Cavalier India Defence Training Academy

  The Regiment of Artillery of the Indian Army is celebrating the 193rd Gunners Day today. (Source: Twitter/@SpokespersonMoD) The foundation of the Regiment of Artillery was laid on September 28 in 1827 when Bombay Artillery, later renamed 5 Bombay Mountain Battery, was raised. This day is celebrated by the Regiment of Artillery as Gunners Day. The Regiment of Artillery of the Indian Army is celebrating the 193rd Gunners Day today marking the date in 1827 when the Five Bombay Mountain Battery, equipped with 2.5 inch guns, was raised in the British Indian Army. The Artillery and its Gunners One of the basic warfare lessons is that greater the distance from which one can target the enemy, greater the flexibility one can achieve for ground manoeuvres. From the catapults and cannons used in ancient times, the evolution of mechanical projectiles, to the modern day artillery guns which are integrated with network centric warfare, the role of gunners has always been a winning factor in th...

  DRDO’s SAAW (Facebook) At its meeting earlier today, the Defence Acquisition Council, headed by the Defence Minister, cleared the procurement of the indigenously developed ‘Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon’ or SAAW for the Indian Navy and the Indian Air Force. Developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), SAAW has a range of around 100 km and weighs around 125 kg. The weapon, which is being procured at an approximate cost Rs 970 crore, will give the Air Force and the Navy the capability to hit enemy airfields and runways from a standoff distance with high precision during conflicts. Given that this weapon can be launched from standoff ranges, the aircraft launching it can remain at a safe distance from the enemy target. In many cases, the weapon can be fired by IAF fighters from within the Indian air space. Indian Navy, Air Force to get indigenous ‘Smart Anti-Airfield Weapon’ with 100 kilometer range for standoff precision strikes https://t.co/DKiwdudxt5 — Sw...

Indian Navy and Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) ships conducted operations in close formation at JIMEX-2020, the 4th edition of India-Japan Maritime bilateral exercise. It is being held in the North Arabian Sea from September 26 to 28. JIMEX-2020 being held in the North Arabian Sea from September 26 to 28, 2020 The 4th edition of India-Japan maritime bilateral exercise JIMEX, which is conducted biennially between the Indian Navy and Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (JMSDF) will be held in the North Arabian Sea from 26 to 28 September 2020.  JIMEX series of exercises commenced in January 2012 with a special focus on maritime security cooperation. The last edition of JIMEX was conducted in October 2018 off Visakhapatnam, India. Naval cooperation between India and Japan has increased in scope and complexity over the years. Advanced level of operations and exercises planned during JIMEX-20 are indicative of the continued upswing in Indo-Japanese defence relations and c...

The Southern Naval Command (SNC) on Friday honoured 10 officers by presenting them with gallantry and non-gallantry awards for meritorious service. Southern Naval Command Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Vice Admiral A K Chawla reviewing the parade held at Kochi Naval Base on Friday The Southern Naval Command (SNC) on Friday honoured 10 officers by presenting them with gallantry and non-gallantry awards for meritorious service. SNC Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief Vice-Admiral A K Chawla  presented the awards on behalf of the President of India during the Naval Investiture Ceremony held at Kochi Naval Base. The personnel who demonstrated leadership and distinguished service of high order were also felicitated. Four officers received Nao Sena Medal for gallantry while two officers received Nao Sena Medal for devotion to duty and four others were presented the Vishisht Seva Medal for long meritorious service on the occasion. The Commander-in-Chief also announced one Jeevan Raksha Pat...

 The Indian Army has already started detailing women officers of the rank of Lt Colonels for Junior Command (JC) course at Army War College, Mhow – these courses are being conducted in July & October. Earlier this year, in a Supreme Court Order, permanent commission to all women officers with all consequential benefits have been given. The Indian Army has made it mandatory for all women officers/cadets/women recruits to go through Battle Physical Efficiency Test (BPET). This will be applicable to those women officers too who were commissioned before 2009 and are above 35 years of age. To test the physical fitness of an officer or a jawan who will be performing military tasks, this test has to be undertaken. There is a 5-km run, a 60-metre sprint for the women. Also, there is climbing vertical rope up to a certain height, jumping a 6-feet ditch, and also traversing horizontal rope up to a certain distance. These are as per the directions issued by the Directorate General of Mili...

