The ministry officials said that it was the standoff between the two countries in Bhutan's Dokalam area between June 16 and August 28 this year that seems to have derailed the project.
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PTI | New Delhi | Updated: October 15, 2017 5:59 pm
http://indianexpress.com/article/in...-india-likely-due-to-doklam-standoff-4891637/
An ambitious high-speed train project in south India has been delayed after Chinese railways, that completed a feasibility study a year ago, did not respond, railway officials have said, suggesting that the “lack of response” may be due to the Dokalam standoff.
An internal brief of the Mobility Directorate on the status of nine high-speed projects of the railways, accessed by PTI, shows that the Chennai-Bangalore-Mysore corridor, a 492 km stretch, lies in limbo because the Chinese railways have failed to respond to the ministry’s communique.
“The Chinese company submitted the final report in November 2016 and after that, the Chinese team has suggested for a face to face interaction. No date has been fixed from their side,” said the note prepared by the Mobility Directorate.
On the reason for the delay, the brief states — “lack of response” from Chinese railways. The brief also states that the feasibility study by the China Railway Eryuan Engineering Group Co Ltd (CREEC) was submitted to the Railway Board in November 2016 and after that the Chinese company had sought meetings with officials of the Board.
However, officials say that the Board has been unable to get in touch with officials of CREEC despite repeated communications sent to them via mails in the last six months. “We have even tried to get in touch with them through their Embassy here, but we are yet to hear from them,” said an official.
The ministry officials said that it was the standoff between the two countries in Bhutan’s Dokalam area between June 16 and August 28 this year that seems to have derailed the project. “The study began in 2014 and they submitted the report in 2016. The entire cost was borne by them. In fact, they have shown so much interest in collaborating with us for other projects as well, so we think that it was the standoff that must have raised doubts,” said a senior rail official.
An email to the Chinese Embassy by the PTI on the issue did not elicit any response.
Troops of India and China were locked in a 73-day-long standoff in Dokalam since June 16 after the Indian side stopped the building of a road in the disputed area by the Chinese Army. Bhutan and China have a dispute over Dokalam. The brief, prepared by the department in charge of all the high-speed corridors, also states that except the Chinese roadblock, work on the eight other projects was on track.
China had in fact not only pitched for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad high-speed network, which was finally bagged by Japan, but also for the bullet project in the Mumbai-Delhi sector, which is yet to be finalised.
China is also training railway engineers in heavy hauling and it is with Chinese collaboration that India is setting up its first railway university. The Chennai-Bangalore-Mysore corridor is one of nine such high-speed corridors being developed by the ministry. The aim was to increase the speed from the present 80 kmph to 160 kmph.
While the Delhi-Agra route was made operational in 2016 with the country’s fastest train Gatimaan Express running between the two cities, the work on rest seven of eight of 8 is going at a fast pace, the brief indicated
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http://indianexpress.com/article/in...for-quick-deployment-at-china-border-4891390/
The defence ministry had recently decided to significantly enhance infrastructure along this border including around the areas of dispute with the Chinese forces.
By:
PTI | New Delhi | Published:October 15, 2017 3:43 pm
For the first time in its over 50 years history, the ITBP is raising and deploying a mechanised column of power vehicles and machines to speedily mobilise troops along the Sino-India border in case of Chinese military transgressions and Doklam-like standoffs.
The decision to raise such a military-style combat wing in the paramilitary was taken after the Union home ministry recently approved deployment of snow scooters at all the high-altitude border outposts of the mountain-warfare trained force along the 3,488-km long frontier it guards.
A senior home ministry official told PTI on the condition of anonymity that the mechanised column of the force will comprise over 250 Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs), all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), snow scooters, excavators and few other medium-lift four-wheeled vehicles.
While the army has the mechanised infantry, it was essential to have a mechanised column in the border guarding force as it secures this border in peace times and will bear the first onslaught in case of a war or a conflict, the official said explaining the rationale for the latest move.
Till now, only the Border Security Force under the home ministry, that guards the Indo-Pak border, had an artillery unit and some mechanised components to aid it.
A proposal to raise a full-fledged mechanised column under the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) force was moved by the forces’ headquarters here sometime back, the official said, with the force Director General (DG) R K Pachnanda making a specific presentation to the ministry in this context.
