CT & COIN Operations in India: News, Images and Discussion

Prem Kumar · Post by **Prem Kumar** » 08 Dec 2014 22:32

That guy "Ghorcharrah Gabbar", as Rohit says is a known baiter, especially on the Arjun tank issue (Shukla is a supporter and Gabbar hates Arjun).

We can ask the Army to learn its lessons till kingdom come (& they will without anyone asking. The loss hurts them more than any of us). But its like saying you have fixed 900 gaps. Fix the remaining 100 too. Well, the last 100 are always the most difficult to fix. In the IT-vity world, one can reasonably find and fix 90% of the bugs in a reasonable time with a professional, skilled staff. But if you want your product to have Zero bugs, it will take infinite time & money. The effort/time/money curve becomes exponential from the 90 to the 100% mark!

This "lessons learnt" saga is exhausting & counter-productive beyond a point. The only "lesson learnt" is that attack (not just counter-attack but pro-active attack) is the best form of defense.

We should focus our energies on, as countless others have pointed out, fighting the battle "over there". Its far cheaper & far more deterrent. NaMo & Co should understand this. I hope COAS Suhag uses this opportunity to drive home the point. Consensus building with the public can go on in parallel but is not a must. Most of the public wants blood anyway & would gladly welcome a public counter-strike. The media is 90% sold out and NaMo studiously avoids them. Better to remain that way in this matter too.

Akshay Kapoor · Post by **Akshay Kapoor** » 08 Dec 2014 23:14

It is impossible to avoid casualties when the enemy has such an element of surprise and audacity. Also I remember reading some media reports that sentries did not challenge the vehicle the terrorists came in because of the fear of some shooting civvies. Its very difficult to fight with your hands tied behind you. And when your chain of command won't support you if mistakes happen. Over the decades as armed forces have been constantly degraded by the politico bureaucratic masters and all the problems of short periods of formation command , severe shortage of good officers etc is creating some serious problems. And the military justice system and discipline has been compromised by the armed forces tribunals. I was stunned to read today that Modi had forced the army to punish 7 personnel in an alleged fake encounter case. These things hurt the fabric of command.

And more and more pressure gets put on the handful of good YOs in a unit (recently one of my dear friends who is commanding a armoured regt said yaar ek accha officer mil jaye bas I will be really grateful). Not a good situation and will have consequences. For the long run health of the nation we have to address these issues by people who understand and have done soldiering.

Having said that no matter how good we are these attacks will always hurt us. Only solution is to take the battle to them. We have to stop fighting on our soil guys.

prahaar · Post by **prahaar** » 08 Dec 2014 23:25

Sir, you are attributing actions to Modi without any evidence. Ensuring speedy trial doesn't mean forced conviction. That is not a correct interpretation. The conviction was from an Army court not DOD.

kish · Post by **kish** » 09 Dec 2014 00:08

Akshay Kapoor wrote:It is impossible to avoid casualties when the enemy has such an element of surprise and audacity. Also I remember reading some media reports that sentries did not challenge the vehicle the terrorists came in because of the fear of some shooting civvies. Its very difficult to fight with your hands tied behind you. And when your chain of command won't support you if mistakes happen. Over the decades as armed forces have been constantly degraded by the politico bureaucratic masters and all the problems of short periods of formation command , severe shortage of good officers etc is creating some serious problems. And the military justice system and discipline has been compromised by the armed forces tribunals. I was stunned to read today that Modi had forced the army to punish 7 personnel in an alleged fake encounter case. These things hurt the fabric of command.

The highlighted portion is a BIG lie. Lt Gen (R) Syed Ata Hasnain and Lt Gen (R) jaswal ridiculed this "theory" in Today's Karan Thappar show "To the Point". If terrorists came in a vehicle, where is the vehicle? They came by foot & their GPS records is evidence to that fact.

This "theory" was first circulated in Whatsapp & it was mainstreamed by Ajay Sukhla in Business Standard(Bull Sh!T) via an article. Lt Gen (R) Syed Ata Hasnain says origin of that whatsapp message points to pakisatan.

Dynasty hacks wanted to somehow discredit Modi, so they legitimatized the theory & linked Modi to it. If people in BRF fall for the Congress's "Dirty tricks", i don't know how common people will react.

