Page 14 - Defence Ministry

IAF rescues 2 mountaineers stranded on Thajiwas Glacier in Kashmir

The Indian Air Force (IAF) on Sunday rescued two injured civilians from Thajiwas Glacier in Kashmir's Sonamarg area, a defence spokesman said here. "In a swift and successful operation today evening, IAF ALH Mk III helicopter rescued two injured civilian mountaineers in the nick of time from Thajiwas Glacier, one of whom had suffered multiple fractures, hypothermia and other injuries," the spokesman said on Sunday. He said Faisal Wani and Zeeshan Mushtaq were spotted by ground party in inhospitable glacier where the helicopter had no landing field and a low hover operation was resorted to. "The entire operation from request to the IAF to successfully evacuating the persons into IAF hospital ended in little over an hour including to and fro travel," the spokesman said. He said the Air Force Station Srinagar was in charge of the entire operation from where the helicopter was launched and operation was controlled.

Ex-serviceman dies during hunger strike in Uttarakhand's Chamoli

A 56-year-old ex-serviceman who was sitting on a day-long hunger strike as part of a group to demand benefits under the 'One Rank, One Pension' died at the protest site here on Sunday, police said. Shiv Singh Bisht was sitting on a one-day hunger strike with fellow ex-service personnel at the district magistrate's office in Chamoli. According to information from the office of the Superintendent of Police (Chamoli), Bisht's health deteriorated during the hunger strike and meeting on the Collectorate premises. He was taken to the district hospital where doctors declared him brought dead, the police said. Ex-service personnel have been agitating to press for their 16-point list of demands, including the 'One Rank, One Pension'. Virendra Singh, president of the Chamoli District Ex-Servicemen League Organization, said Bisht's death was a sad incident for his family and the organisation.

Defence ministry inks Rs 2,725 cr contract with MDL for refit of submarine

The defence ministry on Friday inked a Rs 2,725 crore contract with the Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Limited (MDL) for refit of submarine INS Shankush. Shankush is a Sub-Surface Killer (SSK) class submarine. "The Ministry of Defence has signed a contract on June 30 for medium refit with life certification (MRLC) of sub-surface killer class of submarine INS Shankush with M/S Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders Ltd, Mumbai at an overall cost of Rs 2,725 crore," the ministry said. It said the submarine post MRLC will be delivered in 2026. "After completion of MRLC, INS Shankush will be combat ready and will join the active fleet of the Indian Navy with upgraded combat capability," it added. "This project is an important step towards development of MDL as Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO) Hub for supporting the industrial ecosystem of India," the ministry said.

Army adjudged best organisation in defence ministry for procurement on GeM

The Indian Army has been adjudged as the best organisation in the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for procurement on Government e-Marketplace (GeM) for the financial year 2022-23, officials said on Monday. Vice Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General M V Suchindra Kumar received the prestigious award on behalf of the Army on Monday. Approximately 16,000 buyers (in the context of the Army) are registered on GeM, the officials said, adding that on an average, 60,000-80,000 transactions take place every month. The maximum of up to two lakh transactions took place in March in 2022-23, they said. The Army took to Twitter to share the information. "#IndianArmy has been adjudged as best organisation in the Ministry of Defence #MoD for procurement on Government e-Marketplace #GeM for the financial year 2022-23. Lt Gen MV Suchindra Kumar #VCOAS received the prestigious award on behalf of the #IndianArmy today at #NewDelhi. #IndianArmy remains committed towards achieving transparency, efficiency an

Talks on with China to resolve border issues in peacefully: Rajnath Singh

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday said the government will never let the sanctity of India's borders be violated and talks are going on at military and diplomatic levels with China to resolve issues in a peaceful manner. Addressing a national security conclave here, Singh said there have been perceptional differences between India and China on the boundary issue for a long time. "I want to repeat that there have been some activities on the LAC since 2013, but I outrightly reject (claims) that there has been any significant change or encroachment on the LAC after our government was formed, Singh said. Paying glowing tributes to soldiers martyred in Galwan Valley in eastern Ladakh in 2020, the minister said the Chinese Army ignored the agreed protocols and unilaterally tried to make some changes on the Line of Actual Control (LAC). He lauded the valour and dedication of the Indian Army which foiled attempts by the Chinese PLA to change status quo and said the country will rema

