How the Army is building confidence and healing wounds in Manipur TOI blog 10 Jul 2023 Images of women (Meira Paibis) gheraoing an army column to prevent them from arresting members of a known militant group, KYKL, display the complexity of the situation in Manipur as do images of thousands of innocents, internally displaced, living in army established relief camps, […]
Remodelling the medical corps The Statesman 04 Jul 2023 Theaterization is well on its way. Recent announcements indicate that to some extent the services have compromised on their demands, right or wrong, is a separate issue. Agniveers are now the order of the day as also is manpower reduction, all intended to push cost cutting. One service which has […]
Nine years of management of defence The Excelsior 07 Jun 2023 Assessment of the Modi government’s performance in the past nine years under various heads continues under discussion. In the defence sector, at the outset, the government came as a breath of fresh air, as Anthony, the UPA defence minister from 2006 to 2014, hesitated to sign procurements, fearing […]
Defence budgets and capability development The Statesman 01 May 2023 The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) in its latest report listed India as the fourth largest military spender in the world, the leaders being the US, China and Russia, who account for 56% of global defence expenditure. It claimed Indian defence expenditure increased by 6% in 2022 to […]
Bipartisan politics needed to counter critics abroad The Statesman 04 Apr 2023 The German foreign ministry spokesperson stated in Berlin after the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi that it expects ‘standards of judicial independence and fundamental democratic principles will equally apply to the proceedings against Rahul Gandhi.’ The US state department spokesperson stated, ‘In our engagements with our Indian partners, […]
The Khalistan movement The Excelsior 25 Feb 2023 Reports have emerged of defacing of Hindu temples in Canada and Australia by pro-Khalistan elements and of clashes between India supporters and pro-Khalistan groups from both these nations as also the UK. Voting in the so-called ‘non-binding Khalistan referendum’ has been reported from Italy, Canada, UK, Australia and Pakistan, all of […]
The world responds to a rising India The Statesman 21 Feb 2023 Addressing the press in Bangalore prior to Aero India 2023, the US Charge d’Affaires, Elizabeth Jones, stated ‘India is a partner of choice for the US,’ adding, ‘our growing diplomatic and security cooperation over the last year is evidence of this.’ She went on to state that […]
Defence spending a part of national development The Statesman 07 Feb 2023 Addressing passing out cadets of the Indian Military Academy in Dec 2006, then President Abdul Kalam stated, ‘National security is born out of two important components. One is the economic growth and prosperity; second one is the capability to defend the nation against all types of threats.’ […]
Defence budget amidst ongoing challenges Amar Ujala 02 Feb 2023 The defence budget, as part of the national budget signals the government’s concern on national security. While defence planners have been demanding a minimum of 3% of the GDP, defence parliamentary committees 2-2.5%, it has generally hovered around 1.6% to 1.7%. Its share of the budget has remained steady […]
British must shed colonial hangover The Statesman 31 Jan 2023 The BBC documentary on PM Modi and the Gujrat riots have been under discussion for the past fortnight. While the Indian government has rightly banned the documentary and its links in India, the fact that the BBC published its foreign office’s illegal investigation into the Gujrat riots displays its […]