Akshay Kapoor · Post by **Akshay Kapoor** » 09 Dec 2014 00:24

Dear Parhar and Kish,

1. I am a great fan of Modi. I would bite my tongue before I ascribe motives to him. That is why I was stunned when he said himself in the Srinagar speech speech that he ensured that the army punished the troops. Please see the speech yourself. To me 'forced conviction' was crystal clear.

2. Thanks for shedding light on the vehicle story. I did wonder about it because SOP is usually to stop all vehicles. But my point is that we cannot tie up troops in too much of this Human Rights stuff because its impossible to always be sure who the enemy is when the wolf is always dressed in sheep's clothing. Its just not possible to have no civilian casualties in this situation. We are much much better than anyone in the world on this but 0 collateral damage is impossible.

But how is this ascribing anything to Modi ? What has he to do with it ? How would the Pakis and Congi's benefit from this ? Maybe I am missing something.

kish · Post by **kish** » 09 Dec 2014 01:00

Akshay Kapoor wrote:Dear Parhar and Kish,

But how is this ascribing anything to Modi ? What has he to do with it ? How would the Pakis and Congi's benefit from this ? Maybe I am missing something.

Akshay Ji,

I'll keep it brief, because it is OT for this thread.

Please go through the "NGO & Media watch" thread in GDF to know more about Main Stream Media in India, it is filled with crooks & power brokers barring few exceptions. Most of them are sympathetic to Congress. This is primarily the reason why NaMo calls them "News Traders"

In the past, pakis have deflected terror accusation by blaming Indians (e.g red thread in Ajmal kasab's hand for 26/11) & Congis did the same blaming RSS for 26/11 here

If you learn more about them, you will understand same logic is being applied here.

Akshay Kapoor · Post by **Akshay Kapoor** » 09 Dec 2014 01:10

I am no stranger to the faults of the MSM. And I know why Modi calls them news traders. Still don't get how does the story of the vehicle help the Congi cause ?

chackojoseph · Post by **chackojoseph** » 09 Dec 2014 07:27

It's not COIN, it's war

It’s War – And India has to fight it as such

The new shape is continuous overtly covert war. It comes in the shape of maximizing psychological impact through small engagements. The commando type training and capabilities being given to the “insurgents” clearly indicate these attacks to be Special Forces Operations (SOF) from across the border. From my notes from late 90s, Insurgency is defined as, “Insurgency – An organization or movement whose purpose is the overthrow of a constituted government through the use of subversion and armed conflict” Military Review 67, 2 (Feb’ 87).

By the way – COIN as US strategy has been argued to be a “failure”, as can be discerned from the recent writings such as – COIN is a proven Failure.

vaibhav.n · Post by **vaibhav.n** » 09 Dec 2014 10:14

What a half-baked article.

Akshay Kapoor · Post by **Akshay Kapoor** » 09 Dec 2014 11:52

Counter Insurgency is when you counter your own citizens or residents. Right from the decade of the 2000's the majority of infiltrators were Paki nationals or Afghans or from other assorted muslim countries. That only increased with time. And now we have the BAT coming in. The only change is that Pak army and terrorists are even more integrated than before.

I disagree that CI is a failure. It worked in Punjab and has worked well in the NE. The Indian Army is very good at CI. The amreicans may not be as they use a lot of force and believe in their cultural superiority and have never fought CI on their own soil - so they have always been an invader. We are actually quite grassroots. Even pulled Kashmir back from the brink many a time. But Kashmir is not CI any more. It is war and has been for a long time. The only reason we don't call it is that in their wisdom our policy makers don't want to call it as such. I have tried hard to make sense of the arguments - international opinion, we are playing into Pakistan's hands, it will disrupt 'peace' in the valley and so on and so forth. But it never made and still does not make any sense to me.

If Paki infiltration completely stopped then Kashmir would settle down very fast.

But ours not to reason why.

Surya · Post by **Surya** » 09 Dec 2014 11:59

modis statement on the govt making the army take responsibility for the first time was an eye opener

its an amazing gaffe or a cold blooded calculation

extremely disappointed with him either way

vaibhav.n · Post by **vaibhav.n** » 09 Dec 2014 14:09

Sector-wise details of Ceasefire Violations (CFVs) along the Line of Control (LC) and International Border (IB) under operational control of Army during the current year (till 3rd December) are as under:-

KARGIL-12
DRAS-4
GUREZ-21
MACHHAL-3
KEREN-Nil
TANGDHAR-Nil
NAUGAM-7
URI-6
RAMPUR-3
PUNCH-15
KRISHNA GHATI-14
BHIMBER GALI-53
NAUSHERA-3
SUNDERBANI-1
PALLANWALA-2
JAURIAN-6
Total Ceasefire Violations-150

This information was given by Defence Minister Shri Manohar Parrikar in a written reply to Shri Kiranmay Nanda and Shri Ram Kumar Kashyap in Rajya Sabha today.