Drone deal with US to be finalised, social media reports speculative: MoD

India is yet to finalise the cost and other terms and conditions for procurement of 31 MQ-9B long endurance drones from the US, the defence ministry said on Sunday strongly trashing reports in a section of social media on the price as well as the acquisition process. The ministry said it will compare the acquisition cost of the drones with the best price offered by manufacturer General Atomics (GA) to other countries and that the procurement process would be completed as per the laid down procedure. India and the US firmed up the drone deal during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's high-profile visit to Washington. The defence ministry, in a statement, described the reports in social media on the price and the terms of purchase relating to the drone deal as "speculative" and said they are being spread with "ulterior motives". "These are uncalled for, have ulterior motives and aimed at derailing the due acquisition process. The price and other terms and conditions of the purchase are ye

DefMin to hold 'chintan shivir' meet to brainstorm on critical issues

Issues such as developing a comprehensive approach towards national security, pushing domestic defence production and those pertaining to serving and retired armed forces personnel will be discussed at a brainstorming session beginning here on Monday, the Defence Ministry said in a statement. Various issues and challenges faced by different departments of the ministry will be discussed at the two-day "chintan shivir" in New Delhi on June 19 and 20. The departments of defence, defence production, military affairs and ex-servicemen welfare have identified a number of themes, on which subject experts will share their views with ministry officials. The Department of Defence will deliberate on issues including developing a comprehensive approach to national security, cyber security challenges, national information security policy and guidelines, and Sainik School education system. Issues such as enhancing production and defence exports, increasing "aatmanirbharta" (self-reliance), road

Spare parts, missiles, drones, aircraft to be manufactured in UP: Singh

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that BrahMos missiles, drones, electronic warfare systems and aircraft will be manufactured and assembled in the Uttar Pradesh defence corridor

MEIL group company bags Rs 500 crore order from defence ministry

IComm, a group company of Megha Engineering & Infrastructures Ltd (MEIL), has bagged a Rs 500 crore order from the Ministry of Defence. "The Ministry of Defence (MoD) on Thursday inked a contract with ICOMM Tele Limited for the procurement of 1,035 of 5/7.5 ton radio relay communication equipment containers. The delivery of the containers is scheduled to commence from the current Financial Year 2023-24," infrastructure company MEIL said in a statement on Thursday. The value of the contract is around Rs 500 crore, it said. The radio relay containers will address a long overdue requirement of mobile communication detachments of the Indian Army. The containers will be utilised to provide a protected environment for communication equipment to function in a failsafe and reliable manner. The containers would be mounted on authorised specialist vehicles and moved as per operational requirements, the company said. ICOMM would produce the containers with all equipment and sub-systems ...

Defence min to take up deal for acquiring MQ-9 Reaper armed drones from US

Top Defence Ministry and military brass to attend the meeting. Other 'Made in India' defence deals are also on the agenda of the meeting

Rajnath underlines focus on self-reliance, progress made in defence export

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh Tuesday emphasised the government's focus on self-reliance and the progress made in defence exports in recent years towards achieving the objective of "Make in India, Make for the World". He said this during an interaction with members of the Indian diaspora in Nigeria at an event organised by the Indian High Commission in Abuja, according to the Defence Ministry. The event was attended by the Indian community from Abuja as well as other cities of the African nation, including Lagos. During the interaction, Singh spoke about the "increasing importance of India" on the world stage owing to its fast-expanding economy and progressive government actions, the ministry said. He appreciated the contributions made by the Indian community in Nigeria and expressed confidence that they will continue to keep the Indian flag flying high. The defence minister emphasised the government's focus on "Aatmanirbharta" and the "significant progress made in defence export

