Defense

At least 32 Facial Recognition Technology (FRT) systems, estimated at Rs 1,063 crore, are in various stages of deployment by union ministries, central agencies and several state governments, including Telangana and Gujarat, according to an ongoing study by digital rights advocacy group, Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF). IFF sourced the information by filing 31 RTIs with several government departments.

Indian Army is soon going to get Israeli Heron and American mini drones for upgrading its surveillance capabilities in Eastern Ladakh and other areas along the China border.

The Indian Navy has leased a pair of MQ-9B SeaGuardian unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) from the United States to boost its intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, in the midst of a border row with China in the Ladakh theatre and increased Chinese activity in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR), officials familiar with developments said on Wednesday.

A Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) of the Indian Army was martyred on Thursday when Pakistan resorted to ceasefire violation along the Line of Control (LoC) in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir. The Indian Army responded befittingly to the firing.

MSME and export promotion minister Siddharth Nath Singh, who virtually inaugurated Thales’ new office, said, the global defence manufacturing giant has tied up with MKU Kanpur to produce night vision radars for the Indian army and has been manufacturing advanced devices for Rafale fighter jets.

India on Tuesday kicked off what will be multiple operational firings of the BrahMos supersonic cruise missile this week, in yet another hard-nosed display of its precision-strike capabilities amidst the ongoing military confrontation with China in eastern Ladakh.

The indigenous Intermediate Jet Trainer (IJT) designed and developed by defence PSU Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) commenced spin flight testing in Bengaluru. The flight was piloted by HAL’s test pilots Gp Capt (retd) HV Thakur and Wg Cdr (retd) P Avasti.
The IJT is being developed to replace the ageing Kiran aircraft fleet of the Indian Air Force (IAF). The spin testing of an aircraft is the most crucial phase of its flight testing.

Surat’s textile industry receives orders to manufacture 10 lakh metre of fabric for uniforms of Army, Navy and Air Force; delivery to be done by Jan 2021. Till now the fabrics were imported from China, Korea and Taiwan

The integration of the Astra beyond visual range air-to-air missile (BVRAAM), which flies over four times the speed of sound at Mach 4.5, on the Tejas and the “initial ground trials” are virtually complete now. “The flight trials of the indigenous missile on the indigenous fighter will begin within the next few months,” said a source on Thursday.

On August 29-30, the Indian Army troops along with Special Frontier Force (SFF) occupied positions on the Line of Control (LoC) south of Pangong Tso lake on the Kailash Range ridgeline for the first since 1962. Indian Army has already dismissed the PLA energy weapon report as fake news.