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.
Neither the BJP, nor the Congress before it, made any manifesto commitments on defence spending, even though allocations have plummeted from 4 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) in the late 1980s to less than 2 per cent today, points out Ajai Shukla.
A staggering 83 per cent of Indians view China as a major security threat, even as 63 per cent would like relation with the neighbouring country to be strengthened, an opinion poll has claimed.
An India-built naval patrol vessel for Mauritius that will help in better policing its vast exclusive economic zone was commissioned today by Prime Minister Narendra Modi who said it will make the Indian Ocean "more safer and secure".
The country can expect normal rainfall during the southwest monsoon season as a positive Indian Ocean Dipole (IOD) and a lower snow cover over the northern hemisphere are likely to counter the evolving El Nino conditions, the India meteorological department (IMD) said on Tuesday.
Five Sri Lankan fishermen have been arrested on charges of stealing an Indian tsunami warning equipment, police said on Tuesday. The arrested men were produced before the chief magistrate in the southern town of Matara, who remanded them in custody till April 30, police spokesman Ajith Rohana said.
Also, the monsoon this year may end up being the driest since 2015, which recorded a rainfall deficit of 13 per cent, they said.
Cyclone 'Biparjoy', the first storm brewing in the Arabian Sea this year, has rapidly intensified into a severe cyclonic storm, with meteorologists predicting a 'mild' monsoon onset over Kerala and 'weak' progress beyond southern peninsular under its influence.
The navy said the missile hit the target at maximum range with precise accuracy.
'We have to be prepared on the borders to withstand Chinese expansionist designs.'
Here are list of some of the big ticket announcements.
Colombo seems to be veering to the middle path between China and the US on global matters, but in regional matters of strategic security, it is increasingly identifying with India, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
G P Sharma, President (Meteorology) of the Skymet Weather said the Long Period Average of the rainfall during June to September will be 103 per cent with an error margin of plus or minus 5 per cent.
Noting that India is increasingly getting concerned about China's posture on its border, a top United States intelligence official said on Wednesday that the Indian Army is strengthening itself for a "limited conflict" with China.
Accounted for 18.8 per cent of total imports in the region in 2010 vs Singapore, which contributed 17.8 per cent.
The MQ-9B predator armed drones -- 10 each for three services -- is seen to be a key part of India's national security and defense needs.
'The Indian Navy has sufficient combat power in areas of interest to India that can quickly scale up operations if the need arises.' 'This includes all the choke points leading into the Indian Ocean as also areas within.'
The "live firing" of the missile was carried out in close coordination with the Indian Navy, the IAF said.
Beyond a point, competition is boring. The fun is in the doing, irrespective of outcome. By the time I was in college, I knew I valued awareness more than success, notes Shyam G Menon.
The Sri Lankan foreign minister further added that he is "not surprised" by his comments as Trudeau comes out with "outrageous and substantiated allegations."
India is responding swiftly to the intended Chinese encroachment in a region it has seen as its traditional sphere of influence. The Indian Ocean is becoming the latest theatre of Sino-Indian rivalry, with China straining to breach India's old intimacy with island nations like the Maldives and Mauritius and sparking a diplomatic battle between the two countries.
After being held in captivity for more than three months by Somali pirates, seven out of 22 Indian crewmembers of the Panama-flagged cargo vessel 'Al Khaliq' returned safely in Mumbai on Thursday.
The Trump Administration's consideration in this regard comes months after a successful meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump at the White House on June 26.
The aircraft carrier, built at a cost of around Rs 23,000 crore, set sail on Wednesday for the crucial sea trials ahead of its planned induction into the Indian Navy by August next year.
Taking note of India's 'growing influence' in global affairs, the United States has said the country will be a net provider of security in the Indian Ocean and beyond with the growth of its military capabilities.
Four-nation grouping Quad on Tuesday launched a major new initiative for the Indo-Pacific that allows the partner countries to fully monitor the waters on their shores and help ensure peace and stability in the region, a move that comes amid China's increasingly intimidatory behaviour.
Exercise Milan, the largest four-day naval war game hosted by India started on Friday with the participation of 12 navies of the Asia-Pacific region within the context of the Indian Navy's 'Look East' policy and naval interactions to this effect.
A siren giving a warning about tsunami erroneously started playing from the Early Warning Dissemination System at Porvorim near Panaji, triggering panic among the local residents, an official said on Thursday.
'Keeping the global temperature below not just 1.5 degree Celsius, even 2 degree Celsius is beyond our reach now. Both are impossible.'
'When resources are few; when frugality demands repairing a broken thing rather than replacing it with a brand new and expensive option, enterprising commoners in rural and urban India improvise on a daily basis and solve their problems with whatever they have,' observes Shivanand Kanavi.
The Global Hawk can carry out surveillance of a stretch of land or ocean for over 30 hours continuously, physically scanning up to 100,000 sq km each day.
India and Iran on Monday signed a 10-year contract for the operation of a terminal at the strategically important Chabahar port in Iran, a move that will boost regional connectivity as well as trade ties. This is the first time India will take over the management of an overseas port that will also have a multiplier effect on trade among India, Iran and Afghanistan as efforts continue to directly tap the potential in Central Asia, bypassing neighbouring Pakistan.
Equipped with some of the best sensors in the world, its weapons package include sufficient wire guided torpedoes and sub-surface to surface missiles to neutralise a large enemy fleet, the Navy said.
Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Radhakrishnan Hari Kumar said on Friday that his force is fully capable of confronting any security threat and fully backed the ambitious tri-services reforms that included setting up of a maritime theatre command.
India said on Tuesday that China had been showing "more than the normal interest" in the Indian Ocean affairs and its "intentions" are being closely monitored.
Cricket Australia is monitoring the situation in Sri Lanka ahead of the tour.
China's embassy in Colombo has sought an urgent meeting with senior Sri Lankan authorities after Colombo sought a deferment of the planned docking of a high-tech Chinese research vessel at the strategic Hambantota port over which India raised concerns, sources said.
'Besides Ayodhya, the BJP lost in nine other constituencies with a Ramayana imprint; it tasted success only in Thrissur.' 'In Rameswaram, K Navaskani of the Indian Union Muslim League won with a 44% voteshare in a 84% Hindu constituency.' 'In the 21 seats in the Ayodhya and Varanasi regions, both crucial to the Hindutva project, the BJP won just 7.' 'It won just 3 out of 12 seats around Modi's constituency,' points out Krishna Prasad.
It said the acceptance of necessity accorded to the procurement by the Defence Acquisition Council noted the estimated cost of $3,072 million as provided by the US government, adding the price will be negotiated once policy approval from Washington is received.
"We work with other countries to develop their capabilities and support their efforts to make free sovereign choices. More broadly, we aim to advance peace and stability in the region," he asserted.
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