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President Mukherjee And PM Modi Pay Rich Tributes To Dr Kalam On His 85th Birth Anniversary

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Abdul Kalam’s teammates lifting him on their shoulders on the first successful launch of Agni. His pet project. A young DR. VK Saraswat (with specs) is also seen in the foreground

President of India, Pranab Mukherjee and Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, former President of India, on the occasion of his birth anniversary on October 15.

President Mukherjee paid floral tributes to Dr. Kalam at the Rashtrapati Bhavan along with the officers and staff of Rashtrapati Bhavan and family members of Dr. Kalam.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also fondly remembered Dr. Kalam and said, "Tributes to our former President, the person who captured the imagination of every Indian, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam on his birth anniversary."

Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) also paid rich tributes to the former President of India and former DRDO Chief, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam at a gala function held in Kothari Auditorium at DRDO Bhawan, stated a press release.

Since Dr. Kalam loved students, for the first time, students from various schools of Delhi were invited at DRDO Bhawan on this occasion with the purpose was to motivate the children with the diverse and great qualities of Dr. Kalam. The Young scientist from various DRDO labs was also invited to the function.

The invited school students were taken around the museum at DRDO Bhawan, where the students took a keen interest in the life and works of Dr. Kalam depicted in the gallery, added the release.



Pakistan Launches Sneaky Cyber Attack On Indian Army

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NEW DELHI: India’s cross-border surgical strikes involved real men and real bullets. In a counter- offensive, Pakistan is using computers and virus-laden emails to ‘attack’ the Indian Army. Launching a cyber war, Pakistan Army is sending spoofed emails to Indian Army personnel with the subject line ‘Actual story of surgical strike done by Indian Army in PoK’. A hacked email address of a key office in the directorate of military intelligence is being used to send and give credibility of the phishing mail.

With a large number of Army personnel reporting the cyber attack in the last 10 days, Army Headquarters has issued an alert to all its units to be cautious.

“The content of the email tempts users to trust the legitimacy of the message by indicating that the attached document is an official statement from Indian Army on surgical strike in PoK and subsequent response after Uri attack,” an Army Headquarters statement said.

After tracing the spoofed email, the Army’s Cyber Group established that the malicious file’s IP address was linked to a server in Germany, which appears to be fake.

“This malware is designed to steal user data and credentials. It also allows the hackers to take remote control of the targeted machine (computer),” an Army Cyber Group alert confirmed.

Since the September 29 pre-dawn strike by Indian commandos of the Special Forces, Pakistan has carried out several attacks in the virtual world. At least 50 IT companies in Hyderabad have come under a wave of cyber attacks from Pakistan-based hackers over the past 10 days.

On October 3, the National Green Tribunal’s website was attacked by a group of Pakistani hackers who posted a message mocking the Indian side over the surgical strikes.

Few months ago, China’s Western Headquarters, which overseas India, launched a cyber attack on the Indian Army, raising alarms bells.

Recently, a similar cyber attack was launched in the name of the Seventh Central Pay Commission malware, a topic of interest among defence and government officials. In 2013, computer systems of the Defence Research and Development Organisation were breached by Chinese hackers.


No Russian Fighter Jets For Pakistan: Sergey Chemezov

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A Sukhoi Su-35 Strike Fighter of the Russian Air Force

On a day India and Russia signed major defence deals worth $10 billion and other agreements, CEO of Russia’s ROSTEC Corp Sergey Chemezov says the seeming decline in India-Russia ties is a thing of the past. Mr. Chemezov, who runs Russia’s military and tech giant and is a close associate of President Putin, is often referred to as the second-most important Russian on defence issues. He spoke to Suhasini Haidar and other journalists in a select interaction in Goa.

India and Russia have signed many major agreements today, including for the S-400 Triumf anti-missile system. Could you tell us about the timeline and costs for these and the other agreements?

I can say that with the S-400, India will have the most modern system for air defence that exists at present.

CEO of Russia’s ROSTEC Corp Sergey Chemezov

By 2020, you should see the systems beginning to be delivered. As far as the costs are concerned, these will be finalized in the contract itself. The fifth generation fighter aircraft we propose will be a joint design manufactured jointly with an Indian company, made specifically for the needs of India. For the 200 Kamov 226T helicopters, we will partner with HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.), with HAL owning 50.5 per cent at the location of HALs choice.

We have a long-standing relationship with India, and now hope to improve our civilian deals as well, including on electronics, biochemistry and optic fibers.

Russia has been overtaken by the U.S. as the largest defence supplier, and there has been a sense that the relationship has flagged. Will the deals signed on Saturday revive ties?

Our relationship with India has always been strong and fruitful in both military production and civilian areas. Inter- governmental relations always have cycles and some parts of the cycle may be more or less active than others. Sometimes, they can be influenced by foreign factors or by internal factors.

It may look like there has been a decline in Indo-Russian relations as a result. However, in recent times, the relationship has been strengthening and broadening, and India is a strong ally and partner for Russia.

How about the new ties with Pakistan, including delivery of helicopters, and the recent military exercises? Do you plan any military sales to Pakistan, given a Russian delegation attended the Karachi DefExpo for the first time?