Despite criticism, the treaty has lived through three wars, a number of military stand-offs and the rising tide of water nationalism fueled by friction between Indian and Pakistan. Jhelum river in Srinagar. Photo: Reuters/Danish Ismail A little over 60 years ago , on September 19, 1960 , the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) was signed between India and Pakistan to share waters from the Indus rivers system (IRS) . After years of negotiations between representatives from India and Pakistan, which were mediated by the World Bank , Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru went to Karachi, the then capital of Pakistan to sign the Indus Waters Treaty along with the Pakistani head of state, General Ayub Khan. The vice president of the World Bank, W.A.B. Iliff also signed the document. Nehru hoped that the agreement would bring prosperity to peasants on both sides, and peace, friendship, and goodwill between India and Pakistan. Unfortunately, this did not happen as relations between the two countries remai...

Our deeply divided society has to be patched up with peaceful, reconciliatory and diplomatic means like education, awareness and social safety net.   Social and economic tensions need to be addressed for positivity, mental peace and happiness.   Happiness economics has finally received global recognition. It implies that economic indicators such as the gross national product, per capita income, healthcare facility, employment and wealth must be related with national happiness. The World Happiness Report, 2020 has ranked 156 countries by happiness of their citizens based on six key variables — income, healthy life expectancy, social support, freedom, trust and generosity. Finland, despite not having the highest GDP, tops the list due to its social safety, personal freedom and a work-life balance while materially superior countries are ranked lower. The results mean that growth in happiness is not always accompanied by growth in economic prosperity. A somewhat similar phenomenon...

Goa-based Kineco Limited, a leading composite technology provider for defence, aerospace, railway and industrial sectors, flagged off India’s first-ever commercial Sonar Dome, at the hands of Chief Minister, Pramod Sawant on Tuesday. Image The Sonar Dome is a critical component of a warship as it houses the Sonar (Sonar Navigation and Ranging) Array - which is  used for detection, navigation, and ranging. The Sonar Dome, manufactured by Kineco was flagged off to its esteemed customer Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited Mumbai (MDL), where it will be mounted on the Indian Navy’s P15 Alpha Warship. The ceremony was attended virtually by Scientific Advisor to Chief of Naval Staff, Bhaskar Burman, Director Ship building of MDL, RAdm A K Saxena, (IN Retd), GM and project superintendent  (P17A Frigate) of MDL, Biju George, scientist and Director General - Armament and Combat Engineering Systems (ACE), Pravin K Mehta, scientist- Director of Research & Development Establishment (Eng...

Parliament on Wednesday passed the three key labour reform bills that will provide greater flexibility to employers to hire and fire while ensuring social security for workers . The three bills---- 1.   Code on Occupational Safety, Health and Working Conditions,   2.   Industrial Relations Code and   3.   Social Security Code , were passed in the Upper House by voice vote amid boycott by the opposition over suspension of eight members. Parliament passes three Labour bills: Here are the key changes (Image | ET)   Replying to the debate on the three labour reforms bills in the house, Labour Minister Santosh Gangwar said: "The purpose of labour reforms is to provide a transparent system to suit the changed business environment." The minister informed the house that as many as 16 states had already increased the threshold for closure, lay off and retrenchment in firms with up to 300 workers without government permission. “States have been given flexibility to...

The Lok Sabha on Tuesday passed a bill under which Kashmiri, Dogri and Hindi, apart from the existing Urdu and English, will be the official languages in the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. MoS G Kishan Reddy speaking in Lok Sabha (Screengrab via LSTV) Introducing the Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Bill, 2020, Minister of State for Home G Kishan Reddy said it was a demand of the people of Jammu and Kashmir that the language they speak should be the official language. The minister pointed out that 53.26 per cent of the population of Jammu and Kashmir speaks the Kashmiri language. Reddy said, "26.64 per cent of the population of the UT speaks Dogri while Urdu, which is currently its official language, is spoken only by 0.16 per cent population there. Still, for the last 70 years, Urdu continues to be the official language of Jammu and Kashmir," he said, adding that 2.36 per cent population in the UT speaks Hindi. Opposing the bill, National Conference MP Hasnain Mas...

