Cavalier India Defence Training Academy

The man in Indian Air Force uniform is Air Commodore Hilal Ahmad Rather, with India's Ambassador to France jawed Ashraf, and Chairman of Dassault Aviation, Eric Trappier The first batch of the much-awaited five Rafale fighter jets that took off from France on July 27, 2020. In the moment of euphoria over the arrival of one of world's best fighter jets, Indian social media users were quick to point out the important role played by Hilal Ahmad Rather in the quick delivery of Rafale. Air Commodore Hilal Ahmad Rather is presently India’s Air Attaché to France. Hilal hails from South Kashmir's Anantnag district. He became India's first pilot to see off the batch of Rafale jets from France to India on July 27. Reports suggest that he played a crucial part in early delivery of the Rafales, and was previously associated with the weaponisation of the Rafale jets according to the Indian requirements. Hilal was commissioned in Indian Air Force as a fighter pilot on December 17, 19...

The number of installations of Zili app surged nearly threefold in the three weeks following the June-end ban on TikTok, rising to 8 million installs from about 3 million in the prior period. The trend is in line with what experts had predicted after the 29 June ban on 59 apps by the Indian government including TikTok and zzz. (HT) Growing anti-China sentiments in India and the government ban on Chinese apps seems to have helped global companies more than those from India. According to app analytics firm Sensor Tower, only one of the top three apps that gained from the ban on TikTok was Indian--Roposo. The other two were New York-based Dubsmash and short-video app Zili, which is owned by Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi. The number of installations of Zili app surged nearly threefold in the three weeks following the June-end ban on TikTok, rising to 8 million installs from about 3 million in the prior period. Installations of Chinese Snack Video rose to a lifetime high of 23.5 mill...

Representative Image The Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) is going ahead with Turkish shipyard partner M/S Anadolu shipyard after signing a contract with them for technical collaboration for enabling the shipyard to build five fleet support ships. Confirming this, a senior official said that “The total initial estimated project cost is about Rs 10,000 crore for the 45,000-ton fleet support ships (FSS) for the Indian Navy. The contract with the Ministry of Defence (MoD) is expected to be inked within the next 6-8 months.” “Though the contract is between the two shipyards, it is a good sign that the Defence ministries of both countries are onboard for this `Make in India’ project.” As was first reported by Financial Express Online in 2019, the Turkish Shipyard was L1 and had technically qualified for the FSS project for the Indian Navy. In fact, it was down-selected from among three companies who had made the cut earlier. #MakeInIndia : Indian and Turkish shipyards close contract for bu...

One of the key announcements of the new National Education Policy, NEP 2020 has been the break-down of the existing 10+2 structure and introduction of the 5+3+3+4 structure of School Education. The policy aims at transforming circular and pedagogical structure from the existing 10 years + 2 years to a more inclusive foundational to secondary stage transition.  While the actual system would not change, in terms of the years a child spends within the formal education system in the country at school level, the new structure brings into fold the already existing play schools within the ambit of ‘formal education’. The new structure and comparison of the two explained below. To begin with, the actual number of years remain the same and this does not mean additional years. It can be perhaps looked at at play school, nursery or kindergarten classes combined with classes 1 and 2. Here’s a look at the new pedagogical structure proposed in comparison to the existing one. Today, a student (in...

Indian Army has published the recruitment notification for the recruitment of Soldier General Duty (Women Military Police). Eligible and interested candidates can apply for the post of through official website joinindianarmy.nic.in from 27 July 2020 to 31 August 2020. Check Details Here Indian Army Recruitment 2020:   Indian Army has published the recruitment notification for the recruitment of Soldier General Duty (Women Military Police). Eligible and interested candidates can apply for the post of through official website joinindianarmy.nic.in from   27 July 2020 to 31 August 2020. India Army will conduct recruitment rallies at Ambala, Lucknow, Jabalpur, Bangalore, Shillong and Pune. Admit Cards for the rally will be sent through registered e-mail.Candidates will be allotted venue based on their home districts. Final location and date of the recruitment rally will be given on the admit card. RELATED STORIES IAF Airmen (STAR 01/2020) Exam in Third Week of August 2020: Check I...

Coming from a family of servicemen, Group Captain Singh was back in 2009 honoured with the Shaurya Chakra, the third-most peacetime gallantry award after Ashok Chakra and Kirti Chakra. Rafale Fighter Jet It took the then Wing Commander Harkirat Singh barely eight years after being commissioned into the Indian Air Force in 2001 to make India stand up and take note of the steel he was made of. Now, 19 years after donning the blue uniform of the Indian armed forces, Group Captain Harkirat Singh is set to script history as the first Commanding Officer of the 17 Squadron of the Rafale fighter jet when the first batch of the French machine lands in Ambala on Wednesday. It is not only a matter of pride for India, but also a sense of achievement that the IAF officer is leading the group of fighter pilots to India with the mean machines after over a decade-long wait. The others in the the 17 Golden Arrows accompanying Singh are Wing Commanders MK Singh, R Kataria, Sidhu and Arun. Group Captain ...

