'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).
The artillery pounds targets and keeps the enemy's head down, preventing them from firing at attacking troops.
The Pakistan Army continued shelling along the Line of Control (LoC) in four sectors of Jammu and Kashmir, prompting a befitting response by the Indian Army, officials said on Thursday. The intensity of cross-border firing was less than Wednesday, when Pakistan Army carried out one of the most intense artillery and mortar shelling in years targeting the forward villages in J-K following missile strikes by India as part of 'Operation Sindoor'.
In a composed and clear presentation, Colonel Sofiya Qureshi announced that nine terrorist facilities had been destroyed in the tri-services operation.
Being a 'fauji' kid, Sofiya Qureshi grew up listening to tales of valour and sacrifice of the army shared by her grandfather, who was a soldier.
'Pakistan's army has got a streak of democracy. It is more democratic than the country.'
Army sources have confirmed the deaths of three jawans during their two-month long exercise.
Until last month more than two-thirds of the Indian Army was deployed against Pakistan. Of 14 army corps, just four-and-a-half faced China, while more than twice that number was ranged against Pakistan.
Former Defence Minister A K Antony tells Amit Agnihotri that Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar's statement is an insult not only to the Indian Army but also the previous National Democratic Alliance government led by Atal Bihari Vajpayee
India conducted precision strikes on nine terror targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied Kashmir, targeting terrorist infrastructure to deter further attacks. The operation, codenamed 'Operation Sindoor', was detailed by two women military officers, Col Sofiya Qureshi and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh, at a press briefing in New Delhi. The officers highlighted the precise nature of the strikes, emphasizing the use of "niche technology weapons" to ensure no collateral damage. The briefing showcased India's military prowess and the growing role of women in the armed forces.
Terrorism and insurgency in J&K had subsided when India demolished East Pakistan -- for the simple reason that Pakistan understands power. We need to follow Chanakya's dictum of Saam, Daam, Dand, Bhed for strategising against Pakistan, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd). The ground truth is that unless we are prepared to acknowledge our shortcomings, including massive intelligence failures, punish those responsible and take corrective actions, we will continue in the same vein, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (Retd).
A cloudburst in a remote village in Kathua district, Jammu and Kashmir, resulted in four fatalities and six injuries. Rescue operations are underway, and the district administration is monitoring the situation.
In a strong retaliation to the Pahalgam massacre, India's armed forces early Wednesday destroyed nine terror sites including that of Jaish-e-Mohammad and Lashkar-e-Taiba in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) using deep strike missiles in a 25-minute-long 'measured and non-escalatory' mission.
Security forces on Tuesday morning gunned down two terrorists holed up in a forest area near a village in the Akhnoor sector in Jammu and Kashmir, taking the number of militants killed in the 27-hour-long gunfight near the Line of Control (LoC) to three, officials said.
In what was perhaps the most critical meeting before full-scale war broke out, Shastri defined India's immediate war objectives to his defence minister, army, and air force chiefs: 'To defend against Pakistan's attempts to grab Kashmir by force and to make it abundantly clear that Pakistan would never be allowed to wrest Kashmir from India; To destroy the offensive power of Pakistan's armed forces...' A fascinating excerpt from Shiv Kunal Verma's must-read 1965: A Western Sunrise India's War With Pakistan.
Naib Subedar Chunni Lal is the only soldier awarded the Ashok Chakra, Vir Chakra and Sena Medal.
'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.'
We need to equip the Indian Armed Forces, not 'commercial' as Trump wants, but 'operationally' looking at growing Chinese military capabilities, asserts Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
Air Vice Marshal Arjun Subramaniam lists the major operational takeaways from the 1971 War in his new book 'India's Wars, A Military History, 1947-1971'.
Asserting that the army is more than ready to give befitting reply to any external threat, Army Chief General V K Singh on Wednesday said the force is prepared to strike inside enemy's territories.
Pakistan may want to undertake a 'false flag' operation in J&K to divert attention from the situation in Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but infiltrating one SSG battalion into J&K and having two SSG battalions waiting to follow suit means war, which Pakistan cannot afford in its current economic crisis, notes Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
While the Army will be getting around 100 light utility helicopters, it is also looking at the option of taking choppers on lease to meet its requirement.
The 76th Republic Day parade in New Delhi featured many firsts, including the debut of the Pralay missile, a tri-services tableau, and a performance by 5,000 folk and tribal artists. The parade also showcased the Army's automated battle surveillance system SANJAY and a contingent from Indonesia. Captain Dimple Singh Bhati, the first woman Army officer, presented a salute to President Droupadi Murmu on a motorcycle.
'We've moved from thousands killed yearly in Jammu and Kashmir to 127 last year.' 'Cross-border terrorism in Kashmir is being solved. We are winning it.'
India has to fill in all the critical gaps in missiles, ammunition, sensors and stockpile in the fastest possible manner, focusing on the critical instruments that worked this time, asserts Shekhar Gupta.
'After decades, there is movement on multiple fronts in artillery development. Now let us see how quickly we can get these guns into service'
With General Naravane taking charge, all three services chiefs, including navy chief Admiral Karambir Singh and the Indian Air Force's Air Chief Marshal Rakesh Kumar Singh Bhadauria, are now from the 56th course of the National Defence Academy.
'Diplomatic and economic responses are first announced and then implemented. A military response is announced only after it is done.'
Gen Naravane said that the Indian Army did not hide casualties during Galwan clash in eastern Ladakh as the Chinse have done.
Its advanced Longbow radar picks up enemy armoured vehicles and then destroys them with anti-tank missiles, air-to-surface rockets or a chain gun that sends 625 rounds per minute ripping into the targets.
'China will do everything to hamper our ability to be a competitor.' 'China wants every country in the region to be subservient and we are the biggest stumbling block.'
China does not have to give up what it took in 2020, it will never give up its claim to Arunachal Pradesh, Ladakh and other areas, and it has all the time now to plan its next surprise, points out Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
The army chief said that radicalisation in Kashmir was being addressed with a "lot of seriousness"
Thotakura was selected as one of the six crew members for the NS-25 mission, making him the first Indian space tourist and the second Indian to venture into space after the Indian Army's Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma in 1984.
'It is typical of China's strategic deception of making virtue out of necessity,' observes Rup Narayan Das.
Naravane's appointment has been cleared at the highest level, adding the government has followed the principle of seniority in the appointment.
'With continued focus on votes, upcoming by-polls and purchasing politicians, the political hierarchy has little time for national defence.' 'They would do well to heed a veteran scholar, who says, "There will be war with China in the next few years. The next full scale war will have the involvement of Pakistan and terror elements, insurgents and intelligence assets operating inside India",' warns Lieutenant General Prakash Katoch (retd).
'India today feels enough is enough and we need to teach Pakistan a lesson.' 'Unless compelled, Mr Modi will think 10 times before taking the extreme step.'
An Army Major, who was injured in the terror strike in Kabul, died at a hospital in New Delhi on Wednesday, taking to seven the number of Indians killed in the attack.Major Ritesh Roy of the Army Education Corps died in the Army Hospital Research and Referral. Two other Major-rank army officers have also been killed in the attack.Commissioned in the Army in 2001, Major Roy had been posted in Kabul since March last year. His wife Captain Seema Mishra is also an AEC officer.
Whenever Pak carries out such violations, we also retaliate effectively, the Indian army said.
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