Indian Navy Developments & Discussions

[ladder]

Indian Navy hit by another sex scandal, Antony orders probe

PTI | May 14, 2013, 06.26 PM IST

NEW DELHI: The Navy has been hit by yet another alleged sex scandal as the wife of a senior officer has charged her husband with forcing her to get "sexually involved" with his colleagues, prompting defence minister A K Antony to order a probe.

The case has come up on a day when the defence minister asked the top brass of the Navy in its Commanders' conference to take sternest possible action against officers involved in such deeds.

"The defence minister was very helpful and has told us that he has ordered a departmental inquiry into the charges made by me and my parents against my husband," the woman complainant said here after meeting Antony.

She alleged that her husband, who is a Lieutenant Commander (equivalent to a Major in Army) posted at the Naval Ship Repair Yard (NSRY) in Karwar, "forced me to get sexually involved with his colleagues and consume alcohol."

The woman, who says she has shifted to her maternal home after this episode, has accused her husband of physical and mental torture.

An MBA, she got married in February last year to the officer.

The woman alleged that her husband had threatened that if she disclosed about his deeds to anyone, "he would put up my nude pictures on internet to spoil my image socially".

She said her husband is working on an important assignment related to Navy's Admiral Gorshkov aircraft carrier under construction at a shipyard in Russia and is about to be posted there soon.

In a complaint sent to the defence minister on April 30, she had demanded departmental disciplinary action against him.

The officer could not be reached for his comments.

In the recent past, several cases of sexual misconduct have come up against Navy officers including one where the wife of another Lieutenant Commander in Kochi filed an FIR against her husband and colleagues alleging that she was being forced into wife swapping by her husband.

In that case also, the Navy officials in headquarters here had attempted to dismiss the case as that of marital discord but defence minister Antony took steps to ensure an inquiry into the matter which is underway.

A couple of other officers were also dismissed recently for sending lewd messages to several women using multiple SIM cards and mobiles numbers and having illicit affairs with the wife of a brother officer.

The Navy was left red-faced when pictures of one of its very senior officers of the rank of Commodore (equivalent to Brigadier in Army) surfaced in a compromising position with a Russian woman.

The defence minister ordered sacking of the officer, who was overseeing the construction of INS Vikramaditya in Russia at a time when India and Russia were discussing the demands by the latter for an increased price of the warship.

Indian Navy hit by another sex scandal, Antony orders probe - The Times of India

 

[bhramos]

BrahMos supersonic cruise missile successfully test-fired | idrw.org

 

[Neeraj Mathur]

SAIL Steel plates used in next gen stealth anti submarines corvette INS Kiltan

http://www.thehindu.com/multimedia/dynamic/01408/TH26_KILTAN_PTI3_2_1408501f.jpg



INS Kiltan, the Anti Submarine Warfare Corvette of the Indian Navy, designed under Project-28, was launched on March 26, 2013.

With nearly 90 percent indigenous content, the efforts made by Indian Navy and Defence Shipyards towards the national goal of indigenization and self-reliance got a major impetus with this latest ASW Corvette launch.

The ship's hull form is highly efficient with excellent sea-keeping and maneuverability characteristics with overall length of 109 meters. The ship can cut through the sea at a very high speed of 25 Knots.

Hull of the ship is built with warship grade high tensile indigenous steel. The DMR 249A steel has been developed and produced by Steel Authority of India Limited.

DMR 249A is a low carbon low alloyed steel and the specified gas contents of hydrogen is less than 2 parts per million (PPM) that gives the customized strength and toughness.

 

[ladder]

Indian Navy Captain held guilty for officer's death

New Delhi: In perhaps the first case in the Indian Navy, an officer, Rahul Parmar captain of the INS Talwar has been found guilty for the death of a junior, Sub- Lieutenant Vipin Kumar.

The case goes back to December 2011 when Sub-Lieutenant Kumar was asked by Captain Parmar to jump into the Arabian Sea in Gujarat and swim to simulate a sea swimming survival drill.

The exercise went horribly wrong and Sub-Lieutenant Kumar drowned after he jumped. His body was never found. After the incident, Captain Parmar was removed from the command of the warship and faced a Board of Inquiry.

Sources add that a Court Martial has found Captain Parmar guilty of two counts - negligence and failing to ensure the safety of his own men. It also found that Captain Parmar erred in carrying out sea survival drill and it was carried out without adequate security and safeguards like having divers and life jackets on standby.

Captain Parmar has been awarded the punishment of loss of three years seniority. Sources in the Navy say his career prospects in the Navy now appear bleak.

