IKB-DEF-MAY 22, 2015 - Indicia Research & Advisory

Indicia Knowledge Brief
A Daily Assessment on Indian Defence and Internal/Homeland Security
May 22, 2015.
Primary aims of Indicia Daily Brief are two-fold. First, it distills infinite information into a
capsule form, thus saving precious time of its clients. Second, it tries to link micro-events
to larger strategic canvas through its analyses, thus providing support knowledge for
better understanding and decision-making.
Indicia Analysis of the Day
Defence Minister's comment that ‘You have to neutralise terrorist through
terrorist only,’ has sparked off a controversy as it was an open ended
statement liable to be interpreted in different forms.
Many analysts and practitioners alike feel that the Sukhoi-30 is the most
versatile aircraft at the disposal of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and
squadrons of the craft are deployed in the North-east to improve India’s
air defence preparedness in this part of the country.
Anil Ambani-led Reliance Infrastructure, which recently acquired an 18
per cent stake in Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering, is scouting for
an international joint venture-cum-technology partner in Russia to locally
manufacture nuclear-powered submarines and stealth warships at
Pipavav in Gujarat.
I. National Defence and Security:
Manohar Parrikar:
Saying he would take “proactive steps” to meet any threat to the country,
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar on May 21 said “you have to neutralise
terrorist through terrorist only”. To make his point, he quoted a Hindi saying
“kaante se kaanta nikaalte hain” (you have to extract a thorn with a thorn) and
said: “Why can’t we do it? We should do it. Why my soldier has to do it all the
time?” Responding to a question at Manthan Aaj Tak in New Delhi, Parrikar said:
“If any country, why Pakistan, is planning something against my country, I will
take proactive steps. Of course, not in the public domain. But what I have to do, I
will do it. Whether it is diplomatic, whether it is pressure tactics or whether it is
using the… woh usko bolte hain na Marathi mein kaante se kaanta nikaalte hain…
Hindi mein bhi rahega… you have to neutralise terrorist through terrorist only.”
He said this government is different from the previous one because it has given
the Army a free hand to tackle terrorists through intelligence. “Many attempts
have been foiled and many neutralisations have taken place… if you see, recent
incidents… Army knew about the hideout of the terrorists, they took them on at
the place of their hiding… Security forces go by the guarantee of the government
standing by them… and I can tell as a Defence Minister, I stand by the Army at
any cost.” He said the Army has been given standing instructions to shoot armed
infiltrators, ensure minimum collateral damage and no loss of life of its own. “Do
not allow loss of life from our side. But take precautions that you do not make
collateral damage… woh precaution lena hi hai (we have to take that precaution).
You don’t touch civilians, unarmed. But if some one (is) with arms, shoot him…
The instruction has a further line: do not allow loss of life from our side as far as
possible. Use whatever equipment, people from our side,” he said, referring to
incidents in which Army men have been killed while fighting terrorists.....
Source: http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/kill-terrorist-with-terrorist-defence-ministermanohar-parrikars-idea-2/
*
IAF jet lands successfully on Yamuna expressway:
The Indian Air Force has carried out a successful trial of landing a combat jet on
a road runway. The IAF's Mirage 2000 successfully landed on Yamuna
expressway near Mathura on May 21. It's a kind of first for military aviation in
India. The aircraft landed at about 6:40am, senior IAF officers said, adding that
the force has plans to activate more such stretches on highways in the future.
The IAF has been considering the use of national highways for emergency
landing by fighter aircraft. For May 21 trial, all facilities like make shift air traffic
control, safety services, rescue vehicles, bird clearance parties and other
requirements were set in place by the IAF. "The operation was conducted in
coordination with district magistrates and superintendents of police of Agra and
Mathura," an IAF statement said. The aircraft first made a practice approach on
the highway coming down to 100 metres before landing on the next approach.
IAF officials said such landings can be carried out in emergencies if an active
airport is not available under certain circumstances.
