Tag: Indian Army

  • ‘You have crossed the border, please go back,’ Indian army to Chinese soldiers

    ‘You have crossed the border, please go back,’ Indian army to Chinese soldiers

    A Himalayan border standoff between old foes India and China was triggered by India’s construction of roads and airstrips in the region as it competes with China’s spreading Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), Indian observers said on Tuesday.

    Soldiers from both sides have been camped out in the Galwan Valley in the high-altitude Ladakh region, accusing each other of trespassing over the disputed border, the trigger of a brief but bloody war in 1962.

    About 80 to 100 tents have sprung up on the Chinese side and about 60 on the Indian side where soldiers are billeted, Indian officials briefed on the matter in New Delhi and in Ladakh’s capital, Leh, said.

    Both were digging defences and Chinese trucks have been moving equipment into the area, the officials said, raising concerns of a long faceoff.

    “China is committed to safeguarding the security of its national territorial sovereignty, as well as safeguarding peace and stability in the China-India border areas,” the Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson’s office said in a statement.

    “At present, the overall situation in the border areas is stable and controllable. There are sound mechanisms and channels of communication for border-related affairs, and the two sides are capable of properly resolving relevant issues through dialogue and consultation.”

    There was no immediate Indian foreign ministry comment. It said last week Chinese troops had hindered regular Indian patrols along the Line of Actual Control (LAC).

    But interviews with former Indian military officials and diplomats suggest the trigger for the flare-up is India’s construction of roads and airstrips.

    “Today, with our infrastructure reach slowly extending into areas along the LAC, the Chinese threat perception is raised,” said former Indian foreign secretary Nirupama Rao.

    “Xi Jinping’s China is the proponent of a hard line on all matters of territory, sovereignty. India is no less when it comes to these matters either,” she said.

    After years of neglect Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government has pushed for improving connectivity and by 2022, 66 key roads along the Chinese border will have been built.

    One of these roads is near the Galwan valley that connects to Daulat Beg Oldi airbase, which was inaugurated last October.

    “The road is very important because it runs parallel to the LAC and is linked at various points with the major supply bases inland,” said Shyam Saran, another former Indian foreign secretary.

    “It remains within our side of the LAC. It is construction along this new alignment which appears to have been challenged by the Chinese.”

    China’s BRI is a string of ports, railways, roads and bridges connecting China to Europe via central and southern Asia and involving Pakistan, China’s close ally and India’s long-time foe.

  • Coronavirus makes its way to Indian military as soldier tests positive

    Coronavirus makes its way to Indian military as soldier tests positive

    An Indian Army soldier, posted in the mountainous region of Ladakh, has tested positive for the novel coronavirus, The Economic Times reported on Wednesday.

    According to reports, the soldier’s father had returned from Iran on February 27. At the time, the soldier was on leave. He rejoined his post on March 2.

    After returning to Ladakh, his father was quarantined at a local hospital where he tested positive for COVID-19 on March 6. A day later, the soldier was quarantined. On Monday, he also tested positive for the virus.

    During his quarantine period, the soldier was staying in his native village and helping his family. His sister, wife and two children have also been placed in quarantine.

    The soldier and all his colleagues were placed in isolation after the former tested positive.

    Earlier on Wednesday, another army official attached to the College of Military Engineering in Pune has been asked to self-quarantine after he showed symptoms of flu.

    As of now, 147 people have tested positive in India.

    To contain the spread of the coronavirus, India’s Health Ministry has announced a temporary travel ban from the European Union (EU), United Kingdom (UK) and Turkey.

  • Azad Kashmir president challenges Indian army chief to attack valley

    Azad Kashmir president challenges Indian army chief to attack valley

    Azad Jammu & Kashmir (AJK) President Sardar Masood Khan has dared Indian chief of army staff (COAS) to attack the region, adding that the armed forces of the country were ready to avert any and all attacks against its soil.