Source: http://pib.nic.in/newsite/erelease.aspx?relid=0

Bimber Gali lies about 35Kms from Rajouri on the Rajouri-Poonch Road. Very Important places, Thanamandi(On Mughal Rd axis), Surankote(of Hill kaka fame) etc. There is a single road which connects it to Mendhar and beyond.

ravip · Post by **ravip** » 09 Dec 2014 14:52

One should not forget that it was not only the terrorist bullets that got the Lt. Col in the QRT killed but also the Maruti gypsy. I hold the army responsible for providing such gypsy. The army is guilty for not providing some good armored vehicle, and mind you this not the first incident where personnel sitting inside the vehicle are victims of terror. In such situation even if a super duper seal team 6 operator could be a sitting duck.

shaun · Post by **shaun** » 09 Dec 2014 17:04

The majority of our population knows that bakistan ia a terrorist state, why not declares it a terrorist state officially and stops every level of engagement from diplomacy to trade than it wont effect India an inch , maybe it won't effect them too but there will be a reason to silence any Indian individual or media house who can speak or write for pakis.

There have to be action from some where and i guess declaring bakistan a terro state should be the first step towards any tangible action which can then cascade to other level of actions on that baki state.

HKumar · Post by **HKumar** » 09 Dec 2014 20:39

Surya wrote:modis statement on the govt making the army take responsibility for the first time was an eye opener

its an amazing gaffe or a cold blooded calculation

extremely disappointed with him either way

It was below the belt hit on Army. It also implies army has been deceptive until now. Just waiting for the lefties and separatists to depict this as a failure of AFSPA checks and balances.

A cheap political vote gathering statement. Not what is expected from a PM at alone a BJP PM.

vishvak · Post by **vishvak** » 09 Dec 2014 20:48

Not sure if this implies anything other than sense of fairness at level that electorate understand. I think people of J&K appreciate that the army is holding up the border security well. That is all to it.

Ankit Desai · Post by **Ankit Desai** » 09 Dec 2014 20:48

HKumar wrote:
Surya wrote:modis statement on the govt making the army take responsibility for the first time was an eye opener

its an amazing gaffe or a cold blooded calculation

extremely disappointed with him either way

It was below the belt hit on Army. It also implies army has been deceptive until now. Just waiting for the lefties and separatists to depict this as a failure of AFSPA checks and balances.

A cheap political vote gathering statement. Not what is expected from a PM at alone a BJP PM.

+1. Dirty politics.

Modi could have just thanked Army and moved on. To say because of his gov Army accepted first time will definitely send wrong signal.

-Ankit

ravip · Post by **ravip** » 09 Dec 2014 20:57

More than any politics...I always wonder why this ram sena,rss , shiv sena do nothing to bump off the pig hazif saeed...these organisation beat around woman and feel happy about their manhood...but they have to realise that there manhood lies at the death of saeed.

Sagar G · Post by **Sagar G** » 09 Dec 2014 21:26

^^^ Yeah and your "manhood" lies in asking others to do job which you are incapable of doing yourself. Very manly I must admit

shaun · Post by **shaun** » 09 Dec 2014 22:35

folks refrain...its getting dirty.

Karan M · Post by **Karan M** » 09 Dec 2014 22:43

ravip wrote:More than any politics...I always wonder why this ram sena,rss , shiv sena do nothing to bump off the pig hazif saeed...these organisation beat around woman and feel happy about their manhood...but they have to realise that there manhood lies at the death of saeed.

If they do train for and do something like that, wont you guys be in the forefront of calling them a threat to national peace and integration, being militarized etc and international terrorists == LeT, HuJ etc? Think about it.

rohitvats · Post by **rohitvats** » 10 Dec 2014 09:50

X-Posting from Off-Topic Thread:

By deejay:

JEM, Geeth, Marten, et al:

What was a flurry of posts over last two days from me seems to have left a bad taste. Well that was not the intention. I have admitted before (and it is a flaw) that I tend to wear my passion on my sleeve. In the end, the result seems to have been at cross purposes to the intention, so here is an unsolicited clarification.

