Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

The Military Issues & History Forum is a venue to discuss issues relating to the military aspects of the Indian Armed Forces, whether the past, present or future. We request members to kindly stay within the mandate of this forum and keep their exchanges of views, on a civilised level, however vehemently any disagreement may be felt. All feedback regarding forum usage may be sent to the moderators using the Feedback Form or by clicking the Report Post Icon in any objectionable post for proper action. Please note that the views expressed by the Members and Moderators on these discussion boards are that of the individuals only and do not reflect the official policy or view of the Bharat-Rakshak.com Website. Copyright Violation is strictly prohibited and may result in revocation of your posting rights - please read the FAQ for full details. Users must also abide by the Forum Guidelines at all times.
Post Reply
Manish_P
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5383
Joined: 25 Mar 2010 17:34

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Manish_P »

rohitvats wrote:Pakistan Army Primer

- This is the first episode of a series which will explore the Pakistan Army in detail.
...
Really looking forward to this. And wishing you the best for the series to find a very wide audience. Thanks.
Baikul
BRFite
Posts: 1462
Joined: 20 Sep 2010 06:47

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Baikul »

I don’t know if this is the right forum:

Ex COAS Gen SF Rodrigues has passed away. Salute soldier.

https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/natio ... ay-375050y




.
Yagnasri
BRF Oldie
Posts: 10388
Joined: 29 May 2007 18:03

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Yagnasri »

Om Shanti
venkat_kv
BRFite
Posts: 459
Joined: 05 Dec 2020 21:01

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by venkat_kv »

Om shanti to the departed.
Manmohan
BRFite -Trainee
Posts: 72
Joined: 11 Mar 2019 20:29

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Manmohan »

Cross Posting from Books Folder.

Image

Link

Sharing some excerpts with the permission of the author
While writing this book, I didn’t have a title in mind, so I titled the word document during its creation phase as ‘Story Book’. Looking back today, after finishing this book, I realize that it was in a way, a working title that perfectly sums up what this book is about – A collection of stories about a facet of military life that not many outside of this profession are aware of.

Normally, when we see a soldier – whether in real life or on social / mainstream media, what we see is a man or a woman donning a uniform and carrying on with their duty. Practically each and every soldier in this context seems indistinguishable from any other.

To be fair, this is how militaries operate – As a group of men and women bearing arms for the safety and integrity of their Nations. Rambos exist only in Hollywood movies. Real life militaries work as teams of men and women.

However, this visualization of soldiers in the form of unseen faces in similar uniforms leaves out one critical aspect – that of the man who actually dons the uniform, and puts his life on the line in the course of his chosen profession.

My aim behind writing this book was to bring out this man behind the uniform. He too is a human being, just like the rest of his countrymen. He too is a product of this very society from which we all hail. And yet, there is so little that is known about him.

In order to bring this out, I have relied mostly on my own experiences of being a military man for the past 25 odd years of my life. These 25 years have taught me first-hand that military isn’t a mere career; it is instead a way of life. This way of life has not only taught me so many different lessons, but has also blessed me with a huge family that comes with the job!

The reason for I deciding to write this book was to tell you, Dear Reader, a bit about this family and the way it lives. Not too many serving soldiers or veterans have written about this aspect of soldiering, leading to misconceptions and clichés filling up this void.

Valuable life lessons have been taught to me at the unlikeliest of places by the unlikeliest of people. These have included peers, senior officers, as well as the juniormost soldiers of the battalion. I have named a few of them in this book, while many more have not found a mention. Yet, each and every one of them is owed a debt of gratitude that cannot be repaid, ever.

The greatest endowment by my career thus far has been thick bonds of brotherhood that have lasted for nearly a quarter of century already, and will no doubt, carry on till the time I breathe my last. There are a few such brothers who have fallen in the course of duty, yet they too are cherished and remembered by all that knew them.

What pains at times is the fact that not much is written, or otherwise known about what goes into making the Indian soldier what he is. What is normally seen is merely the manifestation of a way of life that produces some excellent soldiers.

My hope is that this book will, to some extent, fill the void that exists as far as knowing the person behind the uniform goes, as well as the Way of Life that the Indian Army is.

Happy Reading!

LEARNING – A TWO WAY STREET

In the Indian Army, the responsibility to administer, train and lead a battalion rests on the shoulders of the officers, JCOs and NCOs. Direction always flows downward from the top man – the Commanding Officer, who is also the person on whose shoulder rests the final responsibility of whatever happens within the battalion.

Such is the responsibility reposed in each and every Commanding Officer of the Indian Army. But then, how does a young, 22 year old guy get to a stage where in a span of hardly 15-16 years of service, he becomes competent enough to take life or death decisions for a body of 800 or more men?

