Bharat Rakshak

ManuJ

The sad truth is that today's Russia is a 2nd rate power trying to punch way above its weight, based on nostalgia of the era where it was indeed one of the two superpowers. Its veto power in the UN and its nuclear arsenal give it some leverage, but they can only go so far. Russia's economy is half t...

ManuJ

Most analysis on the disparity of size and capability of the two forces discounts the important factor of morale and determination. Not to mention the logistical issues of resupply and rotation of troops, etc. Russian soldiers are fighting an unpopular war against their Slavic brothers, far from hom...

ManuJ

Hard hitting piece by Lt Gen Ata Hasnain (retd) https://chanakyaforum.com/war-in-ukraine-miscalculations-galore/ To all those in this forum who are portraying this invasion as some master stroke by Putin, please read this article. I had written yesterday that European countries would increase their...

ManuJ

Whatever happens from this point on, Putin has already lost. He has succeeded in making NATO relevant and vibrant again, something that US couldn't do since the fall of USSR despite their best efforts. USA will now be able to permanently station troops and assets in countries bordering Russia. Weste...

ManuJ

India needs to be on the right side of history, staying ahead of the curve. Putin is history, or will be soon. He is not going to recover from this debacle - it's the beginning of his end. India needs to start planning for a post-Putin Russia and to start cultivating potential future leaders. Public...

ManuJ

Foolish move from Putin that will hasten the redrawing of the geostrategic map that was previously getting redrawn over decades. On one hand, it will unite the west and strengthen & expand NATO, and on the other hand it will force Russia to become overdependent on China. It hands a win to China ...

ManuJ

I understand the general rule of no-single-engine aircraft, but it has been bypassed in the past for special circumstances. The grand fly-past on the occasion of 75 years of independence merits the home-grown Tejas imho. There are ways of reducing probability of bird hit, by imposing a higher height...

ManuJ

Whoever thought that it was a good idea to exclude the lone Indian fighter jet from a flypast marking 75 years of independence needs to have his head examined.

At least half of the displayed hardware in such parades needs to desi. We need to stop glorifying foreign maal.

ManuJ

why did women workforce fell from 32% to 20% starting 2006/2007 timeframe? Is it something to do with MNREGA? I had the same question after watching the video. MGNREGA has consistently seen women participation at above 50% (though there's a small downward trend) so I can't imagine that's the reason...

ManuJ

Rakesh wrote: https://twitter.com/alpha_defense/statu ... 35329?s=20 ---> @larsentoubro to make turret of Arjun Mk1A for DRDO and Indian Army.

AFAIK, the turret is not for Arjun Mk1A, it is for the FMBT. A modified Mk1A will be used to test the turret.

ManuJ

I see several tweets listing canceled imports, but no official statement.
Does anyone have a link to the relevant GOI statement/press release?

ManuJ

It appears there may be no EMALS on IAC-II. If it is a steam launched system, it could be a locally developed one. Three aircraft carriers an ‘unavoidable requirement’, says House panel https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/three-aircraft-carriers-an-unavoidable-requirement-says-house-panel/articl...

ManuJ

The best way to undermine Xi and the Chinese Community Party is to overwhelmingly support the One China policy but at the same time to promote Taiwan's flourishing democracy and free society as the template to follow for One China. Highlight the glaring differences in the way the two countries' poli...

ManuJ

Having burned bridges with its Anglosaxon allies and lost the mega submarine deal to boot, France must be desperate to cement its strategic alliance with India and secure a significant win for its military industrial complex. Rafale deal of Make in India doesn't sound far-fetched any more.

ManuJ

First mention of an impending deal for more Rafales. Hope she knows what she's talking about. It’s clearer to India than ever that Quad is no military alliance. Everything’s a bit AUKUS https://theprint.in/opinion/global-print/its-clearer-to-india-than-ever-that-quad-is-no-military-alliance-everythi...

ManuJ

What other IDDM projects have we seen go through this? This CCS clearance is the clearance to procure not the project sanction afaik. RFP and selection for what? The project is already matured, what is there to select? Please read the news article in the original link. The DRDO will now issue RFP s...

ManuJ

Good news, but this is not the final approval. https://theprint.in/defence/modi-govt-okays-6-more-eyes-in-the-sky-for-iaf-drdo-project-to-cost-rs-11000-crore/730697/ CCS is final approval but it’s not a contract, hope that comes soon. No, there will be another CCS approval after the RFP, selection,...

ManuJ

Good news, but this is not the final approval. While the CCS decision on the C-295 was the budgetary clearance for the actual signing of the contract, the Committee has cleared the “Acceptance of Necessity” (AoN) for the DRDO project, sources in the defence and security establishment told ThePrint. ...

ManuJ

Indian Army (and not BRO) has created an alternate connectivity between Leh and Tangste. ... I've done a detailed analysis with maps of the same here. Do have a look: https://theperspective.co.in/indian-army-creates-an-alternate-route-to-connect-leh-with-tangste/ Thanks Rohit, good analysis. The ne...

