India open to including Australia in Malabar naval exercise

• India is prepared to expand the Malabar trilateral naval exercise involving India, the U.S. and Japan, to also include Australia. While a decision on whether to extend the invitation is expected “soon”, the officials said, it was unlikely to be announced during Thursday’s “virtual summit” between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Australian counterpart Scott Morrison.
• Cooperation in the ‘Indo-Pacific’ and the strengthening of defence ties would be at the top of the agenda for the talks, and India and Australia are expected to conclude the long pending Mutual Logistics Support Agreement (MLSA) as part of measures to elevate the strategic partnership.
• “We have a shared approach to a free, open, inclusive and prosperous Indo-Pacific,” said a Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) official, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “This has led to a convergence of mutual interest in many areas,” the official said, stressing that as “two democratic nations”, the two countries had a better understanding of regional and global issues.
• Despite regular requests from Australia in the last few years, India has resisted issuing the invitation to the Malabar exercise, ostensibly over concerns that it would give the appearance of a “quadrilateral military alliance” aimed at China. However, the recent India-China tensions over the situation at the Line of Actual Control may have brought more flexibility to the decision-making process, and the Prime Minister’s Office and MEA are expected to take a final decision in consultation with the Ministry of Defence.
• When asked about Malabar earlier this week, Australian High Commissioner Barry O’Farrell said he could not confirm whether India would decide to invite Australia.
• “The issue of Malabar is obviously an issue for the partners (India-U.S.-Japan) to decide; we would be delighted to participate in Malabar, but I do think that at times the focus on Malabar gets in the way of the underappreciated growth and significance of defence ties between Australia and India,” Mr. O’Farrell said, adding that bilateral defence cooperation had “quadrupled in the last six years”.
• The announcement of the MLSA, which would allow reciprocal use of each other’s military bases for exchange of fuel and provisions to simplify logistical support and improve operational turnaround would mark another step in that direction.
• Australia was the first country to submit a draft MLSA after India signed the first such agreement with the U.S. in 2016. It was to be signed last year during the scheduled visit of Defence Minister Rajnath Singh to Canberra, but the trip was cancelled due to his domestic engagements. It was then expected to be part of the announcements at the Modi-Morrison summit in January 2020, which had to be postponed due to Australian forest fires and put off again in May because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Rather than putting it off any further, the two leaders “decided to continue the engagement even though it was in the form of a virtual meeting,” officials said.
• A broader maritime cooperation agreement with a focus on Maritime Domain Awareness (MDA) is also in the works and Australia has agreed to post a Liaison Officer at the Indian Navy’s Information Fusion Centre – Indian Ocean Region (IFC-IOR) at Gurugram. The two countries also have increasingly common military platforms as India’s defence purchases from the U.S. continue to grow.
• The inclusion of Australia in the Malabar exercise would be a major shift from the past for India’s Indo-Pacific plans. Malabar began as a bilateral naval exercise between India and the U.S. in 1992 and was expanded into a trilateral format with the inclusion of Japan in 2015. Since 2016, Australia has made repeated requests to join the exercises, and in January 2018, the then Australian PM Malcolm Turnbull had said the talks on Malabar were “progressing well”. However, India did not include Australia in the exercises in 2018 and 2019, continuing instead to grow the bilateral AUSINDEX naval and other military exercises.

IAF indigenising Russian night vision goggles for use in helicopters

• The Indian Air Force (IAF) is indigenising Russian night vision goggles that are used by pilots flying the Mi-17 medium lift helicopter. IAF’s No. 3 Base Repair Depot Chandigarh, that is responsible for the maintenance and overhaul of Russian-origin helicopters, has been tasked to execute the project.
• The design and development of the NL-93 night-vision goggle (NVG) variant will be done in collaboration with the Indian industry, for which the public and the private sector is being approached. NVG is categorised as a critical equipment and it has to be compatible with the Mi-17’s cockpit and operating parameters.
• NVG is a helmet-mounted electro-optical device based on image intensifier technology that allows images to be produced in levels of light approaching total darkness. NVGs can intensify ambient light to over a thousand times and can function effectively in minimal moonlight conditions or even starlight.
• By increasing the air crew’s situational awareness due to improved visibility in the dark, NVGs enhance manoeuvrability and navigation, thereby facilitating better air-to-ground tactics and thereby enhancing mission effectiveness.
• The essential features of NVG vision include monochromatic image in a field of view reduced to a cone of 40 degrees with diminished visual acuity as compared to daytime vision. Consequently, pilots have to continually turn their heads to see to the sides.
• The use of NVGs, however, also has medical and physiological implications. It adds to the weight of the helmet, causing increased stress on the neck and spine. Given the device’s limited field of view of about 40 degrees, the pilots have to constantly rotate their heads for wider arc of vision. Air crew are also required to undergo brief training capsules on the use of NVGs.
• The IAF began using NVGs in helicopters in 2002 for operation flying such as special heliborne operations, troop deployment, search and rescue and communication. It carried out its first NVG-assisted rescue in 2007, when it evacuated two injured soldiers, one of them with a serious head injury, in the north-east.
• According to IAF sources, once the indigenous NVG for the Mi-17 is certified for use, it would be adapted for other helicopters in the IAF’s inventory such as the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited-developed Dhruv and Rudra as well as the upcoming Light Combat Helicopter.

