Page 10 - Defence Sector

Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh takes charge as new Chief of Air Staff

Air Chief Marshal Amar Preet Singh, an accomplished fighter pilot with more than 5,000 hours of flying experience, on Monday assumed charge as new chief of the Indian Air Force, succeeding incumbent Air Chief Marshal V R Chaudhari. Air Chief Marshal Singh was serving as Vice Chief of the Air Force in his previous assignment. Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari retired from service after helming the force for three years. Born on October 27, 1964, Air Chief Marshal Singh was commissioned into the fighter pilot stream of the Indian Air Force in December 1984. In his long and distinguished service spanning nearly 40 years, he has served in a variety of command, staff, instructional and foreign appointments. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Defence Services Staff College and National Defence College, the air officer is a qualified flying instructor and an experimental test pilot with more than 5,000 hours of flying experience on a variety of fixed and rotary wing aircraft. Air Chi

Yemen's Houthi rebels claim shooting down another US-made MQ-9 Reaper drone

Yemen's Houthi rebels claimed Monday they shot down another American-made MQ-9 Reaper drone over the country, with videos purportedly showing a surface-to-air missile striking it. The US military did not immediately acknowledge losing any aircraft. The claimed attack comes as the one-year anniversary of the Israel-Hamas war in the Gaza Strip approaches. The Houthis have targeted ships travelling through the Red Sea over the war as US-led airstrikes pound their positions in Yemen. That's imperiled a waterway that typically sees USD 1 trillion of trade pass through it, as well as crucial shipments of aid to war-torn Sudan and Yemen. The Houthis also continue to launch missiles targeting Israel, drawing retaliatory airstrikes from the Israelis this weekend on the port city of Hodeida. The Houthi-run broadcaster Al-Masirah claimed shooting down the MQ-9, hours after video footage circulated online showing the purported missile striking the aircraft over Yemen's Saada province. A single

Need for future leaders to enhance decision-making in battlespace: CDS

Chief of Defence Staff General Anil Chauhan on Friday said there is a need for future strategic leaders to enhance quick decision-making in technology-driven battlespace where timelines are shrinking rapidly. In his address at the closing of the pioneering tri-Services Future Warfare Course, General Chauhan underscored that artificial intelligence, machine learning, advancements in stealth technology and hypersonics and also robotics will dictate the character of future wars. The course aims to create a cadre of tech-enabled military commanders equipped with handling the complexities of the modern battlespace. Apart from being personally driven by the Chief of the Defence Staff, the course was rank-agnostic, with participants having service ranging from 13 to 30 years, the defence ministry said in a statement. "A dynamic security environment coupled with the proliferation of niche technologies, changing character of warfare and lessons learnt from recent and ongoing conflicts ...

Unit X explores US military's shift to Silicon Valley tech for defence

Unit X offers a fascinating account of America's efforts to stay ahead in a rapidly shifting geopolitical landscape

Defence production at Rs 1.27 trn, exporting hardware to 90 nations: Min

India's defence production has clocked an all-time high of Rs 1.27 lakh crore in terms of value in 2023-24 and it is now exporting weapons and military hardware to more than 90 friendly countries, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said on Wednesday. Indian armed forces are now using weapons and platforms manufactured on Indian soil and the country is rising on the global defence industrial landscape, the minister said in a post on 'X' on the 10th anniversary of the NDA government's 'Make in India' programme. The government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "astute leadership" introduced the 'Make in India' programme with a vision to make the country self-reliant in every domain, Singh said. "Ten years since then, many reforms have been made in every sector including the defence sector. India is rising on the defence industrial landscape of the world," he said. "Today, Indian Armed Forces are using weapons and platforms, which are manufactured on our own soil and we are also exporti

Private sector now steering economic growth: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh

Union Minister Rajnath Singh highlighted private sector's key role in the Indian economy, highlighting the sector's growing impact, particularly in manufacturing and services

India, Brunei stress navigation freedom, discuss defence cooperation

India and Brunei on Wednesday committed themselves to respecting freedom of navigation and overflight consistent with international law, a joint statement said here after Prime Minister Narendra Modi held bilateral talks with Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah. Prime Minister Modi also expressed deep appreciation to Brunei Darussalam for continuing to host Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)'s Telemetry Tracking and Telecommand (TTC) Station that has helped India's ongoing efforts in the space sector, the statement said. Prime Minister Modi and the Brunei Sultan also discussed enhancing defence and maritime cooperation through joint exercises, it said. Both leaders reiterated their commitment to maintaining and promoting peace, stability, maritime safety and security, as well as respecting freedom of navigation and overflight and unimpeded lawful commerce, consistent with international law, notably the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) 1982, it said. During the ..

