{"id":6658,"date":"2023-12-02T12:54:12","date_gmt":"2023-12-02T07:24:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/?p=6658"},"modified":"2025-01-04T14:48:14","modified_gmt":"2025-01-04T09:18:14","slug":"news-and-views-national","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/2023\/12\/02\/news-and-views-national\/","title":{"rendered":"417: NEWS AND VIEWS (NATIONAL)"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #800080;\"><strong><u>NEWS \u2013 1: Border Issues<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #800000;\">Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said India&#8217;s two major borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh will be completely secured in the next two years.<\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;\">He was speaking on the occasion of the 59th Raising Day celebration of the Border Security Force (BSF).<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;\"><strong><u>VIEWS<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #000080;\">The India-Pakistan Border is 2,290 km long and the India-Bangladesh border is 4,096 km.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #0000ff;\">In places, it has long riverine, mountains, and marshy areas where it is very difficult to erect fences.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #333399;\">Border fence alone cannot prevent infiltration, it has to be manned and equipped appropriately.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #3366ff;\">India keeps spending money on erecting, maintaining, and manning the fence. This is a slow bleed to its economy and security apparatus.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #008080;\">Also, there is the problem of underground tunnels across the fence.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #666699;\">A new dimension is the use of small tactical drones coming across for smuggling and attack with small weapons.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #993366;\">Hamas&#8217;s attack against Israel has opened a new threat of mass infiltration across the border by sub-conventional aerial platforms.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #800080;\"><strong><u>NEWS-2: Drone Threat at the Border<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #800000;\">BSF director general Nitin Agarwal has disclosed that:-<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #993300;\">90 Pakistani drones have been shot down on the border in a year.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;\">The number of drone sightings on the India-Pakistan border has increased to 300, compared to 268 in 2022, 109 in 2021, 49 in 2020, and 35 in 2019.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff9900;\">These drones were within a range of 2-10 km on the border.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff0000;\">These drones carry narcotics, arms, and improvised explosive devices.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff00ff;\">BSF has seized about 1,000 kg of heroin over the last year.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #993366;\">BSF has also deployed a hand-held static and vehicle-mounted anti-drone system to counter the increasing threat of drones on the Indo-Pak border.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;\">The seized and shot-down drones are largely made in China.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;\"><strong><u>VIEWS<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #000080;\">This subcon threat is here to stay.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #0000ff;\">It is a grey zone activity that would continue even in the no war no peace scenario.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #333399;\">Anti-drone systems would be heavy in demand.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #3366ff;\">Cheap Chinese drones are finding their way into Pakistan.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #003366;\">China has also supplied armed drones to Pakistan.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #008080;\">Pakistan is also collaborating with Turkey for the development of indigenous drones.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #800080;\"><strong><u>NEWS-3: India Border Talks with China<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #993300;\">The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of India disclosed that a virtual meeting took place under the framework of the Working Mechanism for Consultation and Coordination on India-China Border Affairs (WMCC). Gourangalal Das, Joint Secretary (East Asia) in the Ministry of External Affairs, led the Indian delegation. The Chinese team was headed by the director-general, of boundary and oceanic affairs in the Chinese foreign ministry.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;\">The MEA statement said that the two sides reviewed the situation along the LAC in the Western Sector of the India-China border areas, and engaged in an open, constructive, and in-depth discussion of proposals to resolve the remaining issues and achieve complete disengagement in eastern Ladakh.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #800000;\">Both sides decided to hold the next round of senior military commanders&#8217; meetings at the earliest.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff9900;\">They further agreed on the need to maintain peace and tranquillity along the border areas, ensure a stable situation on the ground, and avoid any untoward incident.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;\"><strong><u>VIEWS<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #000080;\">The situation has been tense after the Galwan clash in Jun 2020. The Indian and Chinese troops are locked in a confrontation at certain friction points in eastern Ladakh.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #0000ff;\">As a result of a series of military and diplomatic talks, the two sides completed the disengagement process in 2021 on the north and south banks of the Pangong Lake and in the Gogra area.