Following this, the Navy has cautioned all commanders to be careful and asked all to follow guidelines carefully

http://http://www.ndtv.com/article/india/indian-navy-captain-held-guilty-for-officer-s-death-371019

 

[ladder]

Naval manpower to be doubled in 15 years

New Delhi: Expanding its combat assets by inducting several new platforms including nuclear submarines, fighter planes and aircraft carriers, the Navy has decided to almost double the size of its manpower in next 15 years.

The Navy has also decided to give B.Tech degrees to its officers to handle the high end technology being inducted into the force and the first batch of its officers with these degrees will pass out from the Indian Naval Academy (INA) in Kerala on Saturday.

"The present strength of Navy today is over one lakh personnel including 8,700 officers, 50,000 sailors and 43,000 civilians. In next 15 years, we plan to increase the numbers to 1.80 lakh with 10,600 officers, 85,000 sailors and 75,000 civilian work force," Navy's Human Resources in-charge Rear Admiral Sachin Ghormade said.

He was briefing the media on Navy's plans to upgrade the educational standards of its young officers at the INA in Ezhimalla in Kerala.

Asked if the size of the fleet would also be doubled, he said, "The manpower perspective plan and the maritime capabilities perspective plan have been gelled together for the purpose."

Under the maritime capabilities perspective plan, the Navy caters for the increase in the size of its fleet including warships, submarines, aircraft carriers, fighter aircraft and other war-fighting equipment.

In the near future, the Navy has plans of inducting around 20 maritime reconnaissance aircraft, over 12 conventional diesel-electric submarines, around three new nuclear submarines, three aircraft carriers and a large number of warships and fighter aircraft including the Russian MiG-29s and the Light Combat Aircraft (LCA).

PTI

http://http://zeenews.india.com/news/nation/naval-manpower-to-be-doubled-in-15-years_850610.html

 

[bhramos]

Alleged corruption case during Nerpa submarine construction | Russia & India Report

 

[bhramos]

Indian Naval Academy one of the best of its kind: A K Antony - The Economic Times

 

[bhramos]

First batch of Navy officer cadets at INA pass out | The Hindu

 

[bhramos]

First Batch Of Cadets At Naval Academy's Flag Ship Course, Graduate

Chindits: First Batch Of Cadets At Naval Academy's Flag Ship Course, Graduate

 

[natarajan]

2012 was great year for indian navy but 2013-2015 will be nightmare as in one side kolkatta class rusting in water waiting for weapons under development,in frigates after shivalik excluding talwar presently even contract was not given ,corvettes kamotra not even one commission,submarines scorpene is miles away with 2015 itself as doubt.Only vikramaditya and commissioning of arihant and p8i are few positives,but hoping russia wont repeat 2012 delivery mess

 

[ladder]

2012 was great year for indian navy but 2013-2015 will be nightmare as in one side kolkatta class rusting in water waiting for weapons under development,in frigates after shivalik excluding talwar presently even contract was not given ,corvettes kamotra not even one commission,submarines scorpene is miles away with 2015 itself as doubt.Only vikramaditya and commissioning of arihant and p8i are few positives,but hoping russia wont repeat 2012 delivery mess

Well the plan was to induct 4-5 platforms every year, but as you rightly pointed out that the delays may hinder the plan.
the scheduled induction plan for surface warships for 2013-14 are
1. INS Vikramaditya
2. INS Trikhand
3. INS Kolkata
4. INS Kamorta
5. INS Sunayana
6. INS Sumitra
lets see how many of them are inducted.

 

[natarajan]

kolkatta class has to be cleared by antony as it cant wait for a under development weapons ,they should go ahead with existing one,may be they can have another three in same class to use those weapons(barak)

 

[arnabmit]

All 3 Kolkata class ships construction complete... So once Barak 8 comes, all 3 should be commissioned simultaneously...

Well the plan was to induct 4-5 platforms every year, but as you rightly pointed out that the delays may hinder the plan.
the scheduled induction plan for surface warships for 2013-14 are
1. INS Vikramaditya
2. INS Trikhand
3. INS Kolkata
4. INS Kamorta
5. INS Sunayana
6. INS Sumitra
lets see how many of them are inducted.

 

[ladder]

All 3 Kolkata class ships construction complete... So once Barak 8 comes, all 3 should be commissioned simultaneously...

It will be great it it happens.
But I doubt it as it is unprecedented.The commissioning of a ship also requires training and orientation of her compliment and host of minor refinements which are done during commissioning trials.
To to these simultaneously in 3 ships is a stretch.
Also if some minor adjustment are required which are generic in nature then it can be applied to her follow on ships in the dockyard it-self.
I am expecting a minimum of 6-months gap between commissioning of subsequent ships.
But, I can be wrong.

Also, I don't know how many Barak-8 missiles will be delivered in first batch, and will that be enough to fit all the three ships in a single go.

