Indian Ministry Of Defence : Year End Review-2011

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[color=#999999]MILESTONES IN INDIGENOUS DEFENCE R&D DURING THE YEAR 2011:[/color]

[color=#999999]AGNI-IV & SHOURYA MISSILES AND IOC FOR LCA (TEJAS)[/color]

[color=#999999]CAPACITY BUILDING: C-130J, INS SATPURA, FLEET TANKER DEEPAK AND 3G NETWORK FOR IAF[/color]

[color=#999999]STEPPING STONES: NEW OTA IN GAYA AND FOUNDATION STONE LAYING FOR COAST GUARD ACADEMY AND NIRDESH SHIP BUILDING INSTITUTE[/color]

[color=#999999]2011, THE DECISIVE YEAR FOR THE MMRCA[/color]

[color=#999999]EVENT OF THE YEAR: PRESIDENT’S FLEET REVIEW OF THE INDIAN NAVY[/color]

[color=#999999]& FINALLY[/color]

[color=#999999]NON-EVENT OF THE YEAR: IAF CHOPPER STRAYS ACROSS LOC AND RETURNS HOURS LATER[/color]



[color=#999999](A) NEW WEAPONS[/color]

[color=#999999]1. The successful test launch of the 3,500 km range Agni-IV Ballistic Missile on Tuesday, Nov 15, 2011 was the highlight of the year. A press conference was organised the next day, viz Wednesday, Nov 16, 2011 for DRDO chief Dr. VK Saraswat, which was widely covered by the media, on the launch of Agni-IV from Wheeler island off Orissa coast.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. Sixth successful test launch of Agni-AI Ballistic Missile from Wheeler Island on Thursday, Dec 1, 2011 by Armed Forces.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. Successful launch of Dhanush and Prithvi Missiles by the Strategic Forces Command from Interim Test Range, Chandipur, Orissa and a warship off Orissa Coast on March 11, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. Successful launch of new Surface to Surface Tactical Missile ‘PRAHAAR’ by DRDO on Thursday, July 21, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. Successful flight testing of Surface to Surface Strategic Missile AGNI (A-II) on Friday, September 30, 2011, from Integrated Test Range, Chandipur, Orissa Coast.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. Successful flight testing of Surface to Surface Strategic Missile PRITHVI (P-II) on Monday, September 26, 2011, from ITR, Chandipur. In collaboration with DRDO, DPR also organised a press briefing on the strategic significance of the event on the same day.[/color]

[color=#999999]7. Successful flight test of the 700- km range SHOURYA Missile from Launch Complex III of Integrated Test Range (ITR), Chandipur off Orissa Coast on Saturday, Sep 24, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]8. Successful launch of Prithvi (P-II) missile on Thursday, June 09, 2011[/color]

[color=#999999]9. The DRDO conducted the 5th successful flight of UAV ‘Rustom I’ near Hosur, Karnataka on Friday, Nov 11, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]10. Initial Operational Clearance Ceremony to LCA (Tejas) at Bangalore on January 10, 2011. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony formally handed over the release to service certificate of Tejas Aircraft to the chief of Air Staff, Air chief Marshal PV Naik.[/color]

[color=#999999]11. Successful Engine Ground Run of LCA Tejas (Navy) at Bangalore on Tuesday, Sep 27, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]12. Kaveri engine being developed by the DRDO for the indigenous Light Combat Aircraft successfully completed the first phase Flying Test Bed trials mounted on a modified IL-76 aircraft in Russia during April.[/color]

[color=#999999]13. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony inaugurated the DRDO’s state-of-the-art composite propellant processing facility – ACEM (Advanced Centre for Energetic Materials) at Nasik in Maharashtra on Wednesday, Jun 29, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]14. Indian Naval crew began training in Russia in April aboard the new Aircraft Carrier Admiral Gorshkov, being rechristened INS Vikramaditya, to be inducted into the Indian Naval fleet.[/color]

[color=#999999]( EXPORT ORDERS / ACQUISITIONS / CAPACITY BUILDING / OPERATIONS[/color]

