Excelsior Defence Correspondent

NEW DELHI, Dec 30: The Defence Ministry has, in a significant move, highlighted.....more

M S Gill

Photo ID cards to be
used in Haryana polls

NEW DELHI, Dec 30: For the first time in the country, the Election ...more

Najma Heptullah

Heptullah hails
Taliban cooperation

NEW DELHI, Dec 30: Deputy Chairperson of Rajya Sabha Najma ....more

AIZAWL, Dec 30: The year 1999 began on a euphoric note for Mizoram with the new Government, a coalition ministry of Mizo National Front (MNF) and Mizoram People’s Conference (MPC) led by Zoramthanga, promising a new deal for the people......more

Bukhari, other Muslim leaders offer to talk
to hijackers

NEW DELHI, Dec 30: Eminent Muslim leaders, including Naib Shahi Imam Syed Ahmed Bukhari, today offered to go to Kandahar to pursuade hijackers of the Indian ......more

Alert sounded
in Samistipur

SAMISTIPUR, Dec 30: All police stations in Samastipur district have been....more

4 killed, 10 injured
in grenade attack

AGARTALA, Dec 30: Four persons were killed and at least 10 injured, some.....more

Temple priest
shot dead

NANDED, Dec 30: Unidentified assailants have shot dead the chief priest of the.....more

Military takeover in Pak changes situation
Delhi feels urgent need of manning posts along LoC

Excelsior Defence Correspondent

NEW DELHI, Dec 30: The Defence Ministry has, in a significant move, highlighted the need of manning the posts along the Line of Controil (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir. Low-intensity mountain warfare and the need to maintain forces at high altitudes are high on the Government’s agenda.

The Government of India has reckoned the "fact" that the military takeover in Pakistan has further changed the situation. Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, has gone on record that with the advent of Gen. Parvez Musharraf as the ruler of Pakistan, India is directly involved in fighting the Pakistan Army which ius involved in cross-border terrorism in Kashmir.

According to highly-placed sources, the military intelligence (MI) and the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) expect an increase in chances of ‘proxy war’ by Pakistan. Certain ominous happenings across the border, particularly unabated attempts by the anti-India lobby at engineering fresh infiltration of militants and mercenaries into various areas of Jammu and Kashmir, have also influenced the current Indian thinking on security matters.

Two other incidents, relatively minor though, have egged Delhi’s power corridors on to insist on the need of beefing up security not only in J&K but also elsewhere in the country. One was the shooting down of a Pakistan Navy’s Atlantique aircraft in August last. The other incident was the detection and detention by the Indian navy and the Coast Guard of a Japanese cargo ship in the Arabian Sea. The ship, set on fire by the crew, carried a cargo of 7,000 tonnes of aluminium ingot, which the pirates indicated, was being taken to Fujairah in the Gulf.

While the modernisation of India’s defence forces is being speeded up in the wake of the Kargil conflict and the urgency of manning the LoC in Jammu and Kashmir to keep it free from Pakistan-sponsored intrusion, the Army is to acquire a variety of small arms systems, night vision devices, armoured personnel carriers, anti-tank vehicles and other items.

The thrust is on mountain warfare, both in Kashmir and in the North-East, and low-intensity conflict against militancy in J&K. Sources have informed EXCELSIOR that while both Infantry and Mountain forces are being equipped, the thrust is also on communications and other areas. Celsius, the new name for Bofors AB, is trying to sell Indian an advanced version of the one they sold 13 years ago. French, British and Russians are also trying to sell their guns.

Recently, the Defence Minister, Mr George Fernandes, formally suggested that India spend 3 per cent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP) on defence. The spending was 3.6 per cent in the 1980s, but the resource crunch, scandal over the 1986 purchase of Bofors 155 mm guns and the disruption of supplies after the break-up of the Soviet Union, which was the principal source for military hardware, brought down defence spending.

The GDP has increased. While the percentage of defence expenditure is low, the actual spending has increased only marginally taking into account the prevailing rate of inflation. In recent months, the improvement in Russian supplies and large-scale diversification of sources of supplies has taken place.

While Russia continues to supply an array of defence systems, India is also getting some from South Africa, Israel, Spain, Bulgaria and Czech Republic. Mr George Fernandes’ suggestion of a rise in defence spending could mean an additional Rs 1.5 billion. The Indian defence spending, at 2.3 per cent of the GDP, has been the lowest in the last two decades. In terms of proportion of the GDP, it is much lower than that of Pakistan, which spends 11 per cent of its GDP, and China’s 7.8 peer cent on defence.

Among the specific items expected to join the fleet is the advanced jet trainer (AJT) - about 60 units. Its requirement and its sources have been identified. A formal decision, pending for more than a decade, is expected to be taken before February 2000. The Air Force is also considering the Russian offer of AWACS, mounted on IL-78 and TU-22 dedicated bomber. The Navy is to induct four maritime reconnaisance Tupolevs, acquire its 11th submarine and embark on a programme of building its own submarines.

Photo ID cards to be used in Haryana polls

NEW DELHI, Dec 30: For the first time in the country, the Election Commission is to to make a "determined and effective use" of photo identity cards in the upcoming Assembly elections in Haryana in a major bid to check bogus voting.