Source:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/IAF-jet-lands-successfully-on-Yamunaexpressway/articleshow/47366158.cms
*
Sukhoi-30 most versatile aircraft with IAF : Ex IAF Chief:
The Sukhoi-30 is the most versatile aircraft at the disposal of the Indian Air
Force (IAF) and squadrons of the craft are deployed in the North-east to improve
India’s air defence preparedness in this part of the country, said former vice chief
of the IAF Air Marshal (retd) PK Barbora. He also said that though a Sukhoi-30
crashed in Nagaon, the accident rate of the craft was very low. Talking to The
Assam Tribune, Air Marshal Barbora said the real reasons for crash would be
known only after a proper investigation. But at the same time, he said that the
accident rate of the craft was very rare. The IAF had been using the aircraft for
the last 27 years, but only six to seven crashes had taken place, he said. Air
Marshal Barbora, who was the first Indian to fly the Indian version of the Sukhoi30 MKI at the Moscow air show in 2000, said that it was the best of the craft
available with the IAF because of its versatility. The craft can carry a tremendous
amount of load including weapons, while it can fly long distances as it has air-toair refuelling facilities. The craft is also vital for the IAF as it can be moved from
one part of the country to another within a short time depending on
requirement. Its manoeuvrability is among the best in the world. Moreover, the
aircraft has two engines and even if one fails, it can fly with the second. The
former IAF officer revealed that the IAF deploys the aircraft at its disposal
depending on the threat perception. Preparations to bring in the Sukhoi to this
part of the country started in the later part of 2000 and now two squadrons of
the craft are deployed in the region to improve the country’s air defence
preparedness. He said each squadron has 18 to 20 craft and one squadron has
been deployed at the Tezpur air base. The other is in Dibrugarh. He admitted that
deployment of the Sukhoi greatly improved India’s defence preparedness in this
part of the country. Apart from the Sukhoi, the IAF is also using MiG 27 craft in
this region. Giving details of the IAF’s use of the Sukhoi, Air Marshal Barbora said
the first squadron of the Sukhoi-30 was introduced in the IAF in 1997-98. But
those were the Russian version of the aircraft and the IAF is no longer using the
same. Later, the Indian version of the Sukhoi-30 MKI, with modifications sought
by the IAF to cater to requirements in Indian conditions, was manufactured and
the IAF has been using those since the early 2000s. Now the Indian version of the
Sukhoi is manufactured in India only.
Source: http://idrw.org/sukhoi-30-most-versatile-aircraft-with-iaf-ex-iaf-chief/
*
This Missile Is How India Plans to Attain Aerial Supremacy:
Earlier this week, India successfully tested its indigenously developed Astra
supersonic air-to-air missile. The Astra, developed by India’s Defense Research
and Development Organization (DRDO), is a Beyond Visual Range (BVR) missile
capable of being launched from India’s Sukhoi-30 MKI twin-jet air superiority
fighter. The Indian Air Force currently operates roughly 200 total Su-30 MKIs,
but plans to eventually operate around 270. The Astra is 149 inches in length,
making it the most compact missile developed indigenously in India capable of
supersonic speeds. MVKV Prasad, director of the Integrated Test Range in the
Indian state of Odisha, noted that the “missile was successfully tested to hit a
simulated target” in an interview with the Press Trust of India. The Economic
Times notes that the Astra “was tested to prove the maneuvering capability
against a simulated target and also to validate various subsystems.” When fired
from an altitude of at least 15,000 meters, the Astra can travel as far as 110 km.
At lower altitudes, this range is reduced: it is capable of reaching a range of 44
km when fired from 8,000 meters, and 21 km when fired from sea level,
according to the Economic Times. The active homing ability of the Astra is
limited to 25 km. Under normal use, the highly maneuverable Astra missile
experiences up to 30 g of acceleration force.....
Source: http://thediplomat.com/2015/03/this-missile-is-how-india-plans-to-attain-aerial-supremacy/
*
Watch Out, Pakistan: Israel to Sell India Mobile Missiles:
Israel and India on the verge of signing a new “mega” defense deal, that would
include Israel helping India develop a new mobile missile system. On May
21
the Times of India reported, citing unnamed officials within India’s Ministry of
Defense, that India and Israel have “now virtually sealed the joint development
of a medium-range surface-to-air missile system (MRSAM) for the Indian Army.”
The first tranche of the deal will be worth over 9,000 crore (roughly $1.67
billion), however, Indian officials that the Times of India spoke with said that
more missiles could be bought at a later date. "More orders might later follow
since the Army's air defence capabilities are relatively weak," the official was
quoted as saying. Earlier, an Indian army official said that Delhi could purchase
over $6 billion worth of the medium-range surface-to-air missiles and related
systems from Israel by the end of the deal. The MRSAMs, which will be on mobile
launchers, will serve as India’s replacement for the Russian-built Kvadrat and
OSA-AKM systems that India purchased in the 1970s and 1980s. India has been
searching the open market for replacements for some years now, and previously
rejected other offers because they didn’t contain sufficient technology transfer
clauses, Defense News reported in February of this year.....