[color=#999999]1. Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma commissioned INS Satpura, the second in the Shivalik class of warships, at a function at the Mazagon Dock Limited (MDL) in Mumbai on Saturday, Aug 20, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. Commissioning of Fleet Tanker “Deepak” at Mumbai by the Defence Minister Shri AK Antony in January, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. Induction Ceremony of C-130J -30 Super Hercules Tactical Aircraft at Airforce Station, Hindan on Feb, 05, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. The down select of two aerospace companies for the MMRCA contract was the highlight of the last week in April. Commercial bids were opened on Friday, Nov 04, 2011 for the contract related to procurement of 126 Medium Multi Role Combat Aircrafts (MMRCA) for the IAF.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. Smt. Mamatha, wife of Minister of State for Defence Dr MM Pallam Raju, launched the second indigenous ‘Anti Submarine Warfare’ (ASW) corvette ‘Kadmatt’ at a function at the Garden Reach Ship Builders & Engineers (GRSE) in Kolkata on Tuesday, Oct 25, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. Commissioning of Indian Coast Guard Station at Mundra in Gujarat by Vice Admiral Anil Chopra, Dir Gen, Indian Coast Guard on Thursday, May 19, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]7. Foundation stone laying ceremony of Indian Coast Guard Academy at Azhikkal in Kannur district of Kerala by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony on Saturday, May 28, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]8. Foundation stone laying ceremony for the National Institute for Research and Development (NIRDESH) in Defence Shipbuilding at Kozhikode, Kerala by the Defence Minister, Shri A K Antony on 4th January 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]9. The new Officers Training Academy (OTA) at Gaya, Bihar was inaugurated by Lt Gen K Surendra Nath, GOC-in-C, Army Training Command on Monday, July 18, 2011 and later by the Army Chief Gen VK Singh on Monday, Nov 14, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]10. Commissioning of a Fast Attack Craft, INS Kabra, at Naval Base Kochi by Vice Admiral KN Sushil on Wednesday, June 08, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]11. Commissioning of Indian Coast Guard Ship (ICGS) C-152 by Dr Vijayalakshmy K Gupta, Secretary (Defence Finance) at Okha, Gujarat on Saturday, June 18, 2011 and later ICGS C-153 at Porbandar, Gujarat by Director General, Indian Coast Guard Vice Admiral Anil Chopra on Saturday, Oct 22, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]12. Commissioning of the two Indian Coast Guard Ships C-150 and C-151 by Vice Admiral Anil Chopra, Director General Coast Guard at an impressive ceremony in Kochi on Monday, March 28, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]13. Commissioning of hi-tech 3G connectivity services in the Air Force in March for enhanced operational efficiency.[/color]

[color=#999999]14. Re-induction of upgraded AN-32 tactical transport Aircraft into IAF in June, after the aircraft underwent total technical life extension (TTLE), overhaul and re-equipment at Ukraine.[/color]

[color=#999999]15. Dr Vijay Kumar Saraswat, Scientific Adviser to Raksha Mantri, Secretary, Department of Defence R&D and DGR&D, inaugurated an integrated microwave tube development unit in Bangalore on Saturday, April 09, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]16. DRDO dedicated Integrated Thermally Regulated Shelters for use of the Indian Army in Leh, Ladakh on Thursday, June 16, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]17. Indian Army introduced in April better habitat for its personnel at high altitudes.[/color]

[color=#999999]18. A US-based firm signed a licensing agreement in New Delhi on Monday, April 25, 2011 with the DRDO to acquire the technology of Explosive Detection Kit developed by the High Energy Material Research Lab (HEMRL), Pune.[/color]

[color=#999999]19. An intensive anti-piracy operation was launched by Indian Navy during the week ending Friday, March 18, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]20. Indian Navy warships apprehended an Iranian boat 400 nautical miles off Lakshadweep, rescuing 12 Iranian and 4 Pakistani crew and detaining 16 pirates in a daring operation on Saturday, March 26, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]21. A Press Release and Photos were released to the media on Friday, May 6, 2011 on the Indian Navy foiling a piracy attempt on a Chinese ship in the Arabian Sea, 100 NM off Karwar.[/color]

[color=#999999]22. On March 11, 2011 Indian Navy Warships assisted a damaged Egyptian registered Ship take to the sea again that was released by pirates off Somalia[/color]

[color=#999999]© SECURITY ISSUES / POLICY / PROCEDURES[/color]

[color=#999999]1. Formal unveiling of Defence Production Policy and Defence Procurement Procedure – 2011 by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony on January 13, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony convened a high level meeting of all stakeholders on Coastal Security in New Delhi on Wednesday, Aug 10, 2011 and another on Monday, Aug 29, 2011. Shri Antony called for concerted efforts to avoid incidents like the grounding of MT Pavit on July 31 and MV Rak a week later off Mumbai coast. He also reviewed operationalising Phase-II of Coastal Security. [/color]