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #333399;\">The Indian side has been strongly pressing for the resolution of the lingering issues at Depsang and Demchok. There has been no breakthrough so far.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #3366ff;\">\u201cMaintain peace and tranquillity along the border areas\u201d are hollow words used by China to delay the process and buy time.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #003366;\">China also has mastered the art of confusing the issue with false claims and documents.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #008080;\">China cannot be trusted as it continues to keep the pot boiling.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #800080;\"><strong><u>NEWS-4: Indian Navy Day Announcements About Women Induction<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"color: #800000;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">The Chief of Naval Staff, Admiral R. Hari Kumar announced during his\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt;\">speech at a press conference ahead of the Navy Day:-<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff6600;\">CNS lauded the Agnipath scheme, calling it a much-needed, transformational change.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #993300;\">More than 1,000 women agniveers have been incorporated into the Indian Navy. (The first batch of Agniveers graduated from the premier-establishment, INS Chilka, in March this year. And importantly, this batch of Agniveers includes 272 female Agniveer trainees as well. The second batch of Agniveers had a total of 454 women. With the third batch number has crossed 1,000.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff9900;\">He asserted that these statistics stand testament to the Indian Navy&#8217;s philosophy of all roles and all ranks concerning the deployment of women in the service, both for officers and for personnel below the rank of officer.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #ff0000;\">He also announced appointment of the first woman commanding officer of an Indian naval ship.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\"><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;\"><strong><u>VIEWS<\/u><\/strong><\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #000080;\">Time will tell about the success or failure of the Agnipath scheme and its long-term effect on the operational preparedness of the forces.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #0000ff;\">Periodic review and midterm corrections are essential for the success of the scheme.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #333399;\">This scheme should be extended to paramilitary forces and other central and state government services.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #3366ff;\">Women are being inducted in all three services at the officer level and in other ranks.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"list-style-type: none;\">\n<ul style=\"text-align: justify;\">\n<li><span style=\"font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 14pt; color: #993366;\">Army and IAF have already appointed women as commanding officers.<\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;\"><u>Suggestions and value additions are most welcome<\/u><\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-size: 14pt; color: #800080;\">For regular updates, please register here:-<\/span><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"E6wAvTJpQZ\"><p><a href=\"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/subscribe\/\">Subscribe<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; clip: rect(1px, 1px, 1px, 1px);\" title=\"&#8220;Subscribe&#8221; &#8212; Air Marshal&#039;s Perspective\" src=\"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/subscribe\/embed\/#?secret=quudjmzDks#?secret=E6wAvTJpQZ\" data-secret=\"E6wAvTJpQZ\" width=\"525\" height=\"296\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><u>References and credits<\/u><\/p>\n<p>To all the online sites and channels.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p><u>Disclaimer<\/u>:<\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: justify;\">Information and data included in the blog are for educational &amp; non-commercial purposes only and have been carefully adapted, excerpted, or edited from sources deemed reliable and accurate. All copyrighted material belongs to respective owners and is provided only for purposes of wider dissemination.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&nbsp; NEWS \u2013 1: Border Issues Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said India&#8217;s two major borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh will be completely secured in the next two years. He was speaking on the occasion of the 59th Raising Day celebration of the Border Security Force (BSF). &nbsp; VIEWS The India-Pakistan Border is &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/2023\/12\/02\/news-and-views-national\/\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;417: NEWS AND VIEWS (NATIONAL)&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19,163,78,122],"tags":[428,24,47,164,67,427,60],"class_list":["post-6658","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-article","category-drones","category-military-capability","category-warfare","tag-border","tag-china","tag-defence-services","tag-drones","tag-grey-zone","tag-indian-navy","tag-warfare"],"post_mailing_queue_ids":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6658","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6658"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6658\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9157,"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6658\/revisions\/9157"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6658"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6658"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/55nda.com\/blogs\/anil-khosla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6658"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}