President Droupadi Murmu on Thursday approved 80 gallantry awards including six Kirti Chakra and 16 Shaurya Chakra on the eve of the 75th Republic Day. Out of the six Kirti Chakra, three were conferred posthumously, and of the 16 Shaurya Chakra, two posthumously. The Kirti Chakra is India's second highest peacetime gallantry award after Ashok Chakra while the Shaurya Chakra is the third highest peacetime. The Kirti Chakra awardees are Major Digvijay Singh Rawat of 21st Battalion, the Parachute Regiment (Special Forces), Major Deependra Vikram Basnet from the Sikh Regiment's fourth battalion and Havildar Pawan Kumar Yadav from the 21st battalion of the Mahar Regiment, according to the defence ministry. Those conferred the award posthumously are Captain Anshuman Singh from the 26th battalion of the Punjab Regiment (Army Medical Corps), Havildar Abdul Majid of the Parachute Regiment's ninth battalion (special forces) and Sepoy Pawan Kumar from the 55th battalion of the Rashtriya Rifle
The Israeli military says its forces have encircled the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. The territory's second largest city has seen heavy fighting in recent days, with dozens of Palestinians killed and wounded. Israeli officials have said top Hamas leaders may be hiding in tunnels under the city. Khan Younis is the hometown of Yehya Sinwar, Hamas' top leader in Gaza, whose whereabouts are unknown. The military announced the encirclement in a statement Tuesday.
The CBI has slapped a fresh case of corruption against Lieutenant Colonel Abhishek Chandra, the then SSO (contract and victualling) at Andaman and Nicobar Command, for allegedly amassing disproportionate assets and depositing cash in lakhs in accounts of his family members, officials said on Monday. Lieutenant Colonel Chandra was booked in 2022 for allegedly demanding and accepting illegal gratification from various vendors in cash as well as bank deposits in the accounts of his family members, they said. During the probe, the agency scrutinised documents related to his assets which indicated that Chandra and his wife were in possession of assets which they could not satisfactorily account for, the officials said. "It has also been revealed that huge cash amount of Rs 15 lakh was deposited by Lieutenant Colonel Abhishek Chandra and his wife Priya Chandra in cash from Port Blair through cash deposit vouchers in the account of Sashi Sharma (mother of Priya Chandra), Paritosh Sharma ..
76th Army Day 2024: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, along with CM Yogi Adityanath and Governor Anandiben Patel, attended the Army Day parade taking place in Lucknow
A cordon-and-search operation was underway in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday to track down terrorists who had fired on a convoy of Army vehicles a day ago, officials said. There was no casualty in the attack on the convoy on Friday. Troops are using sniffer dogs and aerial surveillance to comb the area, which has dense forest, the officials said. The cordon-and-search operation was underway to track the attackers, a senior officer said. The vehicles that came under attack near Krishna Ghati in Poonch sector on Friday evening were carrying security personnel back to a camp. No one was injured in the attack and the commanding officer as well as other Army personnel were safe, officials said. A similar ambush on Army vehicles took place in Poonch's Dhatya Morh in the Dera Ki Gali area on December 21. Four Army personnel were killed in the attack. Rajouri and Poonch districts have witnessed targeted attacks by terrorists on the Army and civilians in the recent past
Myanmar's military has reached a cease-fire agreement with an alliance of ethnic minority guerrilla groups it has been battling in the country's northeast, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Friday. Myanmar's military government confirmed the development, as did the ethnic alliance. The agreement was brokered at talks mediated by China on Wednesday and Thursday in Kunming, a Chinese provincial capital about 400 kilometers (250 miles) from the border with Myanmar, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said. China hopes the relevant parties in Myanmar can conscientiously implement the agreement, exercise maximum restraint toward each other and solve the issues through dialogue and consultations, she said at a daily briefing in Beijing. Maj. Gen. Zaw Min Tun, the spokesperson of Myanmar's ruling military council, said in an audio note to journalists that the two sides had met in Kunming and after talks, agreed on a temporary cease-fire agreement. "We will continue discussions We w
Suspected terrorists fired upon a convoy of vehicles carrying security personnel in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir on Friday evening, prompting security forces to launch a search operation, officials said. No security personnel was injured in the attack, they said. "At around 1800h today, a Security Forces convoy of vehicles was fired upon by suspected terrorists from a jungle near Krishna Ghati, Poonch sector. No casualties to own troops. Joint search operations by Indian Army and JKP (Jammu and Kashmir Police) are in progress," the White Night Corps of the Army posted on X. The vehicles that came under attack were carrying security personnel back to the camp, the officials said. The incident came after a high-level security meeting chaired by Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi to chart out an anti-terror operation plan for the new year to foil design of terrorists in the region.