    Army chief General Manoj Mukund Naravane, in his maiden press briefing as the top Indian military commander, had on January 11 said that the forces were ready to take appropriate action to gain control over Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

    The statement had come five months after Indian Foreign Minister (FM) Subrahmanyan Jaishankar had said that he expected India to gain physical control over AJK one day.

    “Don’t forget what has happened in the past. The armed forces of Pakistan are always ready to give a befetting response to India,” Khan reportedly said on Saturday.

    Khan further said that if the United States (US) wanted to act as a mediator in resolving the Kashmir dispute, it would have to take action against the brutalities of Indian forces in held Kashmir first. “The troubled valley is a living hell. Youngsters are being imprisoned, people are being electrocuted and even kids are being labelled as enemies.”

    He also thanked China for playing its role in highlighting the issue in the United Nations (UN).

  • VIDEO: ‘Troops ready to make Azad Kashmir part of India,’ army chief says

    VIDEO: ‘Troops ready to make Azad Kashmir part of India,’ army chief says

    Amid heightened tensions and Narendra Modi-led Indian government’s threats of “invading” Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) region of the country, Indian Army chief General Bipin Rawat has said his “troops are ready to make the territory a part of India”.

    “Indian troops are ready to retrieve Pakistan occupied Kashmir and make it a part of India, but it is the government which takes decisions in such matters,” Gen Rawat said while speaking to an Indian news agency.

    He said that the institutions of the country will work as per the orders of the government, but the army is always ready.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    Earlier, a similar statement was made by Indian Union Minister Jitendra Singh, who had said that after the abrogation of Article 370 in India Held Kashmir (IHK), the next agenda of the government was to “retrieve Pakistan-administered Kashmir”.

    Singh, however, was brutally trolled by Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) Director General (DG) Major General Asif Ghafoor, who suggested him “to consult Indian Air Force (IAF) before taking any such steps”.

    https://twitter.com/peaceforchange/status/1171493626024587270

    He had ridiculed the Indian minister while mentioning failed Indian airstrikes from February 2019, which resulted in two IAF jets being shot down by the Pakistan Air Force (PAF) and capture of pilot Abhinandan Varthaman.

  • Information warfare: Indian army chief accepts defeat against Pakistan

    Information warfare: Indian army chief accepts defeat against Pakistan

    Expressing fear over Pakistan’s strategy on information warfare, Indian army chief General Bipin Rawat has admitted India’s defeat, Dunya News reported Tuesday.

    According to reports, days after operational information of the Indian army was leaked, Gen Rawat said that such incidents had compelled him to warn former army officials to be careful while using social media.

    An ex-general of the Indian Army, Lt Gen Syed Ata Hasnain, said that Pakistan’s Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) — military’s media wing — had “outclassed the Indian army in information war” by connecting with the masses.

    He said that India started losing the narrative in occupied Kashmir after ISPR smartly ensured detailed alienation of Kashmiris against Indian armed forces.

    “Our army has made several tactical mistakes over the past 30 years and using military operations for psychological warfare was India’s fatal mistake,” the former military general added.

  • VIDEO: Humiliation for India as soldier slips during Wagah ceremony on Independence Day

    VIDEO: Humiliation for India as soldier slips during Wagah ceremony on Independence Day

    India has yet again faced humiliation at the Wagah Border as one of its soldiers participating in the daily lowering of the flags ceremony slipped in front of the crowd on Pakistan’s Independence Day.

    The ceremony at the Wagah-Attari Border is a daily military practice that the security forces of Pakistan and India have jointly followed since 1959.

    Fervour was at its peak as military personnel of both countries, amid soaring tensions, started performing in front of a mammoth crowd on both sides of the border on Wednesday.

    Things, however, took a comical turn when the Indian soldier leading his side couldn’t maintain his balance and slipped.

    WATCH VIDEO:

    A video of the incident went viral over the internet, reacting to which Pakistanis asked if “these soldiers will steal Kashmir from us”.

    https://twitter.com/SyedAsad299/status/1161619036062519297

    Earlier, Pakistan celebrated its 73rd Independence Day as Kashmir Solidarity Day to express support to Kashmiris in their struggle against Indian occupying forces.

