Voicing concern over recruitment of educated Kashmiri youths into terror outfits, a top army commander has said that eyes cannot be shut to the "tragedy" that "alienation and lack of opportunities" was driving local youngsters towards the gun and the Centre and the state government need to introspect to address these issues.
Why does the army remain embroiled in counter-insurgency, denying itself a peace dividend even after expending blood and treasure in imposing calm?
It facilitates shooting around corners and over the top of walls, without exposing the person using the pistol, they said.
"Talks are the only option," Mehbooba said. "How long can you have a confrontation?"
'The Indian Army is there to give a second chance to any youth who accepts his mistakes and wants to surrender and come back to the mainstream. We, the uniformed forces, are here to save lives and not to take lives. The system, the entire administration, will facilitate not only their surrender but also ensure that they are well integrated back into the mainstream,' Lt Gen Y K Joshi said.
Even as Bihar continues its own rehabilitation after it was ravaged by floods, the state has offered Rs 10 crore for relief works for the flood-affected people in Jammu and Kashmir, besides supply of dry ration and boats.
A police constable was also injured in an encounter that is still going on.
In 1666, Shivaji Maharaj and his son Sambhaji escaped from the Agra Fort, one of the most miraculous escapes in India's history.
'Worryingly, intelligence assessments indicate that growing disaffection amongst the youth is ceding ground to fundamentalist Islamist groups like Islamic State,' reports Ajai Shukla.
According to a tweet by the weather expert, the icy, severe chill would be experienced between January 14 and 19 and is likely to be at its peak from January 16 to 18.
'The first clear cut call for 'engagement with all stake holders including separatists' came, not from the political class but the men in uniform,' points out Mohammad Sayeed Malik, the distinguished observer on Kashmir.
After frequent incursions in Ladakh area, Chinese People's Liberation Army troops have been spotted at forward posts along the Line of Control on the Pakistani side of Kashmir, ringing alarm bells in the security grid.
As India progresses towards formulating its own model of theaterisation, the public must get involved in the debate because in the end, it affects the well-being of the entire nation, asserts Biswajit Dasgupta.
'As one might expect, he believed the Indians were preparing their nuclear weapons for deployment. It took us a few hours - and remarkably good work by our teams on the ground in New Delhi and Islamabad - to convince each side that the other was not preparing for nuclear war'
Gandhi rued that the fourth estate was showing Prime Minister Narendra Modi's face round-the-clock and not raising issues like unemployment or inflation.
Strategically important and first of the kind in North India and Jammu and Kashmir, the 592-meter long Basohli Bridge over River Ravi will be fourth of its kind in the country
For the soldiers at this frontier, it's a battle that has to be fought on two fronts -- hostile neighbour and harsh winter, which is approaching.
The hard-fought peace in militancy-hit Jammu and Kashmir has to be maintained, Army chief Dalbir Singh on Thursday said as he accused Pakistan of supporting terrorism in the state. He also said that the army needs to focus on war preparation which is its "primary task".
"Only time will tell us about that but I am quite sure that if a youngster who has, as you said, got brainwashed (into terrorism), joins the services under the scheme and stays with us for four years, I am sure he will be a different person and probably more of an Indian than a radical as you brought out," the air marshal told reporters.
Major General S C N Jatar, who passed into the ages on Monday night, thwarted anti-national forces at the peak of the Assam agitation. Colonel Anil A Athale (retd) salutes this officer and gentleman.
World over, pluralism is in retreat. Luckily for us, Indian pluralism and its consequent tolerance of diversity is rooted in our basic values. As long as we remain faithful to these values and keep our institutions in good health, the Indian miracle of last 75 years is likely to last centuries, asserts Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
The seizure, as per officials, is estimated to be worth over Rs 10 crore in the international market (about Rs 5K-7K per blot) and all the six who have been taken into custody, beginning late last month, are students and youngsters who wanted to make 'easy money' by remaining anonymous within the deep layers of secret internet-based apps and messenger service like WICKR.
A commanding officer of the counter insurgency Rashtriya Rifles, a cop and two militants were killed and a soldier was seriously wounded in a fierce encounter in south Kashmir's Tral area on Tuesday afternoon.
The military standoff with China has been going on for over two years now when the Chinese side attempted to change the status quo unilaterally by moving troops in large numbers against Indian positions.
Some may see China's decision to antagonise India as strategically unwise. But China believes its prestige demands standing up to India, whatever the cost.
The Defence Ministry said his tenure will be remembered for the 'resolute reply' to the Northern adversary in Eastern Ladakh and for a determined push towards self-reliance in defence besides embracing niche and disruptive technologies to fight future wars.
'For lakhs of people in the flood-afflicted state, battling against the elements is taking a huge toll. This is the time of the year that apples ripen, rice starts being harvested and preparations start in full swing to put aside some of the food stocks for the long winter months ahead. At this moment, though, people there believe if they can succeed in coming out of this calamity in one piece they will have won the war,' says Rashme Sehgal.
Unless the anarchy in Manipur is brought under control quickly, we are sowing the seeds of a flare up in the entire North East and the end of our dream of checking China in South East Asia, warns Colonel Anil A Athale (retd).
Army on Wednesday paid tributes to legendary war hero and its first Param Vir Chakra awardee Major Somnath Sharma who laid down his life while fighting tribal invaders from Pakistan in 1947.
Twenty-seven months after she lost her husband in an anti-insurgency operation in south Kashmir's Pulwama, 29-year-old Nitika Kaul on Saturday donned the army uniform after completing a one-year rigorous training in Tamil Nadu.
"My appeal is for calm. We have to sit down, put our heads together and see if we can find a way out of this situation. So everybody, who is in anyway involved in Jammu-Kashmir, needs to introspect and see what we can do to stop it. It is not person or one organisation which can do it (alone)," the top army commander said.
Mercury hovered around 40 degrees Celsius in large parts of the country on Monday as the Indian meteorological department predicted heat wave conditions in parts of east India over the next four days and the northwest region over the next two days.
Very dense fog lowered visibility to 50 metres at the Palam observatory, near the Indira Gandhi International airport, at 5:30 am.
A severe cold wave brought the minimum temperature down to a numbing 1.5 degrees Celsius at the Ridge weather station in central Delhi.
This is the first time Pakistan and Kashmir have been brought into the narrative.
Indians are becoming much more spendy and discerning travellers and look for places that can offer them a 'new' kind of experience.
Two top Army commanders on Saturday said the fresh ceasefire between India and Pakistan will have no bearing on the counter-terrorism operations in Jammu and Kashmir and that the force will exercise 'maximum restraint' in the event of any violation by the neighbouring country.
'China is unwilling to restore the status quo ante of April 2020.' 'India will have to weigh its options based on this premise.'
India has repeatedly called on Russia and Ukraine to return to the path of diplomacy and dialogue and end their ongoing conflict.
Lt Gen Singh also said necessary security arrangements had been put in place to ensure peace and security.
