Indian Army News [June 2002]

India test fires Russian rocket
(Times of India, 30 June 2002)

Quantum jump in officer cadre in Army proposed
(Press Trust of India News, 30 June 2002)

Army proposes creation of new rank to retain officers
(Times of India, 30 June 2002)

Smerch trial begins, first session successfull at Balasore
(Press Trust of India News, 30 June 2002)

Service Headquarters renamed as IHD
(Rediff, 29 June 2002)

India to upgrade land, air surveillance systems
(Indian Express, 29 June 2002)

India buys defence hardware worth Rs.162 billion
(Yahoo News, 29 June 2002)

Last batch of T-90S for India by July
(Indian Express, 28 June 2002)

India acquires sophisticated radars from Israel
(Indian Express, 28 June 2002)

Major reshuffle in Army top brass
(Times of India, 27 June 2002)

Several army corps get new commanders
(Rediff, 27 June 2002)

Indian Army contingent on UN Mission in Ethiopia–Eritrea
(MoD Press Release, 25 June 2002)

Do India's armed forces possess IT edge over Pak?
(Express Computer, 24 June 2002)

Newly-commissioned Border Security Force (BSF) personnel during a passing out parade at a subsidiary training centre in Udhampur, Jammu & Kashmir on 21 June 2002. [Image © Indiatimes]

India test-fires anti-tank Nag missiles
(Indian Express, 21 June 2002)

First AID kits to treat NBC injuries developed
(MoD Press Release, 21 June 2002)

Indian Army emerges victorious in airborne exercise
(MoD Press Release, 21 June 2002)

Army victim of its own weapons
(Hindustan Times, 20 June 2002)

NCC Cadets want to join the Army
(Times of India, 20 June 2002)

Infiltration's come down: South Block
(Indian Express, 20 June 2002)

Minor shelling, but India-Pakistan borders generally calm
(Hindustan Times, 20 June 2002)

Slain soldier was all set to marry soon
(Times of India, 19 June 2002)

Vigil stepped up along Indo-Pak border in Rajasthan
(Rediff, 19 June 2002)

India to install advanced American ground sensors on LoC
(Rediff, 19 June 2002)

India, China fail to exchange border maps of western sector
(India Abroad, 19 June 2002)

NBC decontamination system developed
(Press Information Bureau, 19 June 2002)

DRDO has developed a Nuclear, Biological and Chemical (NBC) decontamination systems at their laboratories in Gwalior and Ahmednagar. The system contains a Personal Decontamination Kit, a Portable Decontamination Apparatus, a Decontamination Solution and a Mobile Decontamination system. The Personal Decontamination Kit has been designed to decontaminate the chemical warfare agents through physical adsorption if persistent chemical warfare agents are detected over surfaces such as exposed body parts, clothing, gloves, overboots, personal weapons, etc. The kit consists of three parts, PDK-I, PDK-II and Radiological Decontamination Personnel (RDP). PDK-I is a pad containing adsorbent powder. PDK-II contains a puffer bottle with adsorbent powder removes the liquid chemical warfare agents by physical adsorption. The RDP is a pouch containing tissue paper soaked in neutral solution of surfactant that removes the solid particles including nuclear fallout. The kit contains four PDK-I sachets, one PDK-II bottle and two RDP sachets.

The kit weighs 480 gm and has dimensions of 230 mm x 135 mm x 45 mm. The shelf life of the kit is five years in factory packed condition. Portable Decontamination Apparatus (PDA) has been designed to spray decontamination solution over the contaminated area, buildings, vehicles including tanks and ships. The apparatus is made of stainless steel with provision for pressurizing the vessel by a pump or from a vehicle compressor. A lance with a scrubber, a brush, a scrapper and an adjustable nozzle has been provided for working from a safe distance from the contaminated surface. Scrapper and brush are used to scratch and brush the contaminated paint of metal panels so that the decontaminant can reach the contaminant trapped inside the paint. The apparatus can also be used to spray decontaminant as liquid mixture and slurries. The apparatus has been provided with a pressure gauge, a shoulder strap for manual handling and brackets for fixing it on a vehicle. The apparatus weighs ten kg with a capacity of 14 litres. The solution can discharge at a time 4 kg/cm2 in less than five minutes in a spray range of five meter radius.

Decontamination Solution (DS-2) is used for external decontamination of small and medium size arms and equipment. DS-2 is a mixture of organic and inorganic bases and methyl cello solve. It is yellow in color, which turns brown on storage and is non-corrosive to metal surface. DS-2 can be used by the spraying and swabbing methods. However, it is harmful to skin and eyes. The kit has a shelf life of five years in factory packed condition. The Mobile Decontamination System has been designed and developed for decontamination of terrain, vehicles, personnel and personal equipment The system is fitted on a TATRA vehicle with cross-country capabilities. The main sub-systems of mobile decontamination system are: pre-wash, chemical wash and post wash. Pre-wash consists of a 3000 litre stainless steel water tank and a fast suction pump. A high-pressure jet with a capacity of 3400 litre per hour (lph) at 45-50 bar and a low-pressure jet with a capacity of 900 lph at 5 to 6 bar and 1600 lph at 10 to 15 bar has also been provided. The chemical wash system is capable of mixing two powders and two liquids with variable feed rates. It has a 5 litre per minute slurry emulsion flow rate. The post wash system consists of a high-pressure hot water jet, a hot water shower for personnel and provision of steam for decontamination of clothing. The subsystem can be simultaneously operated. The decontamination systems are in regular production and have already been introduced into the services.