This is what I intend to partly bring out by the way of this story.

The younger days of any officer’s life in the Indian Army are not only amongst the most memorable ones, but they also play a crucial role in deciding what kind of an officer he becomes as he grows in service. For a battalion, it is a sacred responsibility since a good officer who can lead his men effectively on and off the battlefield, is worth his weight in gold.

Thus, mentorship of young officers who join a battalion is a responsibility that rests on the shoulders of practically each and every soldier of the battalion, from the youngest NCO, JCOs, his immediate senior officer (or subaltern), right upto the Commanding Officer of the battalion.

Such mentoring usually happens in the form of structured training in the drills and traditions of the battalion during the first one month of a young officer reporting to the battalion wherein he is made to stay with the troops in their barracks and learn their duties, their routine and such likes. In this duration, he gradually progresses from the duties / responsibilities of the junior-most rifleman to those of the NCOs and JCOs, followed by an exposure to the workings of the Battalion Headquarters under the mentorship of the Adjutant, the Quartermaster and their respective head clerks.

It is only after this month-long ‘line attachment’ that a young officer is ‘dined in’ as a member of the Officers’ Mess and shifts from the troops’ barracks to the single officers’ lodgings in the battalion.

However, this doesn’t mean that the mentorship phase is over. Typically it continues for the first few years of a young officer’s service and I mentioned earlier, practically each and every person in the battalion does his bit.

I too have been through the same mentorship process.

My first experience of it happened on the very second day in the battalion when I reported for the first parade of the day – the Physical Training, or the PT Parade. It was forty minutes of sweating even in the coldest part of the Delhi winters, what with a longish run followed by various workouts back in the battalion football field.

When the parade got over, all of us would run back to our barracks to quickly change in order to be ready in time for office. However, I suddenly heard the senior NCO calling me out after the parade was over.

I went back to him and was politely told, ‘Sir, we don’t wear this kind of shoes to PT Parade.’

That was all I needed to know even as that NCO with 22 years’ service behind him dismissed the 22 year old me, with all of two days of service in the battalion, with a gentle smile.

Needless to say, after lunch, one rifleman came over to me with a new pair of shoes for PT parade, alongwith a bill for the same, to be paid to the battalion’s canteen!

This was the first step in a continuous process of mentorship which actually continued even during my days as the battalion commander, but that is a story for another book!

What I intend to write here is another part of those early days of mine in the battalion – being the captain of the Battalion Football Team.

You see, Gorkhas are typically amongst the best footballers that there are. Not many can even think of beating a team of a Gorkha Battalion when it comes to inter-battalion football tournaments in the Indian Army.

In fact, they are so good that they will typically make a team with 10 players and whichever slot they are unable to fill in, will automatically go to the officer who is to be mandatorily a part of the team in the competition.

For most part, the officers in such teams find themselves outclassed by their fellow teammates, who are more than capable of carrying the match on their own. Now, this shouldn’t be seen as a commentary on the officer-men relationship in any way. This is just the way things are as far as many sports competitions go where the entire team is merit based, whereas the mandatory participation by an officer depends upon who is available in the battalion at that point in time and what caliber of a player he is.

So it was under such circumstances that I found myself as the captain of the battalion football team in the summer of 2004. The position allotted to me was that of the Centre-Forward.

Now, I know it is a key position, but before you go gaga, let me once again re-emphasize that it was the only position left unmanned after the rest of the players had been allotted their positions by the coach!

At the same time, the 24 year + 8 months old me was one of the oldest members of the team whose average age, less me, was less than 22 years!

However, one thing going for me was that for the past two and half years in the battalion, I had played football with the boys for atleast two hours a day and dare I say, from being just an average footballer during my training days, I had improved a lot, thanks to the relentless sessions with my boys.

Of course, I had also trained with the battalion team for nearly two months ahead of the competition, and they knew my strengths and weaknesses, as did I in their case.

It was a happy team, and dare I say, a supremely talented and confident one as well.

And they knew it.

As did every other potential competitor!


Soon the big day arrived and the Divisional Inter-Battalion Football Championship 2004 commenced in the small hill town where we were located. A total of 17 teams were participating.

The pace was relentless, with not even a single day’s break since the competition had to be completed within six days, from a Monday to the next Saturday. This meant a match every day for every team!

Matches continued apace.

In this duration, I was also responsible for training the battalion team for the mine-laying competition that too was carrying on concurrently. This involved practicing and demonstrating an elaborate set of drills while laying a minefield - a procedure that took a minimum of four hours from start to finish. But I will come to that in a while.
Manmohan
BRFite -Trainee
Posts: 72
Joined: 11 Mar 2019 20:29

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Manmohan »

Carrying on from the above post
Cruising along, we were soon in the semi-finals, pitched against a local team of a Garhwal Rifles battalion who gave us a good run for our money that Friday evening!