> It is since 1989 that IA has been valley fighting a Low intensity Conflict with Pakistan. Though it is a fact that the fight is with Pakistan, even today, we try to find links with Pakistan. It is clear that these attackers are coming from across the border from territory in Pakistani control. It is also clear that Pakistan at various forums has accepted overt support to the attackers. The point being more than the Lashkar, Jamaat, etc, it is the Pak Army which benefits from the said attacks. Every attack is a revenge for the Pak Army.

> Further, for those people who joined services, especially the Indian Army since the beginning of conflict in valley, the journey has been different from those before the period. To explain this we need to understand that a war has a beginning and an end. It has a purpose and has objectives which need to be achieved. Kargil war in ’99 is an example.

>One fights for these objectives and the consequences are part of the job. In the context of the Kashmir Valley these objectives have not been clear from day one. At best we are trying to seal the border and kill those who still spill over. In case of fire from the other side (which we mostly claim is cover for infiltration) we return fire in equal measure or may be more. A third front is open Internationally in the diplomatic forums, in media and through other avenues. In each case we just react. Then there is an economic war Pakis have launched in form FICN, denying us MFN while we have the opposite. Essentially, in 25 years since ’89 we still do not have a policy beyond sealing the border and fighting in retaliation to their attackers or firing. On the economic front we are doing nothing.

> In my view some clarity on policy and objectives were received in the Vajpayee era post Op Parakram with Operations in Hill Kaka to take back places like Surankot which were in our territory but were not in control. These were small steps but gave the IA a clear direction to take on the enemy. Surprisingly, prior to that even that was not tried.

> From ’89 – ’99 we had no clear objectives except stopping infiltration and we were still deciding if it is an uprising or Pak sponsored terrorism; ’99 – ’04 we had some definite directions with the GOI backing hard action in our own territory; ’04-’14 the whole thing was in a free fall at best; ’14 – onwards the directions and rules of engagements are being set as per the new GOI’s wishes.

>After 25 years, the present Narendra Modi government made the right moves (initially?). Doval ji’s familiarity with the situation raised hope. Some clear signals were sent. Clarity of action and defining the deliverables are very important even for the IA. The attacks that caused the uproar in media (and my posts) were the first instance where the present GOI did not send out the right signals – again raising the question whether even the present GOI has any objectives in mind.

> The right signals, IMO, would not be Arty strikes or firing on the LC/LOC/IB/AGPL etc. We called off talks when the Paki ambassador spoke to the Hurriyat team. On the day of 04 attacks inside our country we could not do anything to reprimand Pakistan or at least posture internationally in the well coordinated manner done in the past - to get to a point where the Pakis stand exposed. Instead, the top leadership acted (in) differently. Some actions which we could have taken have been listed by Niran ji and others in the Policy thread.

> If one works in an organization where there is aimlessness to the work, there is toll on the individual / team. 25 years of conflict without an idea where this conflict is headed or what the decision makers want out of this is a stretch even for a motivated and disciplined force like the IA. 25 years is also enough time for a country to prepare for any consequences w.r.t. action taken for ending the conflict. We have not done so, because we still are not sure what we want to do. Are we still hoping that Pakistan will tire away? Is the present GOI thinking differently?

Changing track …

> Lt Col Sankalp, for those who do not know was a batch mate of Maj. Sandeep Unnikrishnan – 94 NDA / 104 Regular(IMA). This particular course was commissioned in Jun ’99 at the peak of Kargil conflict. The roll call of the martyred (I call it the heavenly Roll of Honour) would be around 25% of the course. Sandeep and Marathe (another ’94) were a course junior to me in Oscar Sqn, NDA and I knew them. Sankalp, I didn’t know personally. Yet, the loss is felt at a personal level. All of us who have our commissioning in this period of ’89 to now have gone through this huge heavenly roll of honour – whether of course mates or of seniors or juniors. Most of us at some time have had opportunity call upon the families of a martyr and give the news. It is tough. The martyr’s of the low intensity conflict seem have died for an unknown or undefined unlike in Kargil.

