May 30, 2013 defense-unmanned.com

(Source: Israel Homeland Security; posted May 25, 2013)

Joint Israeli Solution for Indian Maritime Security Problems

Elbit Systems Ltd. has teamed with Windward to offer integrated maritime solutions for the Indian authorities. The joint solution combines Windward’s innovative satellite-based maritime analytics system, MarInt, with Elbit Systems’ wide range of solutions for maritime domain awareness, including Hermes 900 maritime patrol Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS).

The cooperation between the two companies addresses the specific needs of India and its vast and complex maritime arena.

The cooperation makes available a unique system adapted for very large maritime area monitoring, providing authorities with powerful means to control India’s waters.

MarInt, Windward’s proprietary satellite-based maritime analytics system, maps the global maritime activity in unprecedented details, based on data collected from various sources, such as commercial satellites, open-source databases and other sensors. Covering any area of interest, regardless of the distance from shore, MarInt delivers maritime domain awareness over littoral or blue water areas, for Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) monitoring, fishery control, regional traffic analysis or port traffic management. After the routine maritime patterns are observed and learned, the system performs deep behavior analysis on every vessel spotted in the designated area of interest, in order to detect anomalous and suspicious behavior.

The Maritime Hermes 900 is a new configuration of Elbit Systems’ largest UAS, adapted for maritime operations, carrying selectable mission payload of up to 350 kg., including maritime surveillance radar, Automatic Identification System (AIS), an electro-optical multi-sensor payload and electronic surveillance systems. It has the endurance to cover vast ocean areas, redundant line-of-sight and satellite communications links and radio relay, enabling operators to talk to local vessels while flying patrols over remote sea areas at extended ranges from shore.

May. 29, 2013 By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI – Defense News

NEW DELHI — The Indian Defence Ministry has reissued a tender to buy 100 armored personnel carriers (APCs), slightly easing the requirements from 2009’s failed tender.

A Defence Ministry source said the qualitative requirements laid out in 2009 were “tough,” and sought to mix the best systems available on the market. The vendor also was reequired to make a special prototype of the APC to compete. None of the vendors could meet the qualitative requirements for the APCs in the earlier tender.

The requirements have been diluted slightly relating to the mobility of the vehicles, and the tender has again been issued to the same vendors involved in 2009: General Dynamics in the US, Rosoboronexport of Russia, Ukrainexport of Ukraine, Poland’s Bumar, Finmec­canica of Italy, BAE Systems of the UK and Krauss-Maffei Wegmann of Germany.

An Indian Army official said the vehicle procurement process is slow and the allocated budget has been nearly stagnant for the last three years.

The budget allocation for military vehicles for 2013-14 is only 20.8 billion rupees (US $377 million), compared with 22.6 billion rupees in 2012-13 and an actual spend of 23.5 billion rupees in 2011-’12.

To meet its APC requirements, the Army is using about 2,000 Russian BMP-1 and BMP-2 multipurpose armored vehicles, equipped with anti-tank missiles and other weapons.

Along with the purchase of 100 APCs, the global tender includes buying 60,668 armor piercing rounds, 91,004 high-explosive rounds for the 25-40mm cannon, 886,436 rounds of the 7.62 coaxial machine gun and 84,100 rounds for the 25mm-40mm anti-grenade launcher.

The requirements stipulate that the wheeled APCs be able to fire on the move, have good speed on the road and cross country, and have the ability to protect against mines, improvised explosive devices, small arms, grenades and artillery splinters.

The vehicle must be able to be armed with a machine gun, cannon and automatic grenade launcher.

In addition, the vehicle must have modern, secure communications, amphibious capability and the ability to cross obstacles.

The Army wants the cannon to be able to fire at targets, including helicopters, at a distance of 2,500 meters.

This month, India tapped a consortium of two domestic companies to supply the Army with 100 Tatra trucks, breaking a monopoly held by a Czech Republic-based firm.

Domestic companies Ashok Leyland and Larsen & Toubro formed the winning consortium, which beat another consortium composed of Tata Motors and Tata Power SED.

The bid by Czech firm Tatra Czech, filed jointly with state-owned Bharat Earth Movers, failed at the trial stage.

