Cavalier India Defence Training Academy

A total of 3,11,21,004 persons have been found eligible for inclusion in Final NRC, leaving out 19,06,657 persons including those who did not submit claims.  In a statement NRC authorities stated the process of NRC Update was started in the state of Assam as per order of the Supreme Court of India in 2013. Since then, the Apex Court has been closely monitoring the entire process. The process of NRC update in Assam differs from the rest of the country and is governed by Rule 4A and the corresponding Schedule of the Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National Identity Cards) Rules, 2003.  These rules have been framed as per the cut-off date of 24th March (Midnight), 1971 decided as per Assam Accord. The process of receipt of NRC Application Forms started during the end of May 2015 and ended on 31st August 2015. A total of 3,30,27,661 members applied through 68,37,660 applications. The particulars submitted by the applicants were taken up for scrutiny to determine...

There have been over 220 ceasefire violations along the Line of Control between India and Pakistan following the Centre nullifying Article 370 and dividing Jammu and Kashmir into two union territories in early August.  The data shared by security forces points to Pakistan’s regular attempts to ‘internationalise’ the Kashmir issue by carrying out ceasefire violations to not only dominate the Line of Control (LoC), but also provide cover to terrorists attempting to infiltrate into J&K, officials explained. The army has thwarted about 10 to 12 infiltration attempts made by terrorists operating from launch-pads near the LoC, following the changes made in the erstwhile state on August 5.  In comparison, the first five days of this month witnessed around 49 ceasefire violations. This figure with the 222 violations since after August 5 total 271 violations this month, which is the second highest this year. The highest was in July- 296.  There have been over 220 ceasefire vio...

The inaugural flight of India's Gaganyaan mission is unlikely to have any woman astronaut because ISRO is looking at test pilots from the armed forces and none of them have any women in that post, a senior official from the space agency said on Wednesday. Though women appear to be ruled out for the moment, civilians, including women, will be part of future manned missions, the official added. The Indian Space Research Organisation has begun the process of short-listing probable candidates for its first manned mission and it should be completed by next month, he said. Short-listed candidates will be sent to Russia for training after November. The first Gaganyaan flight scheduled for 2022 will carry three astronauts, who will be picked from among the test pilots in the armed forces. "Most maiden missions undertaken by different countries in the past had test pilots. So we are sticking to that for our maiden mission. We are also looking at test pilots from the armed forces which ...

In the last three weeks, the Indian Army has killed over 10 Pakistan Army commandos in retaliatory action along the Line of Control since the abrogation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir. "Pakistan Army has been trying to infiltrate into Indian territory and also trying to push terrorist by doing ceasefire violations. In the retaliatory action, more than 10 SSG commandos have been killed," sources in security forces said. Pakistan has been trying to internationalise the Kashmir issue by doing severe violations, they said. The Pakistan Army has also deployed over 100 SSG commandos along the Line of Control in the last 15 days to push infiltration and attempt BAT action against the Indian troops, sources said earlier. Indian Army units are on high alert along the LoC to foil any attempts by the Pakistan Army or terrorists backed by it. Source Link:  http://www.defencenews.in/article/10-Pakistani-commandos-killed-by-Indian-Army-since-August-5-586778

Recently-appointed Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh said that the aim during his tenure is to make the Indian Navy focus on combat readiness. “Under my leadership, I want the Indian naval force to be a credible force in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and become a lot more cohesive as an organisation,” said Admiral Singh. The navy chief was in the city to deliver the annual General BC Joshi memorial lecture on ‘Indian Ocean Region- Changing Dynamics - Maritime Security Imperatives for India’ which was organised by the Department of Defence and Strategic Studies, Savitribai Phule Pune University at Dhanvantri Auditorium of Armed Forces Medical College (AFMC), Pune, on Monday. Admiral Singh said that the Indian Navy is keeping pace with the rapid changes in the strategic environment in the IOR and is ready to stride into harm’s way to protect the maritime interests of the nation. During the lecture, the Admiral highlighted the issues concerning maritime global and regional s...

The Indian Air Force will induct its first batch of US-made Apache AH-64E (I) attack helicopters into its fleet during a ceremony at the Pathankot airbase on September 3, an IAF spokesperson said on Wednesday, in a significant step towards modernising its fleet. India inked a $1.1-billion deal with US defence giant Boeing in September 2015 for 22 Apache choppers to sharpen its attack capabilities. The first Apache squadron is being raised with eight helicopters that have already been supplied by Boeing, the official said. Boeing is likely to deliver all the 22 helicopters, tailored for the IAF, through 2020. The IAF currently operates Soviet-origin Mi-25 and Mi-35 helicopter gunships. Armed with fire-and-forget Hellfire missiles, the Apache attack choppers can track up to 128 targets in a minute and prioritise threats. The missiles equip the gunships with heavy anti-armour capabilities. The army is also in the process of buying six Apache attack helicopters from the US at a cost of Rs ...

In an apparent rebuttal to those questioning India's space programme in the face of its battle against poverty, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman K Sivan on Monday the country was doing well economically and its resources should be used for the benefit of common man. Today, opportunities are many and people are thinking that India is poor. And why the space technology is required for a poor country like India? Do you think India is poor? India is not at all poor, he said. India's economy was seventh largest by nominal GDP and third largest by purchasing power, he said in his address at the convocation of ceremony of the Jain Deemed-to-be University. "...we are number one in remote sensing satellite, we are the second largest producer of wheat, and the second largest producer of rice. Our IT industry is enviable in the world, the ISRO chief said. The scientist said today every moment of our life was one way or other connected with space technology. Underlin...

