type here...
Home Blog Page 1080

12 People From Indian Military Who Went On To Join The Indian Politics

By
SSBCrackExams
-
4

India is the largest democracy in the world, also supported by the fact that it has no restriction on the number of political parties or service people joining one of the political parties. There is no constitutional or statutory ban on a service chief joining a political party after retirement. Here are some of the serving members who decided to join the Indian politics after retirement:

  1. Ayub Khan:

Military History:

Captain Ayub Khan came from a family of soldiers and made his country proud when he was decorated with a Vir Chakra for leading an attack that destroyed four tanks when he was a Risaldar, a non-commissioned rank.

He belonged to the 18th Cavalry which is an armoured regiment and was later promoted to honorary Captain and retired as a JCO.

Politics:

Due to his increasing popularity as a war hero, the then Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, on his personal initiative, gave Captain Ayub Khan a ticket to contest the Lok Sabha election from Jhunjhunu in Rajasthan.

He fought the election and became an MP. It was the first time that a Muslim from Rajasthan was elected to the Lok Sabha. Captain Ayub won two consecutive elections.

ayub-khan

  1. Kisan Baburao Hazare a.k.a. Anna Hazare:

Military History:

Now popular as a social activist, Anna Hazare was an active army soldier and had served in the 1965 war.

He joined the Indian Army in April 1960, where he initially worked as an army truck driver and was later attested as a soldier. He undertook army training at Aurangabad.

During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, Hazare was posted at the border in the Khem Karan sector. He was the sole survivor of an enemy attack—variously claimed to have been a bomb, an aerial assault and an exchange of fire at the border—while he was driving a truck.

Politics:

Though not actively engaged in politics, Anna Hazare frequently conducted hunger strikes to further his causes—a tactic reminiscent. He also contributed to the development and structuring of Ralegan Siddhi, a village in Parner taluka of Ahmednagar.

He was awarded the Padma Bhushan—the third-highest civilian award—by the Government of India in 1992 for his efforts in establishing this village as a model for others.

anna

  1. Rajyawardhan Singh Rathore:

Military History:

Col RS Rathore is most famous as a national level shooter. He has won 7 Gold, 3 Silver and 2 Bronze medals in various national and international games.

He is also a recipient of Padma Shri, Ati Vishist Seva Medal, Special Service Medal, Sainya Seva Medal among others.

He took premature retirement from the army to join politics.

Politics:

In 2013, Rathore joined BJP after taking premature retirement. He was elected as an MP in the 2014 Lok Sabha election from Jaipur Rural constituency. In 2014, he was sworn-in as the Minister of State for Information & Broadcasting, under the Narendra Modi government.

He is currently serving in the same portfolio as a junior minister.

rs-rathore

  1. Bhuwan Chandra Khanduri:

 Military History:

Major General BC Khanduri joined the army in 1954 and served in Corps of Engineers for 36 years till 1990. He was the Commander of Regiment during the Indo-Pak war in 1971. He held the position of Chief Engineer in the Army and Commander of an Engineering Brigade. He also served at Additional Military Secretary at Army Headquarters and Additional Director General in the Engineer-in-Chief’s division at the Army Headquarters.

In 1982, he received the Ati Vishisht Seva Medal (AVSM) from the President of India for his extraordinary contribution to the Indian Army. He retired as Major General from Indian Army.

Politics:

Khanduri was first elected to Lok Sabha from Garhwal in Uttarakhand 1991 and in subsequent elections. He was the Minister of State (with independent charge) of the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways from 2000 to 2003 in the central government headed by Atal Bihari Vajpayee. He was elevated to Cabinet rank in 2003 and held the post until the end of the tenure of the NDA government in May 2004.

He is a senior leader of BJP, having served on various parliamentary committees. As the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Khanduri executed the National Highways Development Plan of the NDA with competence and swiftness and gave shape to the Golden Quadrilateral Project connecting the major Indian cities and also, North–South and East–West Corridor Project among various other achievements.bck

  1. Jacob Farj Rafael Jacob:

 Military Career:

Jacob graduated from the Officer’s Training School in Mhow in 1942 and was posted to northern Iraq during 2nd World War. In 1943, Jacob was transferred to an Artillery brigade that was dispatched to the Tunisia Campaign to reinforce the British army. From 1943 to the end of the war, Jacob’s unit fought in the Burma Campaign against the Japanese Empire. In the wake of Japan’s defeat, he was assigned to Sumatra.

He returned to India following the partition and joined the Indian Army. He was promoted to Brigadier in 1963. During the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965, he commanded an infantry division, which later became 12th Infantry Division, in the Indian state of Rajasthan. During this period, Jacob composed an Indian Army manual on desert warfare.

He was promoted to Major General in 1967. In 1969, he was appointed Chief of Staff, Eastern Command, by General Sam Manekshaw.

Politics:

After retirement, he joined the BJP and remained cautious about relations between India and Pakistan in light of the Pakistani media’s suggesting that military and intelligence cooperation between Israel and India. He was a supporter of improved India–Israel relations.

jfr

  1. Kinhiraman Palat Candeth:

 Military Career:

Lieutenant General Kunhiraman Palat Candeth (23 October 1916 – 19 May 2003) was a Three-Star General in the Indian army. In 1961, the then Major General Candeth led Operation Vijay to annexe Goa from the Portuguese colonial rule and served briefly as the Lieutenant Governor of the state. Subsequently, he rose to Deputy Chief of Army Staff at the time of the 1965 war and commanded the Western Army during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.

