SOURCE: PTI

Indigenisation, technology absorption and operational capability enhancement will be the focus areas of the army’s Southern Command, according to Lt General Ajai Kumar Singh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Southern Command.

The Southern Command, which celebrates its 130th Raising Day on April 1, is the oldest and the largest command of the Indian Army, covering 41 per cent India’s landmass spread over 11 states and four Union Territories.

SOURCE: PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi cited a media report today to assert that new facts reveal that the Congress had “callously” given away the Katchatheevu island to Sri Lanka. “Eye-opening and startling! New facts reveal how Congress callously gave away Katchatheevu. This has angered every Indian and reaffirmed in people’s minds – we can’t ever trust Congress,” he said on X, sharing the report.

“Weakening India’s unity, integrity and interests has been Congress’ way of working for 75 years and counting,” he said.

SOURCE: ANI

After Prime Minister Narendra Modi slammed the Congress for allegedly ceding Katchatheevu Island to Sri Lanka, Congress leaders called PM Modi’s remark “selective pieces of propaganda” and questioned the work done under the ten years of the BJP-led central government. Congress leader Sandeep Dikshit said that the statement made by the Prime Minister is all because of the elections in Tamil Nadu, where all the “surveys show the BJP will be badly smashed.”

“The problem with the Prime Minister is that he makes statements without any references. If any agreement like this was made, we should know what it was. Secondly, what was the Prime Minister doing for 9 years then? If he was in a position of this information, why was he quiet about it all this while? These are selective pieces of propaganda that they fake out. It is all because elections are going on in Tamil Nadu. All the surveys show the BJP will be badly smashed in Tamil Nadu,” he said.

SOURCE: IANS

 The security of a democratic state includes the security of its citizens and today both are contingent on the wider security of the world at large. Similarly, at the level of an organisation its well-being is linked to the security situation within the country.

In the prevailing unsafe environment ‘enterprise security’ could no more be relegated to a set of hired ‘guards’ and security ‘supervisors’ since it has become a ‘mainstream’ function taking care of the organisation as a whole, including its members.

SOURCE: PTI

Security forces conducted flag marches in various districts of Jammu and Kashmir on Saturday to instil a sense of security and confidence among the voters ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, officials said. The Lok Sabha polls in the Union Territory will be held in five phases on April 19 (Udhampur) and April 26 (Jammu), May 7 (Anantnag-Rajouri), May 13 (Srinagar) and May 20 (Baramulla). The counting of votes will be held on June 4.

The marches were conducted by the district police and Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) in various districts, including Ganderbal, Baramulla, Pulwama, Kulgam, Sopore, Shopian, Bandipora and Budgam in Kashmir valley, officials said.

SOURCE: ANI

United Kashmir People’s National Party (UKPNP) central spokesperson, Sardar Nasir Aziz Khan, highlighted human rights violations in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. He urged the United Nations to intervene and ask Pakistan to fulfill its international obligations and respect human rights.

He made the remarks at a side event organised on the sidelines of the ongoing 55th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council. Khan emphasised that the people of Gilgit-Baltistan and PoK have been facing difficulties since the illegal occupation of Pakistan.

SOURCE: PTI

Naxalites have set ablaze four trucks engaged in the transportation of iron ore from a mine in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district, police said on Sunday.

No person was reported to be injured in the incident which took place late Saturday night, they said. The four trucks carrying iron ore from the Aamdai Ghati mine, allotted to a private company, were stopped by Naxalites near Chhotedongar police station on Orchha-Narayanpur road, a senior police official said.

SOURCE: ANI

An Army General Court Martial has recommended the acquittal of a retired Subedar facing trial in a case where it was alleged that the Junior Commissioned Officer had failed to protect sensitive information under his charge. The JCO was charged under the provisions of the Official Secrets Act, where it was alleged that while performing the duties of Head Clerk, he failed to take reasonable care of the documents with sensitive information.

