SOURCE: INDIA TODAY

In a major boost to the government’s bid to indigenise the defence sector, the first three nuclear attack submarines planned to be built by the Indian Navy would be 95 per cent made in India.

The Cabinet Committee on Security is considering the Navy proposal worth over Rs 50,000 crore for indigenously building three nuclear attack submarines which would be built by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) in Visakhapatnam. In a separate project, Arihant class nuclear-powered submarines are being built with the capability of launching ballistic missiles.

SOURCE: INDIA TODAY

The destruction unleashed by armed Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) of Azerbaijan in its conflict with Armenia last year has brought these systems to the centre-stage of the security arena. The earliest demonstration of UAV capability was by Israel during the Bekaa Valley conflict with Syria in 1982. Unmanned drones launched by Israel had activated Syrian radars, thereby giving away their locations and Israeli fighter aircraft subsequently destroying them. Syrian aircraft that gave fight were blinded by electronic jamming. The result was the loss of 82 Syrian fighters as against a single Israeli aircraft.

In the South Caucasian conflict, Azerbaijan started with a similar feint, using an old AN-2 aircraft converted into a drone as bait for the Armenians. A report by the Washington-based think tank, Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), states that Armenia lost 26 surface-to-air missile systems, including a Tor and five S-300 systems, besides hundreds of tanks and vehicles. Azerbaijanian videos showed UAV strikes on bewildered Armenian soldiers on the ground. The psychological impact was overwhelming and Armenia settled for peace on humiliating terms. This was perhaps the first time UAVs had helped a country defeat conventional enemy forces and armour.

SOURCE: Republic

The Indian Army got its first deliveries of new boats specially designed for water bodies in high altitude areas like Ladakh for fast and easy movement of troops and surveillance.

These patrolling boats are built by Goa shipyard Ltd. exclusively for the Indian Army for deployment at Pangong Tso along LAC. The army had ordered 29 such specialized boats in January amid the stand-off with China. The army needed boats for patrolling and surveillance and quick deployment of troops on the banks of the lake.

SOURCE: Express News Service

The standoff in Eastern Ladakh since May 2020 stimulated the road construction and bridge laying on all the sensitive points. Also, the road formation going towards Northern Borders saw a major push.

Sources confirmed an important bridge towards Doka La in Sikkim has been launched by the Border Roads Organisation, and Yangtse in Arunachal Pradesh has been linked with roads. “Launch of Indigenously-developed (by GRSE) 140’ double lane Class-70 modular bridge in Sikkim (to Dokala) is complete, and forward location of Yangtse in Arunachal Pradesh is now connected with road.” said the source.

SOURCE: THE HINDU

Union Minister of State for Home G. Kishen Reddy, who laid the foundation stone of the first-ever Balaji temple of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD) in Jammu on Sunday, said the Centre had managed to curb infiltration and militancy in Jammu and Kashmir in the past two years.

“Barring a couple of incidents of violence reported in J&K, the situation has changed across India and J&K in the past two years. The government has managed to curb infiltration, and militancy stands controlled in J&K,” he said. Mr. Reddy said the coronavirus pandemic hindered the Centre’s plan to push development initiatives in Jammu and Kashmir. “COVID-19 did play a spoilsport and hit the development projects. Once the pandemic ends, we will take J&K UT to new heights of development,” he added.

SOURCE: NEWSX

The dawn of June 15 marked the infamous Galwan Clash that happened between the troops of India and China. Almost 8-months after the clash, China finally broke silence on the number of casualties and admitted the death of 4 Chinese soldiers in the prompt battle. China said the announcement was aimed at honouring the soldiers who lost their lives.

At a recent high-level military meeting, Qi Fabao, the regiment commander of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), spoke about the death of the soldiers and termed the act as “heroic”. Fabao suffered a severe head injury during the Galwan fight. The meeting was organized by the Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission.

SOURCE: THE NEWS MINUTE

With media reports stating the Union government will not be taking measures to bring back the four Kerala women who left India to join the Islamic State in Khorasan Province (ISKP) with their husbands and are currently lodged in jail in Afghanistan, the family of one of the four women has expressed disappointment with the government’s decision. “As per human rights a woman has the right to come back and she can face all the legal proceedings, including a trial, here. This is disappointing, at least my four-year-old granddaughter should be rescued,” Bindu, the mother of one of the four women, told the media.

Bindu has been fighting for her daughter and grandchild’s return to India. In 2016, her daughter Nimisha married a man called Bexen from Palakkad. Nimisha and Bexen converted to Islam, changed their names to Fathima and Isa and left with almost 20 others to join the ISIS. In the next couple of years, while most of the men were reported to have been killed in missile attacks and such, few of the women surrendered.