Troop pullout in 8 weeks
(The Tribune, 18 June 2002)

Indian Army training unit in Kathmandu
(Hindustan Times, 18 June 2002)

India, China begin talks on Western sector
(The Hindu, 18 June 2002)

Ishapore Rifles make low cost, hi-tech revolvers
(Deccan Herald, 18 June 2002)

Ultra light modern revolvers are round the corner and if you feel really insecure, place the order with your nearest arms dealer to procure an indigenous one from a local factory after clearing the attendant hassles of licence at an unbelievable price. Thanks to the Ishapore Rifle Factory, one of the units of the Indian Ordnance Factories, about 50 km from Kolkata, which has developed indigenously this classy .22 (point 22) automatic revolver weighing barely 380 grams to beef up an individual’s security in these troubled times. "This is the first time in the history of Ordnance Factories in India that this state-of-the-art revolver has been developed indigenously by the R&D Wing of Ishapore which has the distinction of supplying the Indian Armed Forces 5.56 mm rifle that was effectively used during Operation Vijay," Mr. H.L. Kapur, Additional General Manager Ishapore Rifle Factory said.

The 20-meter range sleek revolver which was presented to an arms dealer in Ishapore by the Ordnance Factory Board Chairman Mr. D.K. Gupta on June 17th as part of a move to tap the domestic market by this arms producing unit under the ministry of defence, is the result of a 24-month research and designing by a special production team at the Ishapore Rifle factory. "It can match any imported weapon of its ilk, yet costs so less," claimed Mr. Kapur. While the revolver will cost Rs 32,000 in West Bengal, it will be priced lower in other states owing to lesser local sales tax. Imported varieties, though second-hand, presently cost Rs 1.5 lakh each. Asked what prompted Ishapore unit to go for this breakthrough in the small arms category, Mr. Kapur explained that surveys have shown a reasonable spurt in an individual's concern for security and personal safety across the country and the same has been confirmed by the trend of the booking orders currently received by Ishapore from various parts of India.

"As on date, we have bookings for 5000 revolvers and even though our capacity too is the same, we can raise it to 20,000 per annum provided there is a demand," added Mr. Kapur. Ishapore which supplies about 90,000 5.56mm rifles and 15,000 9mm pistols to the Army per annum, has earmarked Rs.100 crore for modernisation of the unit to be spent over the next couple of years. The sales turnover of the unit which is also supplying the 5.56mm rifle to the Indian para-military forces like the BSF and ITBF, has been pegged at a record ten per cent hike from the existing Rs.245 crore to Rs.275 crore in the next fiscal.

Desert heat proves biggest enemy for troops
(Rediff, 17 June 2002)

Army retracts all instructional staff from border deployment
(Rediff, 17 June 2002)

India allows troops to take leave
(Yahoo News, 16 June 2002)

CDAC develops training tool for armoured corps
(Times of India, 16 June 2002)

Israeli sensors don't deliver
(Indian Express, 15 June 2002)

Eyeball to eyeball, a tiny blink
(Indian Express, 15 June 2002)

Troops may stay put on border
(The Tribune, 15 June 2002)

It's too early to judge Musharraf
(Times of India, 15 June 2002)

US sensors won't plug infiltration
(Hindustan Times, 15 June 2002)

When the going gets tough, India tops
(Times of India, 15 June 2002)

A Desolate, Dangerous Outpost for Indian Unit
(Washington Post, 15 June 2002)

Infiltration: US remote sensors face ground test
(Indian Express, 15 June 2002)

Lieutenant General V.G. Patankar, center, marches behind soldiers to lay a wreath at the war memorial of the 15 Corps on its 51st Raising Day in Srinagar on 14 June 2002. Lieutenant General Patankar said that the Army was still on a very high alert and ready for any kind of confrontation with Pakistan. [Image © Hindustan Times]

Terror tap on, but down to trickle
(Indian Express, 14 June 2002)

India to examine US proposal on sensors
(Times of India, 14 June 2002)

Al-Qaeda presence in Kashmir valley possible
(Rediff, 14 June 2002)

Army on high alert in J&K to combat Al-Qaeda
(Times of India, 14 June 2002)

Sensors alone not enough, say Army commanders
(The Hindu, 14 June 2002)

Infiltration still on in Kashmir
(Times of India, 12 June 2002)

Top Indian firms must enter defence arena
(Rediff, 12 June 2002)

Rumsfeld offers ground sensors to monitor LoC
(Times of India, 12 June 2002)

Army sets up mechanism to monitor infiltration
(Rediff, 12 June 2002)

Delhi readied to face impact of war
(Hindustan Times, 10 June 2002)

Discontent brewing among Pak forces
(The Tribune, 10 June 2002)

War clouds recede further
(Times of India, 09 June 2002)