DEFENCE UPDATES 01 JULY 2021
Air Marshal V R Chaudhari appointed as new VCAS
- Air Marshal Harjit Singh Arora, Ex – Vice Chief of the Air Staff retired yesterday, after an illustrious career spanning over 39 years.
- Air Marshal V R Chaudhari was the Air Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Air Command.
SCGS Zoroaster inducted into Seychelles Coast Guard
- Gen. Dalbir Singh Suhag, former Army Chief is now the High Commissioner of Seychelles.
- The 48.9-metre patrol boat was built by GRSE (under the administrative control of the MoD) at a cost of Rs. 100 crore and has a top speed of 35 knots and an endurance of 1,500 nautical miles.
- The vessel will be used for multi-purpose operations, such as patrolling, anti-smuggling and anti-poaching operations, and search and rescue.
- India gifted similar vessels to the Seychelles in 2005, 2014 and 2016.
India – Seychelles Relations
- When Seychelles attained freedom, a contingent of INS Nilgiri, took part in the Independence Day celebrations. Since then, the tradition of Indian military participation at the Seychelles National Day celebrations has continued till date.
- Seychelles was the first country to receive the Covid vaccine from India. It helped Seychelles in moving towards the goals of achieving 70% herd immunity by the end of April 2021 and opening up the economy.
- With the ratification of the International Solar Alliance (ISA) Framework Agreement in September 2017, Seychelles has officially become one of the Founding Members of ISA.
- Blue Economy Protocol with Seychelles was signed in August 2015.
- There are about 10,000 Indian citizens holding Gainful Employment Permits in Seychelles.
- India gifted and installed six coastal surveillance radar systems in Seychelles in 2015 enabling better coastal security for Seychelles.
- The Seychelles government has leased the Assumption Island to the Indian Navy to build an overseas base of operations there.
Lt Gen Sanjeev Kumar Sharma takes over as Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy)
- He takes over the appointment from Lt Gen Paramjit Singh who superannuated on 30 June 2021 after completing 39 years of illustrious career in the Army.
- Lt Gen SK Sharma was the Director General of Military Intelligence prior to assuming this key appointment.
- He is an alumnus of the DSSC Wellington, HDMC Secunderabad and the NDC New Delhi. He was also a military observer in United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNOMIL).
New Tri-service Theatre Commands in line…
- India is all set to create four new theatre commands, and likely, this will be announced by PM Narendra Modi from the Red Fort on August 15. These new commands will be raised and operationalized over a two-year period and will be viable by August 2023.
- The new commands will include the Integrated Maritime Theatre Command (IMTC) and the Integrated Air-Defence Command (IADC), which is a rewiring of India’s higher defence management. The other two commands will be China- and Pakistan-specific.
Why Theatre Commands?
- It envisages a unified command of the three Services, under a single commander, for geographical theatres (areas) that are of strategic and security concern.
- The commander of such a force will be able to bear all resources at his disposal — from the Army, the Indian Air Force, and the Navy — with seamless efficacy.
- The integrated theatre commander will not be answerable to individual Services. The resources available under each service will be available to other services too.
- It strengthens cohesion in the defence establishment.
- The Shekatkar committee (2019) has recommended the creation of 3 integrated theatre commands — northern for the China border, western for the Pakistan border, and southern for the maritime role.
REVIEW QUESTIONS
- Air Marshal V R Chaudhari has been appointed as new:
- Chief of Air Staff
- Vice Chief of Air Staff
- Deputy Chief of Air Staff
- Commandant of AFA
ANSWER: B
- Prior to his appointment as VCAS, Air Marshal V R Chaudhari was the AOC-in-C of:
- Central Air Command
- Southern Air Command
- Western Air Command
- Eastern Air Command
ANSWER: C
- Which made-in-India ship was recently inducted into Seychelles Coast Guard?
- SCGS Zoroaster
- PS Constant
- PS Topaz
- HMS Seychelles
ANSWER: A
- SCGS Zoroaster was made in:
- Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers Ltd.
- Cochin Shipyard Limited
- Hindustan Shipyard Limited
- Mazagaon Dockyard Limited
ANSWER: A
- When Seychelles attained freedom, a contingent of which Indian Naval ship took part in the Independence Day celebrations?
- INS Godavari
- INS Shakti
- INS Nilgiri
- INS Venduruthy
ANSWER: C
- India helped Seychelles in moving towards the country’s goals of achieving ___% herd immunity by the end of April 2021.
- 40%
- 70%
- 80%
- 95%
ANSWER: B
- India gifted and installed how many coastal surveillance radar systems in Seychelles in 2015 enabling better coastal security for Seychelles?
- Nine
- Eight
- Seven
- Six
ANSWER: D
- The Seychelles government has leased which island to the Indian Navy to build an overseas base of operations there?
- Silhouette Island
- Assumption Island
- Eden Island
- Sainte Anne Island
ANSWER: B
- Who took over as Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy)?
- Lt Gen Sanjeev Kumar Sharma
- Lt Gen S K Upadhya
- Lt Gen Harpal Singh
- Lt Gen Sudharshan Shrikant Hasabnis
ANSWER: A
- The new military theatre commands will be raised and operationalized over a two-year period and will be viable by:
- August 2023
- August 2024
- August 2025
- August 2026
ANSWER: A
- The new commands will include:
- Integrated Maritime Theatre Command (IMTC)
- Integrated Air-Defence Command (IADC)
- Both A and B
- Neither A nor B
ANSWER: C
- Which of these is not correct with respect to integrated theatre commands?
- The integrated theatre commander is not answerable to individual Service Commanders.
- The resources available under each service will be available to other services too.
- New integrated commands strengthen cohesion in the defence establishments.
- The Shekatkar committee (2019) has recommended the creation of 4 integrated theatre commands.
ANSWER: D
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