"Our operational preparedness in these areas continues to be of a very high level. The deployment is both robust and balanced," he said
As Bhutan and China looked at an expeditious resolution of their festering boundary row, Army Chief Gen Manoj Pandey on Thursday said the development is being closely monitored. At a media briefing ahead of the Army Day, he said India has a unique bilateral relationship with Bhutan based on "utmost trust, goodwill and mutual understanding". "This relationship also transcends into the military domain as we have IMTRAT (Indian Military Training Team) right from the early 1960s. They are at the centre of our relationship," he said. Gen Pande was responding to a question on China and Bhutan making progress in their boundary talks and whether any possible resolution would have security implications for India. "Bhutan and we share mutual security concerns which both of us are aware of. The ongoing talks on the boundary which you alluded to, we are closely monitoring," he said. "We are interacting with our friends in Bhutan on a transparent and regular basis," the Army Chief said. He sa
Pande added that the operational preparedness of the Indian Army is very high and deployment robust
Vice Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi on Thursday assumed charge as Vice Chief of the Navy succeeding Vice Admiral Sanjay J Singh, who became Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the crucial Western Naval Command. Prior to taking charge as the vice chief, Vice Admiral Tripathi was serving as the Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Western Naval Command. An alumnus of the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla, he was commissioned into the Indian Navy on July 1, 1985. A Communication and electronic warfare specialist, he served on frontline warships of the Navy as signal communication officer and electronic warfare officer. Vice Admiral Tripathi commanded Indian naval ships Vinash, Kirch and Trishul. He has also held various important operational and staff appointments, including fleet operations officer of the Western Fleet at Mumbai, director of naval operations and principal director of network centric operations and naval plans in Delhi. On promotion to the rank of Rear Admiral, he
Pakistan's Senate on Monday adopted a unanimous resolution to recommend severe punishment for all those found involved in the "negative and malicious propaganda" against the armed forces and other security agencies of the country. Senator Bahramand Khan Tangi of the Pakistan Peoples Party had moved the resolution which acknowledged that a strong army and other security agencies are indispensable for the defence of the country, especially because of the hostile neighbourhood. The resolution expressed deep concern over the negative and malicious propaganda against the armed forces and other security agencies on various social media platforms. It highlighted the huge sacrifices of armed forces and other security agencies in the war against terror and for the defence and protection of the country's borders", acknowledging that a strong army and other security agencies are indispensable for the defence of the country, especially because of the hostile neighbourhood. The Senate, therefor
An Israeli airstrike Monday in a Damascus neighbourhood killed a high-ranking Iranian general, Iranian state media said. The killing of Razi Mousavi, a long-time adviser of the Iranian paramilitary Revolutionary Guard in Syria, comes as clashes along the Lebanon-Israel border between Hezbollah and Israel continue to intensify with fears of the Israel-Hamas war sparking a regional spillover with Iran-backed groups. The Israeli strikes killed two other generals earlier this month in Syria. Israel struck the Sayida Zeinab neighbourhood, located near a Shiite Muslim shrine, Iran's official news agency IRNA and Britain-based opposition war monitor the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said. IRNA described Mousavi as a close companion of Gen. Qassim Soleimani, the head of Iran's elite Quds Force who was slain in a US drone strike in Iraq in January 2020. Neither the Israeli military nor Syrian state media immediately issued a statement about the attack. Though IRNA didn't provide other
At least three jawans were injured as terrorists ambushed two Army vehicles in Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district on Thursday, officials said. The vehicles came under attack in the Savni area on the Rajouri-Thanamandi-Surankote road around 3.30 pm. They were carrying jawans from an area near Bufliaz where a cordon-and-search operation against terrorists has been underway since Wednesday night. The terrorists fired upon the vehicles -- a truck and a Gypsy -- leaving at least three jawans injured, the officials said. A defence PRO said, "Based on hard intelligence a joint operation was launched...last night, contact has been established today evening and encounter is in progress. Further details being ascertained." Additional forces have been rushed to the spot, the officials said.
About 250 to 300 militants are present at launchpads across the border "waiting to infiltrate" Jammu and Kashmir, a top BSF officer said on Saturday. The officer, however, added that security forces were alert and would foil any cross-border infiltration attempts. "There are intelligence inputs that 250-300 militants are waiting at launchpads, but we and the Army have dominated all the vulnerable patches and are alert," Inspector General, BSF, Ashok Yadav told reporters in Pulwama district of south Kashmir. He said the brave jawans of the BSF and Army were alert in the border areas and would foil any infiltration attempts. We are confident of foiling any infiltration bid, Yadav added. He said the connect between the security forces and the people of Kashmir has increased over the last few years. If people cooperate with us, we can take developmental activities forward in a better way, he said.
The parents of Amol Shinde, a man from Maharashtra's Latur who was arrested for protesting outside Parliament, said their son always wanted to join the army and sought Rs 4,000 per month from them to study further, which they were unable to provide. They said he participated in army and police recruitment drives at various places, including Assam, and even worked as a daily wage labourer as he was unemployed. Amol Shinde (25), a resident of Zari village in Chakur tehsil of Latur, was arrested on Wednesday along with Neelam, 42, of Haryana's Hisar, after they opened gas canisters that emitted smoke outside the Parliament building and shouted "Tanashahi Nahi Chalegi" (dictatorship will not be allowed), "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" and "Jai Bheem, Jai Bharat". After the incident in Delhi, a team of Latur police visited his house in Zari village. Talking to reporters on Wednesday night, Shinde's mother Kesarbai said, "He (Amol) always wished to join the army. But I told him to work in some ...
Every able-bodied man in South Korea is required to enlist for military service by the age of 30 and serve for 18 to 21 months
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The Indian contingent comprises 39 personnel from the Engineer Regiment of Bengal Engineer Group and six personnel from the Army Medical Corps
A total of 372 gentlemen cadets, including 29 from 12 friendly countries, passed out of the Indian Military Academy here on Saturday to be commissioned as officers into the armies of their respective countries. Addressing the passing out parade as the reviewing officer, Chief of Defence Staff of Sri Lanka Gen Shavendra Silva congratulated them on the successful completion of their rigorous training and wished them the best of luck for all their future endeavours. Gen Silva said the immaculate parade reflected their high level of training and he was confident that the passing out gentlemen cadets will serve their motherlands with commitment, loyalty and valour. The coveted Sword of Honour and the Gold medal went to Battalion Under Officer Gaurav Rawat, the silver medal to Battalion Under Officer Saurabh Badhani and the bronze to battalion under officer Alok Singh. With Saturday's POP, the Indian Army has got 343 new officers. The 29 passing out gentlemen cadets from 12 friendly nat