He was later awarded the Padma Bhushan and PVSM.

Politics:

Though his political career was not very clear, it is known that he joined BJP in the 1990’s and was not married.

kpc

  1. Jaswant Singh:

 Military Career:

He was an officer in the Indian Army in the 1960s and is an alumnus of Mayo College and the National Defence Academy, Khadakwasla.

On 7 August 2014, he had a fall at his home and suffered a serious head injury. He was admitted to Army’s Research and Referral hospital in Delhi for treatment. He is in a state of a coma ever since.

Politics:

He tasted success in his political career in 1980 when he was first selected for the Rajyasabha, the upper house of Indian parliament and served as finance minister.

In the government of Vajpayee, Jaswant Singh was External Affairs Minister. Later he became Minister of Finance with Yashwant Sinha. He was also the Defence Minister when George Fernandes was forced to resign after the Tehelka exposure.

He was vice-president nominee for NDA government and lost to Hamid Ansari of UPA regime.

jaswant_singh

8. Jagatvir Singh Drona:

Military Career:

His military career is as lesser known as his political career. What is known of him is that he served in the army till 1990. He retired from the army as a Captain.

Politics:          

After retirement, he joined the BJP in 1990 and was a former member of the 10th,11th and 12th Lok Sabha.

He is the present mayor of Kanpur.

9. Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat:

 Military Career:

Admiral Vishnu Bhagwat, PVSM, AVSM is a former Chief of the Naval Staff of India. A talented and all round officer, he had a brilliant career in the Indian Navy, eventually achieving the highest rank.

He went to the National Defence Academy and joined the Navy in 1960. He serves in the Goa liberation war and the Indo-Pak war of 1971.

He is the first and only chief of naval staff who was relieved from office while still serving and stripped of Admiral rank as a punitive measure.

Politics:

Since he was removed as an Admiral, his political career also didn’t see much light. He was active in Bihar politics for a very brief period.vishnu-b

10. Vijay Kumar Singh:

 Military Career:

General VK Singh was commissioned into the 2nd Battalion of the Rajput Regiment (Kali Chindi) on 14 June 1970. He commanded the same unit when it was positioned along the Line of Control with Pakistan.

He graduated from the Defence Services Staff College. He was an honours graduate of the United States Army Infantry School, a graduate of the Rangers Course at Fort Benning and the United States Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

Singh is experienced in both counter-insurgency and high-altitude operations. He also saw action as a young Lieutenant in the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 while serving as an intelligence officer of 2 Rajput.

Gen VK Singh became the 24th Chief of Army Staff on 31 March 2010 and was the first commando to achieve that position.

Politics:

VK Singh joined the BJP on 1 March 2014 and won the Ghaziabad (Lok Sabha constituency) seat in the 2014 Indian general election, defeating Raj Babbar of the Indian National Congress by a margin of 567,260 votes.

He became the MoS of External Affairs and MoS (independent charge) for North East Region before participating in Operation Rahat.vk-singh

11. Rajesh Pilot:

 Military Career:

Rajesh served as a pilot in Indian Air Force, reaching the rank of Squadron Leader. Later, he adopted “Pilot” as his last name.

He later left the Air Force influenced by Rajiv Gandhi, to join politics.

Politics:

Pilot emerged as a major Gurjar leader during his political career. In his first election as a candidate, Pilot defeated the former queen of Bharatpur. He sent Chandraswami to prison when he was the Internal Security Minister.

Later, he lost the election for the post of the Congress president to Sitaram Kesri but kept himself in the first line of Congress leaders.rajesh-pilot12. Amrinder Singh:

 Military Career:

Amrinder joined the Indian Army in June 1963 after graduating from the National Defence Academy and Indian Military Academy before resigning in early 1965. He rejoined the Army again as hostilities broke out with Pakistan and served as Captain in the 1965 Indo-Pakistan War.

Politics:

He was inducted into the Congress by Rajiv Gandhi, who was his friend from school and was first elected to the Lok Sabha in 1980. In 1984, he resigned from Parliament and from Congress as a protest against the Army action during Operation Blue Star.

Subsequently, he joined the Shiromani Akali Dal and was elected to the state legislature from Talwandi Sabo and became a minister in the state government for Agriculture, Forest, Development and Panchayats.amrinder

10 Things You Learn in the Military That College Can’t Teach You

By
SSBCrackExams
-
1
military-things

Almost all of us have been through our college or school at least for that matter. We learn a lot of qualities in self-development and co-working in college to prepare ourselves for so-called “real-life”. But unfortunately, over the years it seems like what is being taught in colleges is highly overrated, hyped and we just wait for our degrees to be issued to us asap to at least land a decent job.