>If you sit back and think, all these people dead since ’89, what has changed because they died? Have we really moved ahead since ’89? The only time we decided to act and did put some pressure was after an attack on the Indian Parliament. Is it that our tolerance levels are very high? Is it because we are scared? Is it because abundance of human life has reduced its value in our country?

>Maybe, it is combination of all three. But this new GOI gives us an opportunity to think differently. They are confident lot and they have the best opportunity since Independence (I think) to change the very consciousness of our nation. A political will of the country which says that we shall not take this forever. That there has to be an end to this attack on our country.

>Ex- Servicemen like me can post what we could not while in Service. BRF is an important forum where a lot of thought is brought forward, discussed and arguments strengthened to be further propagated in the open media. I think the idea that our martyrs in uniform are important enough for us to actively subvert the enemies intention and not wait passively is an important thought and hence worth discussing here.

JE Menon · Post by **JE Menon** » 10 Dec 2014 10:12

Thanks rohit for cross-posting. Would not have noticed otherwise.

Deejay, your clarification is noted, understood and empathized with. Please meanwhile do understand that no one on BR (caveats apply) is in fundamental disagreement. The problems usually arise when an "I'm more concerned than you" approach is perceived even if it is not meant that way. We are all in the same side and having the same concerns. What we can note is that there is a distinct change of approach underway. Let's not malign the patriotism of those elected, and some of whom have given their lives to the country in service of it. Things are changing for the better. But the problem of Pakistan cannot be solved merely by deliberately applied violence, although it is an important component, perhaps we will come to decide that it is the most important one.

Akshay Kapoor · Post by **Akshay Kapoor** » 10 Dec 2014 11:07

Deejay,

I have seen your posts and they are absolutely fine. Thank you very much for them. I think everybody should read your post above.

JE, the problem is our establishment still have not diagnosed the problem problem properly. And Deejay is right. Different generations saw different levels of militancy but the institutional memory built up. We saw things almost being stabilized (in fact there were times when we had struck absolute terror into the hearts of the jihadis) after paying a huge cost and then spiraling out of control again because of conditions in Pakistan and incompetence of our leaders. And we end up paying the cost. 25% casualties in one course is probably a Guinness record after WW1/WW2 for any military academy in the world. That is a HUGE cost. And to what end?

These are questions jawans and now officers ask. What answers do we have ?

Surya · Post by **Surya** » 10 Dec 2014 13:16

Deejay

your posts are perfectly fine

Akshay

Is it really 25 % - can you get the list?

tia

ravip · Post by **ravip** » 10 Dec 2014 13:45

Sagar G wrote:^^^ Yeah and your "manhood" lies in asking others to do job which you are incapable of doing yourself. Very manly I must admit

I didn't want to reply but was forced seeing your ignorance to understand the angst behind such a post. First i dont beat around woman to save "culture" etc and prove my manhood...these organisations have been quoted because they do so.....

Secondly and most importantly was having a conversation with ex gen who was saying that we should have a force made of orphans or those who don't have family for these kind of special ops. I know it is controversial but desperate situations need desperate solutions.

rohitvats · Post by **rohitvats** » 10 Dec 2014 13:46

Surya wrote:Deejay, your posts are perfectly fine
Akshay
Is it really 25 % - can you get the list? tia

Check this for some info:

ravip · Post by **ravip** » 10 Dec 2014 13:53

Karan M wrote:
ravip wrote:More than any politics...I always wonder why this ram sena,rss , shiv sena do nothing to bump off the pig hazif saeed...these organisation beat around woman and feel happy about their manhood...but they have to realise that there manhood lies at the death of saeed.
If they do train for and do something like that, wont you guys be in the forefront of calling them a threat to national peace and integration, being militarized etc and international terrorists == LeT, HuJ etc? Think about it.

I would be the last person to call them so...!!! its has been long that hafiz pig is roaming around freely!!!

Surya · Post by **Surya** » 10 Dec 2014 14:24

rohit I dont think thats the complete list since it says other brothers

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 10 Dec 2014 15:00

^^^ Surya Sir, there is no complete list, course wise complete lists do not exist (AFAIK). That post on facebook is what started the head count at my discussions (not here). Finally, realised we were doing a stupid thing - some list by another metric is not needed. A Martyr is a Martyr - both among men and officers - lets not get in to batches / courses. I should not have used it. So please ignore.