Australia must accept truth about relationship with China: Defence minister

Australia's Defence Minister Richard Marles said that the country must accept 'inconvenient truths' about its relationship with China, news.com.au reported

Need to focus on technological advancement in defence sector: Rajnath

India must focus on advancement in defence technology in view of "double threat" along the borders, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Thursday in an oblique reference to challenges along the frontiers with China and Pakistan. In an address at a conference, Singh underlined the need for extensive research to develop defence technologies for the country to meet various security challenges. "For a country like India, it becomes very important because we are facing a double threat on our borders. In such a situation, it is very important for us to move forward in terms of technological advancement," he said. "Today we are one of the largest armies in the world, the bravery of our army is discussed all over the world. In such a situation, it becomes imperative that we have a technologically advanced army to protect the interests of the country," he added. The defence minister's comments came in the backdrop of the lingering border row in eastern Ladakh and Pakistan's continuous ...

Curbing defence imports

Protection should not compromise quality

iDEX achieves milestone by signing of its 250th contract: Defence Ministry

Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX), a flagship initiative of the Ministry of Defence, has reached a milestone with the signing of its 250th contract on Monday, officials said. This was also the first contract signed under Mission DefSpace, the ministry said in a statement. "The first iDEX contract of Mission DefSpace was exchanged between Additional Secretary (Defence Production) and CEO Defence Innovation Organisation (DIO) T Natarajan, and CEO, InspeCity, Arindrajit Chowdhary, one of the winners of the challenge 'Micropropulsion system for cubesats'. This challenge is being led by the Defence Space Agency," the ministry said in the statement. It said iDEX has "reached a milestone with the signing of its 250th contract - first under Mission DefSpace - and 100th SPRINT (Navy) contract in New Delhi on May 15". The contracts were signed in the presence of Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane and other senior civil and military officials. Cubesats are a class of small satellites

India will be developed nation by 2047, says Defence Minister Rajnath Singh

India will be a developed nation by 2047, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Monday while laying emphasis on the advancement of technology amid a rise in cyberspace threats in the defence sector. The country is now becoming self-reliant and as per economic experts, India will achieve third rank in the world economy by 2027, Singh said while speaking at the convocation ceremony of the Defence Institute of Advanced Technology (DIAT) in Maharashtra's Pune district. "The world is changing with a rapid speed. The defence sector is also witnessing a change as we can see multiple technical changes in this sector. Many problems have arisen in the defence sector, especially the threats in cyberspace have increased," he said. "However, with the changing situation we have to move towards advancement in technology. If there is a challenge, there is a solution. Now, efforts should be put forward to advance the technology," the minister said. Stressing on self-reliance, Singh said it does no

Will give befitting reply to every step against India: Rajnath Singh

India's nuclear tests in 1998 sent a message to the world that it may be a peace-loving nation but will not tolerate any step taken against its self-respect, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said here on Thursday. Addressing the National Technology Day celebrations here, Singh said India had learnt lessons from history after external aggressors ravaged the centre of learning at Nalanda and culture icon at Somnath. "We have learnt our lessons from history and resolved that we will not allow such history to be repeated," Singh said at the function that also celebrated the 25th anniversary of the 1998 Pokhran -II nuclear tests. "India's nuclear tests conveyed a message to the world that we may be a peace loving nation but we will not see a Nalanda burn again. We will not tolerate our cultural icon like Somnath be ravaged again," the defence minister said. "We will give a befitting reply to every step taken against our self-respect," Singh said. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Science and

First C295 for India completes maiden flight: All you need to know

India acquired 56 C295 aircraft in September 2021 to replace the (IAF) legacy AVRO fleet

Only women contingents to be part of 2024 R-Day parade: Defence Ministry

In an effort to encourage female participation in various sectors, the govt decided that Republic Day parade at Kartavya Path will see participation only by women in march pasts

'Neighbourhood First': Maldives gets two Made in India warships

"The Indian Ocean is our shared space. Peace and security of a region are best secured with cooperation and collaboration of the regional players," he said