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Showing posts from August, 2018

Astronauts selected for India's first manned mission might be sent abroad for training

If all goes as planned, India should be able to send its first manned mission to space by 2021, according to Dr K Sivan, ISRO Chairman. At the curtain raiser of the Bengaluru Space Expo (BSX02018), Sivan said that there will be two unmanned flights before December 2021, one in December 2020 and another in June 2021. They have set a target of December 2021 for the launch so that they have some margin in case there are glitches, "We will not miss the target set by PM Modi," he said. But the entire responsibility will be with the Indian Air Force (IAF) who will select the men or women going to space in an Indian Orbital Module. He says the IAF will select them based on certain criteria such as mental, physical, psychological aspects. Even though the module can take three astronauts, a total of six will be selected and trained just in case any problem might arise. ISRO has already begun informal discussions with the IAF on this and once the project is ready, formal discussions wi

PPDT Conducted on 9 August 2018 (Part 1)

Bharat Forge expects orders for up to 4,000 guns from army; looks to become global player

The Indian army requires 3,000-4,000 artillery weaponry in the next 15 years, said Baba Kalyani, CMD of Bharat Forge. The defence ministry has approved the purchase of 150 advanced towed artillery gun systems at a cost of over Rs 3,300 crores. "This is a positive for Bharat Forge. There is the added tailwind of the new NAFTA agreement as well," he said. "I think there will be many more opportunities that will come but this is a very good and a game-changing decision that the government has made,” he added. Kalyani said that the company was aiming to become a global leader in artillery. "In the next seven years, we want to be at the top of the league as far as artillery systems are concerned on a worldwide basis,” said Kalyani. “In two to two and a half years, the order will get completed. This is a fully indigenous equipment, completely right from steel to forgings to machining to everything else, so hopefully we will do well,” said Kalyani. Source Link: http://www

China’s 2nd Aircraft Carrier heads for trials, India 2nd carrier not far behind

China’s second sea-borne aircraft carrier on Monday started a fresh round of trials at sea. The 50,000-tonne warship headed out from its base at the Dalian. The warship will undergo a series of tests before it is commissioned, possibly in 2019. China, like India, operates one carrier — the Liaoning. A carrier can launch fighter jets from its deck and extend the arc of operations of these jets. India has one operational carrier — the INS Vikramaditya — and has more than 50 years of experience in operating such warships that require complex technologies. China started operating one just four years ago. Beijing’s upcoming aircraft carrier means it will soon have a two-carrier Navy. Both countries are literally racing to have, by 2020, at least two carriers in their respective fleets. China’s second carrier will rival the INS Vikrant (also known as the IAC-1), which will be New Delhi’s second carrier. Indian Navy Chief Admiral Sunil Lanba had in December 2017 announced that the INS Vikrant

India needs independence from defence imports

Four years ago on 15 August, in his address from the Red Fort, Prime Minister Narendra Modi made the clarion call for “Make in India”. He said, “come make in India, we have steel...we have discipline, we have resolve.. sell anywhere, (but) make in India”. Among the range of opportunities he highlighted, there was the unmissable “satellites to submarines”, implying immense potential in defence and aerospace. In 1947, India had a reasonable defence industrial base comprising 18 ordnance factories and one defence public sector undertaking (DPSU). Over the years, although the defence public sector expanded to 41 ordnance factories and nine DPSUs, it could not keep pace with the evolving threat and concomitant requirements, resulting in increasing dependency on import. Defence was opened to the private sector in 2001, with each edition of the procurement procedure adding provisions to promote indigenization. But this could not generate enough enthusiasm because of complex processes and diff

Greatest Achievements of India Since Independence

Greatest Achievements of India Since Independence that no one has noticed. Here is the achievements: 1) Journey of India from 1947 to 2018 Twice invaded by foreigners, ripped off its wealthy glory, facing the agony of partition, punctured by numerous anti-national elements, yet standing strong in the face of all & that’s India for the world. 2) What we started with? A country that today comes across as a strong powerful, developing nation has achieved and lost so many things in its journey; India has come a long way since its Independence on August 15, 1947. 3) Notions about India No matter how, intolerant people think my country is, or how patient it is in the times of real aggressive calling, I still admire for the strength that it displays into harboring the needs of its countrymen. 4) India’s growth There still might be a lot of scope for infrastructure, better education and economic policies, foreign and defense strategies, even thought-process of certain section of society, b

India to launch two space missions every month - ISRO Chairman

India is ready to launch two space missions every month, with 31 launches slated to take place over the coming 16 months, a top official said on Sunday. “The space agency has a tight schedule ahead, as we are targeting nine launches over the next five months and 22 missions from February to December in 2019, aiming at two per month,” the state-run Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) Chairman K. Sivan told reporters here. In all, ISRO is looking at 31 space missions in a span of 16 months starting September 2018 to December next year. “We have also identified 50 satellites that will be launched over the coming three years,” Sivan said on the sidelines of an event here to unveil a statue (bust) of the father of India’s space programme, Vikram Sarabhai, on his 99th birth anniversary. The next mission by ISRO will launch two commercial satellites from Britain in September onboard Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) C-42 rocket. Among the key missions in the coming few months are

Here Is Why India Should Invade Pakistan!

‘India has been in a state of war with Pakistan since 1947’, actor Suniel Shetty made this statement in his 2004 movie, ‘Main Hoon Na’, in which he played the role of a court-martialed army officer, who later becomes a terrorist, hell-bent to stop ‘Project Milap’, a mutual act of releasing POWs by both the nations, as a gesture of peace between them. Though what he said was somewhat true, this has never stopped state-assisted terrorists entering into the Indian territory. The ongoing proxy war will keep on going regardless of the change in leadership as the country as it furthers its foreign policy goals in places like Jammu and Kashmir against the Indians. According to Bill Roggio, editor of the Long War journal, the Pakistani government is continuing with its policy, the strategy of strategic depth, that it views everything through the lens of fighting India. There are many in India who think that the war is the only solution to stop these border invasions and terror attacks in the c

Everything you wanted to know about Rafale and did not know who to ask

The Rs 59,000-crore Rafale deal is at the centre of a furious war of words between the govt and opposition. Here’s an explainer on the jet and the controversy. What is the Rafale? A twin-engine fighter jet that was selected by the Indian Air Force. Why did the IAF select the Rafale? The IAF is worried over the rapidly dwindling number of fighter squadrons in its fleet. It desperately wants to overcome the shortage because the MiG 21 fighters, which are the mainstay, are being phased out and the defence public sector Hindustan Aeronautics Limited is yet to develop the home-made Tejas Light Combat Aircraft to the IAF’s standards for fully operational fighters. Who makes the Rafale? French company Dassault Aviation makes the main platform. It integrates avionics, weapons and engines from a number of other mostly French companies such as Thales, Snecma, Safran and MBDA. Has India done business with Dassault? India has a history of dealing with Dassault Aviation. It made the strategic Mirag