device went off in the Jammu region on Sunday, the police and the Border Security Force said.
A major infiltration bid into the Kashmir Valley was foiled on Tuesday by the army in which six persons, including a colonel, a trooper and four intruders, were killed in the Uri sector of the Line of Control.
General Joginder Jaswant Singh, a hero of anti-terrorist operations, on Monday became the first Sikh officer to don the mantle of the chief of the army staff.
Naik Kundalik Mane, one of the five soldiers killed in Pakistan army's attack along the Line of Control on Monday night, was cremated with full state honours in his native village Pimpalgaon Khurd in Maharashtra's Kolhapur district on Thursday. However, a political controversy erupted soon after as Nationalist Congress Party condemned the statement of Bharatiya Janata Party's leader Gopinath Munde.
Hollande was welcomed by Governor of Punjab and Haryana Kaptan Singh Solanki and Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, among others.
President Ram Nath Kovind presented the Gallantry Awards and Distinguished Service Decorations at the Defence Investiture Ceremony held at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Thursday. Here's a glimpse of some of our brave hearts being honoured.
An army jawan was killed and two of his colleagues were injured when militants triggered an IED explosion targeting a patrol team along the LoC in Akhnoor area of Jammu district, a senior army official said on Monday.
As the pyres were being lit, thousands of villagers who had gathered shouted slogans against Pakistan and demanded tough action against the soldiers' killing.
The village in Maharashtra has continuously sent soldiers to the Army since World War I. Every other person you meet is a soldier or a retired soldier or is aspiring to be a soldier.
Pakistan's Border Action Team set up the ambush and waited for long for the patrol team, while Pakistani troops attacked two forward posts with rockets and mortar bombs along the Line of Control in the Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir.
This year's Republic Day parade will witness a few changes.
Amid heart-rending scenes, the mortal remains of five army jawans killed by Pakistani troops along the Line of Control were on Thursday consigned to flames with full military honours in their respective villages in Bihar and Maharashtra.
All equipment from the Army which were part of the Republic Day celebrations are made-in-India, Chief of Staff Delhi Area Maj Gen Bhavnish Kumar had earlier said.
At this point commission member Sumit Mullick asked the government counsel: 'Your job is to protect the State. How are these questions on Peshwas relevant?'
'The Battle of Jamalpur was a turning point in the 1971 War because a small battalion of 700 men broke the back of the Pakistanis.'
The Republic Day parade, which will begin at around 1030 am, will be a unique mix of the country's military prowess and cultural diversity, depicting the country's growing indigenous capabilities, Nari Shakti and emergence of a 'New India'.
Colonel Santosh Mahadik died during an operation in Kupwara last year. His wife Swati Mahadik says joining the Indian Army allows her to keep his memory alive.
'We are ready to surrender,' Lieutenant General A A K Niazi said over the phone from Dhaka.
The Army, in its statement, has vowed to give a befitting reply to Pakistan "in the same language".
The Supreme Court found enough grounds to order a CBI probe into 1,528 extra-judicial killings in Manipur between 2000 and 2012.
The majestic Rajpath saw a scintillating display of India's military might as the country celebrated its 69th Republic Day on Friday, with the leaders of all the 10 countries of the ASEAN attending the parade. Take a look here.
Bajirao, an unorthodox leader, faced much opposition during his lifetime from the Brahmins of Pune. In the last hundred years or so, he has been ignored due to caste politics in Maharashtra where he has become a 'non person' for having been born a Brahmin, says Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
'He has terror charges against him. And for an army officer, it's just terrible.'
'The awareness of how big my father's sacrifice came to me when we went for the Republic Day parade and my mother received the Ashok Chakra,' Rukmini Vasanth, whose father Colonel Vasanth Venugopal was killed in action fighting terrorists, tells Rediff.com's Archana Masih.
When Rediff.com's Archana Masih and Rajesh Karkera set course from the foothills of the Himalayas to the Arabian Sea, they could not think of a better place to begin their journey than the stately campus that has given India some of its greatest military heroes.
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