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India Can Succeed Against China

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India Can Succeed Against China

China may be the ‘oldest functioning organisation’ in the world but India is an inclusive land of various faiths, cultures and moulds

by Prafull Goradia

India’s mistake has been to read China and the character of its leaders through our eyes. The yellow giant is over 90 per cent Han by race, unlike our multilingual culture. China has been a centralised polity for over 2,000 years uninterrupted. In his heart of hearts, Mao Zedong, although a Communist, thought of himself as an emperor. He was first a Chinese nationalist and then a Marxist. He had never been to Europe, save for a solitary visit to Russia. Hence Mao was dominantly insular, rather like Russia’s Josef Stalin. While Jawaharlal Nehru talked of peace and Panchsheel, Mao Zedong believed that political power grows out of the barrel of a gun.

Unlike Indians, the Chinese are intuitively given more to reasoning than to faith. As a wag in Hong Kong put it, we like Confucianism for breakfast, Buddhism for lunch and Taoism for dinner. We are not so god-fearing as you people but we dread losing our face, especially to strangers.

Jawaharlal Nehru, briefed by Menon, went to the extent of reading the Chinese through the latter’s eyes. Indian history was interrupted by the rule of Islamic sultanates from 1206 AD to 1526 and, thereafter, the Mughals took over until officially 1858, when the Sepoy Rebellion ended. Thereafter, formally the British Crown took over, and Europe influenced Indian thinking for well over 200 years. We Indians are thus cast in several different moulds. On the other hand, as Jasper Becker in his book The Chinese has put it: “The Chinese State is probably the oldest functioning organisation in the world, dating back more than 2,000 years.” For most of these centuries, it was a centrally governed empire. It has been a dominantly a single race country, unlike the diversity in India. China has never experienced democracy; its people have known only imperial-style subjugation. However, all these factors do not make the Chinese invincible. It is necessary to stress this, since my generation and the next used to be in a bit of trepidation when it came to dealing with China. I still remember the 1962 invasion as it appeared to me when I was a resident in Kolkata. The Peking (now Beijing) Radio twice a day in November of the year announced that the troops of Peoples Liberation Army, as China’s army is called, were looking forward to “celebrating Christmas in Calcutta”. The possibility did seem real at the time. When on the 21st of November, we heard on the radio news at 8 am that the Chinese had declared a unilateral withdrawal, it is difficult to imagine the relief all knowing Indians then felt.

Reading through the records of the meetings with Chinese Premier Chou En-lai until 1960, it seems clear that the Chinese wanted us to concede what they had grabbed in Aksai Chin. They wanted Tibet to be connected with Sinkiang by a road which they had already built. In return, they would concede what we claimed in the eastern and middle sectors. In other words, they must even today be insisting on similar terms; India should give up wanting back the 30,000 sq km of Aksai Chin they had occupied in the 1950s, of which Nehru had said in Parliament: “Not a blade of grass grows there.” The reality is that no Government in Delhi can dare sign off this territory and still hope to remain in power. This may be possible if and when China gets into a corner, we can get a significant concession as compensation.

With the most successful of leaders, the wheel of fortune turns and the needle stops and points to misfortune. Adolf Hitler and Nazi Germany could do no wrong between 1933 and most of 1942, a span of nearly 10 years. A man, who after four years of World War One could not rise above the rank of corporal, commanded the finest of German Field Marshals with implicit obedience. The saga of Napoleon Bonaparte is well known. President Xi Jinping’s ambitions are not qualitatively different.

That is when the Quad can come into real play. The US can provoke Beijing on Taiwan. Japan, with its navy, as well as Australia’s, can block the appropriate channels of South China Sea. That is when India can play its Himalayan card. India’s Foreign Ministry can and should convince the Russian leadership that the real threat to it will be from China. Russia has vast empty spaces of land in Asia and, sooner or later, China is likely to grab some of it. The two neighbours share a long border; Russia has space without people and China has people without space. The two countries fought a war across the Ussuri River in 1969 and there is no reason why they cannot clash again. In 1962, India had the misfortune to be headed by a leader who told General Lockart, the interim British Commander-in-Chief of the India Army in 1947, that India was a “peace-loving country and it did not need an Army”. The police was sufficient to protect us. Moreover, Nehru’s Defence Minister was the Communist Krishna Menon, who was absolutely certain that China was a “fraternal” country and could never attack us.

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INS Arihant’s Nuke-Capable K-4 Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile ‘Ready To Roll’

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INS Arihant’s Nuke-Capable K-4 Submarine-Launched Ballistic Missile ‘Ready To Roll’


NEW DELHI: India tested its nuclear capable K-4 submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), designed to have a strike range of 3,500 km, for the second time in six days on Friday. The missile test, as the one conducted on January 19, was undertaken from an undersea platform in the shape of a submersible pontoon off the coast of Andhra Pradesh according to a report by Rajat Pandit of TOI.