But those who choose to join the military, it’s a whole different experience now. You learn new things and make such a close bond with your friends that you could not have made with your friends in college. Here are some such things you learn in the military that college can’t teach you, simply because they focus on marks and performance:

  1. You Learn a lot Better: First things first. Completing an advance training means that you have spent between 2-12 concentrated months learning how to perform a particular occupation (law, education, medical, EME, signals etc.) and that you have performed it well enough that you can carry it for your life. This is totally unlike getting a college degree where we just study for marks and gain very little out of it, mostly because either our college is not coping with the latest or the syllabus is highly outdated unless you take any internships.
  2. You Learn to Learn More Quickly: Some more quickly than others, military personnel have the capacity to absorb information more quickly and efficiently than others. Unlike many academic settings, the training and education timeframes are compressed. Colleges tend to stretch these out since they make more money the longer they keep you there. Military education and training facilities try to get people in and out as efficiently as possible.
  3. You Learn Perseverance: Unlike college, where committing to a goal and succeeding is hard, where no one is there to make you get up in the morning and go to class, the military is a bit different. Instructors are there with you from dawn to dusk to build you back up. They will be your mother, father, brother, helper, friend, and everything till you are in training, trying to push your limits until they bring the best out of you.
  4. You Learn Teamwork, Real Teamwork: One of most primitive, integral aspects ingrained from the time you join the military to the time you’re separated is the requirement that you be able to function as a part of a cohesive team. This is drilled into cadets since basic training. The whole point of marching, chanting and singing, collective training is to establish the group’s collective mentality.
  5. You Learn Critical Analysis of Situation: How are we assessed of our analytical thinking in college? If “A” is so and “B” is so, “C” could be? Isn’t that how they take our analysis of critical thinking? But in the military many hours are spent on things you learn in the militarydeployments in chaotic situations, gathering information, comparing data, discussing the meaning and implications of thoughts. And when their analysis is correct military members achieve their goals and when they are incorrect people could die unlike in college where we get an ‘A’ for good and ‘C’ for worse.
  6. You Learn How To Work Under Pressure, Or You Could Lose Lives: In college what we think ‘working under pressure’ is completing and submitting assignments before the deadline. Sure, there are deadlines, performance pressures, and student loan stress, if we consider that. But that stress is almost nothing when compared to that of what the average military person learns to cope with. Military people learn to cope with the stress of constant exposure be it performance deadlines, deployments, balancing a home life, or leading men to war. You better deal with the stress right or your men’s lives are at risk.
  7. You Learn To Communicate, Like a Military Man: When presenting information or delivering a eminar to an audience (classmates, teacher) either orally or through a presentation, your communication skills are totally different from what you would be doing the same in front of senior leaders. The military requires that you write papers explaining your understanding of complex real-life situations and making well thought out arguments for a course of action to be briefed to senior leaders. Even the most junior enlisted member has been asked at least once to orally brief a senior leader. Many of them do it as a matter of routine, given the number of inspections and command visits a unit receives.
  8. You Increase Your Grasping and Attention Power: Although this may as well be taught in college, it’s definitely something emphasized while in the military to an almost nauseating extent. We starting paying attention to every minute detail of what is being told to us, we even start becoming more conscious of our surroundings. All of these, are expected of you in the military.
  9. You Learn Time Management: Taking 4 to 6 classes a semester, juggling assignments and exams, and keeping up with fraternity events or sport teams means you have to be very cognizant of your time management. But in the military an ability to manage time and to multitask, both run simultaneously. Sometimes you need to deliver more than expected and things that just don’t go the way they were planned to contend with on a daily basis.  The military runs on a “no excuses” mentality, so service members are expected to deal with the situation as presented, figure out how to adapt to and/or overcome road blocks, and achieve the goal.
  10. You Learn Punctuality And Discipline: For those that training, actual military service runs them ragged, with training, exercises, deployments and long hours. You join the military by signing a contract. Come any problem in the world, most of them who join complete their contract because it becomes their personal goal to serve their country in whatever capacity they can. Choosing to serve in the military is choosing a tough lifestyle, and these volunteers could have made other, perhaps easier, choices. And this my friend, is being disciplined to yourself and punctual to the military.
Best SSB Book –>  Let’s Crack SSB Interview
Best AFCAT Book –> Let’s Crack AFCAT

To crack SSB and AFSB Interview get “Let’s Crack SSB Interview” Book from Amazon. Trusted by thousands of defence aspirants

Also Download Helpful eBooks:

Meet Sandhya Suri, One of The First Women Officers to Serve on Warship

By
SSBCrackExams
-
0

The third Indian Naval Academy batch had got 14 lady cadets. One among them was, Sandhya Suri, who was preparing for her IPS exams back then when she received the joining instructions in 1994. As her fate might have it, she rose to become one from the handful of women officers to be posted on board a warship. Here is her story as per her interview at The Better India.

She is the only girl in her family to serve in the Armed Forces.

The Inspiration:

sandhya-suri-4

Sandhya Suri wanted to be in the Armed Forces even before the induction of women came into force. She wanted to do something worthy and was inspired by the uniform. “It’s a uniform thing I suppose”, she says.

Preparing for IPS simultaneously, she was in college studying Masters in English, playing state level basketball and also teaching English at the Army Public School in Kaluchak, Jammu.

She dropped her IPS preparations very happily when she received a call came from the Navy and the Air Force. Though she was attending her Air Force SSB when the call to report to the Naval Academy came, she had also applied for the Army.