Source:
12951
http://nationalinterest.org/blog/the-buzz/watch-out-pakistan-israel-sell-india-mobile-missiles-
*
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar to review security situation
in J&K:
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar will arrive on a two-day visit to Jammu and
Kashmir on May 22 to review the security situation in the state. "The Defence
Minister will arrive on a two-day visit to Jammu and Kashmir on Friday,"
Udhampur-based Defence spokesman Colonel S D Goswami told PTI. He said the
Defence Minister will be accompanied by Army chief general Dalbir Singh Suhag
and General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of Northern Command Lt Gen D S
Hooda during the visit which will cover all three regions of the state. The Defence
Minister will arrive in Leh on May 23 morning where Lt Gen V S Negi, General
officer Commanding of 14 Corps, will brief him about the situation along the Line
of Control on Pakistani side and Line of Actual Control along the Chinese side, the
spokesman said. Col Goswami said Parrikar will then fly to Srinagar, the summer
capital of the state, where he will hold meetings with Governor N N Vohra and
Chief Minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed. "Besides these meetings, the Defence
Minister will be briefed by GoC 15 Corps Lt Gen Subrata Saha on the security
situation in the valley and along the Line of Control," he said. The spokesman
said Parrikar, after overnight stay in Srinagar, will fly to Jammu where GoC 16
Corps Lt Gen K H Singh will brief him on the situation.....
Source:
http://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/defence-minister-manohar-parrikar-to-reviewsecurity-situation-in-j-amp-k-on-friday/article1-1349613.aspx
*
Su-30MKI: One more IAF crash probe ends sans findings:
The Indian Air Force has added to its growing list of unresolved air crashes,
terming "inconclusive" the probe into the Su-30MKI crash in October last year in
which two pilots ejected from a seemingly functional fighter jet. An air force
official said that the inquiry into the unique accident, in which both pilots were
ejected while the fighter manufactured by Russia's Sukhoi was on its final
approach to land in Pune, has been completed but the flight safety team has not
been able to come to a conclusion on the cause. However, Russia, which assisted
the Indian team in investigating the crash, has publicly said after the joint probe
that no defect was found in the plane and that the incident occurred due to a
pilot error. Russia's Ambassador to India Alexander Kadakin has said that
"human error" was the cause of the crash . Top defence ministry officials share
this view, people familiar with the matter said. A trainee pilot may have
accidentally ejected the pilot seats, they said. It is believed that the two officers
who were piloting the aircraft, Wing Commander Sidharth Vishwas Munje and
Flying Officer Anup Singh, are still not back on active flying duty.....
Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/su-30mki-one-more-iaf-crash-probe-endssans-findings/articleshow/47378925.cms
*
Attrition rate in defence ministry is about one a month since
February:
As many as 20 senior officers posted in central ministries have asked for early
repatriation to their cadres in the past few months, cutting short their coveted
central tenures by several years in many cases, resulting in talk among some civil
servants about lack of empowerment under NDA government. In the high-profile
defence ministry for instance, the attrition rate is at almost one a month since
February this year with at least three key joint secretaries going back to their
parent cadres. The reasons cited are 'personal'. Examples of officers seeking
early repatriation cut across ministries. In March, 1993 batch MP cadre official
Aniruddhe Mukherjee sought repatriation from UID, the agency in charge of
issuing Aadhaar cards. Some of those who have sought home postings have been
in Delhi for barely a few months, against the standard five-year central postings
that babus get. In the women and child development ministry, Joint Secretary
Manisha Prasad Pawar sought premature repatriation last month, barely six
months into the central tenure. In all, ET has learnt of 20 officials who want to
return to their home states.....
Source: http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/attrition-rate-in-defence-ministry-is-aboutone-a-month-since-february/articleshow/47378077.cms
*
Indian defence minister draws line at 36 Rafales
Key Points
India's defence minister has said Delhi will not buy more than the 36 Dassault
Rafales to which it committed in April. The announcement confirms the end of
the MMRCA tender and the government's commitment to the Tejas LCA
programme. India will neither licence-build additional Dassault Rafale fighters
nor acquire more than the 36 it recently agreed to buy in flyaway condition, the
country's Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar said on 21 May. In multiple
interviews to TV channels to mark the completion of the government's first year
in office, Parrikar said the money India had saved by acquiring 90 fewer Rafales
would be diverted to buying 200-odd indigenous Tejas Light Combat Aircraft
(LCA). "By buying 36 Rafales instead of 126, I have saved the cost of 90 Rafales,"
Parrikar said, adding that this amount was around INR900 billion (USD15.51
billion). "We will use this money to buy Tejas LCA priced at around INR1.5 billion
each," he added. The LCA will replace 10 to 12 MiG-21 and MiG-27 squadrons to
be retired from 2022 onwards, he said. Parrikar declined to reveal the cost of the
36 Rafales, whose purchase Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced in Paris
on 10 April and which are presently the subject of negotiations. He did, however,
confirm that the contract includes a 50% offset obligation. India's Ministry of
Defence (MoD) had been in negotiations with Dassault since 2012 to acquire 126
Rafales in support of the Indian Air Force (IAF) requirement for medium
multirole combat aircraft. Of these, 18 were to have been bought off the shelf and
108 licence-built by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd in Bangalore. Meanwhile,
preliminary investigations indicate engine problems could have resulted in an
IAF Sukhoi Su-30MKI multirole fighter crashing in Assam state on 19 May,
official sources said. The crash was the sixth such incident involving an IAF Su-30
since the aircraft entered Indian service in 1997. A court of inquiry into the
accident is under way. Both pilots ejected safely from the fighter, which was on a
routine sortie from Tezpur's Salonibari base but developed "technical problems"
shortly after taking off, sources said....