Oh, by the way, the Centre-Forward of my battalion team had scored three goals in the tournament by then. And yes, that was me!

I was having a good run over the past few days – playing my match whether it was scheduled in the morning or the evening session, and spending rest of the day training with the mine laying team!

Anyhow, as they say, all good things must finally come to an end. So did this glory run of mine on the day of the semi-finals.

The opponent team was a good and strong one indeed. What added to the sense of competition was the fact that they and us were part of the same brigade, entrusted to go to war together. But here, this meant that we were in a bitter battle amongst ourselves.

Mind you, I use the word ‘bitter’ in the above statement with due consideration. It was a matter of honour for both the teams – us because, well, we were the most hyped up team, and they, because not only were they organizing the tournament, but this particular match was to be played on their home ground!

Needless to say, both the battalions turned out in nearly full strength to cheer their respective teams. This included ladies and children of the soldiers as well. Of course, occupying the best seats in the ground were the Brigade Commander himself along with his wife, flanked by both his Commanding Officers and their wives as well.

As I said, it was perhaps the toughest match of the tournament that we played. The Garhwalis were a bunch of good footballers individually, as well as a team. But then, so were we.

Just short of the half-time mark I sensed an opportunity as someone lobbed a ball towards the goal. To be fair, it was the goalkeeper’s ball, yet I in my exuberance decided to attempt to head it into the goal.

Of course the inevitable happened.

My 52 kilo frame collided mid-air with the goalkeeper’s 66 kilo frame!

The result was as expected. One moment I was up in the air, dreaming of yet another goal and the next moment I was lying flat on the ground, unable to breathe!

Pretty soon people realized that I was badly off. The match was stopped and medics rushed to the ground. I am told that I lay immobile for more than five minutes. I was conscious throughout, but was struggling to breathe, or even move.

Thankfully, I gradually regained control of my faculties and slowly got up, to a huge sigh of relief all around. After moving around tentatively for a while, trying to ascertain my state of health, I declared that I would carry on with the game, without substitution. That the half-time was hardly five minutes away also played a part in this decision.

In the midst of it all, my immediate senior in the battalion, or my senior subaltern, who was my earmarked substitute, had puffed away on three cigarettes, in the worry that he might finally be called upon to enter the field to try and kick a ball!

Anyhow, the match commenced and soon half-time was called. I spent the entire half-time lying on a bench, trying to recover from the fall that had nearly broken my neck.

Somewhat rejuvenated, I entered the second half with renewed gusto.

However, that too was soon kicked out of my system!

At some point in that half, I was running after an opponent who had the ball, trying to take it away from him. Somehow, in the process, his elbow connected with my jaw.

Whether it was intentional or unintentional is immaterial now after all these years.

What followed after that moment, however, is going to be etched in my memory forever!

It all happened in slow motion. I was insanely mad the moment he hit me. I knew I was falling down. In that moment all I wanted to do was to make him fall down too.

So I tried to grab hold of him on my way to meet the ground.

Unfortunately, I only managed to grab his shorts. Resultantly, he himself didn’t fall down, but was definitely immobilized, trying to pull up his shorts and cover his modesty, but for one little problem – I had a death grip on that particular garment at that moment!

He knew I was mad.

I think everyone in the ground and those watching the match knew it as well.

I also think my senior subaltern had lit up yet another cigarette by then!

Anyhow, oblivious to all of this, the moment I finished falling, I shouted some of the choicest profanities at him at the top of my voice.

And right at about that very moment, I slowly became aware of my surroundings.

I was lying on the ground at about the half-line of the field, less than six metres from the dais seating the Brigade Commander, both Commanding Officers and their wives.

And I was still holding the opponent’s shorts!

That poor fellow! All that he could do was look pleadingly at me!

Anyhow, realizing that I had landed myself in a pickle, I knew I needed a way out of this mess as well. So I did the next best thing that came to my mind – I let go of that guy’s shorts, got up and ran away from the scene as if nothing had happened!

All of this had happened in a span of less than 10 seconds, during which I, perhaps the most docile youngster of the battalion, had nearly stripped a guy half-naked and had also let lose a volley of profanities well within the earshot of some very senior officers and their wives. Not just that, but I had also ended up establishing momentary eye-contact with them all during all this!

And the match continued.

The opponents were a tough bunch, almost as good as us!

Anyhow, the second half as well as the extra time ended with neither team able to score a goal. So it all came down to the penalty shoot-out.

What happened next would put any sports thriller movie to shame.