Bactrian Camel The Indian Army has decided to include an animal working for centuries in these adverse environmental conditions to patrol and carry goods in the cold desert of Ladakh. In Leh-based DRDO's Institute of Defence Institute for High Altitude Research (DIHAR), local two hump camels, Bactrian Camels, are being prepared for the Army. DIHAR officials say that Bactrian Camel is working brilliantly in the environment of Ladakh. Bactrian camels have been joining caravans from China, Tibet, Mongolia to Central Asia for centuries, crossing cold deserts and ice. Bactrian camel has been showcased in many artifacts of Central Asia in the third century. Bactrian Camel Italian traveler and businessman Marco Polo traveled on the Silk Route several times from 1271 to 1295. Marco Polo introduced Europe to Bactrian Camel. The Indian Army is currently training Bactrian camels with common camels at DIHAR's lab in Leh, and the results are very encouraging. DIHAR scientist Sarangi says th...

 This exercise being conducted in the East Indian Ocean Region, reflects the growing strength of Indo-Australian bilateral relations as comprehensive strategic partners, particularly in defence cooperation in the maritime domain. The exercise would be conducted strictly as a 'non-contact activity' and would not involve any physical contact between the participating personnel of the two navies. (File photo: Reuters) The Indian Navy (IN) is scheduled to undertake a Passage Exercise (PASSEX) with Royal Australian Navy (RAN) in the East Indian Ocean Region (IOR) from 23 to 24 September, 2020. The exercise would involve participation of HMAS Hobart from the Australian side and Indian Naval Ships Sahyadri and Karmuk. In addition, an Indian MPA and helicopters from both sides would be participating in the exercise. The exercise, aimed at enhancing interoperability, improving understanding and imbibing best practices from each other, would involve advanced surface and anti-air exercise...

Context: Pakistan has resorted to its usual tactic of some high-profile actions in the run-up to the FATF plenary to create the impression that it was delivering on its counter-terror financing commitments.  It is again looking to China, Malaysia and Turkey to help it get off lightly for failing to fully implement an action plan to tackle terror funding when the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) assesses its case in October. Ahead of FATF’s working group and plenary meetings between October 18 and 23, the Asia-Pacific Group (APG), a regional affiliate of the multilateral watchdog, reviewed Pakistan’s actions to counter-terror financing and money laundering at a virtual meeting on September 15 and 16. Pakistan is unlikely to be moved from FATF’s grey list to the black list, despite mounting frustration among the watchdog’s members over its repeated failure to deliver on the action plan. At the virtual meeting, China expectedly backed Pakistan’s actions to counter-terror financing,...

  (Representative image) Get ready to soon see a woman tear into the skies in the new omnirole Rafale fighter, which can also deliver nuclear weapons. Don’t also be taken aback if you finally spot women on board an Indian warship on the high seas. IAF has short-listed one of its 10 women fighter pilots to fly the spanking new Rafale jets at the Ambala airbase, even as the Navy also gets set to deploy two women officers as part of the crew for multirole helicopters that operate from front-linewarships. The twin moves herald a new chapter in the long-standing tussle to ensure the requisite gender equality in the 15-lakh strong armed forces. They also come at a time the Army is conducting a special board this month to finally grant permanent commission to women officers, though it still has no plans to allow them in the main fighting arms of infantry, mechanised forces and artillery. Though IAF has had women transport and helicopter pilots for long, it steadfastly resisted inducting w...

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaks in the Rajya Sabha during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament in New Delhi. (Image | The Hindu) It protects defaulting companies from insolvency proceedings for at least six months Context:      Both the houses of Parliament passed the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill, which provides that insolvency proceedings against defaulting companies will not be initiated for at least six months starting from March 25. Merits of the amendments to IBC IBC is not a recovery law -  The creditors, including MSMEs (micro, small and medium enterprises), had several other options to recover their claims. The proposed amendments, brought in the form of an Ordinance on June 5, suspended the application of three provisions to prevent any company, stressed due to the COVID-19 situation, from being pushed into insolvency proceedings. A provision for further extension of six months has also been given. The initial six-m...