KiranM · Post by **KiranM** » 10 Dec 2014 19:04

Interesting counter point on CAPFs getting dedicated air wing.

Shrinivasan · Post by **Shrinivasan** » 17 Dec 2014 10:50

Prithwiraj wrote:What are those large green warehouses ..? looks like hangers but certainly not so...

Those are probably garages for TELs, probably these were the intended targets... Anyway... Let's not speculate... I think,the perimeter security was good, but not foolproof... The tangos expected a major hole but got caught.

rkhanna · Post by **rkhanna** » 20 Dec 2014 14:38

Dont know if this has been posted here before. :

http://sathyaonsong.blogspot.in/2008/02 ... de-of.html
RECOGNISE US WHEN WE'RE ALIVE--EPISODE OF FORGOTTEN HEROS OF INDIA
Anil Raina documents the life of the Indian soldier in Lolab,

In July 2007, I visited a militants' camp in north Kashmir to see for myself how militants were still active and organised there. Their planning and resolve were evident. What of those who were fighting the militants 24x7, I then asked myself. What were the conditions they were living under? What were the facilities and equipment they were provided with to take on the militants? What were their preparations like, and what about their planning and sense of organisation in the task of protecting the Indian nation-state?

, Col Mathur sums up the jawan's situation: “He has to fight anti-national elements who have taken shelter among the innocent local population. He also has to act against his own countrymen who may have been misguided by militants. But his salary is too meagre to help him meet his social obligations and maintain a respectable standard of living.”

Rahul M · Post by **Rahul M** » 20 Dec 2014 15:20

the starting salary of army jawans won't be too far off from that of beginner SW jobs -- both around 20k pm. I dont think that meagre salary thing holds any longer.

Aditya G · Post by **Aditya G** » 20 Dec 2014 16:11

Rahul M wrote:the starting salary of army jawans won't be too far off from that of beginner SW jobs -- both around 20k pm. I dont think that meagre salary thing holds any longer.

As of today soldiering is an extremely lucrative profession for those aspiring to be a NCO. Many join as boys at the age of 16-18, and retire after the mandatory 16-17 years of service with full pensions and benefits. The earnings are accumulated as they have hardly any expenses on posting. At <35 they enter a business (even something like taxi/transport).

The age of marriage is rising in Haryana's villages (for various reasons). The men get married post 30 and as a result dont miss, erm, any family life. Thus the hardship associated with being away from home is also mitigated.

Mark Owen, SEAL - from "No Easy Day" - was a college graduate but still chose to be in ranks so that he could see more action. With good salaries, IMHO at certain point we will see that trend in India as well.

X-Post from Misc pictures. Whats the LMG/Rifle aside from the TAR-21.

rkhanna wrote:^^ Read elsewhere thats its 4 Para SF guys and Shiv Aroor probably got it wrong

Video Link to the Above Encounter: Check out the Optics on the Operator at 0:44.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bx5rUl4WZjc

vaibhav.n · Post by **vaibhav.n** » 20 Dec 2014 19:03

^^SF Officers generally carry M4 Rifles. Lighter and more accurate.

VinodTK · Post by **VinodTK** » 21 Dec 2014 00:11

RAW and CRPF get new chief

Special Secretary in Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), the country’s external intelligence gathering agency, Rajinder Khanna was on Saturday appointed as its new chief.

In another appointment by the government, Special Secretary (Internal Security) in Union Home Ministry Prakash Mishra was appointed as head of CRPF, the world’s largest para-military force with over three lakh personnel.

The Appointments Committee of Cabinet headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi cleared Khanna, a 1978 batch RAS cadre, for the post of RAW chief for a period of two years from December 31 after incumbent Alok Joshi retires.

Khanna’s batchmate Arvind Saxena been shifted as head of Aviation Research Centre (ARC).

Considered as the father of counter-terrorism unit in the RAW, Khanna has been in the forefront of seeking cooperation from intelligence agencies around the globe.

During his long stint in RAW, Khanna has also served in Northeast besides outside the country as well.

Saxena, a 1978 batch RAS cadre, will be Director of ARC which carries out aerial surveillance of the borders using its unmanned aerial vehicles and other flying machines including MIG and helicopters.

ARC has also the responsibility with IAF to transport Special Frontier Force (SFF) commandos.

Saxena will hold the charge till August next year.