First Day After Commissioning:

She was commissioned on 18 August 1994 and have served for seven years. She trained at the Naval Academy in Goa first, followed by CLABS in Kochi, Hamla School of Management and Logistics in Mumbai, NBCD Basic Training at Lonavala and then a Ship’s attachment on now de-commissioned aircraft carrier INS Vikrant. All of this post-commission training lasted eleven months before she got posted to the Eastern Command.

sandhya-suri-1

Challenges Being A Lady Officer:

“The biggest challenge for me was to insist I was an “Officer” and not a “Lady Officer” as we were referred to”, is what she recalls. Her greatest challenge in the Navy, as what she remember, was to fight to be considered a uniformed military personnel and not a woman.

sandhya-suri-2

Being on A Warship:

Sandhya Suri is among the fortunate few who had the privilege of serving on board a warship. She was posted on a Logistics Warship that lends out support to the Fleet in terms of logistics replenishment at sea.

sandhya-suri-3

“That particular posting was my best one in the Navy. It was challenging. I knew my responsibilities and was accountable. It is not easy for the Navy to post a woman on board a warship. It has been a male domain for too long”, she responds.

sandhya-suri-6

One Deciding To Quit Navy:

Earlier, Sandhya had requested for long course specialisation. That was shot down. She aspired to be an Instructor, a certified Diver, requested for a transfer to SSB Board or Naval Intel. At that point, when she was asked if she wanted to extend when these requests were shot down, she didn’t see a point in staying. “I did not want to push files all the time. I wanted to do more than just that”, she said.

It was a decision to be taken and was taken as she goes on to add that “my decision had everything to do with the road ahead. I miss the uniform. I miss that a lot but I am grateful for the opportunity. It was tough to decide to leave. I don’t regret things, though. There is no time for regret here. You have one life. You live it to the hilt and make the time worth it.”

sandhya-suri-5

Her Advice to Women Aspiring to Join the Indian Navy:

“If you are looking at it as a career and a job, please don’t join and undermine our initial efforts of utter pride in serving the nation. Join because the pride of having the privilege swells your heart. Join if you can live by the oath you take. Join if there is more to you than just the thought of glamour in uniform. Join only if you can put your country before yourself, your Ship (read Unit) before yourself, your team before yourself and lead by example. Else, please don’t tarnish it is pristine colours. Shaano Varun is a lifetime thing. If you believe that, by all means, go and shine.”

Best SSB Book –>  Let’s Crack SSB Interview
Best AFCAT Book –> Let’s Crack AFCAT

To crack SSB and AFSB Interview get “Let’s Crack SSB Interview” Book from Amazon. Trusted by thousands of defence aspirants

Also Download Helpful eBooks:

8 Points About Major Gosavi Kunal Mannadir: The Nagrota Attack Martyr

By
SSBCrackExams
-
0

Nagrota Attack was the second largest attack on the Indian Army after the Uri attacks. It claimed the lives of at least 12 jawans including two officers, Major Akshay Girish Kumar and Major Gosavi Kunal Manndir. We’ve covered an article on the life of Maj Akshay earlier.

Here’s what you should know about Maj Gosavi Kunal Mannadir:

gosavi kunal mannadir
Gosavi Kunal Mannadir during his commissioning at IMA, Dehradun
  1. Major Gosavi Kunal Mannadir was just 32 years old when he lost his life in the Nagrota attack.
  2. He had just returned to Jammu with his wife Uma and their 3-year-old daughter, Umang, after a month’s leave. He had reported on duty a day before the attack.
  3. He hailed from Pandharpur, Solapur district in Maharashtra.
  4. Major Kunal did his schooling from Pandharpur and was a graduate of the Brihan Maharashtra College of Commerce in Pune.
  5. Major Gosavi Kunal Mannadir joined the Army in 2006 and belonged to the 166 Medium Regiment.
  6. He married to his wife Uma in 2009.
  7. His family owns farms in Wakhari village and shops in Pandharpur town. Kunal has two elder brothers who looked after the family business.
  8. Major Gosavi Kunal Mannadir is survived by his wife, daughter, parents and two brothers.

In the words of his father, “There is an immense pain because I have lost a son. But I am proud that my son breathed his last while fighting for the country. I want to tell the government to fight a decisive war against the enemy before more precious lives are lost.”

Salute to you sir!

India Becomes the Fourth Largest Defence Budget Holder

By
SSBCrackExams
-
0

Surpassing the UK and Saudi Arabia, India has jumped up two spots to become the fourth largest country in military spending and defence budget in the world.

This comes after the Modi government increased the defence budget to 13.1% in 2016-17 fiscal year. This amounts to an increase to $50.7 bn. Procurement spending has been constrained in India over the last three years as personnel costs have increased.

defence budget holder

Short-term pressures like bullet-proof jackets and the introduction of one rank, one pension (OROP) are being cited as the main reasons for the higher rate of growth in budget allocation to defence.

Even after increasing the budget, there are no significant procurement and acquisitions. However, the budget remained low as compared to 2013-14 fiscal year. This year, it is likely to rise up to 17-18%, expected to touch $60.8 bn by 2020.

Last year, India had 3.1% share of world military expenditure of the 15 states with the highest spending in 2015.