Chief Election Commissioner M S Gill said after a meeting of the full Commission here today that he wished to send a "loud and clear" message on behalf of the EC that this country had spent thousands of crores of rupees on voter photo identity cards and these should be used effectively.

As Haryana was among the first states to have nearly completed the work of distributing photo identity cards to all voters, the Election Commission was determined that effective use should be made of these to check bogus voting, he said.

"The Commission has in this century, ending tomorrow, given the country electronic voting and in the next it is determined to make effective use of photo identity cards for clean voting," he added.

Stating that the political parties and voters in Haryana should take note of this message, Dr Gill said that if there were any voters who had not collected their identity cards, they should do it now, before the polling due early next year.

Though the Commission has not yet announced the dates for the Assembly elections in Haryana and three other states, indications are that these would be held in February.

While the terms of the Orissa, Bihar and Manipur Assemblies are ending in March and April next year, Haryana has opted for early elections by dissolving its Assembly 17 months ahead of the end of its term.

Praising the Haryana Government for being the first state to complete the task of distributing voter identity cards, Dr Gill said the state had done a "good job" which should be emulated by others. (UNI)

Heptullah hails Taliban cooperation

NEW DELHI, Dec 30: Deputy Chairperson of Rajya Sabha Najma Heptullah today hailed the cooperation given by Talibans to the Indian Government and appealed to Muslims of the world to openly condemn the hijacking of the Indian Airlines plane.

I appeal to the conscience of all the Muslims of the world to make known their revulsion at what is being done by these terrorists and appreciate the cooperation that the Taliban have given to the Indian Government, Heptullah, who is President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, said in a release.

Deploring the hijack, she said: The hijackers have shown that they are murderers, blackmailers and extortionists And added that all right thinking persons across the world should condemn them in the strongest language and make every effort to ensure the immediate safe return of the passengers, crew and aircraft.

Heptullah said some misguided individuals and groups had in recent years projected Islam as exclusivists and antagonistic, as a promoter of terror and bloodshed and did a great wrong.

Stating that the holy month of Ramzan was a time of piety and introspection, she said leave alone violence, a good Muslim should not even raise his or her voice during the Roza fast. How will these men dare to celebrate Id with the brutal murder of an innocent man fresh on their hands? She asked. (PTI)

1999—A year of expectation for change to better deal

AIZAWL, Dec 30: The year 1999 began on a euphoric note for Mizoram with the new Government, a coalition ministry of Mizo National Front (MNF) and Mizoram People’s Conference (MPC) led by Zoramthanga, promising a new deal for the people.

But it was, like any other coalition Governments, not all bed of roses. The problems faced by Zoramthanga when he formed his ministry in December 1998 persisted.

The MNF bagged 21 seats and the MPC 12 seats in the 40-member State Assembly polls held on November 25, 1998 and ten ministers from MNF and five from MPC were inducted by Zoramthanga.

Disgruntled elements in MPC threatened discontinuation of the alliance during the by-election to Khawbung Assembly constituency held on February 22 and the election to the lone state Lok Sabha seat held on September 25.

Conciliatory moves from the leadership of both the parties, however, prevailed to help the coalition Government complete one year on December 3.

The never-ending financial crisis still haunted Zoramthanga, who is also holding finance portfolio, and had to repeatedly approach New Delhi with a begging bowl.

The Chief Minister’s persistent demand to the Centre to give additional funding in the name of peace bonus seemed to bear fruits with high level committee of Union Finance Ministry recommending at least Rs 50 crore to be given to Mizoram annually for five years over and above the annual plan outlay.

Prime Minister A B Vajpayee’s visit to the state in May gave a welcome boost to the fund-starved state with his commitments to help tide over Mizoram’s fiscal problems.

Attacks against Christian community in some parts of the country dominated church movement in Mizoram during the first part of the year.

Mizoram Kohhran Hruaitute Committee (MKHC) and leaders of conglomerate of church denominations organised a massive protest march in February.

The biggest bank fraud in Mizoram involving at least Rs 226 lakhs was unearthed by the police in February.

A large number of bank drafts found missing in Delhi, Panipat and other places found their way to Aizawl and were encashed in the State Bank of India branches here through local tribal accounts.

Four persons, including two non-tribals were arrested from the neighbouring cachar district of Assam and the police did not rule out the involvement of underworld elements.

A sum of Rs 72,66,442 had already been encashed in Aizawl before the police detected the fraud. (PTI)

Temple priest shot dead

NANDED, Dec 30: Unidentified assailants have shot dead the chief priest of the Balaji Temple at Gadipura area here, police said today.

The assailants yesterday fired bullets from a countrymade revolver killing Swami Kesharinandan Tiwari alias Keshavacharya. The driver and another person who accompanied the chief priest escaped unhurt.

The Swami was proceeding to a farm at Pawadiwadi where cultivation of sugarcane is being undertaken by the G R Swami Mutt, which is managing the temple.

Meanwhile, some groups of citizens have called for a Nanded bandh today in protest against the killing.

The Swami had reportedly received threatening phone calls some time ago, police said.

He was a native of Gorakhpur in Uttar Pradesh and had taken charge of the temple recently.

Police have registered a case and launched a manhunt to nab the killers. (PTI)