Mishra, a 1977-batch IPS officer from Odisha cadre, was made chief of CRPF, a post lying vacant since Dilip Trivedi retired on November 30.

CRPF is the mainstay for anti-Naxal operations and Mishra has himself spearheaded the battle when he was DGP of Odisha.

The about 3-lakh personnel force is facing a number of challenges, especially in the Left Wing Extremism theatre, and three committees have been formed by the government in recent past to fine-tune the operational efficacy and modernisation of the paramilitary.

deejay · Post by **deejay** » 02 Jan 2015 14:59

Latest Braking news from twitter:

Rajat Pandit ‏@originalpandit now12 minutes ago
#BreakingNews Pak boat from Keti Bunder near Karachi! After hot pursuit by Coast Guard in Arabian Sea, 4 persons on boat blew themselves up!

Added Later:

Times of India ‏@timesofindia now2 minutes ago
The four persons on board the boat apparently blew themselves up after being chased by the Coast Guard

Aditya G · Post by **Aditya G** » 02 Jan 2015 23:00

Intelligence driven operation. It was NTRO which picked up the vessel first. Probably Herons from Bhuj.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-new ... 02674.aspx

...

With the NTRO providing the exact coordinates of the trawler, the ICG scrambled a Dornier plane at 11am to locate it. The Dornier captain was categorically asked not to fly too low as it would have alerted the crew. The plane spotted the boat at the exact location given by the NTRO.

It undertook a second sortie at 2pm and found that the rogue boat was still sailing towards India. The aircraft was launched for the third time at 5.30pm. It found no change in the boat's course. By now, the ICG was pretty clear that the Pakistani vessel was up to some serious mischief --- perhaps a 26/11-type terror strike or a suicide attack on an Indian warship.

It immediately ordered two warships patrolling the area to intercept the boat and interrogate the crew. ICG's in-shore patrol vessel Rajratan made contact with the boat around 11pm.

The warship warned the unlit vessel to stop for investigation but it swiftly changed course and attempted to speed away, taking advantage of the "darkness, bad weather and strong winds". This led to a hot pursuit that lasted for more than an hour before the four-man crew hid below the deck and exploded the boat.

"The consequences would have been disastrous had the boat slipped past our defences. It was on a suicide mission," the source said. Top security officials were at their desks, monitoring the entire operation till 4.30am on January 1.

...

Aditya G · Post by **Aditya G** » 02 Jan 2015 23:06

http://indiatoday.intoday.in/story/paki ... 11124.html

It is emerging that the episode on the intervening night of December 31-January 1, where a boat crossed the notional International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) off Gujarat onto the Indian side and sank after being challenged by the Indian Coast Guard (ICG) may not be over on two accounts.

A top officer of the force revealed that contrary to what the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has claimed in its official statement, the four men who were spotted onboard the vessel plunged into the waters moments before the vessel was set ablaze. This scenario which has been kept under wraps, has forced the ICG to maintain presence. Not only that, the National Technological Research Organisation (NTRO), the agency which is credited with getting the lead about this vessel, has specifically asked the ICG to remain on standby 'for more actionable intelligence' indicating that the operation may not be over.

Speaking on the condition of anonymity, the senior officer said, "Our ship, Inshore Patrol Vessel (IPV) Rajratan, which was tailing the vessel, has reported seeing the men jump into the sea almost simultaneously with the vessel being set ablaze." This has triggered a rush to nab 'even one of them alive if possible'. The NTRO has additionally asked the ICG to ensure that its ships do not leave the waters. When asked, the source responded, "We do not know what is their input but we are coordinating fully and doing what is being asked of us. The operation is on."

Deputy Director General of ICG K Nautiyal confirmed this development. He said, "We are yet to connect all the dots in this case. So we want to find what this vessel was to do and till that time, our operation will continue."

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Action at sea

On December 31, at 9:30am, first information came to the Coast Guard with the specific coordinates on this particular boat. Accordingly, it was being tracked from then on.

11:30am: First flight of the Dornier aircraft took off from Porbander airbase and managed to locate the vessel. Particular instructions were provided to the aircraft to ensure that it did not fly too low and plant suspicion into the minds of those on the boat.

2:30pm: Second flight launched to track the boat.

5:30pm: Before sun set the ICG wanted to be sure and not lose the boat thus this flight too was launched. Meanwhile, ICG ship Rajratan was inching its way to the location as this boat carried on.

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