We missed both the goals in the first two attempts while the Garhwalis scored on both occasions.

A deathly silence descended over our side of the audience, even as the home crowds of the opponents went wild with ecstasy.

But there were three more attempts left.

There was still hope, however dim.

However, I couldn’t bear to see it. I turned away from the scene of action, knowing that we were on the verge of losing the match after all those months of toil and the past few days of not conceding a single goal while scoring in excess of 30, even if more than half of them came against a single team.

So I decided to try and shut myself out of the humiliation that was sure to come, turning my back to the scene of the action and closing my eyes.

Only that it didn’t turn out that way.

God bless Rakesh, our goalkeeper, who saved ALL THREE attempts on his goalpost while the rest of our shooters scored all three!

The entire field soon erupted with wild shrieks of joy as practically the entire battalion of mine rushed onto the field to lift the team on their shoulders. It took quite some time and efforts for order to be restored so that the customary End of Match ceremonies could be conducted.

Match in bag, the Gorkhas and their families marched off to their lines in one big and slow victory procession, with the Commanding Officer himself dancing away in bliss, alongwith them.

Of course, the broken and battered me quietly drove back home to my wife of five months who was shocked out of her wits when she saw me. It took quite some time and effort to stop her from crying!

Thankfully, seeing my state, the Battalion 2iC had excused me from an Officers’ Mess function to which we all were invited later that evening. I was really badly off from both the injuries. In fact, such was the injury to my jaw that for the next four days I couldn’t eat any solid food, and had to rely on fluids instead!

A good night’s rest later, I woke up fresh and ready to take on the world the next day, which happened to be a Saturday. The first order of the day was to get ready and move out with the Battalion Mine Laying Team to the site of the competition, some 75 minutes’ drive away!

Anyhow, we did our bit in the mine laying competition and rushed back because we all were keen to be there in time for the final match of the football championship later that evening; my fellow mine-laying buddies because they wanted to see and cheer their team and I, because .. well .. I was the damned captain of the team and could not be found missing from the finals!

The final match was with a fellow Gorkha battalion of a neighbouring brigade who surprised us by scoring the first goal. Mind you, it was the first field goal scored against our team in that tournament. Yet they weren’t half as tough a competition as the Garhwalis whom we had met and defeated in the semis barely 24 hours ago. Needless to say, we soon scored two goals and took a lead by the second half.

As the match drew to a close, the opponent team tried desperately to equalize. After a point in time, they pushed practically each and every player of theirs into our half, hoping to swamp us and score. But they still couldn’t succeed.

At this point in time, a foul-ball somewhere near the half-line led to us getting possession and a free kick. I don’t know what came over me, but just as the ball was passed to the Right-Out of my team, I made a mad dash for the goalpost.

Sarad, the Right-Out soon reached the corner of the field and I shouted out to him for a pass. He obliged by lobbing the ball towards the goalpost and I managed to head it, thereby scoring what was to be the final goal of the tournament!

The moment I realized I had scored, I was beside myself with joy.

The very next moment came a pat on my back. I turned to see who it was.

It was the oldest member of the team, a recently promoted NCO named Norgen. Yes, he came up to me to give me a pat on my back. And he said, ‘Hard work ALWAYS gets you good reward.’

Mind you, the English translation doesn’t even come close to what he actually said in Nepalese that evening, and the way he said it.

But here it was - an NCO giving a pat on the back to a young officer. An officer, who was in a way, not so young anymore, having spent more than 30 months in the battalion and already mentoring two younger officers himself. Yet my own mentorship too continued apace.

Norgen had only done what came quite naturally to him. He had seen me toil and sweat and bleed with the team for the past many months. He had seen me work harder than most of my teammates because whereas they had sheer talent and were the best of the best available in the battalion, I had to rely on pure hard work just to play catch-up with them.

Through this all, the team had carried me along, ending with a high when I scored that final goal. I have no shame in admitting that this remains the very best football team I have seen the battalion field, even 18 years later, including the three during which I commanded the battalion and tried to replicate it.

Norgen went on to play for the Army Team soon thereafter, as did two more boys from the team.

Oh, my wife was also there in the audience that evening when I scored that goal. Too bad that she was busy chatting with someone and missed seeing me score that goal!

Before I forget, a quick word about the mine-laying competition as well!

Many weeks later, the Battalion Subedar Major, the seniormost JCO and the grand old man of the battalion, told me what went through his mind when he saw me fall in the semi-final. Expecting a word or two of concern about one of the battalion officers, I looked at him in anticipation.

‘The moment you fell, I thought who would take the mine-laying team for the competition tomorrow’, he said!

It took me a moment to digest what I had just heard. I am sure the Subedar Major would have seen a flood of emotions crossing my face, before I realized that he did have a point!