This lead to a rise in the military spending in Asia and Australia region by 5.4% in 2015 and 64% since 2006. China, by far had the highest military expenditure in the region of about $215 billion, or 49% of regional spending. India being the region’s second largest spender, is still four folds lesser than China.

Following this, India now ranks among the top 10 countries in the world in terms of its military expenditure and import of defence equipment. India allocates about 1.8% of its GDP to defence spending, of which 36% is assigned to capital acquisitions.

It may be noted that only 35% of equipment are manufactured domestically leading to a large import of raw material at both the system and sub-system levels.

Globally, the world military expenditure rose by 1% in 2015. This was the first increase in military spending since 2011, reflecting continuing growth in Asia and Oceania, Central and Eastern Europe, and some Middle Eastern states.

Russia and Saudi Arabia, however, are planning cuts in 2016. These were the countries with the 2nd and 3rd largest defence spending in the world. Cut in their budgets may see India rise in the global rankings of the defence budget.

However, what we expect to see from 2017 onwards is a military focused on modernization. India needs new equipment to fulfil its modernization drive. Over the next three years, India will re-emerge as a key growth market for defence suppliers.

Airborne Early Warning and Control System (AEW&C) – India’s New Eagle

By
Ravinder Tanwar
-
0
Airborne Early Warning and Control System ( AEW&C)
Airborne Early Warning and Control System ( AEW&C)

In a major achievement to the self-reliant production scenario of India, Indian Air Force has got a new entrant into its force, which is produced by Indian engineers. Airborne Early Warning and Control Aircraft (AEW&C) is another indigenous aircraft manufactured to check the air activities in critical areas nearing the Indian borders, specifically along Pakistan and China borders.

The major function that will be performed by the aircrafts will be to detect and alert the Indian Air Force about the aircrafts and missiles in the Pakistan and Chinese air space to help IAF to intercept and make respective moves. It has Active Electronically Scanned Array that is effective in detecting the activities at long range. The aircraft will give thrust to the indigenous production and will bring more precise information about the cross border activities.

Some key points about AEW&C are

  • It is developed by DRDO.
  • It is produced on the Embraer 145 platform, a Brazilian aerospace company.
  • It has the feature of inflight refuelling.
  • Many private firms and segments of DRDO are involved in the production of the aircrafts.

India has also signed a deal with Israel worth Rs $ 1.4 billion for purchasing 2 Phalcon Airborne Early Warning and Control Systems (AWACS) aircrafts and 10 heron UAVs. As per the official sources, the delivery of Airborne Early Warning and Control Systems (AWACS) was pending from last 5 years and the recent signing of the deal will accelerate the aircraft procurement in the next few months to a few years. The cost of purchasing 2 AWACS is 1 billion and the cost of 10 herons is 400 million.

The deal for herons was singed with Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI). IAI has also given a proposal to DRDO to jointly develop the UAVs. If possible, the Indian government will opt its joint manufacturing to support Make in Indian. Currently India is using Searcher, Heron and Heop UAVs of Israel for its Armed Forces.

Airborne Early Warning and Control System ( AEW&C)
Airborne Early Warning and Control System ( AEW&C)

Apart from this, Indian government is all set to retire Mig-21 and Mig 27 aircrafts by 2024. There are 11 squadrons of these two aircrafts in Indian Air Force. The aircrafts will be replaced by more advanced aircrafts as per the requirements of the organisation. LCA Tejas is seen as a good replacement of these aircrafts and the upcoming AMCA and FGFA with 5th generation specifications will be a superb replacement of these aircrafts. Many crash incidents have been reported in MiG aircrafts due to technical failures and this being the top reason for the replacement.

Conclusion:

Induction of AEW&C will thrust the indigenous production and it will raise the security level in the forces. The Israeli aircrafts will add muscles to the Indian Air Force and will bring up the defensive power with an active support to the armed forces of India. Israel has been a long time friend of Indian and now further strengthening and cross exchange of technology will raise the relations to new heights. These new warheads will take the security and defence of India.

Read More

HAL Tejas: First India Made Light Combat Aircraft

Indian Air Force To Get 2 New AWACS – 11 Key Points

Life of Maj Akshay Girish Kumar in 10 Points: The Martyr of Nagrota Attack

By
SSBCrackExams
-
0

Earlier this month, gunmen disguised as police personnel entered the Indian army camp, threw grenades and fired indiscriminately, in Nagrota. They took 16 people hostage when Para commandos were deployed. The initial casualties were 4 army men, but later two army Majors were also martyred. One of them was Major Akshay Girish Kumar:

akshay girish kumar
Major Akshay Girish Kumar
  1. Major Akshay Girish Kumar was born to Wg Cdr Girish Kumar who was a pilot in the Indian Air Force.
  2. He comes from a family with a tradition of serving in the armed forces and his father retired as a Wing Commander while his grandfather retired as a Colonel from the Indian Army and is an 85-year old veteran of the Garhwalis.
  3. He was from Bengaluru’s Koramangala area. Before being posted to J&K, he had served in Kolkata and Pune.
  4. Aged 31, he was an alumnus of Jawaharlal Nehru University where he studied a bachelor of science 13 years ago.
  5. He was in NCC during the days of his college. Since his NCC days, he had always been active about issues regarding the armed forces, like OROP.
  6. A teacher who taught him during his college days remembers Major Akshay as a dedicated and focused student. He said even during his stint with the NCC he made it clear about his ambitions of joining the Indian Army.
  7. Major Akshay Girish Kumar later married his friend Sangeeta Ravindran in 2011. In 2013, they have had a 3-year-old daughter, Naina. Both his wife and daughter were in Nagrota during the attack.
  8. Akshay Girish Kumar belonged to the 51st regiment of Bengal Sappers and was part of the Quick Response Team in Base camp. The officials usually take turns to guard the base camp. It was Akshay’s turn when he died.
  9. The last remains of Major Akshay Girish Kumar were brought to Yelahanka Air Force Base in Bengaluru where he was cremated with military honours.
  10. He is survived by his wife, daughter and his parents.