[color=#999999]3. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony visited the Desert sector (Rajasthan) of Southern Army on Monday, May 2, 2011 to review the operational preparedness of the Indian Army.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony visited the North East on February 18-19, 2011. He reviewed the security situation during his visit to Military installations at Chabua in Assam, Rangapahar in Nagaland, Kibithu in Arunachal Pradesh and Leimakhong in Manipur.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. Defence ministry ordered a reality check on all defence land at the ground level, to be undertaken by the Directorate General of Defence Estates. In this context, a CD containing database on all defence land records was formally released by the Defence Minister at New Delhi on Wednesday, July 13, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. Ministry of Defence decided to go for open bidding to select an event manager for the Seventh edition of Land, Naval and Internal Security System Exhibition (Def-Expo India 2012) scheduled to be held in Pragati Maidan, New Delhi from March 29 to April 01, 2012, says press release on Monday, Oct 10, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]7. Improvement of rations supplied to the Junior Commissioned Officers and others in the army, says a press release on Tuesday, July 12, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999](D) VISITS / OFFICIAL TALKS[/color]

[color=#999999]1. Defence Secretary level talks between India and Pakistan on the Siachen issue concluded in New Delhi on Wednesday, May 31, 2011. A joint statement was issued at the end of the two-day talks.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony went on a two-day official visit to Russia to attend the 11th meeting of India-Russia Inter-Governmental Commission on Military Co-operation (IRIGC-MTC) on 4-5th Oct, 2011. Defence Minister had stopovers at Dushanbe and Khujand in Tajikistan during onward and return legs respectively.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. The two-day visit of Defence Minister Shri AK Antony to Kyrgyzstan on July 4-5, 2011. Major developments in bilateral relations included a contingent of Indian Armed Forces would leave for Kyrgyzstan to impart training to Kyrghz forces in UN Peacekeeping and impart English language skills and Shri Antony inaugurating the Kyrghyz-Indian Mountain Biomedical Research Centre (KIMBMRC) in Bishkek.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony visited Japan from 01-03 Nov, 2011. ADG(M&C), who was part of the high level delegation accompanying the Defence Minister, issued a press release and four photographs from Tokyo despite the hectic schedule during the day long stay.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. Six day visit of Minister of State for Defence Shri MM Pallam Raju to Minsk, Belarus in May, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. Defence Secretary Shri Pradeep Kumar and Mr Rudiger Wolf, Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence, Germany led the respective delegations at the 5th India-Germany High Defence Committee (HDC) Meeting in New Delhi on Wednesday, April 06, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]7. Conferring of “US Army War College Hall of Fame” honour on the Chief of Army Staff General VK Singh during his visit to US, the first by an Indian Chief of Army Staff in the last two years to the United States, from Mar 07-12, 2011[/color]

[color=#999999]8. Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma participated in the 20th International Sea Power Symposium at New Port, Rhode Island, USA in October, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]9. Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma’s visited Russia in July.[/color]

[color=#999999]10. Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma’s official visit to Indonesia from Jan 10- 13, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]11. Chief of Army Staff General V K Singh went on a three day visit to Mongolia in early September.[/color]

[color=#999999]12. Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma went to Bangladesh in April followed by the Army Chief General VK Singh from 19-23 June, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]13. Gen Abdul Rahim Wardak, Minister of National Defence of Afghanistan, paid a three-day visit to India from Tuesday, May 31, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]14. German Defence Minister Karl zu Guttenberg visited India in February during AeroIndia and later in May as part of German Chancellor’s delegation.[/color]

[color=#999999]15. Kyrgyz Defence Minister Maj Gen Abibilla Kubaderdiev visited India in early September.[/color]

