Page 10 - Army

Army patrols along J-K highway to ensure safety of Amarnath pilgrims

The Army is conducting area domination patrols daily along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway with drones, surveillance equipment and sniffer dogs to ensure a secure passage for Amarnath pilgrims, officials said on Saturday. The drills on the highway are an integral part of the multi-security grid responsible for facilitating a smooth and incident-free pilgrimage spanning 62 days from July 1, they said. "The Army undertakes intense area domination patrolling along the entire route of the yatra, from Jammu to Banihal and beyond, providing security to pilgrims," a senior security official told PTI. This proactive approach establishes a protective layer to deter terrorists from approaching the national highway and targeting convoys of pilgrims, he said. Equipped with state-of-the-art gadgets such as drones, metal detectors and surveillance equipment, and sniffer dogs, the soldiers meticulously sanitise the highway and certain hinterland areas as part of their security duties, the ...

Eastern Ladakh: Indian Army tanks carry out drills, attack enemy positions

Indian Army is one of the very few armies in the world that operates tanks at high altitudes up to 16,000 feet, and in large numbers

6 Agniveer recruitment drives to be held in UP from July 20 till next Jan

Six Agniveer recruitment rallies of the Indian Army will be held in Uttar Pradesh from July 20 till January 16 next year, state Chief Secretary Durga Shankar Mishra said here on Friday. Chairing a meeting with district officials, Mishra said the recruitment rallies will be held in Fatehgarh, Baraut, Lucknow, Agra, Amethi and Gorakhpur, an official statement issued here said. The first rally will be held at Fatehgarh on July 20, the statement said. Mishra asked officials to ensure that the recruitment venues have all necessary arrangements for the candidates, such as accommodation, food, shelter, electricity, drinking water and clean toilets, the statement added.

Condition of Bhim Army chief stable, attackers' vehicle recovered: Police

The vehicle used by the attackers of Dalit leader and Bhim Army chief Chandra Shekhar Aazad was recovered from a village in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district, police said on Thursday. Meanwhile, police in Amethi district registered a case under Section 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) after it came to light that a Facebook page had issued a death threat to Aazad days before the attack. Activists of the Bhim Army and Azad Samaj Party held a demonstration at Parivartan Chowk here and demanded proper security for Aazad. They were later taken into custody by police. A bullet grazed the 36-year-old Bhim Army chief's abdomen when unidentified assailants opened fire at his car in Saharanpur's Deoband, where he had gone to attend a ritual at a supporter's home, on Wednesday evening. The vehicle used by Aazad's attackers was seized from Miragpur village late on Wednesday night. The number plate of the car showed it was registered in Haryana, the police ...

Russia drops charges against Prigozhin, others who took part in rebellion

Russian authorities said Tuesday they have closed a criminal investigation into the armed rebellion led by mercenary chief Yevgeny Prigozhin, with no charges against him or any of the other participants. The Federal Security Service, or FSB, said its investigation found that those involved in the mutiny ceased activities directed at committing the crime. Over the weekend, the Kremlin pledged not to prosecute Prigozhin and his fighters after he stopped the revolt on Saturday, even though President Vladimir Putin had branded them as traitors. The charge of mounting an armed mutiny carries a punishment of up to 20 years in prison. Prigozhin escaping prosecution poses a stark contrast to how the Kremlin has been treating those staging anti-government protests. Many opposition figures in Russia have received length prison terms and are serving time in penal colonies notorious for harsh conditions. The whereabouts of Prigozhin remained a mystery Tuesday, The Kremlin has said Prigozhin w

Whereabouts, fate of Russian mercenary leader remain mystery after revolt

The whereabouts of mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin remained a mystery Tuesday after Russian President Vladimir Putin once again blasted organisers of a weekend rebellion as traitors who played into the hands of Ukraine's government and its allies. The Kremlin has said Prigozhin would be exiled to neighbouring Belarus, but neither he nor the Belarusian authorities have confirmed that. An independent Belarusian military monitoring project Belaruski Hajun said a business jet that Prigozhin reportedly uses landed near Minsk on Tuesday morning. The media team for Prigozhin, the 62-year-old head of the Wagner private military contractor, did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Prigozhin's short-lived insurrection over the weekend the biggest challenge to Putin's rule in more than two decades in power has rattled Russia's leadership. Putin on Monday night sought to project stability and control in a short, nationally televised address, in which he criticised the uprisi

Army rescue team saves 9 civilians stranded at inundated bridge in Raj

Officials of the Indian Army Rescue Column rescued nine civilians who were stuck in vehicles stranded on an inundated bridge in Rajasthan's Jalore district, officials said on Monday