We stood second in the entire Division in that competition as well!

That was one hell of a tenure. We worked hard .. insanely hard, in fact.

And we played hard!

Baikul
BRFite
Posts: 1462
Joined: 20 Sep 2010 06:47

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Baikul »

Lovely stuff Manmohan ji. I love reading army memoirs.

You will forgive me if I don’t cheer the author on his victory in the semi finals, since I support the Garhwal Rifles!

And the hill station that the author refers to but does not name - Lancedowne would be my guess.
ks_sachin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2906
Joined: 24 Jun 2000 11:31
Location: Sydney

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by ks_sachin »

Baikul wrote:Lovely stuff Manmohan ji. I love reading army memoirs.

You will forgive me if I don’t cheer the author on his victory in the semi finals, since I support the Garhwal Rifles!
Now your true colours are coming out!!!

Imaging my problem where my loyalties are divided between JAKLI, Marathas and Dogras!!!
Baikul
BRFite
Posts: 1462
Joined: 20 Sep 2010 06:47

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Baikul »

ks_sachin wrote:
Baikul wrote:Lovely stuff Manmohan ji. I love reading army memoirs.

You will forgive me if I don’t cheer the author on his victory in the semi finals, since I support the Garhwal Rifles!
Now your true colours are coming out!!!

Imaging my problem where my loyalties are divided between JAKLI, Marathas and Dogras!!!
Lol. That’s some line up,

I only meant in this case. I may have other loyalties too!
ks_sachin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2906
Joined: 24 Jun 2000 11:31
Location: Sydney

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by ks_sachin »

Baikul wrote:
ks_sachin wrote:
Now your true colours are coming out!!!

Imaging my problem where my loyalties are divided between JAKLI, Marathas and Dogras!!!
Lol. That’s some line up,

I only meant in this case. I may have other loyalties too!
Grandfather was commissioned in Marathas. Raised a J&K militia bn in 47 which is today 8JAKLi then commanded 2nd Dogras. Dad commanded 2nd as well.
Manish_Sharma
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5128
Joined: 07 Sep 2009 16:17

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Manish_Sharma »

https://twitter.com/cvkrishnan/status/1 ... 33_fQ&s=19

1st point to note: The US had 17000 Anti tank Weapons lying around to donate and the ability to ship them in 6 days.

2nd point: A 2000 km live border against Russian armor necessitates this much.

Fighting PLA armor in LAC will require something similar

? ? ?

WHY MOST OF OUR BORDER WITH LIZARD IS NOT TANK COUNTRY?
rohitvats
BR Mainsite Crew
Posts: 7830
Joined: 08 Sep 2005 18:24
Location: Jatland

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by rohitvats »

- In this episode of The Perspective, I will take you through the various branches of the Indian Army.
- This will help you to understand better how the Indian Army is organized and how it functions.
- Each branch of the Indian Army has an area of expertise and soldiers are trained in specific areas.
- Various branches are combined together in optimal proportion to create a cohesive fighting formation.
- The various branches of the army are divided into three broad categories depending on their role and specialization. These are:
(1) Combat Arms
(2) Combat Support Arms
(3) Services.
----
This might a bit basic for many here but posting it for wider reach and understanding of BRF readers.

MeshaVishwas
BRFite
Posts: 868
Joined: 16 Feb 2019 17:20

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by MeshaVishwas »


Important discussion between Gen Manoj Naravane and Shri Nitin Gokhale
wig
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2162
Joined: 09 Feb 2009 16:58

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by wig »

https://www.tribuneindia.com/news/natio ... ces-376207

MacGregor medal for 4 from armed forces dated 08 march 2022
extracts
Four from the armed forces were today awarded the prestigious United Services Institution (USI) MacGregor Memorial Medal for extreme adventure activities that will help in military operations.

Maj Ajay Kumar Singh from Para Special Forces led a 1,660-km ARMEX 21 (ski expedition) from Karakoram in Ladakh to Uttarakhand across 26 rugged passes above 18,000 ft in “the great Himalayas” for 119 days during winters.

Sanjay Kumar, Chief EA (P), of the Indian Navy, participated in La Ultra 111 km, toughest race, including crossing of Khardungla Pass (17,982 ft).