The about 90,000-personnel force has sanctions to procure about 150 SUVs for high-altitude deployment, out of which it has about five dozen already deployed, half-a-dozen snow scooters and few excavators to clear snow-bound passes and landslide-prone border tracks.
A senior ITBP official said many more such vehicles and machines, including anti-skid ATVs, will be procured by the force in the next few months.
The force has about 30 border posts above the height of 15,000 feet and some 50 such posts above 12,000 feet and the home ministry has accorded sanctions to the ITBP to have at least one snow scooter at each of these frontier bases.
The force has also been given sanctions to upgrade its firepower by modernising the support weapons like 81mm mortars, he added.
“Sanctions have already been accorded to procure modern machines and vehicles for the force.
So, apart from expeditiously completing the construction of China border roads in the wake of Doklam-like incidents and transgressions, the government has decided to strengthen the assets and strength of the both the army and the ITBP, the first line of defence on the Line of Actual Control (LAC),” the home ministry official said.
The defence ministry had recently decided to significantly enhance infrastructure along this border including around the areas of dispute with the Chinese forces.
The decision was taken at the Army’s commanders conference which extensively deliberated on the Dokalam face off with China besides analysing all possible security challenges on the northern border.
The ITBP, as part of bolstering its capabilities to effectively secure this border, had last year procured over six dozen SUVs and sent them to far-flung border areas for patrol and transportation of troops and had similarly procured five snow scooters early this year.
The force was raised in 1962 in the aftermath of the Chinese aggression.
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http://www.hindustantimes.com/india...hina-border/story-2VWA4ItjLaLI4d6bwpNOPK.html
For the first time in its over 50 years history, the ITBP is raising and deploying a mechanised column of power vehicles and machines to speedily mobilise troops along the Sino-India border in case of Chinese military transgressions and
Doklam-like standoffs.
The decision to raise such a military-style combat wing in the paramilitary was taken after the Union home ministry recently approved deployment of snow scooters at all the high-altitude border outposts of the mountain-warfare trained force along the 3,488-km long frontier it guards.
A senior home ministry official told PTI on the condition of anonymity that the mechanised column of the force will comprise over 250 Sports Utility Vehicles (SUVs), all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), snow scooters, excavators and few other medium-lift four-wheeled vehicles.
While the army has the mechanised infantry, it was essential to have a mechanised column in the border guarding force as it secures this border in peace times and will bear the first onslaught in case of a war or a conflict, the official said explaining the rationale for the latest move.
Till now, only the Border Security Force under the home ministry, that guards the Indo-Pak border, had an artillery unit and some mechanised components to aid it.
A proposal to raise a full-fledged mechanised column under the Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) force was moved by the forces’ headquarters here sometime back, the official said, with the force Director General (DG) R K Pachnanda making a specific presentation to the ministry in this context.
The about 90,000-personnel force has sanctions to procure about 150 SUVs for high-altitude deployment, out of which it has about five dozen already deployed, half-a-dozen snow scooters and few excavators to clear snow-bound passes and landslide-prone border tracks.
A senior ITBP official said many more such vehicles and machines, including anti-skid ATVs, will be procured by the force in the next few months.
The force has about 30 border posts above the height of 15,000 feet and some
50 such posts above 12,000 feet and the home ministry has accorded sanctions to the ITBP to have at least one snow scooter at each of these frontier bases.
The force has also been given sanctions to upgrade its firepower by modernising the support weapons like 81mm mortars, he added.
“Sanctions have already been accorded to procure modern machines and vehicles for the force.
Snow scooters are among the new batch of vehicles procured by ITBP for patrol along the
ITBP Border Out Post in Rimkhim in Uttarakhand (PTI File Photo for representation)
Border Forces purchase Toyota Fortuner & Ford Endeavour for high altitude operations
//economictimes.indiatimes.com/articleshow/61087745.cms?utm_source=contentofinterest&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=cppst
Around 600 young women — between 19 to 21 years old — hailing from different parts of Uttarakhand will be undergoing intensive training to qualify in the recruitment process that the Army will be conducting early next year to induct women as jawans in its Corps of Military Police (CMP). The training camps which are being organised by the Uttarkashi-based Nehru Institute of Mountaineering (NIM), one of the premier mountaineering institutes in the country. in association with an NGO Youth Foundation Uttarakhand are believed to be the first such initiative to coach women interested in joining the Army as jawans.
