The selection of Dassault's Rafale as India's new MMRCA fighter was only the latest step in the Air Force's long and painstaking process to pick itself a winner, writes Ajai Shukla.
Peace talks with Pakistan will resume yet again later this month as Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao meets with her counterpart Salman Bashir. The result is predictable -- the dialogue will go nowhere. India instead should renew its military-to-military ties for a positive outcome with its neighbour, believes noted defence analyst Ajai Shukla.
'The future is about autonomy and tanking.'
Former cricketer Imran Khan's December 25, 2011 rally at Bagh-e-Qaid, Karachi which was attended by some 1,00,000 people, a bigger crowd than any political rally in the last two decades. Ajai Shukla reports.
Where did outgoing army chief V K Singh go wrong, analyses Ajai Shukla.
After six decades of floundering through dozens of uprisings, India's govt is facing the Naxal challenge as incoherently as ever, writes Ajai Shukla
London hopes to convince New Delhi's naval planners to power India's second indigenous aircraft carrier with the Queen Elizabeth's integrated all-electric propulsion system.
The indigenisation programme of the Ministry of Defence has been an illusion, wrapped in a fallacy, cloaked in deception, writes Ajai Shukla
The indigenisation programme of the Ministry of Defence has been an illusion, wrapped in a fallacy, cloaked in deception, writes Ajai Shukla
Defence Minister A K Antony, during his visit to Washington, DC, in September, bluntly told US Defence ecretary Robert Gates that India would not sign the agreements, which Washington calls the 'foundation' for transferring high-tech communications equipment to India. Ajai Shukla reports.
It is time for India to open a dialogue track with the Quetta Shoora of the Taliban, which increasingly chafes at restraints and controls imposed upon it by Pakistan, write Ajai Shukla
It is time for India to open a dialogue track with the Quetta Shoora of the Taliban, which increasingly chafes at restraints and controls imposed upon it by Pakistan, write Ajai Shukla
For the Indian Army, Siachen symbolises a superhuman feat of arms, sustained over decades. All that Indian Army generals are hoping is that all their effort is not undone by the latest round of Indo-Pak talks on Siachen, reports Ajai Shukla
The MRSAM is amongst the most lethal surface-to-air missiles in service anywhere.
The coming together of the Quad and the Australia-UK-US grouping would be a formidable adversary, moving toward the creation of a 'thousand ship navy' that reins in the PLA navy in the Indo-Pacific.
India's indigenous defence complex is at a crucial moment where a resolute decision could make it a genuine supplier of high-end artillery equipment, writes Ajai Shukla.
A general battling an insurgency among an often hostile populace while labouring hard and openly to win hearts and minds is not usual, but that is what Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain, commander of the Srinagar-based 15 Corps, has been at since taking charge four months earlier.
New Delhi's regional partners in restraining a belligerent China -- primarily the US, Japan, Australia and Singapore -- would like the Indian Navy to lock down the Indian Ocean Region, while the other partners can focus on deterring the PLA (navy) in the South China Sea, explains Ajai Shukla.
Ajai Shukla feels that for Islamabad, engineering China's new tilt is about doing down India. For Beijing, however, this appears to be less about India than about reducing insecurity on a sensitive border.
The greatest unknown in this risky initiative lies in the way human relationships will play out -- not just between the Agniveers, who will be competing with their fellows for permanent jobs beyond their four-year tenures -- but also between the Agniveers and existing full-time soldiers, warns Ajai Shukla.
The INS Shivalik, now completing sea trials, is a world-class frigate built at Indian prices.
'Each lab is working on a key advanced technology of importance to the development of futuristic defence.'
The P-8I, which is widely acknowledged to be the world's most deadly LRMR-ASW aircraft, is a derivative of the Boeing 737-800 airliner, onto which a plethora of sensors and weaponry has been fitted.
China has been commissioning three new destroyers every year while India has barely completed one destroyer every 2-3 years.
Following her demise, people from all over the world expressed grief and sorrow, taking to Twitter to send their condolences to Asma's family. Some famous Indians too, took to Twitter to condole and honour the social activist. Here are some of the tweets.
Like most army combat uniforms, this one has been designed to serve two requirements: First, protection against harsh climatic conditions, including extreme heat and cold. Second, the need to provide soldiers' outfits with field camouflage, so as to increase his battlefield survivability.
INS Vishakapatnam's ground attack and anti-ship capabilities are achieved through a bank of BrahMos cruise missiles that can be fired at targets up to 295 km away.
For about three more years, the Indian Navy will have to make do with its lone carrier -- the Russia-built INS Vikramaditya.
The army, air force and navy will all benefit from the defence ministry's approval of 'Make in India' equipment.
The army has long been deficient in artillery, the modern battlefield's most lethal killer, says Ajai Shukla.
While it was not directly suggested that the COVID-19 pandemic was related to biological warfare, it is significant that the government is exhorting military laboratories to work concertedly on biological defence.
More than 100 BrahMos missiles are planned to be built in the next three years.
HAL is poised to sell the Philippines at least seven Dhruv Advanced Light Helicopters and eight Dornier 228 aircraft for Rs 30 billion, reports Ajai Shukla.
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.
Seven years ago, an IAF chief had ordered the HTT-40 to be removed from the Yelahanka air base. The IAF now wants HAL to build 108 HTT-40 aircraft.
'The Indian Army is fully prepared for a long and permanent deployment if the PLA does not retreat.'
The IAF has demanded five new capabilities in the Mark 1A that would give it a clear combat edge over Pakistan's entire fighter fleet, and most of China's as well.
For the defence ministry, Aero India 2021 is an opportunity to show its commitment to the prime minister's 'Atmanirbhar Bharat' initiative.
The activation of diplomatic channels is likely to yield better results than a simmering hostility, recommends Ajai Shukla.
Kavaratti will be commissioned before end-2019 -- three years later than contracted.
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