Our relationship with Pakistan has existed in the past as well, and while you can see areas where it has broadened, but not significantly. The military exercises in September this year were directly connected with modernizing counter terror operations in Pakistan. ISIS is a global danger and doesn’t just involve terrorists in the Middle East but also in India and Pakistan. Therefore joint military exercises are important, but it must be noted that were not in any way targeted at India or at any other conflict in the region.

And military sales, given reports Russia may consider selling Su-35s in the future?

We are not delivering any military aircraft to Pakistan. We have made deliveries of transport helicopters and that contract has been completed. No contracts or plans for any other military-related equipment to Pakistan exist for present.

How badly have sanctions in the past two years affected ROSTEC and the Russian economy? Have they forced Russia to look east rather than west?

It’s true…Sanctions have affected us and some of our production also declined at the time, as we were unprepared for the action by western countries.

As a result sourcing was hit. But we have done well to overcome all the difficulties mostly through domestic production of equipment, or to source them through Asia including from India. We have also found that we have been spurred to manufacture and offer more advanced equipment than we previously would have in normal progression. In both military and civil production, we want to be less dependent on external forces.

I think the sanctions have pushed us to do better and grow quicker, and in the long run have meant no threat in any meaningful way to ROSTEC and to the Russian economy.


Indian Move To Seal Border ‘Contrary’ To Its Peace Claims: Pakistan

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“On the one hand, they [India] talk of establishing peaceful neighbourhood, and on the other hand their actions contradict their claims,” Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria commenting on India’s decision to seal the border with Pakistan latest by December 2018.

New Delhi has not yet officially communicated the decision to us: Nafees Zakaria

Pakistan has said that the Indian move to completely seal the 3,323-km-long border between the two countries by December 2018 will be “contrary” to the Indian position of establishing a peaceful neighborhood.

Pakistan Foreign Office spokesman Nafees Zakaria said the announcement by Home Minister Rajnath Singh earlier this month that India will “completely seal” the border with Pakistan by December 2018 was contradictory to the Indian stand of establishing a peaceful neighborhood.

‘A Contradiction’

“On the one hand, they talk of establishing peaceful neighborhood, and on the other hand their actions contradict their claims,” he said on Friday in response to a question.

Mr. Zakaria, however, said India has not yet officially communicated to Pakistan about the decision.

“India has not formally conveyed any such plan [sealing the border] to Pakistan. We don’t have the details,” he said.

Mr. Singh had said India was planning to seal the entire border with Pakistan by December 2018 and that a proper monitoring mechanism, including the use of technology, would be put in place for the purpose. His announcement had come after he reviewed the security situation along the border with Ministers from four States — Rajasthan, Punjab, Jammu and Kashmir, and Gujarat — that share border with Pakistan.

After Uri Attacks

The announcement was also significant as it came in the wake of increasing tension between India and Pakistan after surgical strikes by army on terror camps across the Line of Control in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir on September 28.

The surgical strikes were in response to an attack on an Indian army base in Uri on September 18 in which Pakistan-backed terrorists killed 19 Indian soldiers.


Why US Can't Take India For Granted

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Prime Minister Modi has strategic guile to resurrect strained relationship between traditional allies

by Ravi Shankar

The world is wary of anything it doesn’t understand, control or threatens its preeminence. Vladimir Putin’s Russia is all of that. Hence the strengthening of the Putin-Modi equation will be a source of worry for America and its allies, which have economic and military interests in the AfPak region and are counting on India to be their primary ally, though the US refuses to declare Pakistan a terror state.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi knows this too well. Hence, BRICS will be the forum to balance Russo-Indian interests with America’s untrustworthy AfPak policy. India and Russia have a historic past, which the US is aware of. Hence, Modi finds himself in an advantageous position despite China making pro-Pakistan noises for dialogue, which is unlikely to be heeded by South Block. Many diplomats believe that Russia’s recent joint military exercise with Pakistan is Putin’s use of Maskirovka, the old Russian military stratagem of deception to confuse subcontinental politics, since the alchemy of alliances hasn’t produced a new philosopher’s stone yet. Media chatter about a Sino-Russian effort to arm-twist India to talk to Pakistan instead of replying with cross-border strikes looks like Track-II lobby at work.

Russia quickly snubbed Pakistan’s claim that the exercises took place in PoK. Putin is clear where his interests lie. In the quicksand of regional weddings, he needs to strengthen Russia’s old ties with India to play Sudoku with both the US and China. Putin’s reputation has become something like Darth Vader’s—an invincible jedi who can strike anywhere, anytime. He is suspected of hacking White House computers, leaking emails and interfering with the US presidential campaign in Donald Trump’s support. Russia is blamed for shooting down aircraft and blaming the Ukranians for it, and wanting to get control over Crimea. Putin suppresses dissent, subverts elections and jails anyone—oligarch or intellectual—who opposes his agenda. The unpopular truth is that the Russian President disregards world opinion in protecting what he believes is his country’s interests and, of course, his own.World leadership is not a popularity contest, but a pragmatic expression of nationalist doctrine, a maxim Modi realizes.