May 28, 2013 idrw.org (IBN7)

The deadly Naxal attack on the Congress leaders in Jagdalpur could have been prevented had the Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) not been lying idle in faraway Hyderabad. According to intelligence sources, since every drone takes off from Hyderabad, they can’t spend sufficient number of hours hovering over the Naxal-affected regions in Chhattisgarh to gather intelligence. The Indian Air Force (IAF) never agreed to operate these UAVs from Jagdalpur, considering the region unfit for the stay its officials, the sources said.

The 12 Heron drones, bought from Israel in 2009, have failed to scan the Darbha forests or Sukma region as they never fly over these interior regions, the intelligence sources said. This is the reason why more than 500 Maoists gathered in these forests without being noticed by anyone. After the massacre, the killers were able to easily flee, putting a big question mark on the utility of such high-tech devices.

These drones are operated from the Begumpet airbase near Hyderabad. After flying for almost three hours to reach the Naxal-affected regions in the state, these machines are forced to return as they run out of fuel and have already reached their maximum range.

The IAF was requested to fly these drones to Jagdalpur last year from a DRDO’s air strip near it. But the IAF, citing lifestyle reasons of its officers, did not agree to do so. Meanwhile, the IAF had assured of shifting the Hyderabad UAV base to Bhilai and operate it from the airstipr of Bhilai Steel Plant but even after one year, the drones are being operated from Hyderabad.

The modus operandi of the intelligence agencies has also raised eyebrows, the sources said. The IAF sends the information gathered by the drones to National Technical Research Organisation (NTRO) for analysis. Shockingly, NTRO does not have access to the intelligence reports. Thus, due to lack of coordination, the whole intelligence analysis work goes in vain, sources said.

The ability of the Israeli drones is under question as the electro-optical thermal radar censors mounted atop Heron-1 drones cannot penetrate the thick jungle cover and are unable to differentiate between Naxals and local villagers. However, the DRDO is taking the help of a Swedish firm to make these Israeli drones more accurate.

May 27, 2013, zeenews.india.com

Cairo: India's submarine INS Sindhurakshak received help from Egyptian Navy when it encountered extreme bad weather and rough sea on its way back home after mid-life up-gradation in Russia.

The Sindhurakshak, a Russian Kilo Class submarine built in 1997 at Admiralteiskie Verfi shipyard in St Petersburg, underwent mid-life up-gradation.

The Egyptian Navy towed the submarine to Port Said along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in March, sources said.

Welcoming the gesture, Indian ambassador to Egypt Navdeep Suri praised the professional handling by the Egyptian Navy.

In thank you cable to Egypt's Defence and Military Production Minister Gen Abdel-Fattah el-Sisi, Suri said, "(Egyptian) Naval troops towed the submarine in a professional way to a safe Egyptian port", the official MENA news agency reported.

May 27, 2013: Strategy Page

Russia recently delivered more of its Yakhont (officially 3M55E, NATO ID is SSN-26) anti-ship missiles to Syria. This is a new version with a much improved guidance system. Israel fears that some of these missiles will be sent to Hezbollah who might use them against Israeli ships or offshore natural gas field platform facilities. Israel is trying to persuade Russia to stop delivering the missiles but Russia is reluctant to halt these shipments. Iran appears to be paying for this, so the loss of income would be felt in Russia.

This sort of thing has been going on for a while. Two years ago Russia delivered 72 Yakhonts and 18 of the mobile ground launchers (each carrying two missiles) to Syria. Also included were five battery command vehicles. Typically a Yakhont battery consists of one of these vehicles, four launchers and several more trucks carrying security and maintenance personnel and equipment. The 2011 shipment cost $300 million dollars. The missiles can be stored in their launch containers for seven years before they require major components replacements and refurbishment to stay operational. Yakhonts have a range of 300 kilometers and are very hard to stop. Syria accounted for seven percent of Russian arms exports in 2011, and Russia wanted to show that they always deliver. Russia was also building a naval base at the Syrian port of Tartus.  At this point Russia says it is simply delivering weapons ordered before the civil war began two years ago.

The shipment of Yakhont missiles to Syria two years ago came after four years of haggling and efforts by Israel and the United States to block the sale. Apparently the missiles were already paid for before delivery. Russia was happy for any sale and seemed particularly anxious for Yakhont to get some combat experience.

Yakhont was under development throughout the 1990s, but was delayed by lack of funds. By 2011 it was in production, and the Russia was energetically seeking export sales. The Yakhont uses a liquid-fuel ramjet and travels at speeds of over 2,000 kilometers an hour (using a high altitude cruise and a low-altitude approach; if it travels entirely at low altitude the range is cut to 120km). When the missile arrives in the area where the target is supposed to be, it turns on its radar and goes for the kill. Israel is the only one in the region the Yakhonts would be used against. However, because Iran is supplying (unofficially) the cash for the missiles, there is also the risk that some of the Yakhonts would end up in Iran for use against numerous targets in the Persian Gulf.

Syria is getting the ground based Yakhont which can use truck mounted or fixed launchers, with up to 36 missiles supported by a land based search radar and helicopter mounted radars (to locate targets over the horizon). Once a target has been identified and located, one or two missiles are programmed with that location and launched. The Yakhont is a 8.9 meter (27.6 foot) long, three ton missile with a 300 kg (660 pound) warhead.

An improved version of the Yakhont, the PJ-10 BrahMos missile, was developed for India. This is a 9.4 meter (29 foot) long and 670mm diameter missile. Lacking money to finish Yakhont development and begin production, the Russian manufacturer eventually made a deal with India to get it done. India put up most of the $240 million needed to finally complete two decades of development, an effort which produced the long delayed Yakhont, and more capable BrahMos.

The PJ-10 is being built in Russia and India, with the Russians assisting India in setting up manufacturing facilities for cruise missile components. Efforts are being made to export up to 2,000, but no one has placed an order yet. Russia and India are encouraged enough to invest in BrahMos 2, which will use a scramjet, instead of a ramjet, in the second stage. This would double speed, and make the missile much more difficult to defend against.

Sunday, May 26, 2013, Zee News  (PTI)

New Delhi: Army chief General Bikram Singh on Sunday proceeded to France on a four-day visit there to strengthen the defence ties between the two countries.

The visit by Gen Singh will add the necessary impetus to the existing defence relationship and broad-base it into a mutually beneficial partnership, an Army press release said here.

India shares good bilateral and strategic relations with France that are multifaceted and have been strengthened over the years with regular exchange of visits at political, diplomatic and military levels, it said.

During the period, Gen Singh will hold discussions with French Defence Minister Jean Yves Le Drian, Chief of General Staff Admiral Edouard Guillaud and his French counterpart Gen Bertrand Ract-Madoux on various defence-related issues.

The Indian Army chief will visit the Land Forces Command in Lille and the Military School at Draguignan also.

He will also lay wreath at Neuve Chapelle Memorial, dedicated to the Indian soldiers who laid down their lives in France and Belgium from 1914 - 1918 in the First World War.

May 27, 2013 ibnlive.in.com (Press Trust of India)

Thanjavur: Defence Minister AK Antony on Monday will inaugurate an airbase here to house squadron of IAFs lethal Su-30 MKI combat aircraft, making it the first fighter squadron in south India that will help maintain vigil over the Indian Ocean region.

The Indian Air Force (IAF) will base a squadron of agile Sukhoi Su-30 fighter aircraft in Thajavur, making it the first fighter squadron in southern India, with a view to keep strategic vigil over the Indian Ocean and cover up country's southern flank up to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, IAF officials said here.

The IAF will keep deploying its regular fighter and transport aircraft detachments here since the runway and other facilities are in place here now. This would also be the first of fighter squadrons under the Southern Air Command of the IAF at any place in southern India.

The IAF has upgraded the two runways at the airbase, which has been existing for several decades and used extensively for relief operations during the tsunami and flood situations in Tamil Nadu in the recent past.

The inauguration of the base will see the landing and take off of the SU-30s but the full squadron of these aircraft including 16 to 18 jets will be completed by 2017-18 only.

The Sukhois were inducted into the IAF at Lohegaon airbase in 2002. Thereafter, they were deployed at Bareilly, followed by Tezpur, Chhabua, Jodhpur, Bhatinda and Halwara. Pune and Bareilly already have housed two Sukhoi squadrons each, while Tezpur, Chabua, Halwara and Jodhpur have a squadron each. So far India has inducted over 170 of the 272 Sukhoi-30 MKIs contracted from Russia.

NEW DELHI, 22 mai - RIA Novosti

L'Inde a testé mercredi avec succès son missile de croisière naval BrahMos lancé pour la première fois depuis la frégate Tarkash, construite en Russie, a annoncé à RIA Novosti une source au sein du ministère indien de la Défense.

"Le missile a effectué une manœuvre suivant la trajectoire fixée et a détruit sa cible", a déclaré l'interlocuteur de l'agence.

Selon lui, des missiles BrahMos équiperont les trois frégates construites en Russie en vertu du contrat de 2006: le Tarkash, le Teg et le Trikand. Les deux premiers navires sont déjà en service, le Trikand doit bientôt arriver en Inde de Kaliningrad (enclave russe sur la Baltique).

Les premiers missiles de cette classe ont été livrés aux forces armées indiennes en 2005.

Ils sont fabriqués par la coentreprise russo-indienne BrahMos fondée en 1998. La société tient son nom des premières syllabes du fleuve indien Brahmapoutre et de la rivière russe Moskova.

Il s'agit d'un missile supersonique à propergol solide pesant 2,55 tonnes. Long de 8,3 mètres, il a un diamètre de 0,67 mètre. Doté d'une ogive de 200 à 300 kg, le BrahMos est capable de neutraliser les cibles à une distance de 290 km.

China claims to South China Sea

May 20, 2013 By Dr. Subhash Kapila - eurasiareview.com

Introductory Observations

The South China Sea region has been converted into a militarily turbulent one due to the illegal claims by China declaring sovereignty over the entire South China Sea.

China in the process has not only resorted to escalated military brinkmanship but also resorted to use of armed force and coercion against its less powerful South East Asian neighbours, namely, Vietnam and the Philippines.

Asian security as a whole today stands endangered by China’s military adventurism not only in the South China Sea against Vietnam and the Philippines, but extending to the Himalayan Borders of India with China- Occupied Tibet. Chinese military adventurism to reinforce its sovereignty over disputed borders is by now a well-established pattern.

India has a legitimate strategic interest in the South China Sea region encompassing political, economic and strategic factors. At the ASEAN-India Summit in New Delhi in December 2012, India had declared its position on the South China Sea disputes in consonance with the global sentiments.

Reiteration of India’s stand on the South China Sea conflicts should be a pointer that India stands firmly against any Chinese actions that violate international laws and UN Conventions. The recent assertions by the Indian Defence Minister, A K Antony were a welcome reiteration and reassurance and should go down well in South East Asian countries that look upon India as the regional balancer against China’s hegemonistic inclinations against its Southern neighbours.

Indian Defence Minister’s Assertions on South China Sea Security

Voicing concerns over China’s actions in the South China Sea region, the Indian Defence Minister addressing media persons on May 11, 2013 made the following assertions:

    “There should be freedom of navigation as per the UN conventions.”

    “India has commercial interests and though it is not a party to the dispute, it believes that disputes should be settled as per UN laws.”

    “The protection of Sea-Lanes of Communication is becoming more and more important. Economic development, trade and commerce depend on the security of Sea Lanes of Communication”

Indian Defence Minister’s Assertions Analysed

Taken at face value, the assertions made by the Indian Defence Minister’s may not count much and may not be counted as strong assertions. But coming from the Indian Defence Minister who is noted for his reticence and measured words, there are a lot of implicit messages for China on its aggressive postures on the South China Sea issues. Political signalling can therefore be read in these assertions.

Emphasis on UN Conventions and dispute/conflict resolution as per UN Laws (read UNCLOS) by the Indian Defence Minister clashes diametrically with China’s rigidly stated positions that the South China Sea disputes will be resolved by China only through “bilateral negotiations” with the other disputants. This simply because in a bi-lateral process China can bring to bear its awesome military coercion in play against small countries like Vietnam and the Philippines.

India’s opposition to China’s declaratory stands is therefore noteworthy. It is more noteworthy in the sense that such assertions by US dignitaries earlier drew strong protests from China as interference in its internal affairs. The United States ignored these protests. It is time that India too discards its deference to Chinese sensitivities.

Further, the assertion on freedom of navigation is in keeping with international pronouncements of commitments to “defence of global commons” Implicit in such international stands is the message for China that the South China Sea is a global heritage which cannot be consigned to the ‘full sovereignty over the whole South China Sea’ as declared by China. The Chinese stand apparently is being challenged by India in an implied manner along with the rest of the Asian community.

Protection of Sea Lanes of Communication that pass through the South China Sea can be read as India fears genuinely, as the rest of the world does, that China could threaten these vital maritime lifelines and that the global community has to take initiatives to forestall that threat. Can one read in this assertion by the Indian Defence Minister that India would be inclined to join any international effort to ensure that the South China Sea maritime arteries remain open without any restrictions or impediments by China?

More significantly, what needs to be considered is the contextual backdrop where the Indian Defence Minister was making the above assertions on the South China Sea.

These assertions by the Indian Defence Minister were not made at any Seminar or discussion event on the South China Sea conflict but these Indian concerns were expressed to media-persons after commissioning the first ship-deck based super-sonic jet fighter, the MIG 29K Squadron at Goa comprising 18 jet fighters for the Indian Navy. A total of 45 MIG 29K supersonic jet fighters have been purchased from Russia at a cost of over $ 2 Billion.

Contextually, these assertions by the Indian Defence Minister were made on the eve of the Chinese Prime Minister’s visit to India. Also they coincide with recent media reports of India upgrading its maritime surveillance and operational capabilities and infrastructure in South India for extended coverage of the Indian Ocean sea-lanes and threats.

The Indian Defence Minister also informed the media that India’s first indigenously built Aircraft Carrier would be launched on August 12 this year and the INS VIKRAMADITYA would arrive from Russia before the end of 2013.

In a context other than the South China Sea, but at the same event and with China still in mind, it was reassuring to hear the Indian Defence Minister declare that “As China has the right to improve, increase and strengthen and other facilities on its land; India has the right to develop its own infrastructure.”

India’s Commercial Interest in the South China Sea.

While on the subject of India’s legitimate strategic interests in the South China Sea, it needs to be remembered that India’s energy security quest led it also to set up a joint exploration project with Vietnam in two oil exploration blocks numbered 127&128 in Phu Khanh Basin.

Some quarters have wrongly reported that India’s oil-exploration projects are in disputed waters. That is the Chinese version. It needs to be clarified that these Indian oil exploration projects which China protested against are located in South China Sea waters in Vietnam’s jurisdiction and not Chinese jurisdiction. Hence China’s protests are not tenable when the provisions of the UN Convention on the Law of the Seas are kept in mind.

China neither has de-facto nor de-jure jurisdiction over the entire South China Sea. By unilateral and illegal declarations of its Nine Dashed Line, China cannot order all international oil-prospecting projects in the South China Sea region to stop their operations.

Concluding Observations

India may not be a party to the dispute in the South China Sea as regards the sovereignty of the disputed islands is concerned, but India should consider itself as a legitimate stake-holder in the security and stability of the South China Sea.

In the above context therefore, India as a major maritime power in the Indo-Pacific Region must consider that no major power including China is allowed to resort to aggressive military brinkmanship to redraw maps to establish China’s full sovereignty over the entire South China Sea. Tomorrow China would start claiming some portions of the Indian Ocean on historical grounds that some Chinese Admiral’s fleet traversed those areas centuries ago.

India to begin with may not be able to perform this task single-handedly. In tandem with its preparations for building up its maritime power, India must politically be more vocal in embedding in international consciousness that Asian stability and security stands endangered if China is allowed a free run in riding rough-shod over the sovereignty and legal claims of its smaller neighbours like Vietnam and the Philippines in the South China Sea.

May 15, 2013 by Shiv Aroor - Livefist

Navy Statement: Indian Naval Aviation received a major fillip with the arrival of the first of eight Boeing P-8I Long Range Maritime Reconnaissance and Anti Submarine Warfare aircraft at Naval Air Station Rajali, Arakkonam, Tamil Nadu today, 15 may 13. Vice Admiral Bimal Verma, AVSM, Chief of Staff, Eastern Naval Command presided over the event that was attended by Commodore Puneet Bahl, Commanding Officer, INS Rajali, representatives from the Command and Integrated Headquarters, Ministry of defence (Navy) as well.

The P-8I aircraft, based on the Boeing 737-800(NG) airframe, is the Indian Naval variant of the P-8A Poseidon that Boeing has developed for the US Navy. The aircraft is equipped with both foreign as well as indigenous sensors for Maritime Reconnaissance, Anti Submarine operations and for Electronic Intelligence missions. The aircraft is fully integrated with state of the art sensors and highly potent Anti Surface and Anti Submarine weapons.

These LRMR/ ASW aircraft have been procured under the contract signed in 2009. The IN is in process of acquiring an additional four P-8I aircraft under the option clause. The induction of the P-8I aircraft into the Indian Navy would greatly enhance India's maritime surveillance capability in the Indian Ocean Region.

More pics

May 12, 2013 brahmand.com

PANAJI (PTI): New-age fighter aircraft MiG-29K was on Saturday commissioned ceremoniously into the Indian Navy in the presence of Defence Minister A K Antony at INS Hansa near here.

The aircraft would be attached to aircraft carrier INS Vikramaditya, which would be commissioned later this year.

The MiG-29K squadron -- initially comprising of 16 aircraft -- has been christened `Black Panthers' and would be known by its naval name `INAS 303'.

The aircraft were inducted into the force in February 2010 and underwent rigorous trials before today's commissioning, defence sources said.

During the ceremony, a pair of Sea Harriers (fighter aircraft attached to INS Vikrant) escorted a Mig-29K during a fly-pass as they flew at the speed of 800 kms per hour.

On the occasion , Antony said that commissioning of MiG-29K would enhance India's defence preparedness and war-fighting capabilities.

"Sea Lanes are our lifelines and we need to keep our adversaries away. These aircraft with multi-role capabilities will dominate the sky," the defence minister said.

Antony also said that Indian Navy's aviation wing, which is celebrating a diamond jubilee this year, needs to "introspect" and chart out roadmap for future.

The Black Panther squadron, he said, will operate from INS Vikramaditya, which will be commissioned at the end of the year.

"Flying this aircraft from Vikramaditya would be a real challenge," Anthony said. After the function, the minister inaugurated the simulator for MiG-29K.

Navy officials said the defence minister flew through a simulator for half an hour and successfully `landed' on Vikramaditya.

MiG-29K's arsenal of weapons includes advanced anti-aircraft and anti-ship missiles, precision bombs and a sophisticated system to support weapon delivery.

May. 12, 2013 By VIVEK RAGHUVANSHI – Defense News

NEW DELHI — India’s Ministry of Defence has floated a competition for gun/missile systems for the Army. And in a first for the MoD, it is asking domestic companies to participate along with overseas firms.

The domestic defense companies that have been invited to participate in the US $1.6 billion tender have not produced the full gun/missile system, and only by teaming with overseas defense majors would these companies be able to fulfill the demand, private-sector executives here said.

An MoD official said the private companies that have been given the tender already have demonstrated their ability to integrate heavy weapon systems, including Akash missile systems and Pinaka multibarrel rocket launchers.

Defense analysts said the step will lead to more tie-ups between overseas firms and Indian companies.

“This will encourage foreign companies to have genuine collaborations with Indian companies and will lead to more intense partnerships,” said retired Indian Army Col. K.V. Kuber, with New Delhi-based Sugosha Consultancy Services.

“This is the way forward to develop the Indian industry. The type of industrial participation ensuing from offsets is not a very strong arrangement and is limited to the appetite of the foreign [original equipment manufacturers] at whose mercy the Indian partners live on,” Kuber said.

An executive with the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry said the big-ticket offer to domestic defense companies will enable the Indian industry to chalk out its long-term strategy as it competes in future large defense projects.