Night-vision devices, snipers in place for Amarnath Yatra preparations

Multi-tiered arrangements, including night domination through night-vision devices, snipers, drone systems and dog squads, will be put in place to ensure foolproof security during the upcoming Amarnath Yatra, officials said on Monday. According to the Army officials, the road stretches on the twin routes of the pilgrimage to the 3,888-metre-high cave shrine are almost clear. This was revealed during the inspection-cum-review of the yatra arrangements by Northern Army commander Lieutenant Upendra Dwivedi, the officials said. The 62-day pilgrimage to the cave shrine in the south Kashmir Himalayas is scheduled to start on July 1 and continue till August 31. The Amarnath Yatra takes place annually via two routes -- the southern route through Baltal in Ganderbal and the northern route through Pahalgam in Anantnag district. "Army commanders reviewed the ongoing preparations for the Amarnath Yatra that will commence on July 1 for two months," PRO, Defence, Udhampur, Lieutenant Colonel ...

Army soldier sustained gunshot wounds in unprovoked firing in Manipur

An Army soldier sustained gunshot wounds in his left leg after miscreants resorted to unprovoked firing in Manipur's Imphal West district around 11.45pm on Sunday. According to sources, the soldier was evacuated to the military hospital at Leimakhong and is said to be stable. Sources said the incident took place at Kanto Sabal village adjoining Leimakhong (Chingmang). Soon after the incident, Army Columns resorted to controlled retaliatory fire keeping in view presence of villagers in the area. During the incident, miscreants also set three houses on fire in Chinmang village. The fire was later doused by the Army. After a couple of hours of calm, unprovoked firing started again from Meitei Village of Kanto Sabal around 2.35am and continued till 3am, sources added.

Indian Army chief General Pande visits Bangladesh Military Academy

Indian Army chief Gen Manoj Pande on Tuesday visited the Bangladesh Military Academy in Chattogram where he reviewed the grand Passing Out Parade of the officer cadets of the 84th 'Long Course' and interacted with them. Gen Pande, who arrived here on Monday on a two-day visit to Bangladesh - his second trip to the country as Army chief, also felicitated the award winners of the passing out course for their exemplary performance. "General Manoj Pande #COAS reviewed the Passing Out Parade at Bangladesh Military Academy #BMA, #Bangladesh as Chief Guest. #COAS commended the passing out cadets for an impeccable turnout & parade display, the Additional Directorate General of Public Information said in a tweet. The Indian Army chief interacted with the cadets and presented the 'Bangladesh India Friendship Trophy' instituted for the best foreign cadet from friendly foreign countries of the passing out course from the BMA. The first trophy this year is being awarded to officer cadet ...

CBI books freelance journalist of US-based portal for spying on Army

The CBI has registered an FIR against a freelance journalist for allegedly collecting sensitive information related to the Defence Research Development Organisation (DRDO) and the Army, and sharing them with intelligence agencies of foreign countries, officials said on Tuesday. Following the FIR, the agency conducted searches on premises linked to Vivek Raghuvanshi, listed as India correspondent of a US-based portal on defence and strategic affairs on its web site, and people close to him at 12 locations in Jaipur and the National Capital Region (NCR), they said. The agency has booked Raghuvanshi under Section 3 (spying) of Official Secrets Act read with Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. A number of sensitive documents was recovered during the searches and sent for legal scrutiny, the officials said. Sources said the agency has launched an exhaustive probe to find Raghuvanshi's accomplices in India and abroad. He was allegedly collecting sensitive ...

Personnel fired on in Imphal East; curfew relaxed in 11 districts

Firing by unknown militants in Manipur's Imphal East district left one Assam Rifles personnel injured on Wednesday, while life in the violence-hit northeastern state continued to limp back to normal elsewhere with curfew being relaxed in 11 districts. People sheltered in temporary camps also started returning home, a defence official said. At least 60 people were killed and over 30,000 rendered homeless in rioting which engulfed the northeastern state late week. Of those who had to leave their homes, 26,000 have been evacuated outside their districts while 4,000 remained in relief camps close to their homes, Information and Public Relations Minister Sapam Ranjan Singh said. Soldiers on area domination were fired on by unknown people at 11 am at Dolaithabi area of Imphal East district, Spear Corps of the Army said. After firing a few rounds, miscreants ran away. One Assam Rifles personnel sustained gunshot wounds. He is currently under treatment, it said in a tweet. A total of 128

All recruitment to Army Dental Corps will be gender neutral: Govt to SC

All recruitment to the Army Dental Corps (ADC) will henceforth be gender neutral and there will be no separate quotas for males and females, the government has told the Supreme court. The apex court had on April 11 frowned upon the recruitment to the ADC where just 10 per cent of vacancies were meant for women, observing it was like "putting the clock in reverse direction". Additional Solicitor General K M Nataraj informed a bench of Justices BR Gavai, Vikram Nath and Sanjay Karol on May 8 that the government has decided to do away with separate quotas for men and women and all future recruitment will be gender neutral. The order was uploaded on the apex court's website on Wednesday. The top court recorded the submission of ASG and disposed of a plea filed by women dental doctors led by Gopika Nair, a Coimbatore resident. "ASG further submits that hereinafter the selection would be made by applying gender neutral formula. In that view of the matter, we find that the grievance of t