Pakistan’s crowing apart, India’s best ally in fighting terror is Russia. Putin wiped out Muslim separatists in Chechnya with the same ruthlessness he used against rock bands and bloggers. To the naive horror of Obama & Co, he stands by Russia’s oldest ally in the Middle East—the Assads—bombing IS and al-Qaeda. The US conveniently forgets it authored the Middle East crisis when it invaded Iraq.

The emergence of a strong leader in the European theatre makes Western leaders look like mannequins without a shop window. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is a failed madonna of liberal guilt. UK Prime Minister Theresa May looks like a neo-Nazi nintendo wannabe. French President François Hollande is more tepid than diluted sauce. The US presidential race is between which candidate is less dislikeable, and not who will be a better president. In Russia, however, the choice is between Putin and Putin.

Russia was once the third largest empire in history. History shows an empire that has fallen is pitied by its neighbors, while an empire that has risen from its own ashes is feared. Modi wants India to be the latter.


Donald Trump Calls Narendra Modi A Great Man, Promises Close Relationship With India If Elected

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Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump lights a diya before delivering remarks to the Republican Hindu Coalition, Saturday, Oct. 15, 2016, in Edison, N.J. (AP Photo/ Evan Vucci)

Donald Trump promises a close relationship with India if elected

Donald Trump says that, if he’s elected to the White House, there won’t be any relationship more important to the U.S. than its relationship with India. Trump says at a Republican Hindu Coalition fundraiser Saturday night that “under a Trump admiration we are going to become even better friends.”

He adds: “In fact, I’ll take the word `even’ out because we are going to be best friends. There won’t be any relationship more important to us.” Trump also praises Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as a “great man” and says he looks forward to deepening diplomatic and military ties with India.

The event features colorful performances by popular Bollywood singers and dancers. “I am a big fan of Hindu and I am a big fan of India. Big, big fan,” Trump declared to the cheering crowd after participating in a traditional Diya oil lamp lighting for good luck.

Trump said that if he’s elected, the Indian and Hindu communities will have “a true friend” in the White House. He also talked about several projects his company has been involved with in the country.

Trump, who usually portrays himself as an “American First” candidate, also spoke about the two countries’ shared goals when it comes to fighting terrorism and mentioned the 2008 bombings in Mumbai. He called Mumbai “a place that l love” and “a place that I understand.”

Trump did not, however, mention a top issue for the Indian community: H-1B visas for skilled foreign workers. He has sent mixed messages on the program, which critics complain takes jobs away from U.S. citizens.


Russian Flagship Aircraft Carrier Departs For Syria Coast

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Russia's Admiral Kuznetsov Aircraft Carrier

Russia’s flagship aircraft carrier set off on Saturday for the Mediterranean Sea where Moscow’s naval forces are supporting its bombing campaign in Syria, the defense ministry said. The deployment of the Admiral Kuznetsov aircraft carrier comes weeks after Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said the ship would be sent to the eastern Mediterranean to boost the country’s naval forces in the area.

The Admiral Kuznetsov is traveling with the Pyotr Veliky battlecruiser, the Vice-Admiral Kulakov destroyer, and large anti-submarine ships, the ministry said.

In addition to safeguarding maritime navigation, the ships are meant to “respond to new types of modern threats like piracy and international terrorism,” the ministry said.

Russia has been flying a bombing campaign in Syria for the past year in support of President Bashar al-Assad and has deployed a naval contingent to back up its operation.

This is the first time that the Soviet-era Kuznetsov -Russia’s only aircraft carrier part of its Northern fleet based in Murmansk – will join the Russian deployment after undergoing a refurbishment.

The defense ministry did not specify how long the aircraft carrier’s mission would last.

Russia has a base in government-controlled Syrian territory from which it has flown most of its bombing raids in the country. This week President Vladimir Putin approved a law ratifying Moscow’s deal with Damascus to deploy its forces in the country indefinitely, in a move seen as firming their long-term presence.

The defense ministry said earlier this week that Moscow was poised to transform its naval facility in the Syrian port city of Tartus into a permanent base.

Moscow has flown long-range bombing raids from bases in Russia and fired cruise missiles from ships in the Caspian Sea and a submarine in the Mediterranean.


China To Launch Manned Space Mission

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China's Tiangong 2 space lab is launched on a Long March-2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert in September (AFP Photo/)

Beijing - China will launch a manned space mission on Monday, official media said, as the Asian giant works towards setting up its own space station.

Chinese astronauts Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong will be on board the Shenzhou-11 spacecraft as it blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi desert, the official Xinhua news agency reported Sunday.

They will arrive at China's orbiting space lab Tiangong-2 within two days and stay for 30 more before returning to earth, according to the report.

Jing, a 50-year-old astronaut who has already been to space twice, will command the mission to the lab, which was launched in September.

He and Chen will carry out research projects related to in-orbit equipment repairs, aerospace medicine, space physics and biology, atomic space clocks and solar storm research, Xinhua reported earlier.

Beijing is pouring billions into its space programme in a bid to catch up with the US and Europe.

It announced in April that it aims to send a spacecraft "around 2020" to orbit Mars, land and deploy a rover to explore the Red Planet's surface.

Beijing sees the military-run program as a symbol of China's progress and a marker of its rising global stature. The nation's first lunar rover was launched in late 2013, and while it was beset by mechanical troubles it far outlived its expected lifespan, finally shutting down only last month.

But so far China has largely replicated activities that the US and Soviet Union pioneered decades ago.

It intends to set up its own manned space station by 2022, and eventually put one of its citizens on the surface of the moon.



In Space, The Looming Threat of A New Arms Race

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The United States has since 2004 possessed a mobile jamming station which, from the ground, can block satellite communications.

WASHINGTON: Killer satellites, blinding lasers, sophisticated jammers: the world's military powers are quietly readying for a war in outer space -- at the risk of fueling a dangerous new arms race.

US military officials have in recent years sounded growing alarm about the potential vulnerabilities of their satellites, which underpin US military power. Initially, the reserve of the United States and the Soviet Union, space has now become accessible to an ever-expanding multitude of nations and private firms.

And Moscow and Beijing are keen to show off their space-attack capabilities, a deep worry for US strategists.

"We are changing the culture in our space enterprise because we need to get our heads around... what happens if a conflict on Earth extends to space. How will we defend our assets?" Air Force Secretary Deborah Lee James said at an event last month.

In 2015, the mysterious behavior of a Russian satellite fueled speculation about Moscow developing possible attack satellites, capable of maneuvering through space and approaching a target. Without warning or explanation, the craft positioned itself for several months between two Intelsat satellites in geostationary orbit, coming to within six miles (10 kilometers) of one, before eventually moving away again.

"Our satellites are crucial for our national security infrastructure," said Victoria Samson of the Secure World Foundation, which works to develop the safe and sustainable use of space.

"The fact that another entity can come close to them and interfere with their work is very unsettling to US national security," she added.

China, too, has demonstrated its ability to send a small, low-orbit satellite capable of maneuvering toward another craft.

Teresa Hitchens, a Senior research scholar at the Center for International and Security Studies at the University of Maryland, said that China in 2013 launched three small satellites into orbit, one of which had a robotic grappling arm.

For the Pentagon and many US experts, it is clear America should speed up military efforts in space, and prevent its communications network from becoming the armed forces' Achilles heel.

"The Department of Defense has aggressively moved out to develop responses that we see coming from China and Russia. I believe it's essential that we go faster in our responses," General John Hyten, head of the Air Force's Space Command, told lawmakers in September. 

Elbridge Colby, a Senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security said the United States must develop the ability to defend its own space assets.

"As human beings and more states are able to operate in space, it will just become a reality that it will become more militarized," he told AFP.

"The United States should develop effective but limitable forms of space attack, particularly non-kinetic ones that do not result in space debris."

But other experts say the United States should show restraint, noting the Pentagon may already have some of the offensive capabilities that China and Russia are hoping to acquire.

"I think it's being hyped somewhat by those in the US national security community that have never felt comfortable with the US loosing its role as the dominant space power," Samson said.

The United States has since 2004 possessed a mobile jamming station which, from the ground, can block satellite communications.

America has already tested using a missile to blow up a satellite and has recently acquired four satellites that can maneuver in orbit and inspect or monitor other space objects.

Hitchens, the Maryland researcher, said Russia and China are quickly catching up to where the Americans are.

"What you have is a brewing," she said.

It's a lead up "to a potential arms race in space, where people start developing things for real."

Space war could be devastating for humans, as a single exploded satellite would leave a trail of debris that in turn could damage other satellites in a chain reaction of destruction.

"We are at a very dangerous place right now: if we actually ever fought a war that would involve an anti-satellite weapon, we would damage the space environment to such an extent that it would make it very difficult to have the benefits that satellites provide to society," Hitchens said.


BRICS Development Bank To Lend $2.5 Billion Next Year

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Leaders of BRICS countries, Brazilian President Michel Temer, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Indian PMNarendra Modi, Russian President Vladimir Putin, SA President Jacob Zuma

GOA: The development bank set up by the BRICS group of emerging economies will ramp up lending to $2.5 billion next year after making its first loans to back green projects, its president KV Kamath told Reuters.

The BRICS - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - agreed to create the New Development Bank (NDB) in July 2014 with initial authorized capital of $100 billion. The lender was officially launched a year later.

"The second year is scaling up, concentrating on people, getting all the skill sets in," said Kamath, a veteran Indian banker appointed as the first head of the Shanghai-based NDB.

He was speaking on the fringes of a weekend BRICS summit hosted in the resort state of Goa by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The gathering seeks to add substance to the group that grew out of an acronym devised by Goldman Sachs economist Jim O'Neill back in 2003 that projected a long-term boom and global power shift in their favor.

With Russia, Brazil and South Africa on the economic skids and China slowing, the initial euphoria has faded, yet Kamath said the BRICS had much to gain by deepening their cooperation.

"The fact is that these countries, collectively, have for the last few years contributed to more than 50 percent of incremental economic wealth that has been generated globally," said Kamath. "I don't see that changing."

