The minister's clarification comes in the wake of reports of the army's internal records showing two different dates of birth of the general, who is in line to take over as the next army chief in November 2009 after the retirement of the present incumbent General Deepak Kapoor.
The government has given the nod for the purchase of six C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft at an estimated cost of Rs 4,000 crore from the US.
The navy's ships, submarines, aircraft and on-shore centres will also be linked through a satellite-based network to prepare the force for the challenges of modern maritime warfare.
There can be forward movement on the Siachen issue if Pakistan is willing to authenticate current troop positions on the glacier, Defence Minister A K Antony said
With the floating of fresh tenders, the army would lose the benefit of procuring towed guns at the price levels of 2002-2003, which were in the range of Rs 10-12 crore per gun, as against the current price of approximately Rs 25-30 crore per gun.
But, at the same time, strict transparency in all arms deals will be maintained, he said.
Defence Minister A K Antony on Monday said BrahMos supersonic cruise missile would be inducted in the Air Force, besides Army and Navy.
In a bid to help India meet an acute shortage of spares for its armaments, Russia has offered to set up a depot in the country, the first of its kind, to cater to the requirements of the three defence services. The proposal of the Russian government was being examined by the government.
For Indo-Pak talks to succeed, Islamabad will have to put an end to cross-border terrorism, Antony said, while addressing top army commanders here for their bi-annual conference.
Besides Dr Singh, the meeting was attended by Defence Minister A K Antony, Army Chief J J Singh, National Security Advisor M K Narayanan and others.
In a last-ditch bid to save the coalition government in Karnataka, Congress Friday offered Janata Dal-Secular the "Maharashtra model" power-sharing formula, just before Chief Minister Dharam Singh was to seek a vote of confidence.
Antony said the government would take all 'humanly possible' steps to protect the rights of fishermen.
Giving his assessment of the situation in Kashmir, General Singh complimented the army for bringing down the level of violence in the state.
Seeking to downplay a rift between the army on the one side and navy and Indian Air Force on the other over share in new posts as per the Singh report, Antony said an amicable solution would be arrived at soon.
Three hundred and seventy seven personnel in the armed forces are afflicted with the dreaded AIDS, though the government claims the disease is now on a downward slide.
The figures, placed in Parliament, do not reveal if such a large number have been injured in conflicts the country has had to face since Independence or otherwise.
"We have to be constantly alert, otherwise there is danger lurking at the sea coasts," he told a press conference after the maiden Fleet Review of Coast Guard ships.
The procedure for purchasing 126 multi-role combat jets for the Indian Air Force is in the final stage and will be completed shortly, Defence Minister A K Antony said on Wednesday.
Leaking of official secrets of military operations is treason and those involved in it must be punished, the Congress said on Wednesday on the purported WhatsApp chats of Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami and demanded that the prime minister must come clean.
The army has re-deployed 3,500 troops from Misa in Arunachal Pradesh to Sibsagar and Dhemaji districts, where many Hindi-speaking people were gunned down.
Antony has asked Defence Secretary Shekhar Dutt to furnish the report by Friday.
'Antony and I have been friends for over half a century, and I know the man does not tell lies. The problem is that what he believes to be the truth might not actually be true. He may believe that India needs the Congress, and that the Congress in turn needs the Nehru-Gandhi family, but that does not mean that India shares those articles of faith,' says T V R Shenoy.
Six aviation majors are bidding for the Indian deal, which according to defence experts could run up to anything between six to eight billion dollars.
The government carries out a review of the defence procurement process every two years to make changes gained from experience and to incorporate new contract clauses for probity.
That is not our policy, but at the same time we can't close out eyes to what is happening in the surroundings," said Antony, who apologised to the troops for not speaking in Hindi.
Defence Minister A K Antony said the highest incidence of suicides, 328 cases, had been reported from the Army, mostly from personnel engaged in counter insurgency operations.
He will meet Governor R L Bhatia on Tuesday morning and will be sworn in later in the day, CLP sources said.
Parrikar also took a dig at Congress president Sonia Gandhi, saying translation from Italian was not easy 'at least for the ruling side. May not be a difficult task for the Opposition'.
The tanks with new systems will be imported from Russia at an estimated cost of Rs 3,900 crore and are likely to be inducted over the next two years, army officials said.
Here is an explainer and a timeline relating to India's purchase of 36 combat jets.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had announced last week in Imphal that the government was considering amendments in AFSPA, which has evoked resentment from a cross-section of the people of Manipur where it is in force.
This is the first full-scale review of VIP protectees by the Union home ministry after the Modi 2.0 government took charge.
"We are also enough nuclear capable," Defence Minister A K Antony said.
New Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has cleared the names with the Congress high command. The ministers will be sworn in on Sunday.
On possibility of recommending a CBI inquiry into the May 2 violence, which left nine people dead, the cabinet decided to seek the advocate general's advice.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances