Bogged down by kickback charges, the Scorpene submarine deal has now come under criticism from the Comptroller and Auditor General for the delay involved and financial "advantage" given to the French company. In its latest audit report tabled in Parliament on Saturday, the Comptroller and Auditor General came down heavily on the Defence Ministry for the nine-year delay.
An official said that there were stringent norms at MDL on data security.
Like in the previous case, the newspaper has blacked out all details which it felt would compromise India's security interests.
Girard said the submarine deal reflected not only the industrial capability of French companies but also their experience.
Earlier estimates say the submarines deal would cost $ 3.5 billion.
"Advani, Fernandes and Yeshwant Sinha are trying to target me to make scorpene deal an election issue."
Australia on Tuesday signed a $50 billion (Rs 3.3 lakh crore) deal with France for 12 sophisticated submarines to be built by French defence major DCNS that was at the centre of a controversy this year surrounding the leak of documents relating to India's Scorpene submarines.
The six 1,500-ton submarines, being bought from France, will be armed with French-made Exocet anti-ship missiles.
Everybody talks of China as the real threat, but we aren't even building a decisive capability against Pakistan, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
It said that the identity of the unnamed whistleblower is already known to The Australian newspaper.
AIP or Air Independent Propulsion system allows the vessel to stay underwater for a longer duration.
The petitioners also sought action against beneficiaries of the alleged commission of Rs 640 crore in the deal.
Mukherjee also pointed out that in some cases, penal action had already been taken against middlemen after their role was established in defence deals.
The navy said it has taken up the matter with the Directorate General of Armament of the French government expressing concern over the incident.
Kalvari underwent around 120 days of extensive sea trials and tests for various equipment and is expected to bolster India's maritime prowess.
The Centre on Friday refused to give a report of the Central Bureau of Investigation's preliminary investigation into the Scorpene submarine deal to a petitioner who had approached the Delhi high court on the matter
The transfer plea related to a libel suit filed by a Canadian woman Gwendolyn Berger, whose name figured in the investigations conducted by the authorities after the magazine claimed that the deal was shady.
The CBI today expressed its unwillingness in Delhi High Court in revealing details of investigations into the alleged payment of kickbacks in the Rs 16,000 crore Scorpene submarine deal to an NGO, on whose complaint the preliminary inquiry was conducted.
The French Embassy in India has also termed the reports as "slanderous", while the French firm has moved the Delhi High Court against the journal which first made the allegations, he said.
In a setback to CBI which maintained that there was no kickback involved in Rs 16,000-crore Scorpene submarine deal, the Delhi High Court on Thursday directed it to conduct a fresh preliminary inquiry and file a report before it.
The BJP will also seek to raise the issue of the ongoing demolition drive in the national capital.
INS Vagir set a new record for the longest-ever deployment of any Scorpene-class submarine, covering a distance of 7,000 kilometres to reach Australia for joint military exercises.
The Centre on Wednesday told the Delhi high court that the Intelligence Bureau had no "material" (records) regarding the Rs 16,000 crore Scorpene submarine deal.
The National Security Strategy document should flag all major issues concerning security strategy and provide guidelines to concerned departments to work out suitable action plans. Since the global and regional geopolitical canvas is dynamic, the NSS document should be deliberated at length before formulation and should be reviewed periodically, recommends Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Abu Dhabi on July 15.
In a significant milestone for the Indian Navy, its MH60R helicopter conducted maiden landings on the indigenously designed and constructed destroyer, INS Kolkata.
'The F-21's capabilities far exceed all other torpedoes currently in service.'
The status of the current submarine force level is alarming and we need to address the threat perceptions expeditiously. Critical decisions pertaining to national security cannot be delayed any further due to the rapidly changing maritime threat perceptions and growing strategic importance of the Indian Ocean region, asserts Commodore Venugopal Menon (retd).
There was no word on the much-anticipated procurement of 26 naval variants of Rafale fighter jets by India from France.
Officials hint the visit could finally see a formal defence industrial road map being adopted by both nations.
The sixth Scorpene class submarine, constructed by Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited for the Indian Navy, was launched in Mumbai.
India also went on an overdrive in expanding its military engagement with like-minded countries in its neighbourhood and beyond in the face of China's relentless attempts to become a regional hegemon and establish its primacy in South Asia.
INS Karanj is the third Kalavari-class submarine to be commissioned into the Navy. The diesel-electric submarines based on the Scorpene design are also referred as Scorpene class submarines.
Naval Group's announcement comes a day before Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Paris where he is scheduled meet recently re-elected French President Emmanuel Macron.
Speaking at a joint press event with Macron, Modi, who is in Paris on a two-day official visit, said a roadmap to strengthen India-France strategic ties over the next 25 years was being prepared with bold and ambitious goals on the anvil.
DRDO's Air Independent Propulsion system will allow Indian Navy submarines to operate for up to two weeks without having to surface to recharge its batteries.
There is concern about the poor state of readiness of the navy's 140 warships which face severe shortages in sonar equipment, helicopters and torpedoes.
'Pakistan needs to understand that the Indian Navy has become much stronger with the commissioning of the Khanderi
Building 6 conventional submarines is one of the Indian Navy's most important weapon construction programmes.
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