The NDB, headquartered in Shanghai, will expand its staff to 300 over the next three years but run a tight operation that seeks to take quick decisions and transfer experience across all five BRICS member states.

It has already approved loans totaling $900 million to green projects in each member state. It has also started a Renminbi-denominated borrowing program, issuing a 3 billion yuan ($450 million) bond.

Kamath, 68, said there was plenty of room for new lenders like the NDB and the Chinese-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), in addition to established institutions like the World Bank.

"Infrastructure alone has needs globally of $1-1.5 trillion a year – all the multilateral banks put together can do maybe 15 percent of this," said Kamath, who ran India's ICICI Bank Ltd from 1996 until 2009.

"The phrase I would like to use is cooperate and work together, rather than compete. I don't see competition as a key challenge in this context."

($1 = 6.6685 Chinese yuan renminbi)


BRICS NDB To Issue First Indian Rupee Bond Worth Up To $500 Mn in 1Q17

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The BRICS-created New Development Bank is to issue the first Indian rupee bond in the first quarter of 2017.

GOA — The BRICS-created New Development Bank (NDB) intends to issue the first Indian rupee bond worth up to $500 million in the first quarter of 2017, NDB President Kundapur Vaman Kamath told Sputnik on Sunday.

"We will do our first rupee bond issue, masala bond issue [a financial instrument allowing to raise funds from overseas in Indian rupee] in the first quarter of the coming year with the issue size of USD 250-500 mln. After India, it will be Russia and South Africa. India has the offshore market that is developed for rupee and we could tap into that," Kamath said.

According to Kamath, local currency financing is critical for the NDB development.

"Our project pipeline is ready for local currency funding," he said.

In July, the NDB did its first bond issue in China in renminbi.

The NDB was created in July 2014 by the BRICS member states — Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa — to mobilize resources for infrastructure and sustainable development projects.


India's Space Program Is Inspiring Learning

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India's workhorse rocket the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV)

Public interest in space is now at a level not seen since the days of the Apollo missions. With Elon Musk's plan to establish human life on Mars by the mid-2020s having recently been revealed, with movie audiences being enthralled by one extraterrestrial adventure after another - Gravity, The Martian, Interstellar, a new trilogy of Star Wars movies - with New Horizons, Mangalyaan, and Rosetta firmly embedded in the public consciousness, it is one of the most exciting times to live in for space enthusiasts. Yet meaningful youth engagement remains lacking.

This time of exciting exploration and speculation is not without its challenges ranging from the technical to the political. These are challenges are best served by a generation of highly skilled and trained engineers and scientists who are passionate about space and determined to move the species forward. India is ideally suited to lead this new wave of space exploration and discovery. Although The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) lacks the long, illustrious history of a NASA or ESA, it has proved itself through Mangalyaan and commercial satellite launches. India has pioneered innovations to significantly reduce the cost of space travel. We have the advantage of a large young population that tends to prefer science and engineering and is energized by ISRO's achievements. However, due to India's space program's lack of youth engagement, young space enthusiasts have few opportunities to explore and hone their skills.

Internationally, several high school space design competitions and innovation competitions have been established. Some of these are accessible to students in India, prominent among them being the Asian Regional Space Settlement Design Competition (ARSSDC) and the NASA Ames Space Settlement Contest. Both of these call upon students to design space settlements in the style of 2001: A Space Odyssey's Space Station V (perhaps less so on Star Wars' Death Star). Students design structures, materials, life support systems, livable areas, business and financial plans and more, for these self-contained and self-sustaining orbital habitats. The first is to teach aspiring aerospace engineers and designers something of the industry experience, while the second focuses more on the research aspects of space design.

Similar to the international Olympiads, these competitions aim to get students excited about the prospects of space habitation, and to create a generation of future space engineers who will work towards achieving in practice the goals that they realized in theory during their teenage years. The first issue is that there is a little clear incentive for India's youth to be doing this work from India. ISRO has not invested as much as other major space agencies in youth outreach, such as the ESA has achieved via their Rosetta cartoons and their own “Odysseus” space contest for students as young as 7. Both of the major space settlement design competitions are conducted out of the US (in the case of ARSSDC, winning leads to participating in the International round at Kennedy Space Centre, and so, India-based space enthusiasts such as myself feel that their passion is better pursued elsewhere.

The cost of participation in many space competitions is also high. For many design and innovation events, the final round takes place in the USA; only those from well-off backgrounds can easily afford the costs of travel and accommodation that are necessary.

This situation is, fortunately, beginning to change. SPACE India recently announced the Kalpana Chawla Space Settlement Design Competition along the same lines as the ARSSDC. However, ISRO's involvement has been limited to, over the years, little more than quizzes and essay writing, with a few rocket launching events. Another way to youth engagement could be through internships. Currently, the national space agency has no system in place for internships until the college level - when most students have made up their mind about their field of choice.