Naib Subedar Sanjeev Kumar created a new world record in powered harness hang glider by staying aloft for eight hours and 43 minutes across a distance of 465.33 km.
MWO Anshu Kumar Tiwari of the IAF was tasked to check feasibility of parachute landing at Khardungla Pass to demonstrate the airborne capability. He jumped from 24,000 ft establishing operational validity of this critical parachute system.
k prasad
BRFite
Posts: 962
Joined: 21 Oct 2007 17:38
Location: Somewhere over the Rainbow
Contact:

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by k prasad »

MeshaVishwas wrote:Important discussion between Gen Manoj Naravane and Shri Nitin Gokhale
Nitin Gokhale does very good work snagging interviews with excellent people in the defence setup, but god, he's a terrible interviewer. Apart from the constant interjections of 'correct' and 'right' (which brings to mind this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xZEJvDlOlg) that often break the flow of the interviewee's thoughts, he rarely asks the incisive questions that need asking by way of follow-ups to get to the depth of a topic.
Cyrano
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5461
Joined: 28 Mar 2020 01:07

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Cyrano »

Yeah, it was my feeling as well. He needs to do better than have a "casual chat" with important guests like Gen N.
MeshaVishwas
BRFite
Posts: 868
Joined: 16 Feb 2019 17:20

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by MeshaVishwas »

I found it informative.
Gen Naravane was very level headed, answered firmly but was diplomatic.
SidSoma
BRFite
Posts: 241
Joined: 16 Feb 2018 15:09

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by SidSoma »

k prasad wrote: Nitin Gokhale does very good work snagging interviews with excellent people in the defence setup, but god, he's a terrible interviewer. Apart from the constant interjections of 'correct' and 'right' (which brings to mind this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xZEJvDlOlg) that often break the flow of the interviewee's thoughts, he rarely asks the incisive questions that need asking by way of follow-ups to get to the depth of a topic.

Me thinks that he had to stick to the pre approved question list (without deviating too far) and only on that condition he gets these interviews.
srin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2508
Joined: 11 Aug 2016 06:13

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by srin »

k prasad wrote:
MeshaVishwas wrote:Important discussion between Gen Manoj Naravane and Shri Nitin Gokhale
Nitin Gokhale does very good work snagging interviews with excellent people in the defence setup, but god, he's a terrible interviewer. Apart from the constant interjections of 'correct' and 'right' (which brings to mind this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2xZEJvDlOlg) that often break the flow of the interviewee's thoughts, he rarely asks the incisive questions that need asking by way of follow-ups to get to the depth of a topic.
Agree 100%. It was atrocious behavior, extremely annoying. I don't know how the good Gen to tolerate it with such grace. And quite superficial questions too.
GShankar
BRFite
Posts: 974
Joined: 16 Sep 2016 20:20

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by GShankar »

Question to esteemed maulaners:

When military folks go to foreign training camps, academies and educational institutions, do we have a mechanism to monitor/understand/re-orient the mindset if needed to align (back) with our priorities?

I am assuming such a concept/mechanism is there and I am trying to learn how we deal with this.

PS: Just saw a few posts ago that army men got puraskars from massa and thus this question.
Vidur
BRFite
Posts: 309
Joined: 20 Aug 2017 18:57

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Vidur »

rohitvats wrote:- In this episode of The Perspective, I will take you through the various branches of the Indian Army.
- This will help you to understand better how the Indian Army is organized and how it functions.
- Each branch of the Indian Army has an area of expertise and soldiers are trained in specific areas.
- Various branches are combined together in optimal proportion to create a cohesive fighting formation.
- The various branches of the army are divided into three broad categories depending on their role and specialization. These are:
(1) Combat Arms
(2) Combat Support Arms
(3) Services.
----
This might a bit basic for many here but posting it for wider reach and understanding of BRF readers.

I was not aware that EME has been designated a combat support arm. It was a service like AOC, ASC and AMC when I was in South Block last. When did this happen ? You may also want to give some more background on the Corps of Engrs which is senior to infantry and one of the oldest arms and highly decorated with a VC,PVC,AC . They are the closest to infantry in their class composition, training and ethos and often join the infantry in their assault after their engineer task is done. I remember seeing a study which showed that the Corps of Engrs had the highest casualties after infantry. Incidently of all the Combat Support Arms its only the sappers who have had many Army Cdrs, Vice Chiefs and of course they came close to having one chief. And who knows what the next few weeks hold ?

I have found ENGR officers very high calibre and out of the box thinkers like Armoured Corps. Infantry and Arty officers tend to be more career minded and stick to safe thinking. Especially Infantry. A study of the impact of CI Ops and fighting battles on own soil on infantry thinking would be most interesting. ARTRAC has not done anything like that to my knowledge.
Last edited by Vidur on 14 Mar 2022 23:11, edited 1 time in total.
Vidur
BRFite
Posts: 309
Joined: 20 Aug 2017 18:57

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Vidur »

