New Delhi: Anglo-Italian defence firm AgustaWestland has participated in bids to procure choppers for Indian Navy and Coast Guard as no decision has been taken by the government to debar it from the procurement process, Defence Minister AK Antony told the Lok Sabha on Monday. In a written reply to the House, he said the Request for Proposal (RFP) for procurement of the Naval Utility Helicopter (NUH) was issued before...
05:11 PM, Apr 29, 2013
New Delhi: Defence Minister AK Antony on Friday said negotiations and consultations are on at various levels to find a peaceful solution to the Chinese incursion issue in Ladakh. His comments came a day after External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid asserted in Almaty in Kazhakistan that India was "not a pushover" and that the issue of Chinese incursion in Ladakh would be resolved before he visits Beijing on May 9....
01:29 PM, Apr 26, 2013
The India, China stand off continued for the tenth day with no clarity whether the expected flag meet will take place on Friday over Chinese incursions. ...
10:30 PM, Apr 25, 2013
New Delhi: Army Chief General Bikram Singh on Thursday briefed Defence Minister AK Antony on the Chinese incursion issue in Ladakh and the present situation there. After reviewing the situation in Jammu and Kashmir and the Ladakh area with military commanders in the Northern Command, Gen Singh briefed the Defence Minister on the incursion issue on Thursday, Army officials said. The Army Chief had returned from Jammu and Kashmir on...
02:57 PM, Apr 25, 2013
New Delhi: India and China appear deadlocked on the issue of Chinese troop incursions in Ladakh and after two failed flag meetings, India is trying for another one. Meanwhile, Beijing wants Delhi to stop infrastructure development in the area. China has pitched its demands high insisting that India dismantle fortified positions in Ladakh and stop what it calls aggressive patrolling. India says dismantling infrastructure is not an option and there...
07:20 PM, Apr 24, 2013
Bangalore: The Congress on Wednesday promised interest-free loans to farmers, free laptops to pre-university students and rice at Re one per kg to BPL card holders if it came to power in Karnataka, where Assembly elections will take place on May five. Interest-free loans up to Rs two lakh and on three per cent interest up to Rs five lakh, establishing of a Rs 1,500 crore natural calamity relief fund...
03:52 PM, Apr 24, 2013
New Delhi: Amid tight security and protests against his visit, Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi will arrive in Kerala on Wednesday. Modi who will be on a day-long visit to the state, will address a public rally in Varkala. Modi had featured in recent debates in the state, after state Labour Minister Shibhu Baby John met him in Gujarat last week. Top Congress and Left leaders had condemned that meeting,...
10:56 AM, Apr 24, 2013
New Delhi: India will take "every step" to protect its interests to resolve the situation arising out of deep incursion by Chinese troops into Indian territory in eastern Ladakh, Defence Minister AK Antony said on Monday. "We are taking every action to protect our interest. ...We will take every step to protect our interest," he told reporters outside Parliament House. He was asked the government's response to the Chinese incursion...
01:35 PM, Apr 22, 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: A Navy officer's spouse, who has levelled charges of wife swapping against her husband and his superiors in Kochi, met Defence Minister AK Antony to complain about the harassment faced by her. The woman told Antony on Monday that she was harassed in presence of her husband and Antony assured her that proper investigation would be done and strict action taken if anyone was found guilty, Defence Ministry...
10:06 PM, Apr 16, 2013
If you want to know how to complicate an easy thing, you better ask the Congress high command in New Delhi. Karnataka voters were strongly in favour of the Congress just a month ago. Urban local body results also proved that Congress was on the upswing. Sensing certain victory, all kinds of people started lobbying for Congress tickets and the so called high command in Delhi started behaving in a...
07:10 PM, Apr 16, 2013
New Delhi: Defence Minister AK Antony on Tuesday promised to take strong action if anybody was found guilty in the alleged Kochi wife swapping case in which the wife of a navy officer has filed an FIR against her husband and his superiors. "Whenever there is a complaint, we take strong action. After inquiry, if anyone is found guilty, we take strong action and exemplary punishment is given.This is our...
12:40 PM, Apr 16, 2013
New Delhi: Embarrassed by allegations of wife-swapping, the Navy has dismissed another senior officer from service after he was found guilty of sending lewd messages to several women by a General Court Martial (GCM) in Mumbai. The issue of dismissal of the officer deployed on the country's only aircraft carrier INS Virat comes soon after Defence Minister AK Antony dismissed another officer who was found guilty of having illicit relations...
08:12 PM, Apr 15, 2013
Kottayam: Senior Congress leader AK Antony on Saturday appeared to keep open the possibility of a tie-up with the Left after the Lok Sabha polls and said there were areas of cooperation between the two sides on issues of larger interest to the country. Antony, who was in Kottayam to inaugurate the valedictory session of the 125th anniversary of Malayalam daily 'Deepika', dismissed chances of Congress striking pre-poll alliance with...
07:44 PM, Apr 13, 2013
Kochi: Defence Minister AK Antony on Saturday said that no leniency would be shown to anyone found guilty on the complaint filed by a Navy officer's wife alleging that she had been harassed by her husband and his seniors. "The Defence Ministry treats this type of complaint very seriously. An inquiry will be conducted and strict action, including dismissal, will be initiated against anyone found guilty," Antony said. "I have...
12:15 PM, Apr 13, 2013
New Delhi: AK Antony was "one of the only" leaders apart from Priyaranjan Dasmunsi who "flatly criticised" Sanjay Gandhi during 1976 AICC session in Guwahati during Emergency when the latter's political graph was on the rise, US diplomatic cables have claimed. The cables, made public by Wikileaks, also said the party faction led by Antony, the Kerala unit President, refused to support Sanjay and questioned his "rapid ascent to a...
02:02 PM, Apr 09, 2013
New Delhi: Against the backdrop of recent scams in defence purchases, Defence Minister AK Antony on Monday said the armed forces should have "transparency" in their functioning. Inaugurating the bi-annual Army Commanders' Conference in Delhi, he expressed concern over the regional security situation in Afghanistan and Pakistan and expressed confidence that the armed forces would be prepared to meet the challenges. "You should work towards having transparency in your functioning,"...
03:30 AM, Apr 09, 2013
Former Air Chief Marshal (retd) SP Tyagi received cash in return for favouring Anglo-Italian helicopter company AgustaWestland in the controversial Rs 3,600 crore VVIP chopper deal, the report by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), a copy of which is with CNN-IBN, states. The report, however, fails to mention the amount that was paid to the retired chief marshal and the mode of payment. The report also adds that Tyagi's cousins...
06:10 PM, Apr 01, 2013
Defence Minister AK Antony has admitted there was corruption in the AugustaWestland chopper deal. Speaking in Kochi, the Defence Minister did not name those involved. But he said those involved in the corruption will be brought to book. ...
12:14 PM, Mar 25, 2013
Defence Ministry's move to have 'life cycle cost' clause in tenders for military hardware, including in one for the 126 Multi-Role Medium Combat Aircraft (MMRCA), has come in for questioning from BJP which fears this could be misused for corruption. ...
05:33 PM, Mar 24, 2013
