Columnists

Sushant Singh

sushant.singh@expressindia.com

Five attempts by Pakistan’s BAT on border posts, India hits back with Bofors

Sun, Aug 04, 2019

Top military sources told The Sunday Express that there were five BAT attempts on Indian military posts on the LoC in the past few days.

In first 6 months, 82% militants killed in J&K were Valley recruits

Tue, Jul 30, 2019

Recruitment of locals into militancy did not witness a decline in 2019, as 76 locals picked up guns in the first half of the year, with 39 of them joining Hizbul Mujahideen and 21 Jaish-e-Mohammad.

On Kargil Day, IAF Chief BS Dhanoa recalls: War would have prolonged… we broke the enemy’s will

Fri, Jul 26, 2019

BS Dhanoa said, "The IAF played a decisive role in the Kargil War. The war would have been prolonged with greater losses on the Indian side had it not been for the swift action of day and night bombing by the IAF aircraft."

Cricketers in arms

Wed, Jul 24, 2019

Cricket might be ‘war minus shooting’, but in reality few Indian cricketers have seen combat.

Behind Army’s WhatsApp order: Secret map, other faux pas

Tue, Jul 23, 2019

The order said, “no Indian Army personnel shall be part of any large group(s) on internet based messenger/chat/email services."

Army yet to decide on MS Dhoni’s request to train with TA

Mon, Jul 22, 2019

The former India skipper has communicated his unavailability for two months to the selectors as he intends to serve the Territorial Army.

20 years after Kargil War: How India readied nuclear weapons in IAF’s Mirage

Sun, Jul 21, 2019

With no experience to fall back upon, it was in the heat of the conflict that India conjured up a ‘primitive’ air delivery system for nuclear weapons on Mirage-2000 fighter jets of the Indian Air Force (IAF).

Blacklist fear forces Pakistan to shut 20 terror camps in PoK

Sat, Jul 20, 2019

Top intelligence sources told The Indian Express that their inputs suggest shutting down of 20 terror camps from where Pakistan was sending militants across to Kashmir.

20 years after Kargil: Newsroom to Govt, reporter to father, how Kargil tipoff travelled

Fri, Jul 19, 2019

Manvendra Singh, son of Jaswant Singh, and a Territorial Army officer who used to cover defence for The Indian Express in 1999, got to know about the intrusions in the sector through a senior Army officer.

Staggered patrols, meetings, new drills lower Sino-Indian border tensions

Sat, Jul 13, 2019

The new rules of engagement between the two sides, following the “strategic guidance” provided to the two militaries by President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after the Wuhan summit, have meant that face-offs between soldiers on both sides of the disputed boundary have reduced significantly.

Big guns fall silent on LoC, dip in intensity of ceasefire violations

Tue, Jul 09, 2019

Government officials suggest that it is due to “induced behavioural change” in the Pakistan Army, following the Balakot air strike by the Indian Air Force.

Air Marshal R Nambiar: ‘We were very innovative in Kargil War, we fought with what we had’

Mon, Jul 08, 2019

Air Marshal R Nambiar flew the Mirage 2000, dropped five of the eight Laser Guided Bombs (LGB) during the Kargil War and was awarded the Vayu Sena Medal (Gallantry).

Union Budget 2019: No change in defence share, imports exempt from customs duty

Sat, Jul 06, 2019

Thus, the total defence allocation of Rs 4,31,010.79 crore accounts for 15.47 per cent of the total central government expenditure for the financial year 2019-20.

Why disability pension tax upsets veterans

Thu, Jul 04, 2019

The notification created an uproar among veterans who called it against the interests of the armed forces personnel.

India and Myanmar forces coordinate to destroy NE insurgent camps across border

Sun, Jun 16, 2019

Called ‘Operation Sunshine-2’, the military action that took place between May 16 and June 8, is expected to give a debilitating jolt to insurgencies in the Northeastern states.

India, US work towards signing 2 more defence pacts

Fri, Jun 14, 2019

Pentagon had already submitted a draft ISA to the Defence Ministry and sources said that a positive response is expected from India.

Black or grey: What next for Pakistan at FATF?

Fri, Jun 14, 2019

Pakistan has been under the FATF’s scanner since last June, when it was put on the greylist for terror financing and money laundering risks, after an assessment of its financial system and law enforcement mechanisms.

Wreckage of missing IAF An-32 aircraft spotted, teams flying to crash site today

Wed, Jun 12, 2019

IAF spokesperson Wing Commander Ratnakar Singh said mountaineering teams of the IAF, Army and civil administration were being formed and would be flown to the site in helicopters Wednesday “to look for survivors and other things”.

Pakistan faces FATF blacklist: Key goals unmet, call for action against Jaish, LeT

Mon, Jun 10, 2019

Pakistan was placed on FATF’s grey list for terror financing in June 2018, on a proposal moved by the US, UK, Germany and France. FATF is the global watchdog on anti-money laundering and combating financing terror.

IAF An-32 missing: Plane beacon down, all scanners draw blank in huge search area

Sun, Jun 09, 2019

According to IAF officials, the inaccessible hilly terrain of the area which is sparsely populated along with bad weather has made the search very difficult.

IAF transport aircraft with 13 on board lost in Arunachal Pradesh

Tue, Jun 04, 2019

The last time an IAF transport aircraft went missing was in 2016, when an AN-32 disappeared over the Bay of Bengal after taking off from Chennai for the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The search and rescue operation continued for weeks but the aircraft was never found.

Rajnath Singh’s first call: Choice for top civil, defence posts

Sun, Jun 02, 2019

The top-most bureaucrat in the ministry, Defence Secretary Sanjay Mitra, is on an extension of three months till August. Whoever Rajnath chooses next would have a fixed tenure of two years.

Modi 2.024, Ministry of Defence: New equipment, bigger budget key

Fri, May 31, 2019

The Army has started procurement of modern rifles, and some of its arms, artillery, and air defence in particular, just cannot operate in today’s environment with its current state of vintage platforms.

Sexual harassment case: Justice Chandrachud met Justice Bobde, calls for full court

Mon, May 06, 2019

Sources confirmed to The Indian Express that Justice Chandrachud had met Justice Bobde on May 2 to discuss the contents of his letter. The letter asks the panel to remedy all the grievances which led the woman complainant to withdraw from the probe on April 30.