The camps will be held in Srinagar (in Pauri Garhwal) and Dehradun and will commence from October 22.
Col Ajay Kothiyal, principal of NIM said that the selected women would undergo comprehensive physical training as well as preparations for written examinations in order to qualify for the CMP. “They will be made to do running, push-ups and other exercises for at least three months. One of the important criteria for joining CMP is knowing how to drive so we will be teaching them that as well,” he added.
Elaborating on the criteria for shortlisting the candidates, Suresh Negi, administrator, Youth Foundation Uttarakhand, said, “Army sources have confirmed to us that the recruitment for CMP is likely to start from January next year. Therefore, we have planned the pre-recruitment camps accordingly so that the candidates are ready by the time the recruitment process begins. We have received an overwhelming response.
Around 2000 young women applied for the training out of which around 600 were selected after evaluating various criteria. For instance, the minimum height requirement is at least 157 cm and the candidates should have scored at least 45% in class X. They should also be unmarried.”
Nida Fatima, one of those made it to the final shortlist told TOI, “I come from a Muslim family and though my family has been supportive of my decision to join the Army, many in my area think I should just be under a burqa. I want to prove them wrong and become the the first from my locality to join the Army.”
In a similar vein, Neha Bisht whose father Narinder Singh Bisht, a havaldar in the 4 Garhwal Rifles who was killed in action in Jammu and Kashmir two months back, said that she wants to carry forward his legacy. “Since my childhood, I wanted to join the Army. After my father’s death, the resolve has become even stronger. I hope to follow in my father’s footsteps and lead the life that I had always wanted to live”, she said.
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https://economictimes.indiatimes.co...with-modular-bunkers/articleshow/61094310.cms
NEW DELHI: The Army has begun its search for Lego-like modular, portable, bullet and blast-proof bunkers to replace stone-mud-log and steel shelters as it secures the nation’s frontiers with China and Pakistan. The security revamp also includes standardising bulletproof material for all applications, including that for designing jackets and vehicles.
Besides maximising the use of technology to enhance operational efficiency, this is a way being taken the Army to adopt homegrown solutions rather than fine-tune foreign equipment as per local requirements.
BUNKER WITH LIGHT-WEIGHT MATERIAL
The Army is currently using two types of bunkers: One, constructed using material such as stones, mud and logs. The longevity of these bunkers is a problem because they collapse under enemy fire and are vulnerable to vagaries of weather. Two, steel bunkers constructed by ferrying material that are cumbersome to carry to high-altitude areas. They also need large manpower for construction and maintenance and don’t provide flexible loopholes
for firing weapons.
The Army has raised these issues in its Compendium of Problem Statements. It has asked for solutions for having a light -weight composite material for bunkers, which can withstand enemy fire, extreme weather and requires the least amount of manpower for construction
The Army wants composite material in the form of panels and balis which being lightweight can be easily carried up mountains and like ‘Lego toys’, be quickly setup into bunkers, said an official.
The Army also wants bunkers to be modular in nature to allow it to easily adjust the direction of fire.
Recently, Coimbatore-based Amrita University offered a composite material made of hollow steel and filled with plywood to withstand blasts. Although, there is no word on it being bulletproof, there are plans to take up the project as a research model, explained the official.
The material gains importance in the light of the regular ceasefire violations by Pakistan along the LoC and the terrorist attacks on military bases in J&K. It is also equally important for areas along the LAC to provide adequate protection from the weather and possible conflict.
STANDARDISING BULLETPROOF MATERIAL
The Army is also looking at procuring lightweight, bulletproof and blastproof material for multi-purpose application, including for making jackets, vehicles and buildings. “It is standardising bulletproof material and will replace the existing bulletproof material after their lifecycle is over,” said an official.
The project will be brought under the Defence Ministry’s Technology Development Fund (TDF) that funds firm and academia to develop a prototype of the desired equipment. The TDF’s apex committee, comprising the vice chiefs of the three defence services, will soon clear the project to a private firm and an academia to develop a prototype.