The competition for the purchase of five regiments —104 systems — of gun/missile systems would replace aging Russian-made Kvadrat systems in the Indian Army.

The domestic companies that received the tender include state-owned Bharat Electronics, Larsen & Toubro (L&T), Tata Power SED, Punj Lloyd, Bharat Forge and ICOMM. No executive from any of the companies would say whether they have the system or how they will produce it.

Rahul Chaudhry, CEO of Tata Power SED, said his company is negotiating with a Western defense company, which he would not identify.

Mukesh Bhargava, head of the international defense and aerospace business of L&T, said it is also in the process of teaming up with overseas defense companies but refused to elaborate.

The foreign competitors receiving the tender are Rosoboronexport of Russia, Bumar of Poland, General Dynamics of the US, Thales of France, Doosan Group of South Korea, Israel Aerospace Industries and Elta of Israel.

The Indian Army wants to procure 4,928 missiles and 172,260 rounds of ammunition under full maintenance technology transfer.

The selected vendor will have to transfer technology for maintenance and lifetime support of the Self-Propelled Air Defence Gun Missile System, along with the missiles and gun ammunition, to state-owned Bharat Dynamics. The maintenance of the guns and ammunition will be done by the state-owned Ordnance Factories Board.

An executive with one of the defense companies competing said it will ask the government to make changes so that the selected vendor will be authorized to carry out the maintenance work.

The MoD official said the government wants the Indian private-sector companies to participate even in production and maintenance of the systems but declined to say if it will allow domestic companies to carry out the maintenance work.

The proposed weapon system would be a mix of guns and missiles mounted on one or separate high-mobility vehicles. The tender requires that the gun and the missile should be able to engage aerial targets with and without the use of a fire-control radar. The gun should have a range of 2,500 meters and the missile should have a range of six kilometers. The radar should be capable of 360 degrees surveil­lance, target detection, acquisition and tracking.

May 8, 2013 SOURCE: IANS

With Pakistan arming itself with nuclear capable cruise missiles with stealth capabilities, a new dimension has been added to India’s maritime security challenges, says leading Indian defence expert retired Commodore C. Uday Bhaskar.

“Taking a leaf from China, Pakistan seems to be investing in cruise missiles,” he said, referring to Pakistan’s indigenously developed cruise missile Babur, which can carry both nuclear and conventional warheads.

“This has lowered the index of stability in the region,” Bhaskar said at an Asia-Pacific security seminar on India’s Maritime Security Challenges at the East-West Centre Tuesday.

But in dealing with issues ranging from low intensity conflict and piracy to major-power strategic contests, India’s key challenges were resource constraints, ship building capabilities, maritime infrastructure and the changing geo-political environment, he said.

The rapidly changing strategic environment in South Asia and emergence of an “extended global common” posed another challenge, said Bhaskar, currently a distinguished fellow with the Society for Policy Studies and a visiting fellow at the National Maritime Foundation in New Delhi.

Over the next decade, the US, China and India will form a critical strategic triangle and their individual relationships with the ASEAN, Iran and Pakistan will have significant regional and global implications, he said.

Given its distinctive geography and the recent shift of global maritime focus from the Atlantic-Pacific combine to the Indo-Pacific continuum, the importance of the Indian Ocean Region in India’s national security calculus has greatly increased in the post-Cold War/post 9-11 era, Bhaskar said.

Yet the Indian Navy mandated to address this wide spectrum security domain received about a sixth of an overall defence budget of less than $40 billion in fiscal 2012-13, he said.

He noted that within the Indian military matrix, the navy was referred to as the “Cinderella service”.

India’s ship building capabilities too were “not really flattering”, blighted as they were by time and cost overruns, Bhaskar said.

He listed the ability to build credibly fight capable ships as another key challenge.

The country’s maritime infrastructure too was “less than rudimentary”, he said. He added that that in terms of ports, India’s top port Mumbai was listed at the 30th spot in the world.

However, Bhaskar said there was a growing awareness at the national level that over the next two decades India’s future aspirations and anxieties will be increasingly shaped by its ability to address the challenges and opportunities of the maritime domain.