Defence Ministry

A Syrian military helicopter crashed during a training mission in Hama city, confirmed local media on September 4.  The crash occurred due to a technical snag in the helicopter, resulting in the death of all the crew members onboard. "A military helicopter crashed on Sunday morning, northeast of Hama, during a training mission which led to the martyrdom of the helicopter crew," said Syrian Defence department.

The Indian defence ministry has given the nod to private companies to develop military helicopters. With this the Defence Acquisition Procedure (DAP) rules will be amended allowing private companies to collaborate with Indian Defence PSUs. The Indian Multi-Role Helicopters (IMRH) which will be developed under this collaboration, will replace Russian built Mi-17 and Mi-8 choppers in the Indian military inventory.

The Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh launched a new defence recruitment model called the 'Agnipath', on June 14.  The new model kicked in after Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA) and Union Cabinet approved the new proposal scheme for armed forces. Major highlight of the new scheme is that young soldiers will be released after four-years of service. The new scheme will help youths to serve the country.

Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on December 18, emphasized on expansion of defence security in India. Addressing FICCI Annual Convention, Singh said, currently, India's defence and aerospace sector is worth Rs 85,000 crore, but if continues, it will reach Rs 5 lakh crores by 2047. "The government now looks at the private industry as their partners in fulfilling the objective of attaining Aatmanirbhar Raksha Utpadan," said Singh. 

In a major airstrike by the Afghan Air Force, 13 terrorists of Taliban were killed and eight suffered injuries near Afghanistan's Taleqan city on August 5. Sharing the details, Afghanistan's Defense Ministry tweeted, ''38 RPG, 8 artillery shells & some amount of their ammunition were destroyed.'' However, referring to the recent car bomb attack, the Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid reiterated to continue the attack on Afghan officials… read-more