Women in NDA The Excelsior 28 Sept 2021 On 18th August, the supreme court issued an interim order stating that women should be permitted to appear for the National Defence Academy (NDA) exam for obtaining permanent commission into the defence forces. On 08 Sept, Additional Solicitor General, Aishwarya Bhatti, stated to the court, ‘A decision has been taken at […]
Theatre commands must have an Indian flavour The Statesman 03 Aug 2021 A report last week stated that the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) has been chairing meetings comprising of representatives of service HQs and other ministries to iron out differences in the creation of theatre commands. As per the report these differences have yet to be ironed out. […]
Kargil war: India not a pushover: message sent across the world India News Network 26 Jul 2021 Over two decades ago, India fought and regained the heights which were occupied by Pak troops in Kargil. The battle was bloody, losses were immense. There was no time to procure equipment and make up deficiencies in capabilities, compelling the army to […]
Lessons for air power from Ladakh CAPS Air Power Journal Jul 2021 Introduction The Ladakh standoff now appears to be receding after almost nine months of tension. As per the Northern Army Commander, Lt Gen YK Joshi, the occupation of Rezang La and Rechin La on the Kailash Ridge turned the tables. He stated in an interview, ‘A quid pro […]
CAPFs as part of theatre commands CLAWS 12 Jul 2021 The armed forces have projected including select Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), mainly BSF and ITBP, deployed along the LOC and LAC, within the gambit of theatre commands thereby seeking the unity of command and responsibility for securing un-demarcated borders. A similar demand exists from the navy on the […]
Armed forces must change in nation’s interest The Statesman 06 Jul 2021 Speaking at a seminar organized by the Global Counter Terrorism Council last week, both the Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Bipin Rawat, and the air chief, Air Chief Marshal RKS Bhadauria, spoke on the role of airpower. Their comments, partly contradictory, were blown out of context, […]
How the Army rose to the occasion to help the nation fight COVID-19, but once the crisis is over, a Herculean task awaits the govt Op India 10 May 2021 The Delhi High Court, on 07 May, turned down the plea of the Delhi government asking the army to set up field hospitals in the city. It stated, ‘It […]
Playing with the officer cadre CLAWS 16 Apr 2021 A recent press report stated that the army is considering directly recruiting JCOs to fill vacancies in the officer cadre. They will be eligible for promotion upto the rank of Colonels. To assuage the fear of the current rank and file, the report stated that there would be no impact […]
Are the armed forces serious on theatre commands? CLAWS 15 Mar 2021 Addressing the Combined Commanders Conference, Rajnath Singh stated, ‘We are working towards increasing jointness in the armed forces. The optimal utilisation of our resources and rationalisation of manpower holds the key to jointness and better coordination between the forces.’[1] He added, ‘Our enhanced defence capabilities will allow […]
Northern command as a theatre command test bed CENJOWS 03 Feb 2021 The buzz word, since General Bipin Rawat became the CDS, has been the raising of theatre commands. His initial comments indicated that this would be his priority. Views for and against the concept have dominated writings by national security analysts. There are views that India needs theatre […]