[color=#999999]16. Singapore Chief of Defence Force (CDF) Lt Gen Neo Kian Hong visited India from Nov 07-09, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]17. Maj Gen (Res) Ehud Shani, Director General Israeli Ministry of Defence called on Chief of Army Staff Gen VK Singh in New Delhi on Wednesday, March 30, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]18. Commander-in-Chief of the Vietnam People’s Navy visited India in late June, 2011 followed by a delegation led by Lt Gen Nguyen Chi Vinh, Vice Minister of Defence of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, called on the Minister of State for Defence Dr MM Pallam Raju in New Delhi on Wednesday, Oct 12, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]19. A five member Sri Lankan delegation visited India for the inaugural Indo-Sri Lankan Army to Army Staff Talks held in New Delhi on Wednesday, Jun 29, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]20. Lt Gen Hla Htay Win, Joint Chief of Defence Services of Myanmar called on Chief of Army Staff Gen VK Singh in New Delhi on Friday, Oct 14, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]21. Mr Noh Dae-Lae, Commissioner of Defence Acquisition Programme Administration (DAPA) of the Republic of Korea, called on the Minister of State for Defence Shri MM Pallam Raju in New Delhi on Monday, Sep 19, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]22. A delegation from Oman headed by Defence Secretary HE Mohammed Nasser Mohamed Al Rasbi visited India from Monday, Sep 26, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]23. Visit of Mozambique Defence Minister Mr Filipe Jacinto Nyussi to India from Jun 27 to July 1, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]24. Gen of Army Americo Salvadar de Oliveira, Commander of Ground Operation of Brazil, called on the Army Chief Gen VK Singh in New Delhi on Monday, Sep 26, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]25. Visit of Defence Minister of Maldives Mr Tholhath Ibrahim to India from Sep 11- Sep 15, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]26. Vice Admiral Nguyen Van Hein, Deputy Minister of Defence and Commander-in-Chief of the Vietnam People’s Navy, called on the Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Verma and Chief of Army Staff Gen VK Singh on Tuesday, Jun 28, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]27. Visit of Gen Sir Peter Wall, Chief of General Staff, UK to New Delhi on Thursday, May 19, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]28. Visit of General Elric lrastorza, Chief of Army Staff of France, during February.[/color]

[color=#999999](E) EXERCISES / INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION[/color]

[color=#999999]1. The Army conducted a major exercise with the Indian Air Force in Thar desert in Nov-December. The army’s Southern Command and IAF’s South Western Air Command are participating in the month long exercise ‘Sudarshan Shakti’, during which Network Centric Warfare and other assets such as satellites, UAVs and HUMINT (Human Intelligence) were integrated and validated. President, Shrimati Pratibha Devising Patil will witness the exercise on December 05, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. Joint Army-Air Force Exercise ‘Vijayee Bhava’ in North Rajasthan in May.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. The 8 day long Joint Indo- US Salvage Exercises (SALVEX) of Naval divers off Port Blair coast began on 05 January.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. Joint Indo-French naval exercise ‘VARUNA -10’, commenced on January 07, 2011 in Arabian Sea off Goa, with participation of aircraft carriers, destroyers/frigates, tankers and submarines from both sides.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. The Indo-French Army joint Exercise ‘Shakti’ at Chaubatia, Ranikhet in Uttarakhand conducted between Oct. 10-21, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. Turkish Naval warship visited Mumbai for joint exercises with the Indian Navy in the middle of July, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]7. The Indo-Oman Air Exercise ‘Eastern Bridge-II’ concluded at Jamnagar, Gujarat on Saturday, Oct 22, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]8. SIMBIX 2011, the annual India-Singapore bilateral Naval exercise, conducted in March.[/color]

[color=#999999]9. Indo-Singapore Armed Forces conducted joint training in March.[/color]

[color=#999999]10. Vajra Corps conducted its annual exercise Pine Prahar in May, in which over 200 tanks, ICVs and 12,000 men participated.[/color]

[color=#999999]11. Flagging-in ceremony of the joint Indo-Nepal Army Women Officers Eco-Himalayan Trek in Nepal was held in Delhi on Friday, Oct 28, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999](F) RESCUE & RELIEF[/color]

[color=#999999]1. Rescue and relief operations carried out after an earthquake hit areas of Sikkim and North-East on Sunday, Sep. 18, 2011. Within hours of the devastating tremors, the Armed Forces swung into action to reach out to the people in the affected areas. DPR airlifted 45 journalists from New Delhi to Bagdogra (for the first time by a C-130J Super Hercules aircraft, recently inducted into IAF) on Sunday, Sep 25, 2011 to have a first-hand experience of the difficulties being faced by the Armed Forces due to freaky weather in carrying out rescue and relief operations in quake-hit areas of Sikkim and North-East. ted areas.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. Rescue and relief operations carried out by IAF in the flood affected areas of Orissa in response to the call of the State government. Atleast 26 people were killed and 1,200 villages and 14 lakh people affected as waters in Mahanadi river rose in spate. Specialised UH3H Helicopters airdropped 30 tons of relief materials.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. IAF evacuated 181 Indian nationals from Libya on board IL-76 aircraft on March 10, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999](G) SEMINARS, EXHIBITIONS, INITIATIVES, WELFARE MEASURES etc[/color]