Since he left the college, he never lost touch with his friends. Here are some of the testimonials by his friends:

  • “On the first day of college, when most people his age were figuring out what to do, he was so certain about where he wanted to be. I remember him firmly saying that he was going to be in the army.”
  • “A true gentleman who was always smiling.”
  • “When I first met him, six years back, I was so impressed to see how optimistic and full of life he was”.
  • “While we talk about all our brave men at our borders and we expect and hope that they’ll be alright, I lost a very good friend of mine to our fight with Pakistan today and not in a million years would have I thought it happening. Akshay Girish, you pursued your life’s goals and gave yourself up for our land, I am hurt that you had to leave us. I’ll miss you and thank you for everything you did.”
  • “I hate that I missed that last talk with you. I cannot see you anymore. Hard to not get replies from you but I’ll keep sending you messages so you can read from where you are. RIP Major Akshay”.
  • “I was going to message him on his birthday. He would have celebrated it on 6th Dec… Oh man, I can’t believe this!!!”
  • “He saved the lives of 16 to 18 people but he could not save his own life. He had spoken to me four or five days earlier and was saying we should meet up…When he was a youngster — a lieutenant and captain — I was his immediate officer. He was cheerful, fit and a person made for the army”.

Rest In Peace, Major Akshay Girish Kumar!

Meet Lt. Pratyush Mohanty, Who Won Sword Of Honour In IMA Passing Out Parade Dec 2016

By
SSBCrack
-
0
lt-pratyush-mohanty

The award winners of the passing-out contingent were unanimous in the view that these honours would act as inspiration throughout their career in the armed forces. A beaming Pratyush Kumar Mohanty, who was recipient of prestigious Sword of Honour said that the sword would always remind him to perform his duties in the best way possible.

He accepted that the responsibility on ones shoulders increases when a recipient of such an award joins his unit.

Mohanty has done his schooling from the prestigious Rashtriya Indian Military Academy (RIMC) Dehradun. His father PM Mohanty is a central government employee. Incidentally Mohanty also received the Kumaon regiment bronze medal for standing third in the regular course. The recipient of Gold Medal for standing first in order of merit, Malla Ram Gopal Naidu echoed the sentiments of Mohanty. He said that the expectation of the superiors increases from an award recipient. Coming from a humble family of farmers of Srikakulam district of Andhra Pradesh (AP), Naidu is the first person from the family to don olive green of army.

ima-pop-dec-2016-9
IMA Passing Out Parade 10 Dec 2016

Speaking to TOI after receiving the award, an elated Mohanty said, “I was in RIMC from class eight till class 12 after which I appeared for the NDA entrance exam and now, after graduating from the IMA, I have realized my dream of becoming an officer in the Indian Army.”

He said that after watching the movie ‘Lakshya’, he was so motivated by it that “I wanted to do the same thing that the Army men depicted in the movie were doing.”

A resident of Gazipur in Uttar Pradesh (UP), he did is B Tech from Ghaziabad and was selected as Probationary Officer (PO) in Syndicate bank but the charm of Army was such that he promptly left the job when selected in TGC.

Best SSB Book –>  Let’s Crack SSB Interview
Best AFCAT Book –> Let’s Crack AFCAT

To crack SSB and AFSB Interview get “Let’s Crack SSB Interview” Book from Amazon. Trusted by thousands of defence aspirants

Also Download Helpful eBooks:

Recommended For Indian Navy In My 1st Attempt

By
SSBCrack
-
1
recommended-for-indian-navy-in-my-1st-attempt

Hello Everyone! My name is Madhusudan Pandit and I am form Delhi. I feel really proud and happy to share my story and hope this will earn a credit by paving a way for all defense aspirants, as it did for me. Unusual form other stories – my story is little different because this story includes both success and failure at the same time and reminds us that how much versatile our life is.  

I am an MBA and I am 24 years old, therefore this was my 1st and the last attempt for a SSB because I was about to get overaged for defense services. In July 2015 I received a letter to attend a SSB for “Indian Navy PC(LOG) – Jan 2016 COURSE”. I was selected for SSB as per my graduation marks, on merit basis. The letter included all details of the process and the things to bring along. My humble advise to all aspirants is to please read your letter carefully and do not miss anything that is asked to present at the time of reporting.  I was asked to report at MCO Coimbatore railway station at 0600 Hrs on 6th of July 2015. I flew form Delhi and reached Coimbatore a day before and prepared myself for day 1. The only thing in my mind was that I didn’t want to return on Day 1 of the process so prepared myself for screening test and practiced some cube questions and few other logical reasoning questions. Next day morning at sharp 6:00 Am a bus boarded us to INS Agrani.