Russia is helping India in its first manned mission to space, Gaganyaan, by training the astronauts. A total of four Indian astronauts will go to Russia by November 2019 for a training period of 15 months at the Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre. It will be followed by training in India for six to eight months. The mission to space will be sent by 2022. In view of the increased cooperation between India and Russia for the Gaganyaan mission, a special ISRO unit will also be established in the Indian mission in Moscow. Glavkosmos, which is a subsidiary of Russian space agency Roscosmos and manages the international space project had signed a contract with Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) for the training the Indian astronauts. India is taking the help of Russia in Gaganyaan because of the country's huge experience in terms of human space flight and sees the latter as a reliable long-term partner with great experience in human space flight over the last 50 years. Russia ...

Wing Commander Abhinandan Varthaman, the IAF pilot who became the face of a tense military confrontation between India and Pakistan in February, has started flying MiG 21 jet again. Varthaman returned to the fighter cockpit, nearly six months after sustaining injuries while ejecting from a fighter plane during an aerial combat between India and Pakistan on February 27. "He has started flying," said a top military official. At present, Varthaman is serving at an IAF base in Rajasthan. The 36-year-old IAF pilot was captured by the Pakistani Army on February 27 after his MiG-21 Bison jet was shot down in a dogfight with Pakistani jets during aerial combat. Before his jet was hit, he downed an F-16 fighter of Pakistan. Varthaman was released on the night of March 1 by Pakistan. He had sustained injuries while ejecting from his MiG 21 Bison during the aerial combat and was taken off flying duties because of it. Varthaman was conferred Vir Chakra, the coveted wartime gallantry meda...

France is likely to offer additional Rafale aircraft to India during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming visit to the European country for the G-7 Summit on Thursday, sources told ET.  The French side, sources said, is set to offer an immediate sale of two more squadrons, which means 36 additional Rafale jets, to the Indian Air Force that has been grappling with depleting combat force levels. PM Modi is slated to meet French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday during which both sides will hold detailed deliberations on a range of subjects including key issues like defence and maritime cooperation.  While the 2016 deal for 36 Rafale jets was signed for €7.87 billion, sources said additional 36 aircraft would cost significantly lesser because payment for fixed costs covering India-specific enhancements, training equipment and infrastructure has already been made.  The two airbases that will house Rafales on order are capable of stationing additional jets without any c...

Hours after Pakistan announced its decision to approach the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against the Narendra Modi government's decision to end special status to Jammu and Kashmir, top diplomat Syed Akbaruddin on Tuesday said that India was ready to fight its regional rival in any arena of its choice. "Every country is entitled to use every course available to them. We have different approaches too. If they would like to tackle us in different arenas, we will address it in that arena. This is an arena of their choice. They tried once, but they did not succeed," Mr Akbaruddin, who is India's permanent representative in the United Nations, told NDTV. He was referring to the recent face-off between India and Pakistan in the ICJ over the death sentence handed to former naval officer Kulbhushan Jadhav on charges of "espionage and terrorism" two years ago. In its verdict delivered last month, the world court asked Pakistan to make an "effective review...

Kashmir is the first line of defence for Pakistan, Prime Minister Imran Khan said on Tuesday as his Cabinet decided to highlight the situation in Kashmir during the weeks leading to the address of his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi to the United Nations General Assembly next month. The development came following a meeting of the Cabinet chaired by Khan on Tuesday. Firdous Ashiq Awan, the Special Assistant to the Pakistan Prime Minister on information, said that Khan during the Cabinet meeting emphasised that Kashmir was the first line of defence for Pakistan. She noted that Modi would address to the UN General Assembly on September 27 ahead of Khan. Tensions between India and Pakistan spiked after India abrogated provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution to withdraw Jammu and Kashmir's special status and bifurcated it into two Union Territories, evoking strong reactions from Pakistan. India has categorically told the international community that the scrapping of Article 370 o...

India’s second Moon mission, Chandrayaan-2, has entered Moon's orbit early on Tuesday (August 20). Confirmations about the successful Lunar Orbit Insertion (LOI) are just trickling out of the Indian Space Research Organisation (Isro), whose chairman K Sivan will hold a press briefing about this at 11am in Bemgaluru. Now that Chandrayaan-2 has completed its trek to Moon, it is just days away from Moon landing, which will put it in an elite club of nations—the US, USSR (now Russia) and China—to have successfully landed probes on the lunar surface. The project, which has cost India Rs 978 crore has seen wide participation from institutions from around the country." Nearly 500 universities and 120 industries have played a role in GSLV MkIII and Chandrayaan2 respectively. And, 80% and 60% of the cost has gone to these," Sivan had said. If reaching Moon's orbit is one part of the mission—Isro had already put a satellite around Moon in 2008 (Chandrayaan-1)—the more crucial p...

After a suicide attack by the Islamic State turned a wedding affair into a deathbed in Kabul, the Afghan President, Ashraf Ghani has pledged to take the ISIS head-on. The Afghan President following a loss of more than 60 lives in the Saturday blasts has stated that all safe havens of the Islamic State will be eliminated. The gruesome suicide attack happened during a wedding reception of a young couple from the Shia Hazara community. While 63 people lost their lives in the attack, more than 180 were left wounded. President Ashraf Ghani while announcing the government’s pledge to crush the ISIS also urged upon the international community to extend cooperation. Will India help Afghanistan to eliminate the ISIS? India has been a strategic partner of Afghanistan over the past decade and has been investing heavily in development projects in Afghanistan. India sees Afghanistan as a key ally to maintain the regional balance of power and also to counter the expanse of Chinese and Pakistani infl...