Common uniform for brigadiers and above rank officers in Army from August 1

The Army has decided that brigadiers and above rank officers will have a common uniform from August 1 irrespective of their parent cadre and appointment, military sources said on Tuesday. The decision was taken after detailed deliberations during the recently concluded Army Commanders Conference and extensive consultations with all stakeholders, they said. The changes will come into effect from August 1. The headgear, shoulder rank badges, gorget patches, belt and shoes of senior officers will be standardised as part of the decision, the sources said. There will be no change to the uniform worn by Colonels and below-rank officers. "In order to promote and strengthen common identity and approach in service matters amongst senior leadership, beyond the boundaries of regimentation, the Indian Army has decided to adopt a common uniform for brigadier and above rank officers," said a source. "This will also reinforce the Indian Army's character to be a fair and equitable organisation,"

Manipur relaxes curfew in Churachandpur to let citizens buy essentials

People were seen coming out in large numbers to buy food, medicines and other essential commodities during a curfew relaxation period Sunday morning as life limped back to normal in this riot-affected town. Army and Assam Rifles columns conducted a flag march through the town as soon as the curfew relaxation ended at 10 am. In all some 120-125 Army columns have been deployed in the entire riot-hit state. In all some 10,000 soldiers, para-military and central police forces have been deployed in Manipur. A defence spokesperson said Army has also significantly enhanced aerial surveillance through movement of UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) and redeployment of helicopters within Imphal valley. The total curfew that prohibited the movement of any person outside their homes was relaxed for three hours, from 7 am, in violence-hit Manipur's Churachandpur district on Sunday morning allowing people to buy essentials such as medicines and food. The curfew imposed under Section 144 of the CrP

Our soldiers made supreme sacrifice for country: Kharge on J-K encounter

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and party leaders on Friday paid tributes to the soldiers killed in a blast in Jammu and Kashmir, saying the troops made the supreme sacrifice for the country. Five Army personnel were killed in an explosion triggered by terrorists on Friday in a thickly forested area in Jammu and Kashmir's Rajouri district where an operation is underway to flush out terrorists. A major was also injured in the blast. Five soldiers made the supreme sacrifice for the country while fighting terrorists in Rajouri, Kharge said. "We pay our heartfelt tributes to the brave soldiers and express our deepest condolences to the bereaved families. We will never allow the nefarious designs of terrorism to succeed," he said in a tweet in Hindi. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also expressed grief over the loss of lives in the blast. "The news of martyrdom of our five soldiers in an encounter with terrorists in Rajouri sector of Jammu and Kashmir is very sad. At this difficult

Millets-based dishes will be served to CAPFs, NDRF personnels: MHA

The Union Home Ministry on Wednesday said millets-based dishes will be served in the meals of the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF). The decision to introduce 30 per cent millets in the meals has been taken as per the directive of Union Home Minister Amit Shah after detailed discussion with all the forces, an official statement said. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in the International Year of Millets-2023, the Ministry of Home Affairs has taken a momentous decision to introduce millets in the meals of personnel of CAPFs and the NDRF, it said. Recognising the importance of millets and creating a domestic and global demand along with providing nutritious food to people, the United Nations declared 2023 the International Year of Millets. Millets are good for health and also beneficial for farmers and environment friendly. The millets are energy dense, drought resistant, with lower water requirements and can be grown

Army helicopter accompanying PM's helicopter trapped in mud in Sindhanur

An army helicopter that was accompanying Prime Minister Narendra Modi's chopper in Sindhanur was trapped in the mud for some time due to heavy downpour on Tuesday. After much effort, the helicopter was taken out of the mud, viral videos showed. Once the Prime Minister had left in his helicopter after addressing a gathering in Sindhanur, a helicopter that was accompanying it started to take off but got stuck in the mud. Earlier in the day, Congress' Karnataka unit president D K Shivakumar's helicopter made an emergency landing at HAL airport after a kite hit the glass of the cockpit. The bird strike damaged the glass but Shivakumar, the crew and others in the helicopter, including a journalist of a Kannada news channel who was interviewing him, were unharmed.

Vice Admiral Swaminathan becomes controller of personnel services in army

Recipient of Ati Vishisht Seva Medal, Vishisht Seva Medal, he has held several key operational, staff and training appointments in his naval career

Indians in Sudan asked to stay indoors amid army-paramilitary clash

The Embassy of India in Sudan advises Indians to stay indoors in view of reported firings and clashes in the country