[color=#999999]1. India’s prestigious Aero India-2011, the biggest of its kind in Asia, held from Feb.9-13, 2011, was the showpiece media event of the year.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. The 5th South Asia Conference on Cooperative Security inaugurated by Defence Minister Shri AK Antony on Tuesday, Nov 15, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. Inauguration of the 13th Asian Security Conference by the Defence Minister Shri AK Antony on Feb. 16, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony inaugurated the two-day ‘HydroIndia-2011’ an International Hydrographic Seminar-cum-exhibition, in New Delhi on Thursday, March 03, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. Minister of State for Defence Dr. MM Pallam Raju inaugurated the two-day ‘Defcom India-2011’ in New Delhi on Wednesday, Nov 02, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony inaugurated a joint venture project between Indian Army and Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) ‘Gyandeep Centre of Excellence’ on Wednesday, Sep 14, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]7. Navy Chief Admiral Nirmal Verma and Vice Chancellor of IGNOU signed an MOU on Friday, Jun 24, 2011 on IGNOU-Navy Community College Scheme ‘Sagardeep’.[/color]

[color=#999999]8. The Minister of State for Defence Dr M M Pallam Raju launched a composite herbal formulation named ‘Perfomax’, developed by DRDO, at Leh, Ladakh on Friday, Sep 23, 2011 to improve physical and mental performance of personnel deployed in High Altitude and Hypoxic Conditions.[/color]

[color=#999999]9. Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA) launched a software project ‘SANGAM’ for Defence Pensioners on Wednesday, July 20, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]10. Formal handing over of license to issue Digital Signatures Certificates by the Controller of Certifying Authorities (CCA) Dr. N Vijay Aditya to Chief of Air Staff Air Chief Marshall NAK Browne on Monday, Aug 29, 2011. The IAF thus became the first defence organisation and second government body to receive the coveted license.[/color]

[color=#999999]11. Defence Minister commissioned two phases of the infrastructure modernisation project for Defence PSU Goa Shipyard Ltd in Goa and later inaugurated a housing project at the Karwar Naval Base in Karnataka on Saturday, May 21, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]12. NAC Chairperson Smt Sonia Gandhi laid the Foundation Stone for the Basohli Bridge, near Jammu, on Monday, 23 May 2011 in the presence of Defence Minister Shri AK Antony, State Chief Minister Shri Omar Abdullah and a galaxy of dignitaries.[/color]

[color=#999999]13. Launch of a toll-free helpline for Ex-Servicemen Contributory Health Scheme (ECHS) members in April.[/color]

[color=#999999]14. Shri Arvind Kaushal, Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (Research & Development) handed over to Dr. Vijay Kumar Saraswat, Scientific Advisor to Hon’ble Raksha Mantri, Secreatary, Deptt. Of Defence R&D & Director General, DRDO, his GPF Statement for the Financial Year 2010-11, at a function in New Delhi on Thursday, March 31, 2011. This formally marked the delivery of G.P.F. Accounts Statements to almost 20,000 subscribers of the DRDO located at such far-flung places as Leh in North and Tezpur in East, marking a significant improvement over the position in past years when these Accounts were given to the subscribers in July and August 2010.[/color]

[color=#999999]15. In the middle of July the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India, in a historic judgement, recalled its directions given to MoD in which it had directed MoD to set up a Commission to look into the grievances of serving and former soldiers of the Armed Forces.[/color]

[color=#999999]16. MoD’s decision setting at rest the controversy of the age of Chief of Army Staff General VK Singh was prominently carried by the media in July.[/color]

[color=#999999](H) CEREMONIALS, APPOINTMENTS & OTHER SIGNIFICANT EVENTS[/color]

