DEFENCE UPDATES 27 & 28 JUNE 2021

Indian Army Plans to Buy 1,750 Futuristic Infantry Combat Vehicles, 350 Light Tanks

• Army says it wants to deploy the vehicles in places like Eastern Ladakh along with desert and amphibious terrain. The FICV project has been in plans for a long time and the need for a modern troops’ carrier equipped with tank-busting capabilities was felt during the recent Ladakh conflict.
• The Light Tank is planned to be procured under the ‘Make-in-India’ ethos and spirit of the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) – 2020, the Indian Army has stated.
• The Indian Army specified that it wants its less than 25 tonnes tanks to be used for operations in High Altitude Area (HAA), marginal terrain (Rann), amphibious operations, etc.

INS Tabar deployed to participate in Joint Exercises with friendly navies.

• During the deployment, INS Tabar will transit across the Gulf of Aden, Red Sea, Suez Canal, Mediterranean Sea, North Sea and Baltic Sea while making port calls at Djibouti, Egypt, Italy, France, UK, Russia, Netherlands, Morocco, and Arctic Council countries like Sweden and Norway.
• In addition to PASSEX with host navies of countries being visited, the ship is also scheduled to participate in bilateral exercises like Ex Konkan with Royal Navy, Ex Varuna with French Navy and Ex Indra with Russian Federation Navy.
• The deployment will also see participation by the ship in the Russian Navy Day celebrations from 22 to 27 July.

INS Tabar

• Talwar-class stealth Frigate (one of the earliest).
• Built for Indian Navy in Russia.
• Crew: Commander Captain M Mahesh and 300 personnel.
• Equipment: Versatile range of weapons and sensors.
• Main Command: Western Naval Command, Mumbai.

Operation Sankalp in Arabian Sea

• Commenced in Jun 2019 to ensure safe passage of Indian Flagged Merchant Vessels transiting through Strait of Hormuz, around 23 warships deployed till date providing safe passage to Indian Flagged Merchant Vessels.
• Continuous presence is still instilling confidence & is reassuring the Indian maritime community is vital for India’s economy.

Message for Turkey: India, Greece discuss issues of territorial integrity, rise of radicalism.

• Issues of principle of territorial integrity and rise of extremism were part of the agenda when EAM S Jaishankar met Greek leadership in Athens during his June 25-27 visit.
• Both sides discussed the recent developments pertaining to the Eastern Mediterranean, Cyprus and Libya.
• While Turkey was not named but the message was clear given Turkey’s deepening ties with Pakistan and support for radicalism including in South Asia.

Attack on Jammu Airbase

• It is perhaps the first time that suspected Pakistan-based terrorists have used unmanned aerial vehicles in an attack.
• Two IAF personnel were injured in the explosions that took place around 1.40 am within six minutes of each other.
• The area was sealed by security forces within minutes.
• The aerial distance between Jammu airport and international border is 14 km.
• The Indian Air Force station at Jammu is an important base for helicopters operating along the Western Front and in the Himalayas.
• The Jammu airport is a civil airport with runway and the ATC is under the IAF.

Raksha Mantri interacts with 300 veterans in Leh as part of his three-day visit to Ladakh.

• He also met Ashok Chakra winner Naib Subedar (Honorary) Chhering Mutup (Retd) and Maha Vir Chakra winner Colonel Sonam Wangchuk (Retd), at Leh, Ladakh on June 27, 2021.
• He spoke about launch of ‘e-Sehat’ portal to provide tele-medicine services, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the introduction of Interactive Voice Response System (IVRS) to address the problems faced by the ex-servicemen.
• Lt Governor of Ladakh Shri RK Mathur, MP from Ladakh Shri Jamyang Tsering Namgyal, Chief of Army Staff General MM Naravane and General Officer-Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command Lt Gen YK Joshi were present on the occasion.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

• As per updates, Indian Army plans to buy how many Futuristic Infantry Combat Vehicles?
• 1750
• 1850
• 1950
• 2050

ANSWER: A

• As per updates, Indian Army plans to buy how many Light Tanks?
• 150
• 250
• 350
• 450

ANSWER: C

• Which ship is recently deployed to participate in Joint Exercises with friendly navies in future?
• INS Shakti
• INS Tabar
• INS Talwar
• INS Kavaratti

ANSWER: B

• INS Tabar deployed to participate in Joint Exercises with friendly navies. During deployment, it will not transit which of these water bodies?
• Gulf of Aden
• Red Sea
• Suez Canal
• Palk Strait

ANSWER: D

• Operation Sankalp was commenced in June 2019 to ensure safe passage of Indian Flagged Merchant Vessels transiting through:
• Strait of Hormuz
• Strait of Florida
• Strait of Gibraltar
• Strait of Tartary

ANSWER: A

• Strait of Hormuz separates:
• Gulf of Oman and Arabian Sea
• Pacific and South Atlantic Ocean
• Japan Sea and Pacific Ocean
• Mediterranean Sea & Atlantic Ocean

ANSWER: A

• In an indirect unmentioned strong message for Turkey, India has discussions on issues of territorial integrity and rise of radicalism with which nation recently?
• Belarus
• Armenia
• Azerbaijan
• Greece

ANSWER: D

• Which airbase was recently attacked in a manner, for the first time, by UAVs of the suspected Pakistan-based terrorists?
• Amritsar Air Force Station
• Jammu Air Force Station
• Ambala Air Force Station
• Jodhpur Air Force Station

ANSWER: B

• Which portal was launched to provide tele-medicine services in an online mode?
• ‘e-Arogya’
• ‘e-Rahat’
• ‘e-Sehat’
• ‘e-Samvaad’

ANSWER: C

1. General Officer Commanding-in-Chief Northern Command:
2. Lt Gen Y K Joshi
3. Lt Gen C P Mohanty
4. Lt Gen Arvind Dutta
5. Lt Gen Anil Chauhan

ANSWER: A

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