Source: http://www.janes.com/article/51616/indian-defence-minister-draws-line-at-36-rafales
*
India's New Aircraft Carrier May Face Further Delays:
India’s first indigenous aircraft carrier, INS Vikrant, will be re-launched next
week according to local media reports. The vessel was officially launched in
August 2013 with the completion of phase I of construction. The re-launch on
May 28 at Cochin Shipyard Limited in Kochi will mark the successful completion
of the most critical stage of phase II. “All major equipment has gone into the
vessel, which has now acquired the shape of an aircraft carrier, with a finished
hull. Barring a bit of ongoing work on the super structure, structural work is all
over and the internal compartments have all been welded in,” a shipyard official
was quoted as saying. Additionally, The Hindu notes that “outfitting is steadily
progressing at the moment, but a major part of it — including piping, electrical
cabling, control system wiring — will be carried out after the vessel is launched.”
India’s Indigenous Aircraft Carrier (IAC) program encountered multiple delays
over the last few years with reported budget overruns as high as $4 billion. In
July 2014, Prime Minister Narendra Modi decided to accelerate construction and
allocated approximately $3.1 billion towards the completion of the carrier. Five
years behind schedule, the 400-ton INS Vikrant is supposed to begin sea-trials in
2017 and should be inducted into the Indian Navy by late 2018. However, The
Hindu reports that that despite contractual agreements over the construction of
carrier’s aviation complex have been signed with Russian state-owned
Rosoboronexport corporation “delivery of major aviation equipment has not
begun yet.” This could point to a further delay. With a length of 260 meters and
breadth of 60 meters, the INS Vikrant is expected to carry 36 fixed-wing aircraft
including the Russian-made MiG-29 K and the yet-to-be-inducted indigenouslyproduced Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), Tejas. Additionally, it will carry up to ten
Kamov Ka-31 or Westland Sea King Helicopters. The carrier will feature a bulky
ski-jump assisted short-take off but arrested recovery (STOBAR) system, which,
as my colleague Ankit Panda has noted, is only in use on Russian and Chinese
carriers and reduces the range and the armament of aircraft launched, in
comparison to jets launched with the more complex Catapult-Assisted Take-Off
But Arrested Recovery (CATOBAR) launch system used by other navies.....
Source: http://thediplomat.com/2015/05/indias-new-aircraft-carrier-may-face-further-delays/
*
Defence Accounts office gets ISO certification:
Getting ISO certification is not enough, sustaining it is more important. It
increases the responsibility on the officials to ensure that best standards are
maintained, Project Director Ship Building Centre Rear Admiral KO Thakare said.
Speaking at the ceremony organised to award ISO 9001: 2008 to Accounts Office
(R&D) at Naval Science and Technology Laboratory and Accounts Office (R&D) at
Ship Building Centre at the NSTL on May 21, Mr Thakare said that the most
important part of the ISO certification is the repeatability of the procedures.
There is a need to constantly upgrade systems and procedures to enhance our
delivery systems, Mr Thakar said and complimented the AO (R&D) office for
their work in supporting both in project work as well as in financial matters
relating to personnel.
Source:
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Visakhapatnam/defence-accounts-office-gets-isocertification/article7233208.ece
*
Reliance Infrastructure seeks Russian partner to make
submarines, ships at Pipavav Defence:
Anil Ambani-led Reliance Infrastructure, which recently acquired an 18 per cent
stake in Pipavav Defence & Offshore Engineering, is scouting for an international
joint venture-cum-technology partner in Russia to locally manufacture nuclearpowered submarines and stealth warships at Pipavav in Gujarat. Pipavav
Defence is India'a largest defence shipyard with a permit to manufacture
warships. Top Reliance Group executives are in Moscow where they met senior
officials in Russia's defence ministry and are also likely to call on Russian
defence minister Sergey Shoigu this week to identify a potential Russian JV
partner with the requisite technology expertise for manufacturing warships in
India, a person aware of the discussions told ET. The JV may involve one of the
defence subsidiaries of Reliance Infrastructure, the person cited above said.....
Source:
http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/defence/reliance-infrastructure-seeks-russianpartner-to-make-submarines-ships-at-pipavav-defence/articleshow/47378236.cms
II
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