[color=#999999]1. Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Liberation of Goa was celebrated through a series of functions from Dec 16, 2011 onwards at Panjim and other places. Chairperson of National Advisory Council Smt. Sonia Gandhi in the presence of Defence Minister Shri AK Antony and other high dignitaries visited Goa on Dec 17, 2011 and laid the foundation stone for the ‘Vijay Smarak’ being built in the honour of valiant freedom fighters and soldiers who laid down their lives during the operation Vijay. Later Smt Sonia Gandhi and Defence Minister attended a thanksgiving ceremony to record the gratitude of the nation to our armed forces who freed Goa from Portuguese rule by successful launching of ‘Operation Vijay’. In this solemn function 15 officers and personnel of Indian armed forces who took active part in the Goa liberation were felicitated.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. The prestigious Presidential Fleet Review (PFR), a celebrated event held once in the tenure of the Supreme Commander of the Indian Armed Forces, was held off Mumbai coast on Dec 20, 2011 where the Indian Navy displayed its naval might before the President and the Supreme Commander of Armed Forces Shrimati Pratibha Devisingh Patil. Altogether 54 war-ships of Indian Navy participated in the review. President Shrimati Patil was given a ceremonial Guard of Honour on board INS Subhadra. On this occasion a number of programmes including Navy Band display, maritime exhibition, release of commemorative stamp and release of a Coffee Table Book were also organised. Hon’ble President formally released the commemorative stamp and the coffee table book in ceremonial functions. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony and many top dignitaries of state and central government also graced the occasion.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. Air Chief Marshal NAK Browne took over as the Chief of Air Staff from Air Chief Marshall PV Naik at a ceremony at the Air HQrs, Vayu Bhawan on Sunday, July 31, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. Shri Shekhar Agarwal, a 1977 batch IAS officer, assumed charge of Secretary, Department of Defence Production on Thursday, July 7, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. Smt. Vijayalakshmy K Gupta took over as the Secretary (Defence Finance) on Friday, April 01, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. President and Supreme Commander of Armed Forces Smt. Pratibha Devi Singh Patil awarded Presidential Standards to 31 Squadron and 9 Base Repair Depot of Indian Air Force for their outstanding service to the nation at a ceremonial function at Pune in January, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]7. Army Chief Gen VK Singh presented Standards to 85 Armoured Regiment at a ceremony in Roorkee on Friday, Sep 30, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]8. Centenary Celebrations of the Corps of Signals on 17th Feb., addressed by the Defence Minister, Minister of State for Defence Shri MM Pallam Raju and Chief of Army Staff General VK Singh.[/color]

[color=#999999]9. 10th Raising Day of Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC), the first tri-Services Command, celebrated on 10th October, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999](I) SPORTS, ADVENTURE, CELEBRITIES etc[/color]

[color=#999999]1. Indian Navy’s Sanjiv Rajput achieved distinction at the World Shooting Championship in April.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony Flagged in the ‘First Skii Expedition to South Pole’ at a function in South Block, New Delhi on Tuesday, March 01, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. Cricketer MS Dhoni, Shooter Abhinav Bindra and Dr Deepak Rao were granted Honorary Commission in the Territorial Army. Pipping ceremony was held on Tuesday, Nov 01, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. Defence Minister Shri AK Antony flagged in a 20-member IAF mountaineering team that successfully scaled the Mount Everest, at a ceremony in New Delhi on Friday, June 10, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. Summiting of Mount Kamet by Corps of EME Team led by Major Vishal Ahlawat in June.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. Three women officers of the Indian Air Force summiting Mt Everest, press release on May 25.[/color]

[color=#999999]7. Photographs and Press Release were issued on Monday, 09 May 2011 on an Indian Army Mountaineering Team summitting Mount Manaslu, the eighth highest peak of the world.[/color]

[color=#999999](J) MISHAPS etc[/color]

[color=#999999]1. An Indian chopper accidentally landed in PoK on Sunday, Oct 23, 2011. The matter was amicably resolved the same afternoon and the chopper returned to Kargil.[/color]

[color=#999999]2. In October the IAF undertook extensive search and rescue efforts in the higher reaches of Himachal Pradesh for a missing Mig-29 aircraft that crashed during a night sortie on Tuesday, October 18, 2011. The wreckage was sighted in a remote snow covered area of Lahaul district.[/color]

[color=#999999]3. An Indian Air Force Mig-21 Bison aircraft crashed near Ambala Air Field on Sep 6, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]4. An IAF Mig-21 Fighter Jet crashed at Nal Airbase in Rajasthan on Tuesday, Aug 02, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]5. An IAF Jaguar Fighter Jet crashed near Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh on Thursday, Aug 04, 2011.[/color]

[color=#999999]6. IAF pressed Sukhoi-30 MKI & helicopters to trace the missing chopper of Arunachal Pradesh Chief Minister in May.[/color]

[color=#999999]DPR[/color]

[Maximus]

[img]http://www.desigifs.com/sites/default/files/a1v_chinnarao3.gif?1290346241[/img]

[Nadimitla Abbulu]

[img]http://i325.photobucket.com/albums/k379/NFDB/Brahmanandam%20-3/th_brahmi61.gif[/img]