Amid Ladakh border tension, NHAI starts work on emergency airstrip in south Kashmir

• Amid the India-Chinese stand-off along the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) is constructing an emergency landing strip in south Kashmir on the Srinagar-Jammu national highway.
• The officials, however, said the landing strip has nothing to do with the confrontation with China and termed it as an old project which was approved some time ago.
• The work has started adjacent to the newly constructed national highway between Srinagar and Jammu near south Kashmir’s Bijbehara area.
• An NHAI officer said the project involves construction of a 3.5-kilometre emergency landing strip. “It was already in the plan when the construction of the new national highway began in Kashmir. The work couldn’t be taken up earlier due to the Covid-19 lockdown.”
• Officials said that earth laying work is already going at full pace and special passes have been issued to people engaged with the construction.
• Once completed, the airstrip could be used in emergency situations, the officials said adding that the area where the strip is coming up is centrally placed.

Indian Navy helps Sri Lankan Navy in COVID Crisis

• As a mark of gratitude and friendship Indian Navy handed over 2 transportation pods for transferring COVID19 patients by air and 4 thermal scanners manufactured by Indian Navy to Srilanka Navy.
• This continues the close and friendly cooperation between the two Navies,  which had worked together most recently in repatriation of 685 stranded Indians by INS Jalashwa. 

IAF provides HADR assistance during Cyclone Nisarga

• IAF continues in a heightened state of preparedness to provide required assistance in combating Nisarga Cyclone.
• On 02 June 2020, one IAF IL-76 aircraft landed at Surat with 5 NDRF teams.
• Another IL-76 airlifted 5 NDRF teams from Vijayawada for Mumbai.

Air Marshal B Suresh PVSM AVSM VM ADC visits Air Force Station Halwara

• During his visit on 03^rd June 2020, the AOC-in-C inspected vital installations of the base and assessed operational preparedness. He reviewed all measures taken towards the prevalent COVID-19 pandemic. The AOC-in-C reiterated that we are faced with developing security threats along with the pandemic threat and emphasised the importance of ensuring operational capability through diligent planning and utilisation of resources during these challenging times.
• The AOC-in-C conveyed his appreciation for the excellent involvement and commitment to duty displayed by all personnel of the Station and advised them to stay fit and be vigilant considering the current security situation.

Top Jaish-e-Mohammad commander and IED expert Abdul Rehman killed in Pulwama encounter

• A top commander of Jaish-e-Mohammad, Abdul Rehman alias Fouji Bhia, was among three terrorists eliminated in encounter with security forces in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama on Wednesday (June 3).
• Rehman, who was an Afghanistan war participant, was an IED expert and was also the mastermind of the recent failed car bomb attempt in Pulwama. Inspector General of Police Kashmir range, Vijay Kumar, termed Rehman’s killing as a big success for the security forces in Kashmir.
• He further added that it was for the first time that top commanders of Hizbul Mujahideen, Lashkar-e-Taiba, Jaish-e-Mohammad, and Ansar Gazwatul Hind were killed by security forces so frequently. “The number of terrorists killed this year is 75 and the majority of them were commanders. We have also arrested more 135 Over Ground Workers and categorised then A, B, and C categories. Public Safety Act will be slapped on A category OGWs, B and C category OGWs will go through counselling and their parents will be called and then they will be released,” noted IGP Kumar.

India to bring specific proposals during military talks with China on June 6

• The general officer commanding of Leh-based 14 Corps, Lt Gen Harinder Singh, is set to represent India at the talks which is scheduled to be held at one of the border meeting points.
• The Indian side is expected to present specific proposals at the talks to deescalate tension in Pangong Tso, Galwan Valley and Demchok – the three areas in eastern Ladakh where the two sides have been on a bitter standoff for last one month.
• It is not immediately known what will be the proposals that the Indian military will take to the negotiating table, but it is understood that it will insist on return to status quo in all the areas.
• The two sides have already held at least 10 rounds of negotiations between local commanders as well as major general-rank officials of the two armies, but the talks did not yield any positive result.
• Official sources said satellite images have captured significant ramping up of defence infrastructure by China on its side of the de-facto border including construction activities at a military airbase around 180 km from the Pangong Tso area.
• India has also been bolstering its presence by sending additional troops and artillery guns.
• The trigger for the face-off was China’s stiff opposition to India laying a key road in the Finger area around the Pangong Tso Lake besides construction of another road connecting the Darbuk-Shayok-Daulat Beg Oldie road in Galwan Valley.

REVIEW QUESTIONS

1. Which among these nations is presently not included in Malabar trilateral naval exercise but is likely to join?
2. India
3. U.S.A.
4. Japan
5. Australia

ANSWER: D

• Indian Navy handed over 2 transportation pods for transferring COVID19 patients by air and 4 thermal scanners to:
• Sri Lankan Navy
• Maldives’ Navy
• Mauritius’ Navy
• Australian Navy

ANSWER: A

• AOC-in-C of Western Air Command:
• Air Marshal Rajiv Dayal Mathur, AVSM, VSM
• Air Marshal B Suresh PVSM AVSM VM ADC
• Air Marshal Amit Tiwari AVSM VM
• Air Marshal Arvindra Singh Butola VM VSM

ANSWER: B

• Which general officer commanding of Leh-based 14 Corps is set to represent India at the talks with China at LAC?
• Lt. Gen. Harinder Singh
• Lt. Gen. Devraj Anbu
• Lt. Gen. Ashwani Kumar
• Lt. Gen. Jaswinder Singh Sandhu

ANSWER: A