There is an interesting story about rivalry with the infantry which I saw. The ENGRS always marches ahead of the infantry as traditionally they are the first to go into battle to clear the minefields, build bridges etc. Their marching standards were excellent so in many Republic Day Parades they won the best marching contingent. Many times the infantry objected to this saying they feel humiliated and also that they don't get the time to practice. The ENGRS countered giving casualty nos, battle honours and made the very correct point that all marching practice for RD parades happens in regimental centres not in piquets. The matter came to the ministry. The ministry decided not to take a stand and let the COAS decide. The COAS (an infantry man) took the decision that instead of the ENGRs participating in every RD parade as was the case since the parade started, the ENGRS would participate only once in three years ! An interesting solution to reduce competition. Sometimes the services are their own worst enemies rather than the IAS and allied services.
ks_sachin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2906
Joined: 24 Jun 2000 11:31
Location: Sydney

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by ks_sachin »

Vidur wrote: Sometimes the services are their own worst enemies rather than the IAS and allied services.
I know of this decision. There are other such decisions that have created issues as well. Your point about the services being their own worst enemies is spot on and actually, I believe that there is a kind of victim mentality in the services where everything is blamed on the MoD and the IAS rather than looking inwards to fix issues.
Avik
BRFite
Posts: 217
Joined: 06 Oct 2009 00:16

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Avik »

the ENGRS would participate only once in three years
is that true though? To the best of my knowledge, Engineers participate every year; its just that they rotate amongst the three engineer groups- Madras, Bengal and Bombay.
BTW, ENGRS are also, I think, the only contingent that gets three columns- marching, band and mechanized/mounted. Only Arty matches them,and they are three times the size of ENGRS
srin
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2508
Joined: 11 Aug 2016 06:13

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by srin »

Why is Army Aviation a combat support arm ? Or is that relic of the past where aviation was for transport and logistics, and didn't account for attack helos or air assault ?
Manish_Sharma
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5128
Joined: 07 Sep 2009 16:17

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Manish_Sharma »

@ShimlaHelpline :

A Tale Untold: MUST PAY TRIBUTE

A Young Kashmiri lad Iftikaar Bhatt, with shoulder length hair and wearing the traditional Kashmiri Pheran, approached the dreaded Hizbul Mujahideen in Shopian, Kashmir sometime during 2003.
When asked why he wanted to fight the Indian army,

he threw the choicest expletives at the army in chaste kashmiri, whom he held responsible for his brother's death during a stone pelting incident.

When his story checked out, he was taken to Pakistan for further training. Unlike other recruits this young lad displayed

outstanding initiative and religious zeal and was promptly marked for further leadership and ideological training.

He was finally given a chance to cross the LOC and carry out an attack on an Indian army Outpost. In an unprecedented move, he was deputed directly under Abu Sabja

and Abu Torara(war names), Commanders of Hizbul Mujahideen with decades of effective insurgency experience under their belt, for further grooming and leadership training.

In 2004, he convinced both that he can carry out an attack on the army outpost causing maximum damage.

He took them to a vantage point and detailed his plan, impressing them both.

Abu Sabjar though had a doubt as to how this young guy, with no military experience, could plan a military attack so meticulously. He started asking him questions about his background and story.

Sensing the distrust the young lad gave them his AK47 and said they can shoot him if they don't trust him and walked away with his back to them. Going a few paces, he stopped, pulled out his Tokarev 9mm pistol from his waistband and shot them both Dead. Two to the chest, one to the head. Trademark shots of an Indian army Para SF operator.

The two terrorist commanders didn't know what or who hit them. Iftikaar Bhatt picked up all the weapons walked to the nearest army camp.
His real name was Major Mohit Sharma, 1 Para SF, (Madras Regiment) Indian army

Later, he killed 4 terrorists and rescued 2 of his colleagues.

This officer laid down his life in cordon and search operations in Kashmir in 2009. His last words to his 2IC was, "Make sure not one escapes the net."
Yesterday was his death anniversary.

Thank you Major!


https://twitter.com/ShimlaHelpline/stat ... WY0uw&s=19
Dexter
BRFite -Trainee
Posts: 40
Joined: 02 Apr 2019 15:22

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Dexter »

I understand this info in in public domain because IA was okay with it.
What this Munna wants to know is why is IA okay with this info in public domain ?
bharathp
BRFite
Posts: 453
Joined: 24 Jul 2017 03:44

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by bharathp »

Dexter wrote:I understand this info in in public domain because IA was okay with it.
What this Munna wants to know is why is IA okay with this info in public domain ?
so recruiters will start doubting any new recruits and make it harder to recruit them?
Dexter
BRFite -Trainee
Posts: 40
Joined: 02 Apr 2019 15:22

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Dexter »

bharathp wrote: so recruiters will start doubting any new recruits and make it harder to recruit them?
Subhan Allah
Jay
BRFite
Posts: 697
Joined: 24 Feb 2005 18:24
Location: Gods Country
Contact:

