Indian Military

NEW DELHI: Colourful tableaux depicting the myriad hues of country's diversity, a vibrant performance by students and armed forces in full battle regalia -- the Republic Day parade on Wednesday had 'mini-India' in itself.
Marching down from the Raisina Hills to Red Fort, the parade showcased India's 'unity in diversity' and the military might as thousands of spectators along the 8km long route cheered the marching contingents and the mechanised columns.
The well turned out and synchronised military and police contingents led by General Officer Commanding ( Delhi) Maj Gen Manvendra Singh marched proudly to the lilting tunes of bands through the Rajpath where President and Supreme Commander of Armed Forces Pratibha Patil took the salute.
The march-past was watched by the Republic Day chief guest Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Vice President Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, defence minister A K Antony and the country's top political and military brass.

NEW DELHI: The Indian Air Force has bagged the 'Best Marching Contingent' award amongst the three Services at this year's Republic Day Parade while the Indo-Tibetan Border Police has been adjudged the best amongst the paramilitary.
More than 10 contingents of the three Services marched on the Rajpath and included horse-mounted columns of Army's 61 Cavalry, Punjab Regiment, Grenadiers Regiment, Rajputana Rifles Regiment, Rajput Regiment, Sikh Light Infantry Regiment, Jammu and Kashmir Light Infantry, 3 Gorkha Rifles and the Territorial Army along with a column each of the navy and the Air Force.
The marching contingents of paramilitary and other auxiliary civil forces included Border Security Force, Assam Rifles, Coast Guard, Central Reserve Police Force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, Central Industrial Security Force, Sashastra Seema Bal, Railway Protection Force, Delhi Police, National Cadet Corps and National Service Scheme.
Among the 23 tableaux showcasing their respective states and ministries, the tableau from Delhi, with its theme of cultural and religious harmony in the national capital, has bagged the coveted first prize.

Shimla: Himachal Pradesh Police have arrested a former Indian Army official who was allegedly working for Pakistan's Inter Services Intelligence (ISI) agency and providing information about vital installations of the Indian armed forces, a police official said here Monday.
The accused, hailing from Palampur town in Kangra district, is a retired honorary captain, police said.
"Acting on a tip off, S.S. Guleria was arrested from the Chandimadir area Sunday night," Additional Director General of Police I.D. Bhandari told reporters.
Chandimandir is the headquarters of the Indian Army's Western Command, located in Chandigarh.
Bhandari said Guleria - who retired from service last month - was working for the ISI and was regularly getting money through illegal 'hawala' channels. He was arrested from his army quarters in the Western Command which he had not yet vacated.
He was brought to Shimla for interrogation Monday afternoon.
Before his arrest, police arrested Bhagwan Dass, another ex-serviceman from Kangra district Jan 27, who was also supplying sensitive information to the ISI.

NASHIK: Two pilots of Army's Cheetah helicopter were feared killed after the chopper crashed near a residential area here this morning.
The helicopter of army aviation crashed around 9.15am, sources said.
More details are awaited.

CAIRO: A spokesman for Egypt's Army urged protesters on Wednesday to end demonstrations and return home, saying it was for the sake of stability of the country.
The address was made on state television, as thousands of protesters were again streaming in the late morning to Tahrir Sqaure in central Cairo, to protest against President Hosni Mubarak.
Late Tuesday, Mubarak said he would step down, but only at the end of his term in September.
Meanwhile, pro-government rallies were also planned for Cairo.

NASHIK: Two Army majors were killed when a Cheetah helicopter crashed near a residential area adjoining the aviation centre here.
The helicopter of the army aviation corps crashed around 9.15an, Army sources said.
"An army chopper crashed on a shed near the aviation centre. We have information that two persons were killed in the incident. The crash appears to have happened due to some technical fault," Nikhil Gupta, DIG (Police Training) said from Nashik.

BEIJING: China has "amended" rules for its armed forces controlled by the ruling CPC to increase their capability to win "local wars" and enhance their ability to conduct military operations in non-battle conditions.
China's Central Military Commission (CMC), headed by President Hu Jintao, has amended regulations to improve the operation of party organs in armed forces, according to an official statement carried by state-run Xinhua news agency.
The amended rules aim to reinforce the guidelines of 'Scientific Outlook on Development' in the development of national defence and armed forces, the statement said.
The People's Liberation Army (PLA) of China unlike other armies has a unique status as it functioned directly under the control of the ruling Communist Part of China (CPC).
The CMC, which controls the largest standing military of the world, is headed by President Hu, who is also the General Secretary of CPC.
The new regulations also "reflect the new missions of Chinese armed forces to increase the core capability of winning local wars in conditions of informatisation and the capability of conducting military operations other than war," the statement said.

New Delhi– India’s ‘Nishant’ Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) is finally ready for the Indian Army after a series of successful flight trials in Rajasthan recently. The Indian Army has taken the delivery of four Nishant UAV’s with ground systems and expects to order more in the near future.

The Nishant UAV has been indigenously designed and developed by the Defence Research & Development Organisation’s (DRDO) Aeronautical Development Establishment (ADE) laboratory. ADE specialises in UAVs, flight control systems and simulators.

The Nishant UAV will give a decisive edge to the Indian Army in the area of day and night battle-field reconnaissance, surveillance, target tracking and correction of artillery fire. The UAV can also be used for anti-insurgency operations in critical times. The electro-optical, electronic intelligence and communication intelligence payload on-board the Nishant UAV will enable it for an array of operations such as the above-mentioned ones. The Nishant UAV does not need a runway and can be launched from a hydro pneumatic launcher.

ISLAMABAD: A suicide bombing at an army recruitment centre in northwest Pakistan on Thursday killed at least 10 people, said a police official.
Residents said the bomber struck while recruits were conducting morning training in the town of Mardan.

PESHAWAR: A teen suicide bomber in a school uniform attacked soldiers during morning exercises at a Pakistani army training camp on Thursday, killing 27 troops and wounding 40 others, police and the military said.
The attack in the northwest town of Mardan showed that despite years of army operations against their hideouts along Pakistan's border with Afghanistan, Taliban and al-Qaida-linked fighters retain the ability to strike back. It was one of the worst attacks on security forces in recent months.
Senior police official Abdullah Khan said 27 soldiers died and around 40 were wounded, some critically. Khan said an examination of the body parts at the scene indicated the bomber was a teenage boy, which is a common finding in suicide bombings in Pakistan.
The army, which tends to release information much slower, put the death toll in an earlier statement at 20 and confirmed the general circumstances.
Despite his apparent disguise, the bomber's ability to get his explosives into the facility undetected signalled a failure on the part of the military.