The solid-fuelled K-4 missile is being developed by DRDO to arm the country’s nuclear-powered submarines in the shape of INS Arihant and its under-development sister vessels. INS Arihant, which became fully operational in November 2018 to complete India’s nuclear triad, is currently armed with the much shorter K-15 missiles with a 750 km range.

“The K-4 is now virtually ready for its serial production to kick-off. The two tests have demonstrated its capability to emerge straight from underwater and undertake its parabolic trajectory,” said a source.

India has the land-based Agni missiles, with the over 5,000-km Agni-V inter-continental ballistic missile now in the process of being inducted, and fighter jets jury-rigged to deliver nuclear weapons. But INS Arihant gives the country’s deterrence posture much more credibility because nuclear-powered submarines armed with nuclear-tipped missiles are considered the most secure, survivable and potent platforms for retaliatory strikes.

Once the K-4 missiles are inducted, they will help India narrow the gap with countries like the US, Russia and China, which have over 5,000-km range SLBMs. The K-4 missiles are to be followed by the K-5 and K-6 missiles in the 5,000-6,000 km range class.

The 6,000-ton INS Arihant, which is propelled by an 83 MW pressurised light-water reactor at its core, in turn, is to be followed by INS Arighat, which was launched in 2017. The next generation of nuclear submarines, currently called S-4 and S-4*, will be much larger in size.





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After Upgradation, Sukhoi Su-30MKI Indigenisation To Reach 78%

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After Upgradation, Sukhoi Su-30MKI Indigenisation To Reach 78%


India has received clearance to upgrade 84 Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter jets, which will result in 78% indigenization after the upgrade

In a significant step towards bolstering its military might with indigenously developed technology, India is poised to witness its Russian-origin Sukhoi Su-30MKI fighter jets evolve into a domestic platform. Speaking at a recent lecture.

The upgrade program is being led by Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in partnership with the Indian Air Force and other partners. The upgrade is expected to cost US$7.5 billion.

The Defence Acquisition Council (DAC) granted Acceptance of Necessity (AoN) for the upgrade. The upgrade is part of India’s efforts to improve the capabilities of its primary fighter aircraft, it refers to as the “Super Sukhoi”.

This initiative is a part of a larger effort by the Indian Air Force to modernize its ageing fleet. Air Chief Marshal Chaudhari asserted the critical role of an offensive air force as demonstrated in current global conflicts and emphasized India’s move towards an indigenized arsenal. To this end, the IAF has been proactive, from upgrading its Mirage 2000 to enhancing its MiG-29 fleet.

In summary, the IAF’s commitment to updating their combat forces with the latest technology, including shifting to fifth-generation fighter jets, ensures operational preparedness and a strong deterrence capability. The gradual indigenization of its air fleet marks a pivotal shift in India’s defence landscape, reducing dependency on foreign imports and fostering technological sovereignty.





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Akash Weapon System Exports For The Armenian Armed Forces Gathers Pace

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Akash Weapon System Exports For The Armenian Armed Forces Gathers Pace


According to unconfirmed reports, Armenia is a top contender for an export order for Akash SAM system manufactured by Bharat Dynamics Limited (BDL).

While there is no official confirmation because of the sensitivities involved, documents suggest that the order for the same has already been placed the report further added.
There are nine countries, in turn, which have shown interest in the indigenously-developed Akash missile systems, which can intercept hostile aircraft, helicopters, drones and subsonic cruise missiles at a range of 25-km. They are Kenya, Philippines, Indonesia, UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Vietnam and Algeria reported TOI.

The Akash export version will also be slightly different from the one inducted by the armed forces. The 100-km range air-to-air Astra missiles, now entering production after successful trials from Sukhoi-30MKI fighters, also have “good export potential”, said sources.

Akash is a “tried, tested and successfully inducted systems”. Indian armed forces have ordered Akash systems worth Rs 24,000 crore over the years, and MoD inked a contract in Mar 2023 of over Rs 9,100 crores for improved Akash Weapon System

BDL is a government enterprise under the Ministry of Defence that was established in 1970. BDL manufactures surface-to-air missiles and delivers them to the Indian Army. BDL also offers its products for export.

Akash Weapon System

The AWS is a Short Range Surface to Air Missile (SRSAM) Air Defence System, indigenously designed and developed by Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). In order to meet aerial threats, two additional Regiments of AWS with Upgradation are being procured for Indian Army for the Northern borders. Improved AWS has Seeker Technology, Reduced Foot Print, 360° Engagement Capability and improved environmental parameters.

The project will give a boost to the Indian missile manufacturing industry in particular and the indigenous defence manufacturing ecosystem as a whole. The project has overall indigenous content of 82% which will be increased to 93% by 2026-27.

The induction of the improved AWS into the Indian Army will increase India’s self-reliance in Short Range Missile capability. This project will play a role in boosting the overall economy by avoiding outgo of precious foreign exchange to other countries, increasing employment avenues in India and encouraging Indian MSMEs through components manufacturing. Around 60% of the project cost will be awarded to the private industry, including MSMEs, in maintaining the supply chain of the weapon system, thereby creating large scale of direct and indirect employment.





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