NIA conducts searches across 7 states to probe leakage of defence secrets

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has conducted searches at locations across seven states to probe the case of classified defence information leakage through a Pakistani espionage racket, according to an official statement issued on Thursday. The premises searched on Wednesday by NIA teams were linked with suspects who had received money from Pakistan to undertake spying activities in India, it said. "Extensive searches were conducted at 16 locations in Gujarat, Karnataka, Kerala, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Haryana in the case related to leakage of classified defence information through a Pakistani ISI espionage racket," the NIA statement said. Twenty-two mobile phones and a host of sensitive documents were seized during the searches conducted by the NIA, which had in July 2023 taken over the instant case, originally registered in January 2021 by the counter-intelligence cell of Andhra Pradesh. The case involved the leakage of sensitive vital information pertaining t

Railways, defence should be above politics, says Union Minister Vaishnaw

Facing political heat over railway accidents, Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Wednesday said the national transporter should not be a subject of political blame game as it is the lifeline of the nation. Vaishnaw said some disturbing trends have emerged in some incidents and the railways was carrying out a detailed inquiry in each and every incident. He was responding to questions on incidents of derailment of trains due to placing of boulders and rods on the railway tracks. "There are some disturbing trends in some incidents, which should be taken seriously," Vaishnaw said. "Railways and defence are organizations which should be above politics. I don't believe that railways should be a subject of political blame game," the minister said in an interaction with reporters after the cabinet meeting. Vaishnaw said the railways was the lifeline of the country and if anything negative happens, every effort should be made to ensure that trains run in a very efficient manner. Respon

India-US can ensure global peace, prosperity, stability: Rajnath Singh

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who is on an official visit to Washington, on Friday said India and the US, together, are a formidable force which can ensure peace, prosperity and stability in the world. While interacting with the Indian diaspora here, Singh described India and the US as "natural allies", which are "destined to be strong partners", and this collaboration is growing continuously. "India and the US are the two forces which can bring peace, prosperity and stability in the world," the defence minister said. Singh, who arrived here on Thursday on a four-day official visit, re-asserted the fact that under the dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, India's stature has grown on the global stage. Earlier, India's words at international fora were not heeded; but today, the whole world listens carefully, he said. Singh pointed out that before 2014, India was among the Fragile Five' nations, as coined by investment firm Morgan Stanley, and today it finds itself

Donald Trump anxiety spurs investment in European defence startups

In June, the $1.1 billion Nato Innovation Fund (NIF) announced partnerships with venture capital firms and defence startups across Europe, aiming to bolster security on the continent

World in most violent phase since second world war: CDS Gen Anil Chauhan

Gen Anil Chauhan noted that the world is passing through an era of big global disruptions, ranging from technological to environmental, peace, security and other issues

'Committee has suggested certain reforms to overhaul functioning of DRDO'

A committee has suggested "certain reforms" to "overhaul" the functioning of the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), the government informed Rajya Sabha on Monday. Minister of State for Defence Sanjay Seth said this in a written response to a query whether the government has plans to completely overhaul the functioning of the DRDO. He was also asked whether the government had formed a high-level committee of technocrats on this subject and whether it is planning to raise the budget allocation for different research projects at the DRDO. "Yes, Sir. A committee headed by Dr Vijaya Raghavan suggested certain reforms to overhaul the functioning of DRDO," Seth said in his response. The expenses for the different projects are met from the regular budget of the DRDO and the standard increase in the DRDO budget. Asked whether the government has any plans to enhance the research staff capacity at DRDO, he said, "Yes, Sir. DRDO has plans to enhance the research staff capac

BEML Q1 results: Net loss narrows to Rs 70 cr, income rises to Rs 631 cr

Defence PSU BEML on Monday reported a narrowing of its consolidated net loss to Rs 70.47 crore for the quarter ended on June 30, 2024. The company had posted a consolidated net loss of Rs 75.01 crore in the year-ago period, BEML said in a filing to BSE. The consolidated income of the company during the April-June period rose to Rs 634.61 crore over Rs 5,78.11 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal, the filing said. BEML Ltd is a diversified company supplying products, services and support to defence and aerospace, mining and construction and rail and metro.

Large language models: GenAI that works for India's defence sector

Security agencies need GenAI for intelligence gathering, logistics and autonomous combat systems

Agniveer scheme will keep our forces battle-ready, young: FM Sitharaman

During the Budget discussion in Rajya Sabha, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman slammed the Opposition for attempting to "politicise" Agniveer scheme

Budget 2024 is an economists' Budget, says Citigroup MD Samiran Chakraborty

Focus of Budget 2024 is not restricted to railways, defence and infra, but expands to manufacturing and employment to aid human capital growth, said Citigroup MD at 'Budget with BS: The Fine Print'

MoD, NSE sign agreement to help MSMEs, emerging firms in defence sector

The Defence Ministry and the National Stock Exchange on Monday signed an agreement that seeks to help Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises and emerging companies in the defence sector to scale up their business operations, explore new markets and fund their research and development activities. The Memorandum of Understanding has been signed to facilitate capital market access to the MSMEs. It intends to facilitate MSMEs in the defence sector to raise productive capital for their growth plan efficiently and transparently through the NSE platform 'NSE Emerge', the defence ministry said in a statement. The platform offers new and viable options for raising equity capital from a diversified set of investors, it said. The MoU was signed by the additional secretary the Department of Defence Production (DDP) and managing director, NSE in the presence of Defence Secretary Giridhar Aramane. "The MoU will be in force for a period of five years, during which, DDP and NSE would conduct an ...

US to provide consultancy to India to build UAVs under $3 bn drone deal

India and the US have been holding discussions for the MQ-9B Predator drone deal for the last few years, under which the three services will get the 31 drones

Budget Frontlines: A long shot from the 2% goalpost for defence funds

A deep dive into the defence budget allocations and strategic challenges, kicking off a three-part analysis