It would clearly be beneficial for India's standing in the global space community if they could take advantage of the talent and zeal for space science shown by many Indian students. Students would certainly be glad for further opportunities to show and develop their skills, and outreach and student involvement would benefit ISRO as well. For a country that is often proclaimed as an upcoming space power, India will find it difficult to attain and keep this status if the next generation of scientists and engineers is not cultivated, through more accessible competitions and experiences,through internships, and through better outreach.


Nawaz Sharif Feeling The Heat With Imran Khan And Pakistan Army Gunning For Him

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Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, who was isolated on the global stage after India’s surgical strikes and the diplomatic offensive launched by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is feeling the heat on the home front now.

The civilian government is now facing a battle for its existence and legitimacy, with the opposition and the army gunning for him.

Opposition leader Imran Khan has called for an ‘Islamabad showdown’ campaign, accusing Sharif of widespread corruption. The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) chief also clamored for the disqualification of Sharif and has laid out a new ‘occupy Islamabad’ plan, which was earlier scheduled for 30 October.

"If you want to see Pakistan in its real vein, come and join the PTI in its decisive sit-in in Islamabad," the cricketer-turned-politician said. Sharif is under the radar for his family figures in Panama papers.

The Pakistan Army, on the other hand, reprimanded the Sharif government over the alleged leak of information to the Dawn newspaper, and the subsequent ban on its journalist Cyril Almeida from travelling abroad, attracting global condemnation.

The army set the Sharif government a five-day deadline to trace the source that 'fed' the information to Almeida about the crucial 3 October meeting. The Pakistan government, however, bungled up by first putting Almeida on the travel ban list and then awkwardly removing him from it.


10 Naxals Including Area Commander Held In Major Crackdown

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IG (Special Task Force) Aseem Arun said nine Naxals were arrested from Noida during night-long raids that continued till this morning

NOIDA: In a major success, the Uttar Pradesh Police nabbed 10 Naxals including a self-styled commander carrying a reward of Rs 5 lakh during simultaneous raids here and in Chandauli district which yielded a huge cache of arms and weapons.

Police claimed a major attack in Delhi and NCR has been averted with the arrest.

IG (Special Task Force) Aseem Arun said nine Naxals were arrested from Noida during night-long raids that continued till this morning.

Of the nine, six were picked up last night and three this morning. Another was arrested from Chandauli, adjoining Bihar, he said.

Giving details, the STF officer said that acting on a tip-off, a raid was conducted in an apartment in Sector 49 here.

Pradeep Singh Kharwar from Bariatu village in Jharkhand's Latehar district was arrested during a joint operation by the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) and intelligence agencies last night.

The self-styled area commander was hiding in Noida since February 2012. He carried a reward of Rs 5 lakh on his arrest. These Naxals were active in eastern UP and adjoining parts of Bihar and had made Noida their base. They had rented two flats and posed as property dealers, Arun said.

He said 550 live cartridges, an INSAS rifle, two other rifles and three self-loading rifle magazines were recovered from them besides a huge quantity of explosives and detonators.

The recovery of the INSAS rifle showed that they must have looted it from security personnel as the weapon is used by them against the ultras, he said.

He also said that one of those arrested, Ranjit Paswan, owed allegiance to erstwhile People's War Group. He used to be the self-styled area commander of PWG and was active in Sasaram district of Bihar.

The IG said more arrests are likely as the crackdown on the left-wing extremists would continue.


PAC Set To Scrutinise Defense, ‘Make In India’ Deals

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AgustaWestland chopper deal will be discussed by the PAC

NEW DELHI: The government's defense contracts and some of its "Make in India" projects may come under the scrutiny of the Parliament's Public Accounts Committee.

Congress member and chairman of PAC's sub-committee on defense Shantaram Naik told TOI that he has called a meeting of the panel on October 25 to discuss public-private partnership projects, including defense contracts. "Though the subject matter will be PPP projects, we will take up for discussion all projects under shipping, highways, roads and defense contracts," Naik said.

He said the laws governing PPP projects were inadequate and a lot more was required to be done. Naik said India may not benefit from the recent pacts being signed by the government, for example the ones with Russia. He said the committee would look at how much of these projects would have "Make in India" component.

"A lot of defense lands have been encroached upon across the country, and in some places like the airport at Dabolim in Goa, the defense establishment has encroached upon land owned by the state government. These issues will be taken up on October 26," he said.

The sub-committee will also take up the CAG's AgustaWestland report for discussion at a later date. Naik said his committee would look into the violations pointed out by the auditor and record its observations. The PAC taking up the CAG's report on the VIP helicopter scam is significant considering there were bribery charges against some senior functionaries of the former UPA regime.

The Enforcement Directorate has filed two charge sheets in the AgustaWestland case naming British national and alleged middleman in the deal, Christian Michel James. A case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act was first registered by the agency in 2014 in which it had named 21 people, including family members of former Indian Air Force chief SP Tyagi.

In addition, the Enforcement Directorate had attached shares worth Rs 86 crore in June belonging to three companies based in Singapore, Mauritius and Dubai. The foreign entities had invested in Indian firms linked to the scam accused.



Russia, India Agree on Mutual Placement of Satellite Stations – ROSCOSMOS

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Russia's Roscosmos space corporation said that Russia and India agreed on mutual placement of Russia’s Glonass satellite navigation system and Indian NavIC navigation system on the sidelines of the BRICS Goa summit.