    New Delhi had earlier this month robbed Kashmir of its special status, paving way for a Muslim genocide in the disputed valley. Islamabad fears the development can lead to major demographic transformations in the region and affect Kashmiris’ struggle for their right to self-determination.

  • India using toy bombs to target children in Neelum Valley: report

    India using toy bombs to target children in Neelum Valley: report

    Cluster toy bombs, which are being traced back to India, have been recovered from near the Line of Control (LoC) in Neelum Valley, ARY News reported Saturday.

    According to reports, the toy bombs were placed in the peripheries of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK), near the Working Boundary (WB) of the two countries. WB is the line where Indian occupied Kashmir (IoK) meets Pakistan’s border.

    The bombs, reports said, have so far killed three, including a four-year-old child, besides injuring 11 others.

    Cluster bombs have been banned under the Geneva Convention, which India is a signatory of.

    Shaped like harmless toys, they can be devastating after detonation — exploding into millions of razor-sharp blades that pierce through whatever stands within its range.

  • MS Dhoni to serve Indian army in occupied Kashmir

    MS Dhoni to serve Indian army in occupied Kashmir

    Former Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, commonly known as MS Dhoni, after making himself unavailable for the West Indies tour, will serve the army in Indian-occupied Kashmir.

    According to media reports, the 38-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman will be undertaking the duties of patrolling, guard and post in held Kashmir for a period of 15 days starting July 31.

    “As requested by the officer and approved by army headquarters; he will be taking on the duties of patrolling, guard and post and would be staying with troops,” the statement read.

    The right-handed batsman holds the honourary rank of lieutenant colonel in the Territorial Army Unit of the Indian army’s Parachute Regiment since 2011.

    He had earlier made himself unavailable for the Men in Blue’s upcoming West Indies tour where the two teams will be crossing swords in three T20s, three ODIs and two Test matches.

  • ‘ISI woman agent’ honey-trapped two soldiers into leaking sensitive data: Indian media

    ‘ISI woman agent’ honey-trapped two soldiers into leaking sensitive data: Indian media

    Police have accused an unidentified woman of being an Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agent and allegedly posing as a captain in the Indian Army’s Nursing Corps to honey-trap at least two soldiers and an army aspirant.

    According to Indian media reports, soldier Ravinder Kumar Yadav of Mahendergarh district, Somveer Singh of Rohtak and an army aspirant Gaurav of Sonepat were among those duped by the woman in the past 15 months.

    Narnaul police arrested Ravinder Yadav on July 10 from a dhaba for allegedly sharing secret information with the suspected agent, who introduced herself as Capt Anika Chopra, reports said.

    In April 2018, the Rohtak police arrested a 23-year-old youth, Gaurav Kumar, a resident of Ganaur in Sonepat, for purportedly passing information to Pakistan’s premier intelligence agency about Indian army camps he visited for recruitment tests.

    It was also reported that the woman trapped sepoy Somveer Singh, 22, a resident of Bhaini Maharajpur village in Rohtak, in January this year. Singh was posted in the armed corps in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer district. He is currently lodged in the Jaipur jail.

    “It appears the woman’s Facebook account was fake and the ISI agent with the same identity had trapped the other two men in a similar fashion. The woman had used Indian numbers for WhatsApp and we had sent the jawan’s phones to the cyber cell,” Narnaul DSP Vinod Kumar said.

    A police official, seeking anonymity, said the agent had befriended the two jawans and the army aspirant through social media.

    “She had deposited Rs 5,000 in the bank accounts of the three accused. In Ravinder’s case, the woman had been regularly asking the jawan about his movement and showed concern for his personal life.”

    The woman claimed she is posted in Gujarat. She only texted him on WhatsApp and both of them had regularly shared their pictures. However, the woman’s pictures were not clear, the police official said further.