 

[pulakeshi]

i have always been curious as to why..we bank on outside assistance and expertise in critical defense systems ?

like
air-craft careers
air superiority fighters
ammunition and ballistics
critical sub components (radars ?, engines, avionics, nuclear fuel ?? etc etc)

and more than a while we choose to ignore our expertise in the above:
like the development of a hovercraft which was developed in with Dr. Kalam
like the Tata's new howitzer ? with larger range and own ballistics ?

now coming to the point..we have always relied on outside help for aircraft carriers, spending so much money. resources etc..why can we just start some legit R & D to attempt at our own aircraft carrier (which are of course backbones for any navy and are heavy on power projections )

its not that we dont have the expertise..we have built frigates, attack ships, destroyers etc etc, we even built a nuclear submarine..which is a big start, for nuclear propulsion..!

I need an insight into understanding why we look outside first before looking inside ?

 

[Somreet Bhattacharya]

Sir, I would advice you to read other posts and threads..before opening a new thread and asking questions there...All your answers are there in the threads...

 

[Abhijeet Dey]

DRDO chief wants 7% of defence budget for R&D
By Ajai Shukla
Business Standard, 19th Apr 13

With Defence Minister AK Antony demanding that less weaponry be imported and a greater percentage of India's military requirements be developed and built in the country, the Defence R&D Organisation (DRDO) wants a significantly higher budget and has spelt out a three-fold roadmap for indigenization.

In an exclusive interview to Business Standard, DRDO chief Dr VK Saraswat, who is also Scientific Advisor to the Raksha Mantri, has said that DRDO's funding must be raised from the current 5.2 per cent of defence expenditure to at least 7-8% of the defence budget.

"We need a minimum of 7-8% of the defence budget to successfully deliver the systems that the armed forces need. The current gap of 2% of defence budget will have a serious impact, forcing us to prioritize between our development projects," says Saraswat.

The DRDO's allocation of Rs 10,610 crore for 2013-14, would have been higher by Rs 3,650 crore if it had been allocated 7 per cent of the defence budget. The DRDO's highest funding levels were in 2007, when it received 6.2 per cent of the defence budget.

Pointing out that China was spending some 20 per cent, and the US 16 per cent of their defence budgets on R&D, Saraswat said, "Developing world-class military technologies would require an R&D allocation of minimum 10% of the defence budget."

Besides enhanced funding, Saraswat outlined three important steps that the defence ministry (MoD) and the military needed to implement. Firstly, the military must plan ahead in order to allow the DRDO enough time to develop the equipment that soldiers need.

"The military cannot raise a new requirement and say that it must be imported immediately unless the DRDO delivers it in 18-24 months. Most complex defence systems take 7-8 years to develop and we must be allowed that time. Besides, we have seen that the time needed for importing a defence system is between 4-6 years. So the army must plan ahead," says Saraswat.

As Business Standard has reported (Apr 13, 2013, "Ministry's initiative to push indigenous development") the forthcoming Defence Procurement Procedure of 2013 is likely to address this demand. DPP-2013 will require the military to provide the DRDO and Indian defence companies with adequate time to develop the equipment that it requires.

The second major change that the DRDO chief wants is for the armed forces to accept the concepts of "spiral development" and "capability based deployment" of equipment being developed.

"Spiral development" rests on the fact that that military equipment capabilities gradually improve as design and development continues. Saraswat explains that if the military wants a radar system that can detect enemy fighter aircraft 500 kilometres away, and the DRDO develops one that can see 300 kilometres, the military should accept and deploy that radar. While soldiers develop expertise in operating the radar and provide valuable feedback, the scientists would enhance the capability to 500 kilometres. "Capability based deployment" means bringing into operational use a "Mark I" radar, while a "Mark II" version, with better performance is developed.

The DRDO chief's third recommendation for boosting indigenization is an investment fund through which the MoD can fund selected technology projects by private sector companies, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

"The fact is that private sector defence R&D is close to non-existent. We need a venture capital investment system, which will fund and promote research and promote an R&D culture in these companies. We have to cover their risk," says Saraswat.

There are several government models for funding private sector defence R&D, most notably in Israel, and the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) model in the US, in which the Pentagon chooses from amongst futuristic projects that private sector players propose, and funds them even when there is no certainty of success.

A similar thought process is evident in the Kelkar Committee, which has recommended setting up a Defence Technology Development Fund, with a corpus of Rs 100 crore. So far the MoD has not taken any concrete steps to implement this.

Finally, the DRDO chief would like the setting up of Defence Equipment Manufacturing Zones, on the lines of Special Economic Zones (SEZs), where defence industries benefit from quality infrastructure, funding and locational synergy. In Pune, a group of electronics companies have set up the Defence Electronics Manufacturers' Association (DEMA).