MOSCOW– Russia and India agreed on mutual placement of Russia’s Glonass satellite navigation system and Indian NavIC navigation system on the sidelines of the BRICS Goa summit, Russia's Roscosmos space corporation said in a statement.

"Today, October 15, 2016, in Goa (India) a Memorandum of Understanding was signed between the state corporation Roscosmos and the Indian Space Research Organisation. Russia and India are planning a mutual placement of ground stations for gathering data GLONASS global navigation system and Indian satellite system NavIC," the company specified in a statement.

Roscosmos stressed that the document had a strategic importance for the development of Russian-Indian cooperation and its implementation would increase accuracy in reporting data of Russian and Indian navigation systems.

Glonass, a global navigation system operated by the Russian Aerospace Defense Forces, consists of 27 satellites, 24 of which are operational. The system allows real-time positioning and speed data for surface, sea and airborne objects around the world.


Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) is an autonomous regional satellite navigation system set up by India to provide high-precision navigation service to Indian users and to users at almost a thousand-mile distance.

The eighth annual BRICS event is taking place on October 15-16 in India’s Goa and is attended by all five leaders, who are set to discuss a plan for cooperation in the near future as well as a wide range of political, economic and security issues.


Arms Deal With Moscow Fits Into India’s Defense Needs

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 The agreement between India and Russia on military equipment purchase is being tipped as a “game-changer” as it further cements the five-decade-old ties between the two nations.

The outcome of the Narendra Modi-Vladimir Putin bilateral meeting in Goa this afternoon will be read with keen interest among military observers in China, Pakistan, the US, Japan and Europe. 

Set to cost $5 billion (Rs 39,000 crore), “S-400 Triumf” air defense missiles are mounted on road mobile launchers and carried by specialized trucks.

S-400 Air Defense System:Costing $5 billion, it can target multiple airborne objects within 20-400 km range and will significantly strengthen India’s border defense along the frontiers with China and Pakistan

Kamov 226T Helicopters:Set to cost $1 billion (Rs 6,800 crore), 200 of these will be co-produced by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd and the local partner of Russian Helicopters and state arms exporter Rosoboronexport

Stealth Frigates: Two Admiral Grigorovich-class frigates will be built in India and two in Russia. To be equipped with BrahMos missiles, these will be a better in capability than the Talwar class frigates of the Navy

The missile system includes multi-layered radars capable of tracking 300 targets such as missiles, planes, drones, helicopters and shoot down around three dozen simultaneously. It can hit incoming airborne targets between 20 km and 400 km — a rarity to have such vast range mated in a single missile system. It can also hit target at an altitude of 55 km. With inter-continental missiles (having more than 5,500 km range) travelling at 70-80 km altitude, this can come in handy for the defence forces. Russia deployed the missile system during the attack launched on the Islamic State in Syria a few months ago.

The Kamov 226T helicopter will allow pilots to fly to the Siachen glacier or similar altitudes across the Himalayas much safely and with greater load carrying capacities. At least 200 of the twin-engine Kamov — a light utility helicopter — will be produced. These will cost $1 billion (Rs 6,800 crore). 

The helicopters will be deployed for surveillance, dropping small loads and for rescue, including of troops posted at high altitudes such as the Siachen Glacier-Saltoro Ridge region. It has a flight ceiling of 18,700 feet — meaning it can fly over almost all of the Himalayan passes with ease. It will be made in India by public sector Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

Admiral Grigorovich-class (Project 11356) stealth frigates will replace the three Godavari-class frigates that the Navy has. One of these has been de-commissioned while the other two are on their way out. The “Yantar” shipyard in Russia made six of these between 2003 and 2013. Of the four more, two are ready in Russia and will have a Ukrainian engine. The deal had been held up due to frosty relations between Russia and Ukraine. Two others will be made at an Indian shipyard.


SAARC Fallout: India To Leverage BRICS To Fuel BIMSTEC

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Prime Minister Modi and President Putin at the BRICS meet at Goa

NEW DELHI: With the 30-year-old SAARC failing in its objective of integrating South Asia economically, India is seeking to reinvigorate the BIMSTEC (the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) regional bloc by bringing funds and partnerships to the member-countries through the BRICS platform.

After coming to office in 2014, the Narendra Modi-led government had demonstrated its intent to lean towards BIMSTEC for boosting intra-South Asia trade, especially after Pakistan’s expected behavior to put

a spanner in all the India- proposed developmental schemes. As India-Pakistan relations further nosedived, Islamabad’s obstinacy meant clouds of uncertainty over the SAARC summit; New Delhi decided to focus on BIMSTEC.

“The focus would be on trade, investment, and trade facilitation. BIMSTEC business community will meet the BRICS business leaders,” Ministry of External Affairs’ Secretary (East) Preeti Saran said on the opportunity that congregation of five major global economies—Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa—can provide to BIMSTEC countries. The seven BIMSTEC members are in Goa to participate in the BRICS-BIMSTEC Outreach Summit. BIMSTEC can also benefit from the New Development Bank (NDB) set up by the BRICS countries that can provide easy interest loans for infrastructure development in the region.

