Prime Minister Narendra Modi has favoured broadening of the strategic partnership with Russia in nuclear, defence and energy sectors and invited President Vladimir Putin to visit Kudankulam atomic power project during his trip in December for his annual summit.
An industrial house bred in old-school manufacturing values, Godrej & Boyce has displayed unusual agility to become a trusted builder of advanced weaponry, discovers Ajai Shukla.
The IAF is down to 34 squadrons. This will dip to 30 squadrons by the end of this decade, as nine squadrons of MiG-21 and MiG-27s retire.
With the expected launch of The People's Liberation Army (Navy)'s second aircraft carrier on April 23, China will match India in carrier numbers.
'As the tanks roll down Delhi's Rajpath and the C-17s fly overhead, there could be a lot brewing in Hyderabad House,' says Surya Gangadharan.
the army has decided to install a third generation gun-launched missile
Rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt, who is accompanying Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on his trips to Russia and China, notes that Moscow and New Delhi work together professionally and via a shared common approach on crucial issues.
HAL will build each Su-30 at just Rs 4.25 billion. The IAF is paying Rs 11.25 billion per Rafale, excluding the price of weapons and logistics.
'While fighter pilots must not be sent into combat in inferior aircraft, an obsessive quest for outright combat superiority will leave an air force short of numbers,' says Ajai Shukla.
The first of six French-designed Scorpene submarines which are being manufactured in Mumbai, was launched into the water on Monday, initiating the process for extensive sea trials.
'We have been found seriously wanting in addressing our undersea warfare capability and China's emergence is a cause for concern.'
'The government has belied the hope that many harboured of change, efficiency and dismantling old practices as the defence ministry continues to pursue the same well trodden and wasteful path.'
Even as three Rafale fighters line up in Bengaluru for eye-popping aerobatics displays at the Aero India 2015 exhibition this week, senior ministry of defence sources say the proposal to buy the French fighter is "effectively dead".
In a candid admission, the Indian Air Force on Thursday said that given its depleting strength, it does not have the adequate numbers to "fully execute" an air campaign in case of a two-front war involving Pakistan and China simultaneously.
India on Monday did some plain-speaking with China over its blocking of the Indian bid to get JeM chief Masood Azhar banned by the UN and warned the global community of "serious consequences" if it continues to adopt "double standards" in dealing with terrorism.
With the IAF having rejected variants of 4 of the contending aircraft -- the Super Hornet, F-16, Gripen C/D and MiG-35 -- in flight trials carried out between 2009-2011 in the MMRCA tender, are the current contenders improved enough to pass flight trials conducted to the same standards?
The Indian Navy is constrained by its lowest budgetary allocation since 2011-2012, reveals Ajai Shukla.
"Three 155 mm howitzers (Dhanush) have been handed over to the army recently for user's trial," GCF's Joint General Manager and PRO Sanjay Shrivastava told PTI today.
For the navy, which is making do with just 14 conventional submarines against a requirement of 24, the INS Khanderi delay extends a dangerous operational void.
Modi's visit to Spain will be first visit by an Indian prime minister since 1988.
News of all that's transpired on and off the football field
'But India, increasingly, is not that far behind, which is a story I never expected to tell.'
The navy has also found some of the passengers' belongings and was sweeping the area in search of the plane's black box, the military said.
'It appears that Prime Minister Modi has to undo 50 years of State monopoly in the defence sector during which public undertakings like HAL or DRDO monopolised defence production and development with disastrous consequences.'
A strengthening dollar overseas also kept the rupee under pressure amid demand from importers. Goldman Sachs followed JP Morgan, HSBC and Nomura in cutting India's economic growth forecast and also said it expects the rupee to touch 72 against the dollar in the next six months.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday.
Amid mounting tensions with the United States in the disputed South China Sea, China on Thursday said it is building a second aircraft carrier and hinted at plans to make a third one to enhance its blue water capabilities.
Five sailors fell ill due to smoke inhalation and had to be hospitalised after smoke was detected on the INS Sindhuratna docked off the Mumbai coast on Wednesday morning.
How will the navy's six Scorpenes fight, when their primary weapon -- the Black Shark torpedo -- is blocked by a ministry of defence ban on the company chosen to supply these? This gloomy scenario provides a heaven-sent opportunity to revisit the navy's torpedo purchase plan, handled without strategic vision and economic foresight.
The US intends to break up India's strategic partnership with Russia and to continue to interfere in Indian-Iranian relations, apart from inserting itself into the Sino-Indian bilateral discourse, says Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar, analysing the US defence secretary's visit to India.
'Despite frequent high-level interactions there has been little traction on substantive issues between India and France,' says Mohan Guruswamy.
How will the Modi Sarkar's likely return affect other nations?
He said RSS men were planted in each ministry.
Despite four disarmament section talks and six strategic dialogues between the two foreign ministries, China's intransigence on recognising Indian nuclear status resulted in no confidence building measures in the nuclear field between the two, says Srikanth Kondapalli.
'The world may be desirous of peace, but not Kim Jong-un.' 'Should we then accept the old adage that to maintain peace, we should be prepared for war?' asks Rajaram Panda.
India has some ability to influence what the world order will look like, but it needs to make structural changes to the ministries of external affairs and commerce, and evolve formal coordination mechanisms with the ministries of finance and home, says Nitin Pai
While the Rafale deal seems to be the main order of business during French President Francois Hollande's visit, other aspects could help sweeten the deal, says Claude Arpi.
'The crux of the matter is that our narrative lacks credibility with world capitals,' argues Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Moni Chadha was with Lal Bahadur Shastri in Tashkent. He counters colourful conspiracy theories with sobering facts.
The navy wants to spend Rs 40,000 crore on INS Vishal, a choice the army and air force oppose. This is as much about turf as about funding. explains Ajai Shukla.