As soon as we reached INS Agrani, they asked us to keep our bags to a side and form 2 lines. One for the fresher’s and other for the repeaters. The main purpose of these lines is just to decide that who’s going to get the travel allowance and who will not get it. And yes they pay the amount of AC 3tier even if you have travelled by Air.

Things to remember on Day 1 –

  • Make sure that you are in formals else they don’t entertain you and may ask to change in front of everyone and that can be really embarrassing.
  • Always arrange your documents in a proper file and in a proper sequence.
  • Listen to the instructions very carefully and do not talk among yourself because if you miss things then they don’t leave a chance to shame you.

Day 1 – Screening Test – Verbal & Non Verbal

There were 2 sets and 45 questions in each test. Total time 40 mins – 20 mins each. Most of the questions were related to cubes, family tree and few other logical reasoning questions. Although the scores are not declared but as per my gut feeling I did at-least 80 correct out of 90.  They were quite easy if you have ever prepared for CAT or any similar competitive exam.

Tips: – Stay focused and attempt all questions within time limit.

PPDT – Picture perception and description test

A hazy picture was shown wherein I saw a man with a blanket and he was in a crowd. As per me it was a local fair on the country side near a village.  So I wrote a story of a village panchayat Pradhan who visited the village fair to buy some urea neem coated seeds that can increase the yield of his crops.

My suggestion is that the narration is most important part of this activity. No matter if you have done a few mistakes while writing your story but if you are confident enough to present it well then you have just nailed it on the right place. If your presentation skills are poor then please work on them seriously before attempting for any SSB because you are going to require it during the whole process.

Tips: Confidence is the key. Your narration should be clear, loud enough and structured. Never interrupt any other speaker and follow all group discussion techniques during this. Everything is important. You always get enough time to speak.

Soon after the process we were asked to have lunch and this is the right time to gel with people around and know each other. I knew that I did well but still I was extremely nervous because there were more than 150 candidates and the rejection rate on day one is very high.

The results were announced by afternoon and as expected I was there 4 more days to complete my SSB process. Out of 150 only 45 candidates were selected and rest were send back to home on Day 1. We were given new chest numbers and barracks to sleep.

Best SSB Book –>  Let’s Crack SSB Interview
Best AFCAT Book –> Let’s Crack AFCAT

Day – 2

Psychological Tests:

TAT – Thematic Apperception Test

Simple – 12 Slides – 11 Images and one blank slide to your any story that you want.

A slide is displayed for 30 seconds then a bell rings and you get 4 minutes to write your story.

Tips: – Now form day 2 the serious stuff starts. During the 30 second time do not start forming a story, rather look at the picture carefully pay attention to every detail that is displayed in the picture. Your story is expected to have all necessities of effective writing.

The story should be structured, crisp, concise and complete. Avoid simple grammatical mistakes and make a proper story line that makes some sense. Always remember that a psychologist reads this story to understand your psychology and if your stories are cooked up and not original ideas then there is no way out. “Please write your original ideas only”. They need to decide what kind of a person you are so don’t confuse.

Always remember the blank story and try to make it simple and related to your life. Psychologists are looking to get into your personality and decide for your recommendations, so give them a proper room to explore you.

WAT – Word Association Test

60 words – 15 seconds for each word to read and then write a sentence including that word.

Tips: Read the word carefully and do not miss any word.

Make simple and small sentences.

Practice more and more to be very efficient in this exercise because it is actually very difficult to attempt all 60 words.

Remember the sequence. Sometimes people read word no. 15 and write it against word no. 16 in the sheet and this can be the most stupid mistake one can do.

 SRT – Situation Reaction Test

60 Situations and 30 minutes.

Each situation is a problem related to day to day life and the objective behind this test is to check that how quick and practical solutions you give in adverse situations.

It checks your problem solving skills. Always remember that you are not a super human or Rajnikant. You need to give practical solutions to the problems. Do not fabricate your responses. This test checks your common sense and reasoning abilities.

Self- Description

You need to write Parent’s opinion, Teachers opinion, Friends opinion and your self-opinion. Although there is a time limit but still they give you enough time for this.

Well I should not say it but please practice it very well before you approach for any SSB. I believe this is the baseline for any psychologist to give a call for you. Based on this he will judge you and your answers to see if they are genuine or just cooked up stories that you have literally mugged.  Even in interview this sheet is extremely important. In this test only originality can lead you.

With this the hectic day 2 end and you need to surrender all your mobile phones or any other electronic devices that you carry.

 

Day – 3  GTO -1/ Interview

Well depending on the time and availability either your interview can be scheduled on day 3 or day 4. My interview was on day 4 so I will go with the GTO process first.

This was most exciting part for me. Yepiiii – I was so excited for my GTO that I couldn’t hold to get on the ground and start the tasks.

Simple tips:

It is a group task so don’t be ‘James Bond’ as if you know everything and give equal chances to everyone.

Help everyone in the group and be involved – don’t be lost.

Be super active and show a positive body language to the GTO officer.

