Islamabad: Pakistan Army will deploy 70,000 troops and 50 helicopters for aerial surveillance across the country to ensure security and maintain law and order during the landmark May 11 polls, marking the first democratic transition in the nation's history. Details about the deployment of troops and the army's role in providing security to the election process, threatened by banned groups like Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, were provided today by chief military spokesman Major General Asim Saleem Bajwa during a news conference at the army's General Headquarters in Rawalpindi.
The military will ensure complete security on polling day and a special security monitoring cell will be established at the General Headquarters. A comprehensive security plan is in place and arrangements have been made for mobilising helicopter-borne units to respond to any eventuality, Bajwa said. The paramilitary Pakistan Rangers and Frontier Corps and police will guard polling stations while the Army Aviation will provide 50 helicopters for aerial surveillance across the country on May 11, 2013.
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02:25 AM, May 03, 2013
Beijing: Ignoring India's demand to revert to a status-quo in Depsang Valley, China on Wednesday firmly stuck to its stand that its troops have not violated the Line of Actual Control (LAC) "by a step" in the Ladakh region. "I want to reiterate here that the Chinese border troops have been acting in strict compliance with the bilateral agreements and conducting normal patrol on the Chinese side of the LAC....
08:31 PM, Apr 24, 2013
New Delhi: Chinese helicopters flew over Depsang in Daulat Beg Oldi (DBO) sector in Ladakh on April 15, the same night a platoon-strength contingent of Chinese Army came 10 km inside the Indian territory and established a tented post in the sector, sources said. There have been other violations by the Chinese in the past. Chinese helicopters dropped cans of food in Chumar, Ladakh. In March, Chinese helicopters violated Indian...
02:35 PM, Apr 23, 2013
Mumbai: Space crunch may hit parking of helicopters and small airplanes at the two airports in Mumbai, with the Airports Authority of India (AAI) planning to implement stringent guidelines to decongest the aerodromes and their runways. Lack of parking space is more acute at the main Chhatrapati Shivaji International (CSI) Airport and implementation of the guidelines would begin soon, airport sources said, adding "parking is a major issue due to...
01:43 PM, Apr 17, 2013
New Delhi: The government is committed to the modernisation of the Indian Air Force (IAF) and funds are not a problem to ensure that it remains at the forefront of technology, Defence Minister AK Antony said on Tuesday while stressing the need to observe austerity measures. "Procurement and acquisitions span the entire spectrum of the capabilities of the IAF, including fighter aircraft, transport aircraft, helicopters and modernisation of the air...
05:25 AM, Apr 17, 2013
New Delhi: Seeking to avoid allegations of favouritism and scams in acquisitions, the Defence Ministry is planning to put an end to single-vendor tenders and is expected to issue directions to the Services headquarters soon in this regard. The Ministry is considering formulation of a policy in this regard and it is expected to be reflected in the forthcoming new version of the Defence Procurement Procedure, which will be given...
09:21 PM, Apr 14, 2013
The government on Tuesday deferred a decision on a deal to buy 197 light-utility helicopters pending completion of an investigation into kickback allegations, the latest setback to efforts to upgrade the country's ageing arsenal. ...
11:29 PM, Apr 02, 2013
The West Bengal government on Monday inked an MoU with state-run helicopter firm Pawan Hans Ltd. to avail services of sea-planes, helicopters and fixed-wing planes to boost its tourism and industrial potential. ...
02:32 AM, Mar 19, 2013
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team that is in Italy to probe the tainted VVIP chopper deal with AgustaWestland claimed it has procured some important documents from Italian authorities on the case. The CBI team, however, is yet to bring the proof back to India. ...
09:37 PM, Feb 24, 2013
Moving forward in its probe into alleged kickbacks in the VVIP helicopter deal, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has procured some documents from Italian authorities in Milan that may help it investigating whether any Indian had received bribes to swing the deal in favour of AgustaWestland. Highly-placed sources in the probe agency said on Sunday that one of the members of the CBI team who returned Sunday morning from...
06:02 PM, Feb 24, 2013
AgustaWestland on Friday replied to a showcasue notice issued by the Indian government on the cancellation of the Rs 3600 crore chopper deal. In its reply the company denied any involvement in any kind of malpractice related to the deal. It says it had fully complied with the rules that regulated the multi crore helicopter deal. ...
08:20 AM, Feb 23, 2013
A joint team of the Central Bureau of Investigation, Defence Ministry and the External Affairs Ministry will meet the officials of AgustaWestland and its parent company Finmeccanica in Italy on Wednesday. ...
08:56 AM, Feb 20, 2013
A Central Bureau of Investigation team has reached Milan in Italy to probe the allegations of kickbacks in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland chopper deal. The joint team of CBI, Ministry of Defence and Ministry of External Affairs officials will first meet officials at the Indian embassy before they try and meet the prosecutor to understand the case. ...
03:16 PM, Feb 19, 2013
After External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid, Defence Minister AK Antony also denied any differences within the government over the AgustaWestland chopper deal. "There is no question of lack of co-ordination with the MEA," Antony said. ...
12:55 PM, Feb 19, 2013
Defence Minister AK Antony was not part of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's delegation holding talks with UK Prime Minister David Cameron on Tuesday. Government sources say his presence was not required and his absence was not linked to the AgustaWestland chopper controversy. ...
12:37 PM, Feb 19, 2013
External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid has denied any differences within the government on the question of scrapping the AgustaWestland deal. "I have not expressed any reservation at all. I only said whatever decision taken has to be a collective decision," Khurshid said. ...
11:35 AM, Feb 19, 2013
CNN-IBN's political editor in Europe, Sanjay Suri, spoke to Italian legal experts to try and find out whether India can gain access to the Italian probe report on AgustaWestland deal. ...
11:04 AM, Feb 19, 2013
A Central Bureau of Investigation team has left for Italy to probe the allegations of kickbacks in the Rs 3,600 crore AgustaWestland chopper deal. The team is expected to meet Italian prosecutors to ascertain details of the case. ...
09:09 AM, Feb 19, 2013
As the Central Bureau of Investigation team leaves for Italy to probe the AgustaWestland chopper deal, CNN-IBN has accessed details of phone conversations between between the two Italian middlemen Guido Haschke and Carlo Gerosa. The tapped phone conversations also reveal how Haschke claims he has destroyed all evidence of wrongdoing. ...
07:56 AM, Feb 19, 2013
The government is divided on whether to cancel the AgustaWestland chopper deal or not. Sources say the Prime Minister's Office is unhappy with the proposal to cancel the chopper deal. This comes amidst reports that the Defence Minister was inclined to cancel the deal in view of the bribery allegations against former Air Chief Marshal SP Tyagi. ...
11:11 AM, Feb 18, 2013