BIMSTEC has India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, Myanmar, and Thailand as members and comprises 1.6 billion people (22 percent of the global population) and a GDP of $2.7 trillion. In Goa, the seven Heads of States are meeting after two years.

The seven countries account for trade worth $1,295 billion. Intra-regional share accounts for a poor 2.8 per cent, making BIMSTEC one of the least economically integrated regional blocs. The poor trade figures indicate the huge potential of growth in trade relations of the countries who are consistently registering a yearly growth of 6 percent.

India remains one of the biggest exporter and importer in the region and has bilateral Free Trade Agreements with each of the member countries. According to estimates, if the BIMSTEC FTA comes into effect from 2017, it has the potential of creating $43-59 billion trade per annum, and intra-regional trade can rise by as much as 60 percent.

Sri Lanka and Bangladesh have openly expressed their enthusiasm for BIMSTEC and disappointment over SAARC’s inability to make headway. Other smaller countries—Bhutan and Nepal—have reposed greater faith in BIMSTEC in close door sessions.


Of Evolving Friendships & Cliques

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Xi Jinping, President of China, Vladimir Putin, President of Russia, and Narendra Modi, Prime Minister of India walk on to a beach in Goa, where, nearby, a sand artist has created joyous messages on world affairs. None attending the BRICS summit have their finger on the nuclear button.

That's the other guy, the one whom beach management denied entry to. He's skulking in the corner, where India has recently put him, post surgical strikes avenging Uri, wondering if he should implode a Pakistan-sized corner of world to 'show em'.

It could all be a bar joke of power-strutting proportions, except it isn't. In the all-too-real world of political dynamics who shakes hands with whom matters.

For the first time since the Valley erupted post the killing of Burhan Wani, in old Baramullah town Chinese flags have been waved by separatists alongside Pakistani ones. The Sino-Pak nexus is at its peak, and key to the Pakistani desire for Kashmir.

China has interests in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir, congruent to its strategy of inserting itself by trade ties into conflict zones, from Kabul and Congo to Syria. Kashmir interrupts Pakistan's connections eastwards, and for China, Pakistan will be key to its 'String of Pearls' aspirations towards global dominance, in which India is a rival.

Russia has just had its first bilateral military exercise with Pakistan, signalling an end to the era in which we were the most important partners in each other's lives. Friendships at all levels are evolving quid pro quo equations. We never quite outgrow the cliques we seek to break into in high school, we just upgrade their scale.

At the core of each stage is still how people treat each other; whether we honor our words, whom we betray, for what price, and what we stand for. India's friendships, from Iran, from whom we recently received our first parcel of emergency oil supplies, to Russia have evolved, honorably.

We may not be on back-slapping terms, but we're still old friends who know what we each mean, enabling us to sign 16 deals. China is that kid we are obliged to invite to the party. No delusions there. Do we ever really leave high school? Not quite.


Russia Back With All Guns Blazing

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by Dinakar Peri

After losing some share of India’s defence space to the U.S. and other countries in recent years, Russia regained its footing with the agreements signed on Saturday.

Three agreements, worth $10 billion, were announced after the meeting between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin. They are inter-governmental agreements (IGAs) for five S-400 Triumf air defence systems and four stealth frigates and a stakeholder agreement for a joint venture to make Kamov-226T helicopters in India.

Designed by the Almaz-Antey Central Design Bureau, the S-400 Triumf, referred to as SA-21 Growler by NATO, is considered one of the most advanced long-range defence systems in the world. It can tackle all airborne targets at a range of up to 400 km.

For India, this means Pakistani aircraft can be tracked even when they are in their airspace. The five systems, to be operated by the Indian Air Force, will cost over Rs.39,000 crore. India is the second export customer, after China which last year signed a $3-billion agreement for six systems that are expected to be delivered in 2017.

India and Russia also signed an inter-governmental agreement for four additional Krivak or Talwar class stealth frigates, which are expected to cost upwards of $3 billion. Two ships will be built in Russia and the other two in India with Russian assistance. India had earlier procured six frigates of the same class in two different batches. It has been very pleased with the performance of the 4,000-tonne frigates which packed a lot of fire-power given their size. The ships are armed with the BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles. But it is surprising why India is going for additional frigates from Russia, when it is designing and building much bigger stealth ships.

Both sides have been discussing the agreement for some time, but it was delayed as India insisted on building the ships through the ‘Make in India’ route. The other reason for delay was Ukraine’s refusal to supply Russia with engines which are built by Zorya Nashproekt after the crisis in Crimea. However, the issue was sorted out, and Ukraine has no reservations about supplying engines to India.

Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and Rostec State Corporation of Russia signed an agreement to set up a joint venture that will make Kamov-226T utility helicopters in India. Under the agreement, which is worth over $1 billion, at least 200 helicopters will be produced. They will replace the obsolete Cheetah and Chetak fleets of the armed forces. After induction, the Kamov helicopters, capable of operating at 20,000 feet, will help to maintain the forward posts on the Siachen glacier.


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