Don’t try to prove yourself as a leader, if you have it in you the group will automatically accept your leadership.

Climbing on a 9ft wall and crossing the 8ft ditch is not easy please be very attentive else you may seriously hurt yourself.

Snake race was so daam good. I kept the mane of my Team as SPARTANS!!! And when we did the Spartan ahoooooo ahooo together – OMG that was simply amazing and the GTO was really impressed by the idea.

Day 4 – GTO -2 & Interview

Well Interviews make me really nervous and this one was the very important for me. My interview lasted for about 45minutes. Yes, I said 45 minutes and the interviewer asked me almost everything. Like even my relationships, what all I gift her, who pays for the bills, how do I treat my brother, what is the width and length of an Olympic size swimming poll, all neighboring countries that share border with India, all ranks of all three defense forces and what not. My experience of the interview was great. He asked me about Indian economy, the problems of European Union etc.….

Day 5 – Conference

Ahhhh finally the day has come that was long awaited and to our surprise the CNC – chief of naval staff himself was there on a visit to INS Agrani and he was sitting in my conference round. OMG I was so nervous. There was a panel of atleast 10 Navy offices in front of me and they started asking questions like, the meaning of my name, the solutions of European Union crisis and the Pros and Cons of GST if implemented in India.

 

When the results were out only 2 Candidates were selected out of the 150 that approached the SSB on day 1. I can never explain the feeling when a sailor came out and said Chest no. 23 speak your name loudly and Spell it and it stood up and with all my energy said MADHUSUDAN PANDIT sir, it was  Loud enough that I can hear it for years to come.

All other candidates were send back home and I said goodbye to all my friends that I made there. Only 2 of us stayed back and we need to report to INS Sanjeevini in Cochin next day. A white color Gypsy came to escort us till the railway station and I was so happy with the experience that for first time a got a railway ticket that described – For Soldiers.

Well life is not so easy and as I said earlier, it can take a U turn at any time. I got rejected in Medicals due to Cubitus valgus and Genu Recurvatum. Just in few seconds all my happiness was gone because of something that I couldn’t help. That was the day that made me deeply believe in destiny and I wasn’t able to complete my dream because of a tiny natural ailment. I was an athlete and a National level Hockey player. I never ever considered myself unfit for anything but just a 10 degree out of elbow can destroy all your dreams.

No regrets! – Naseeb m nahi tha jo humko mila nahi. But that 5 day experience was so overwhelming that I can never forget even a single moment of that in my entire life. The happiness and proud feeling is that I made it and I was recommended for the defense forces.

Best SSB Book –>  Let’s Crack SSB Interview
Best AFCAT Book –> Let’s Crack AFCAT

To crack SSB and AFSB Interview get “Let’s Crack SSB Interview” Book from Amazon. Trusted by thousands of defence aspirants

Also Download Helpful eBooks:

 

First Attack of its Kind: Nagrota Attackers Used Silencer-Fitted Weapons

By
SSBCrackExams
-
0
Image for Representation Only

Nagrota attack was the latest attack on an Army camp. An eye-opening news in this regard unfolded that the terrorists used a silencer-fitted weapon to kill a sentry before gaining entry into the army premises.

During this attack, three attackers had infiltrated into India from across the international border at Hiranagar in Kathua district of Jammu region.

This tactic was adopted by the attackers for the FIRST TIME in the troubled state to sneak into the camp from the rear side which had thick vegetation.

After entering, one of the terrorists fired at the sentry using a silencer-fitted weapon, official sources said.

As someone noticed the fall of the sentry, panic gripped the Army camp, which houses an artillery unit having the presence of families of soldiers. Soon firing erupted.

nagrota attacks
Image for representation only

The sources said night illuminators were fired to locate the terrorists who had by then entered an adjacent two-storey building where families of soldiers were staying.

Anticipating a hostage-like situation, the Army troops with the help of para-commandos rescued the women and children first before launching a final onslaught on the terrorists.

Drones were pressed into the service which helped the snipers eliminate the terrorists inside the camp.

Seven Army personnel, including two officers, were killed in the attack by the three terrorists, who were also eliminated in the counteroffensive which lasted nearly four hours.

The security agencies had recovered an iCom wireless set near a tree in Hirnagar that matched the frequency of the sets carried by the militants.

Not ruling out the possibility of local assistance being provided to the terrorists, sources said they had possibly entered into India on the night of November 28-29 and travelled a distance of 78 km to the Army camp using a well-connected national highway before mounting the assault in the morning.

Initially, it was speculated that the terrorists could have travelled to the Army camp from Kashmir, a possibility that was rejected after the vehicular movement was scrutinised from the CCTVs installed at vantage points along the national highway linking the Valley to the rest of the country.

There were some intelligence leads suggesting that a militant sympathiser from Poonch had ferried the terrorists to the Army camp.

BSF officials had initially rejected suggestions that terrorists entered through the international border but after the recovery of the wireless set, they started their internal probe. The case is now being probed by National Investigation Agency (NIA)

This is an unabridged format of the news from Press Trust of India

1...1,0791,0801,081...1,446Page 1,080 of 1,446

NOTIFICATION

EXAMS UPDATE

About Us

Other Websites

Copyright © 2010-2025 SSBCrack.com

- Advertisement -spot_img