The Indian Navy deployed a range of its frontline warships and submarines in the Indian Ocean Region(IOR) to send a clear message to China when the border tension escalated manifold in the wake of the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15. INS Jalashwa, deployed by the Indian Navy for Operation Samudra Setu, entered Tuticorin harbour early morning.(PTI) The Indian Navy’s clear message to Beijing through its aggressive deployment of almost all frontline warships and submarines in the Indian Ocean Region following escalation in the border row in eastern Ladakh has been “registered” by China, top defence sources said on Tuesday. The Indian Navy deployed a range of its frontline warships and submarines in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) to send a clear message to China when the border tension escalated manifold in the wake of the Galwan Valley clashes on June 15. The sources told PTI that the government adopted a multi-pronged approach involving the Army, the Indian Air Force (IAF) and the Navy a...

In a significant move, the  J&K administration has withdrawn a 1971 circular  that required a  no objection certificate (NOC)  from its home department for acquisition or requisition of land in favour of the Indian Armed Forces like the Army, BSF, CRPF etc. Now, the Army, CRPF and the BSF would no longer need a no objection certificate (NOC) for acquisition/ requisition of land in Jammu and Kashmir. BSF personnel stand guard (Image for representation | Bloomberg Quint) The development comes as the Central law on land acquisition is being extended to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. Such acquisition in J&K will now be covered under the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Act, 2013. With the abrogation of Article 370 defence forces won't face any major hurdle in acquiring land in Jammu and Kashmir. This will go a long way in the construction of strategic infrastructure in time bound manner! A...

US supercarriers carried out a joint exercise with Indian Navy in the Indian Ocean, and a second one with the other two QUAD members - Australia and Japan - in the Philippine Sea. The USS Ronald Reagan Carrier Strike Group and units from Japan’s Maritime Self-Defense Force and Australian Defence Force participate in trilateral military exercises in the Philippine Sea(US Navy) As four Indian naval ships participated in a two-day joint exercise with the American supercarrier USS Nimitz off the Andaman coast this week, another supercarrier USS Ronald Regan teamed up with navies of Australia and Japan to carry out a similar exercise 4,000 km away on the mouth of the contested South China Sea. The official statements on the exercises did not name China that has been trying to throw its weight around its neighbours. It didn’t have to as the danger is clear and present with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi clearly stating this week that Beijing was moving to the centre of the globe - in effec...

Missing your fix of adrenaline since the lockdown and yearning to get high on adventure? The Indian Army has the perfect cure for your symptoms and is willing to “liberally” issue permits for civilian expeditions to the Siachen Base Camp and Kumar Post in Ladakh.  Defence Minister Rajnath Singh inaugurated `Col Chewang Rinchen Setu', a strategically important bridge, over Shyok river in Ladakh region. The 430-meter-long bridge has been built by Border Roads Organisation (BRO) and connects Durbuk and Daulat Beg Oldie in Eastern Ladakh. He described the bridge as a symbol of the Centre's resolve of bringing "positive change and all-round development" of the nation | Image: ET The decision to open up the world’s largest non-polar glacier and the highest battlefield was taken in October last year, when winter was already knocking on Ladakh’s doors and tourist season was nearly over. Carrying through that decision amid the border standoff with China indicates government’s ...

Tomorrow, Dalip Singh Majithia , who retired as a Squadron Leader in the Indian Air Force in August 1947, the year of our independence, turns 100. Dalip Singh Majithia retired as a Squadron Leader in the Indian Air Force in August 1947. On August 5, 1940, a young Sikh pilot took off on his first training flight in a Tiger Moth aircraft from the Walton airfield in Lahore with his two British instructors. 17 days later, Dalip Singh Majithia, then just 20, flew his first solo flight, a flight that paved the way for a lifetime in aviation - first in the Air Force and then as a private pilot. Along the way, Majithia had his share of adventures as a fighter pilot flying the legendary Hawker Hurricane on the Burma front during the Second World War to becoming the first person to land a plane in the Kathmandu Valley several decades later.   Tomorrow, Dalip Singh Majithia, who retired as a Squadron Leader in the Indian Air Force in August 1947, the year of our independence, turns 100. On 23...

India’s last outpost at Daulet Beg Oldi DBO lies at a height of 16,000 feet just south of Karakoram pass and on banks of Chip-Chap river, north of the Galwan-Shyok confluence. India has moved 12 T-90 tanks, armoured personnel carriers and 4,000 soldiers to Daulat Beg Oldi to prevent any Chinese aggression With the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) deploying close to 50,000 troops in Aksai Chin, the Indian Army for the first time has deployed a squadron (12) T-90 missile firing tanks, armoured personnel carriers (APCs) and a full troop brigade (4,000 men) at Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) to prevent any Chinese aggression from the Shaksgam-Karakoram pass axis, according to top military commanders familiar with the matter. India’s last outpost at Daulet Beg Oldi DBO lies at a height of 16,000 feet just south of Karakoram pass and on banks of Chip-Chap river, north of the Galwan-Shyok confluence. As some bridges on the Darbuk-Shyok-DBO road cannot handle the weight of a 46 ton T-90 tank, the ...