SOURCE: NATIONAL INTEREST

In an important sense, the issues now surrounding the confrontation on the Doklam Plateau are essentially the same as those that the two countries left unresolved in 1962. The balance of power may have changed, however, as has the geopolitical situation.

In 1962, the world’s two most populous countries went to war against one another in a pair of remote, mountainous border regions. In less than a month, China dealt India a devastating defeat, driving Indian forces back on all fronts. Along with breaking hopes of political solidarity in the developing world, the war helped structure the politics of East and Southeast Asia for generations. Even today, as Indian and Chinese forces square off on the Doklam Plateau, the legacy of the 1962 resonates in both countries.

SOURCE: Stravium Intelligence

India is gradually going forward in establishing artificial intelligence in its various sectors. The IT sector of India has always been a hub of great minds and it has played a vital role in the economic growth of the country. Around 2018, the government think-tank, National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog emphasized the development of AI research in the IT sectors.

This development came on the heels of the launch of a Task Force on Artificial Intelligence for India’s economic transformation by the Commerce and Industry Department of the Government of India in 2017. Since then, AI is gradually being adopted in every sector of India. Experts’ reviews show that healthcare and agriculture are so far among the most important sectors of focus to improve living conditions for India’s citizens.

SOURCE: HT

The seven richest economies in the world, known as G7, got in a huddle on Saturday to hammer out a plan to counter China’s growing economic clout. They arrived at a consensus and offered developing nations an infrastructure plan which can rival China’s multi-million-dollar Belt and Road Initiative or BRI.

The infrastructure plan is being led by United States president Joe Biden. The Build Back Better World (B3W) initiative, will provide a transparent infrastructure partnership to help narrow the $40 trillion, the leaders at the G7 summit hoped.

SOURCE: The Pioneer

New Delhi must consider what it can do to prevent the Taliban from coming to power because that would be to the advantage of Pakistan

With the complete withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan scheduled to happen by September 11, India needs to seriously ponder the consequences, particularly that of the Taliban coming to rule that country. This, of course, will happen only if they defeat the democratically elected Afghan Government’s forces militarily. The question arises whether they can do so and, if they can, what would that mean for this country.

SOURCE: NEWS TRACK LIVE

Senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh’s recent remarks on Jammu and Kashmir have been part of discussions these days. Now defending the same, party leader Tariq Anwar has responded. Reacting last Saturday, he said, “Repealing the provisions of Article 370 of the Constitution gave Pakistan an opportunity to raise the Kashmir issue in international for a. This resulted in widespread global criticism of India”. At the same time, he further said, “Digvijaya’s remarks on the issue are in line with the Congress stand.”

Also talking to a website, Anwar said, “By repealing Article 370 in 2019 and making Jammu and Kashmir a Union Territory, the BJP gave Pakistan a chance to raise the kashmir issue repeatedly in international for a. The kashmir issue was not being raised in international for a long time, but pakistan got this opportunity because of the BJP-led central government, which has led to criticism of India all over the world”.

SOURCE: PTI

About 5,000 Pakistani refugees from the Hindu Sindhi community living in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore will be administered COVID-19 vaccines, an official said on Sunday. The representatives of the Pakistani refugees from the Hindu Sindhi community had recently requested the administration for anti- coronavirus inoculation, District Immunization Officer Dr Praveen Jadia told PTI.

“This demand has been accepted following the state government’s approval. These Pakistani refugees will now be able to receive anti-coronavirus jabs at the city’s vaccination centres by showing their passport as the identity card,” he said. Jadia estimated that about 5,000 Pakistani refugees are living in Indore and most of them are settled in the city’s Sindhi Colony area.

SOURCE: NEWSCLICK

MV X-Press Pearl, the blazing cargo ship stranded in the Laccadive Sea off the coast of western Sri Lanka, is sinking. Authorities had been trying to tow the ship further into the sea to prevent pollution near the coast, but the damage is already done – both at the coast and in the sea.

With dead animals washing ashore and fish consuming the micro-plastics, the scale of the disaster and its ramifications for the environment, human health and livelihoods dependent on fishing are set to be widespread The ship, laden with 25 metric tonnes of Nitric acid, was on its way to Singapore from Hazira port in Gujarat when it caught fire. A possible explanation is that there was an acid leak which caught fire when it rained since the chemical reacts with water. Nitric acid is also toxic when it burns. So, there are fears of air pollution too.