International flights
Sir,
The State is up for exciting times
ahead. We wonder that what would have been the
level of progress in the State had it not
suffered badly due to militancy.
Great efforts are being taken to infuse new
development in the State. In this context it is
heart warming news that international flights
will start operating from Srinagar airport in
June this year (DE, Feb 14). A new terminal
building is getting ready in June at Srinagar
Airport. Now direct flights will be operated from
Srinagar to Gulf countries. It is said that this
building will be capable of operating five
hundred domestic and four hundred fifty
international passengers per hour. Now Srinagar
Airport will have better facilities. It is after
years that the long standing problem of making
Srinagar Airport into an international one has
been met. Now it is only a matter of few months
and the dream will come true.
The use of Srinagar airport as an international
one is not only to cater to a large population of
the State who are outside working in Gulf
countries but this step will have a commercial
angle also. Horticulture produce from the State
can be speedily exported to Gulf countries where
it can earn a good amount for the farmers of the
State. We look forward for such days largely.
Yours etc...
Adbul Rashid
Sidhra, Jammu
Nuke power
Sir,
Considered as one of the cleanest
production process for electricity generation,
nuclear power is very important for the
industrial development of the country. Nuclear
power has been here in our country since the
early days of the development of nuclear
technology for production of nuclear power.
Thanks to the vision of Dr. Homi Bhaba and Pandit
Nehru India, was one of the earliest countries
ahead of Japan, China etc to start constructing
atomic reactors for the country. Now nuclear
reactors at Tarapore, Kalpakam, Narora etc are
manufacturing power without any pollution etc. In
the present times when the demand for fossil
fuels is increasing every day and these fuels are
becoming more scarce. Their is an urgent need to
manufacture power and get energy from other
sources. Nuclear power is one such source and
fortunately India has a substantial expertise in
nuclear power field.
The ongoing talks with USA on the nuke deal is
one such step that can open a vast avenue for
accessing to nuclear fuel for the production of
power. It is hoped that things will move
positively in this direction. In this regard it
is good that the country has decided build more
nuclear reactors with Russian help in Kundakalum
in Tamil Nadu. We must stick to our ambitious
fast breeder reactor technology which will give
India vast amounts of energy which we very badly
need.
Yours etc...
P N Bhat
Rehari, Jammu
Light combat aircraft
Sir,
To build aircrafts for the defence
of the country is considered a highly complex and
difficult proposition. There are only five or six
countries in the world who manufacture high end
fighter air planes for the internal defence or
export.
India too had done its little bit in building
fighter aircrafts but the tale is full of delays
and failures than successes. In this context the
statement of the Defence Minister A K Antony
should be taken quite seriously (DE, Feb 13).
India's indigenous defence programme has few
successes but one of the most ambitious
programmes under taken by it is the building of
Light Combat Aircraft commonly called LCA. Very
ambitiously called Tejas, the LCA has yet to join
the Airforce. It was scheduled to enter the
service in year 2005-2006 but it is running
atleast six years behind the schedule. Now HAL
has fixed year 2011-2012 as the probable year of
induction.
The reasons for such a delay are many but if we
cannot build an aircraft that was put on drawing
board about two decades ago it means that
something is seriously amiss somewhere. Yes,
sanctions were one of the reasons for the delay
but the whole project is going behind schedule.
In an atmosphere when the countries around us are
already inducting high technology aircraft we
should have fixed our deadlines and stuck to it.
LCA has only two or three technology demonstrator
aircraft to showpiece. Yet even the weaponisation
is not complete. In 1960s we tried to build HF-24
aircraft. The airframe of this aircraft was
superb but power plant was weak. We ought to have
build on such an aircraft and improved the power
plant. In LCA too we are facing same problems. In
LCA too we are facing same problems. Local Engine
named Kaveri has yet to take off and the LCA
aircrafts will be powered by General llectric 404
E Engines for the time being.
To avoid further delay and resultant obselescene
work on LCA should be speeded up so that the
defence of the country is not compromised.
Yours etc...
Sqd. Ldr (Retd)
M L Mehra
Sarojni Nagar New Delhi
|