The entire episode happened in 2020-21, when the JCO was still in service and the information was leaked allegedly by soldiers posted in an Army formation. The JCO was also charged under Section 63 of the Army Act and blamed for not carrying out proper supervision of information and documents, which led to their leakage. The Subedar had retired already in October 2021 from the Army but was recalled since Army Act Section 123 was invoked against him for completion of disciplinary action pending against him.

SOURCE: ANI

The Border Security Force (BSF) recovered a China-made drone in the border area of Tarn Taran district on Sunday morning. The recovered drone has been identified as a China-made DJI Matrice 300 RTK. On the morning of March 31, the information was received regarding the presence of a drone in the border area of Tarn Taran district and the BSF troops promptly responded to the information and conducted a search operation, the BSF said in a statement.

During the search operation, at approximately 08:35 AM, BSF troops successfully recovered the drone. The recovery took place in a farming field adjacent to Havellian village in Tarn Taran District, it said. This recovery marks another successful prevention of drone intrusion from across the border, the BSF said.

SOURCE: IDRW.ORG

The Indian Air Force (IAF) continues to bolster its training capabilities with the successful first flight of the fifth LCA-Tejas trainer aircraft, designated LT-5205. This milestone comes just weeks after the fourth trainer, LT-5204, took to the skies, signifying a significant ramp-up in production by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

The IAF received its first LCA Tejas trainer aircraft in October 2023, marking a major step forward in pilot training for the indigenously developed light combat aircraft. Since then, HAL has delivered four additional trainers, including LT-5205, with all undergoing flight testing and scheduled for induction into the IAF.

SOURCE: AFI

In a move to significantly enhance its shipbuilding capabilities, Hindustan Shipyard Limited (HSL) announced a major infrastructure upgradation contract signed on March 30, 2024, with Larsen & Toubro Geostructure (L&T Geostructure). This initiative underscores HSL’s commitment to staying at the forefront of the maritime industry.

This strategic contract focuses on bolstering HSL’s capacity to handle ongoing Fleet Support Ship projects as well as future endeavors, including the construction of Landing Platform Docks (LPDs). The 20-month project will see the shipyard undergo a significant infrastructure upgrade.

SOURCE: PTI

India and the United States have conducted a bilateral tri-service humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) exercise on Kakinada Beach, as part of ‘Tiger Triumph-24’.

A press release from the US Consulate said the exercise done on Friday is aimed at enhancing readiness and cooperation between the two forces and is part of the ongoing partnership between India and the United States.

SOURCE: ANI

As many as 23 Pakistani nationals rescued by the Indian Navy from Somali pirates after a daring operation in the Arabian Sea on March 29 thanked India and raised slogans of ‘India Zindabad’. The Indian Navy’s specialist team had protected them from nine armed pirates, and completed sanitization and seaworthiness checks of fishing vessel Al-Kambar.

The Pakistani crew of the rescued Iranian flagged fishing vessel could be seen raising “India Zindabad” slogans in the Arabian Sea after they were rescued from the pirates.

SOURCE: ANI

Two men from Haryana’s Karnal were allegedly lured on the pretext of a permanent work visa in Germany and tortured by agents, police said on Saturday. They had been promised jobs in a hotel and a permanent work visa. But they were sent to Russia instead where they were allegedly tortured by the agents.

“I went abroad on September 24 last year. The agent who sent me said that they will provide me with a permanent work visa in Germany, but they handed over a Bangkok ticket. When I reached there, they started torturing me. Additionally, they took money from my family,” Mukesh, one of the men who allegedly faced torture in Russia, told ANI on Saturday.

SOURCE: PTI

Russia is committed to “decisively fight” the menace of terrorism together with India and other countries, bilaterally and multilaterally, its envoy in New Delhi said on Saturday. Russian ambassador Denis Alipov, in a thread post on X, described the March 22 attack on a suburban Moscow concert hall in which 144 people were killed as a “monstrous terrorist attack”.

“The Embassy keeps receiving condolence messages expressing sympathy over the huge loss of lives and condemnation of the monstrous terrorist attack on March 22 near Moscow,” he said. “We highly appreciate the sentiments towards victims and their kin and the Russian Government by the people of India and other countries,” Alipov added.