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Jay »

Dexter wrote: What this Munna wants to know is why is IA okay with this info in public domain ?
OK, what will IA get from hiding this info? Not everything is a secret.
Dexter
BRFite -Trainee
Posts: 40
Joined: 02 Apr 2019 15:22

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Dexter »

Jay wrote: OK, what will IA get from hiding this info?
One more recruit in Hizzbul is my guess
Jay
BRFite
Posts: 697
Joined: 24 Feb 2005 18:24
Location: Gods Country
Contact:

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Jay »

Dexter wrote:
Jay wrote: OK, what will IA get from hiding this info?
One more recruit in Hizzbul is my guess
This would not hinder that goal, and sometimes we do need to Toot out victories. I presume people more qualified than me made that decision and thay may have considered what you are saying.
Manish_Sharma
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5128
Joined: 07 Sep 2009 16:17

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Manish_Sharma »

@AmitShah:
In a significant step, GoI under the decisive leadership of PM Shri @NarendraModi Ji has decided to reduce disturbed areas under Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in the states of Nagaland, Assam and Manipur after decades.
https://twitter.com/AmitShah/status/150 ... 1dXiA&s=19
_____________________

@rathorekaran17:
If AFSPA is removed, pull out the army. Don't expose them without AFSPA cover please.
https://twitter.com/rathorekaran17/stat ... HXW_g&s=19
Vidur
BRFite
Posts: 309
Joined: 20 Aug 2017 18:57

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Vidur »

DNA vs Doctrine. I think this is a very important point and will be pivotal in how we handle the next war which is perhaps coming in this decade. I had a discussion around this with a Army Cdr a couple of years ago. But that was a one off. The army does need to have a deep think about doctrine and how that fits with their DNA. May read this thread especially tweets 4-7 which is the crux.

https://twitter.com/Ak5985965/status/14 ... OJH_WDnjIg
Rakesh
Forum Moderator
Posts: 18190
Joined: 15 Jan 2004 12:31
Location: Planet Earth
Contact:

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Rakesh »

Lt Gen Manoj Pande set to become Indian Army Chief
https://www.deccanherald.com/national/l ... 97230.html
03 April 2022
Atmavik
BRFite
Posts: 1985
Joined: 24 Aug 2016 04:43

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Atmavik »

https://m.economictimes.com/news/defenc ... 671646.cms

Plans are moving to reduce the pension bill of the army. This similar to how US army recruits soldiers
Thakur_B
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2404
Joined: 11 Aug 2016 06:14

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Thakur_B »

Atmavik wrote:https://m.economictimes.com/news/defenc ... 671646.cms

Plans are moving to reduce the pension bill of the army. This similar to how US army recruits soldiers
Expect this to be highly unpopular move.
Manish_Sharma
BRF Oldie
Posts: 5128
Joined: 07 Sep 2009 16:17

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by Manish_Sharma »

https://twitter.com/Ak5985965/status/15 ... tJruQ&s=19

@Ak5985965:

The nation has 5000 crs a year to spend on minority affairs ministry plus 900 crs on Urdu to create more IIT Engineers who will attack mandirs. But we don't have money for the army so we have to resort to such measures https://t.co/dNaNaDXRS9
_____________________

https://twitter.com/SaranSanjaya/status ... vVVSw&s=19
Major General Sanjaya Saran:
IMCO this will majorly impact the combat efficiency of the Army. Institutionalised armies cannot be based on "tour of duty"rank and file. Developing fighting ability is time and resource intensive. Only hope this has been thought through and all aspects duly considered.
______________________

https://twitter.com/Ak5985965/status/15 ... qwl0w&s=19
@Ak5985965:
And for jawans it's worse. Do we want only cannon fodder for a dhava charge? How do you build the bonds? How will cadres work ? Have some COs been consulted on effect on units ? Or MS branch, Artarc, PP dir come up with this idea to please chief who wants to show "innovation"
VinodTK
BRF Oldie
Posts: 2976
Joined: 18 Jun 2000 11:31

Re: Indian Army News & Discussion - 23 March 2021

Post by VinodTK »

After Tibetology, Army cranking up Mandarin amid Ladakh confrontation
NEW DELHI: The Indian Army is cranking up its expertise on Mandarin and `advanced sector specialisations’ on China, which comes after additional forces and firepower were `rebalanced’ to the northern borders since the military confrontation erupted in eastern Ladakh almost two years ago.

After presentations were made to General M M Naravane, the 12-lakh strong Army is working to increase basic and advanced levels of Chinese language training for its soldiers within the force as well as in civilian universities and institutions across the country, sources said.
:
:
:
:
Post Reply