"Defence electronics is an advanced field which requires special qualification and certification. DEMA is a successful experiment that has led to about 25-30 good defence industries coming up around Pune itself," says Saraswat.

 

[pulakeshi]

arrite bro..understood.! m new on this forum..so dint have a lot of time to look around..

Sir, I would advice you to read other posts and threads..before opening a new thread and asking questions there...All your answers are there in the threads...

 

[sayareakd]

Idea is to focus on things which is denied to us, like Missiles, nuke subs, nuke weapons etc. Things which are available in open market like artillery guns, AC, etc we have not used our own resources. Only now we have move to this new area. We are making our own AC and artillery guns. Hope this will answer your question.

 

[pulakeshi]

awesome report bro..i saw Dr. Saraswat and his entire entourage of scientist and tech specialists recently when they came to my university for an international summit.

He looks like a very strong advocate for indigenous development of projects..its good that we have someone like him up in that position.!

DRDO chief wants 7% of defence budget for R&D
By Ajai Shukla
Business Standard, 19th Apr 13

With Defence Minister AK Antony demanding that less weaponry be imported and a greater percentage of India's military requirements be developed and built in the country, the Defence R&D Organisation (DRDO) wants a significantly higher budget and has spelt out a three-fold roadmap for indigenization.

In an exclusive interview to Business Standard, DRDO chief Dr VK Saraswat, who is also Scientific Advisor to the Raksha Mantri, has said that DRDO's funding must be raised from the current 5.2 per cent of defence expenditure to at least 7-8% of the defence budget.

"We need a minimum of 7-8% of the defence budget to successfully deliver the systems that the armed forces need. The current gap of 2% of defence budget will have a serious impact, forcing us to prioritize between our development projects," says Saraswat.

The DRDO's allocation of Rs 10,610 crore for 2013-14, would have been higher by Rs 3,650 crore if it had been allocated 7 per cent of the defence budget. The DRDO's highest funding levels were in 2007, when it received 6.2 per cent of the defence budget.

Pointing out that China was spending some 20 per cent, and the US 16 per cent of their defence budgets on R&D, Saraswat said, "Developing world-class military technologies would require an R&D allocation of minimum 10% of the defence budget."

Besides enhanced funding, Saraswat outlined three important steps that the defence ministry (MoD) and the military needed to implement. Firstly, the military must plan ahead in order to allow the DRDO enough time to develop the equipment that soldiers need.

"The military cannot raise a new requirement and say that it must be imported immediately unless the DRDO delivers it in 18-24 months. Most complex defence systems take 7-8 years to develop and we must be allowed that time. Besides, we have seen that the time needed for importing a defence system is between 4-6 years. So the army must plan ahead," says Saraswat.

As Business Standard has reported (Apr 13, 2013, "Ministry's initiative to push indigenous development") the forthcoming Defence Procurement Procedure of 2013 is likely to address this demand. DPP-2013 will require the military to provide the DRDO and Indian defence companies with adequate time to develop the equipment that it requires.

The second major change that the DRDO chief wants is for the armed forces to accept the concepts of "spiral development" and "capability based deployment" of equipment being developed.

"Spiral development" rests on the fact that that military equipment capabilities gradually improve as design and development continues. Saraswat explains that if the military wants a radar system that can detect enemy fighter aircraft 500 kilometres away, and the DRDO develops one that can see 300 kilometres, the military should accept and deploy that radar. While soldiers develop expertise in operating the radar and provide valuable feedback, the scientists would enhance the capability to 500 kilometres. "Capability based deployment" means bringing into operational use a "Mark I" radar, while a "Mark II" version, with better performance is developed.

The DRDO chief's third recommendation for boosting indigenization is an investment fund through which the MoD can fund selected technology projects by private sector companies, especially small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

"The fact is that private sector defence R&D is close to non-existent. We need a venture capital investment system, which will fund and promote research and promote an R&D culture in these companies. We have to cover their risk," says Saraswat.

There are several government models for funding private sector defence R&D, most notably in Israel, and the Defence Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) model in the US, in which the Pentagon chooses from amongst futuristic projects that private sector players propose, and funds them even when there is no certainty of success.

A similar thought process is evident in the Kelkar Committee, which has recommended setting up a Defence Technology Development Fund, with a corpus of Rs 100 crore. So far the MoD has not taken any concrete steps to implement this.

Finally, the DRDO chief would like the setting up of Defence Equipment Manufacturing Zones, on the lines of Special Economic Zones (SEZs), where defence industries benefit from quality infrastructure, funding and locational synergy. In Pune, a group of electronics companies have set up the Defence Electronics Manufacturers' Association (DEMA).

"Defence electronics is an advanced field which requires special qualification and certification. DEMA is a successful experiment that has led to about 25-30 good defence industries coming up around Pune itself," says Saraswat.