4. Military hardware
India test-fired its Trishul short-range surface-to-air missile last week. The Trishul, which has triple battlefield roles for the Army, Air Force and Navy, has a range of 500 meter to 9 km, with the capacity of carrying a 15 kg warhead.
"Trishul test fired from Chandipur-on-sea"
The Prabal missile boat, the Indian Navy's fourth, was launched and will be ready for active service in January, 2002. With a displacement of 477 tons, the boat carries surface-to-surface missiles.
"Missile boat launched"
The Indian government appointed Vice Admiral DN Ganesh, currently Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Cochin-based Southern naval command, to be director of the Advance Technology Vessel (ATV), the Indian top-secret nuclear submarine project. The project is being coordinated by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO), and has been experiencing delays.
"Nuclear submarine project gets a new head"
Home secretary Kamal Pande has stressed that there is an urgent need to revamp the intelligence machinery of the country. He said,"An effective intelligence machinery can dramatically shift the scales in favor of law enforcement agencies. We have to concede that the analytical and interpretative capabilities of our intelligence agencies are much below the requisite levels." He accused State law enforcement agencies of parochial concerns.
"Need to revamp intelligence set-up: Home secretary"
The Task Force on Intelligence apparatus, which examined the recommendations of the Kargil Committee report on intelligence leading to the Kargil War, has submitted its report to the group of ministers (GOM), which examines the role of various Indian intelligence organizations and recommends specific proposal for implementation.
"Task Force on intelligence submits report"
An article in The Hindu by C Raja Mohan which argued that India will be tempted to return to defining a geopolitical grand strategy by the strengthening relations with Russia, the US, and even the PRC, but should instead focus on its core problems with Kashmir, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the PRC. India should focus on cooperative, rather than balancing, policies.
"Modesty and grand strategy"
Lieutenant General Sundarajan Padmanabhan took over as Chief of Army Staff, the fourth artillery officer to occupy the Indian Army's highest office.
"Padmanabhan takes over as Army chief today"