ManuJ

Ramana, can you point to any source for the claim that ACM Bhadauria hasn't embraced the CDS concept?
That's a pretty serious allegation.

ManuJ

John wrote:If you think that’s bad Navy deal with Pipavav was 800 crores each for its 1500 Ton OPV which was finally scrapped after a decade of delays so on the contrary going private might not always work out.

Did the IN or MOD or Indian taxpayers lose money on the Pipavav deal?

ManuJ

Rakesh wrote: Order another two squadrons of Rafales and end this MRFA tamasha. Invest in Super Sukhoi upgrade and get that production line for the Mk1As up & running.

Like!
Sometimes the right thing to do is so obvious it's frustrating to not have everyone on the same page.

ManuJ

One thing to note is that this is not really a military defeat. A lot of blame is being put on the Afghan national army, and on the other hand the Taliban militia is being given a lot of credit. However, the truth is that there was hardly any major engagement between the two forces. In most major ci...

ManuJ

Indian Navy has twin objectives: to have a 3-carrier navy and to ultimately have a 65K-70K, CATOBAR, nuclear-powered carrier. Another national objective is to not lose the carrier-building expertise gained painfully over the last 2 decades. Therefore the next carrier will be built fairly soon, regar...

ManuJ

I'm all for theatre commands, but the current plan seems confused and too army-centric. Army's Northern Command not being part of any theatre command doesn't make any sense. Not clear which air defense assets would be part of the theatre commands and which would be part of the Air Defense Command. W...

ManuJ

Why are all these calculations assuming that a carrier needs to have its full complement of the fixed-wing air arm for it to be deployed?
Agreed it's non-optimal, but still better to have both ships deployed with 2/3rd strength each than one ship at a time.

ManuJ

If we're going with theatre commands, why is there a single Air Defense Command?
Shouldn't air defense assets be part of each command? Or would the Air Defense Command only have strategic assets (e.g. ABMs)?

ManuJ

Can't just put the blame on the babus and leave it at that. It's Goyal's decision at the end.
He seems to be an efficient manager but not a visionary leader.

ManuJ

The 2nd division for 17 Mountain Corps finally being raised.

https://theprint.in/defence/army-to-rai ... %20learnt.

ManuJ

Article on CATS Warrior by Vishnu Som: The drone, called Warrior, is part of an indigenous programme called CATS or Combat Air Teaming System, described as "a composite amalgamation of manned and unmanned platforms which work together to penetrate heavily defended enemy airspace." In simpl...

ManuJ

The problem imho is that IA and India's strategic community doesn't have clarity of thought around the role of armor in the future of warfare. IA cannot decide whether it wants heavy well-protected tanks or light & mobile tanks or unmanned automated tanks or whether it wants to do away with tank...

ManuJ

DRDO website has an image of the Himtapak bukhari

ManuJ

India's pathetic legal system and law-and-order situation (both are related of course) affects every common man, deteriorating quality of lives and greatly reducing productivity. I'm sure there are studies to show how much GDP is lost because of these issues which have very practical solutions but n...

ManuJ

Airbus touts C-295's hot and high performance, especially with the newer versions of the aircraft.

ManuJ

Carriers are very important to the nation. They have a very big role to play in diplomacy. Diplomacy, narrative building, giving confidence to partners in littorals are very important national functions of carriers. War fighting is only part of their function. An important part, but only part. The ...

ManuJ

Let me start off with this. My unequivocal answer is, yes I believe in the Indian Navy's long term plan. Rakesh, thanks for humoring me and clarifying your stance. Good to know that your objections are essentially about EMALS and CATOBAR rather than about the carriers themselves or IN's overall pla...

ManuJ

No problems with carriers, CATOBAR or STOBAR, 45K or 65K or whatever other size. The issue is funding and time. It is that plain and simple Manu. Everything else is secondary. Sorry, but you're wrong. It is all about the long term vision and planning. Funding is variable and a diminishing constrain...

ManuJ

So Rakesh and chola, am I correct in understanding that you're both in favor of the 3rd carrier and the long-term vision of Indian Navy as a carrier-led force?

The differences in opinions seem to be whether the new carrier should be closer to the current 45K one or closer to US Navy's mega-carriers.

ManuJ

The discussion is getting muddled because there is no clarity on what is being proposed and opposed. Without getting into discussions on CATOBAR, propulsion, size and even on the number of carriers, the central question is whether the Navy's plan for a carrier-led naval force is reasonable and wheth...

ManuJ

When the defence budget for 2021 comes out, let us examine the Navy's share of the budget and especially the CAPEX part. That will settle once in for all (for that year), whether it is going to be dal roti or Delhi Darbaar Murgh-Masala. Just seeing the trends and the Navy's voice, I am going to sti...

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