Blacklisting of firm hits artillery modernisation: Army chief

September 27th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Indian Army's Artillery regiment will be celebrating its 182nd foundation day on Monday. The raising day, which is known as Gunners day, is observed every year on September 28 to mark the raising of first Indian Artillery Unit 5 (Bombay) Mountain Battery on this momentous day in 1827.

July 29th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) will conduct a special audit of the procurement contracts signed during the tenure of former chairman of Ordnance Factory Board (OFB) Sudipto Ghosh, who was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation on corruption charges, parliament was informed Wednesday. The Ministry of Defence has requested Comptroller and Auditor General to conduct a special audit of procurement contracts concluded during the tenure of former Chairman of Ordnance Factory Board, Minister of State for Defence M.M Pallam Raju said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha.

July 7th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The defence ministry has sought advice from the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) and the law ministry on further dealings with the seven foreign armament companies, including an Israeli firm and a Singaporean gun manufacturer, blacklisted on suspicion of thier involvement in payoffs. The ministry has also written to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for further evidence in the case.

July 5th, 2009 JOHANNESBURG - South African arms manufacturer Denel has assured the government that it would resolve with India the vexed issued of its alleged blacklisting there, a news report said here Sunday. This followed reports of reluctance by the South African government to intervene at a diplomatic level, as requested earlier by Denel.

July 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - The Indian Army will not issue fresh bids to buy the ultra-light howitzer that it badly needs for frontline defence. Instead, it will await the outcome of the probe into corruption charges against the Singapore firm, whose guns it had chosen for field trials.

June 24th, 2009 CHENNAI - The Tamil Nadu government is in the process of acquiring land for expansion and modernisation of metro and non-metro airports in the state. According to a policy note Transport Minister K.N.

June 12th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Army Chief General Deepak Kapoor today said the decision to reduce troops in Jammu and Kashmir would be taken after seeing the trends in the situation during the summer and the Amarnath Yatra. General Kapoor was speaking to the reporters on the sidelines of the induction of the Artillery Combat and Control System (ACCCS) Shakti, which is the artillery component of TAC 31.

June 12th, 2009 NEW DELHI - Blacklisting of Singapore Technology along with six other defence firms on charges of bribery would delay the process of artillery modernisation in the Indian Army, Gen Deepak Kapoor admitted Friday. The development is of particular concern as the army has not been able to purchase a single gun in the last 23 years.

June 10th, 2009 NEW DELHI - The blacklisting of an Israeli armaments' firm and six other companies on corruption charges will adversely impact the modernisation drive of the Indian armed forces as finding alternative suppliers could prove difficult, officials say. All dealings with Israeli Military Industries (IMI) were temporarily put on hold June 5 after its name surfaced in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) case against the retired chairman of the Ordnance Factory Board Sudipta Ghosh.

June 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Lieutenant General Arvinder Singh Lamba has taken over as the new Chief of Staff, HQ Army training Command in New Delhi on Wednesday. Lamba is an officer with vast experience of conventional as well as Counter Insurgency operations.

June 3rd, 2009 NEW DELHI - Lieutenant General KR Rao is the new Director General Artillery. Earlier he was the DG Manpower Planning and Personnel.

January 13th, 2009 NEW DELHI - In the wake of the 60-hour hostage drama that unfolded in Mumbai last year, highlighting the lacunae in the Indian Special Forces, the army has asked for more counter terrorism equipment and decided to fast track the procurement process. Interacting with the media ahead of the 61st Army Day, Indian Army chief General Deepak Kapoor said the army has sought 'better guns and goggles to remove night blindness' in the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attack in which more than 170 people were killed.

December 28th, 2008 KOLKATA - Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel will inaugurate the modernisation project of the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport here Monday evening. The total cost of the project is around Rs.16.02 billion (Rs.1,602 crore).

December 28th, 2008 KOLKATA - Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel Monday set the ball rolling for a Rs.16-billion modernisation of the international airport here, which will include a new terminal, modern taxiways and extension of a runway so that it can handle the giant Airbus A-380 aircraft. The modernisation project, the foundation stone for which was laid by West Bengal chief minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, is targeted for completion by May 2011.

December 23rd, 2008 KOLKATA - The modernisation work of the Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport here will be completed by May 2011, a senior official familiar with the projectsaid. Civil aviation minister Praful Patel will lay the foundation stone for the modernisation work Dec 29.