Current Events :
An Indian Army major has won two academic awards at a prestigious US Army leadership programme that included 951 officers from the US and partner nations at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas.
Major Prabhat Mishra of India received the Birrer-Brookes Award for Outstanding Master of Military Arts and Science Thesis and the General Douglas MacArthur Military Leadership Writing Award during the graduation ceremony of the US Army Command and General Staff College’s Command and General Staff Officer Course (CGSOC).
The awards were presented as 951 graduates completed the 10-month programme designed to prepare mid-career officers for senior leadership and staff responsibilities.
The graduating class included 120 international military students from 92 countries.
This year’s class experienced a reformed and modernised curriculum that reflected the rapid technological and tactical advancements dictated by the current operational environment, a US Army statement said.
Among other international officers Major Aleksander Granberg of Norway received the General Dwight D. Eisenhower Award and the Arter-Doniphan Award, and Lieutenant Colonel Taleh S F H H Alrashid of Kuwait received the Major General Hans Schlup Award.
Lt. Gen. Jim Isenhower, Commanding General, US Army Combined Arms Command and Fort Leavenworth, explained to the class that their responsibility as graduates of CGSOC is to be the conductor of the track, prepared by the academic rigour they conquered over the last 10 months.
International military education at Fort Leavenworth began in 1894. Since then, more than 8,700 International Military Students from nearly 170 countries have attended classes alongside their US counterparts.
US Army Command and General Staff College’s mission is to educate field grade officers to be agile, innovative, and adaptive leaders in increasingly complex and uncertain environments.
Sir, No-1 SSB for GC decl today are as under :-
A day after two women cadets from Mai Bhago Armed Forces Preparatory Institute made history by topping national defence merit lists, cadets from its sister institute in Mohali have achieved a similar feat.
Two cadets from the 10th course of Maharaja Ranjit Singh Armed Forces Preparatory Institute, Mohali, have secured All India Ranks 2 and 6 in Air Force Common Admission Test II. Both have also cleared the Combined Defence Services (CDS) examination, marking an unprecedented dual success for the state within 24 hours.
Sukhraj Singh Heera, son of a government school teacher from Rupnagar district, secured AIR 2 in AFCAT. Cadet Jasnoor Singh of Pathankot secured AIR 6.
In the CDS merit list, Jasnoor Singh ranked first in the Air Force category, while Sukhraj Singh Heera ranked fourth in the Army category — a rare instance of cadets from the same institute ranking in the top five of two separate national defence exams simultaneously.
Both cadets have already been selected for CDS courses beginning later this month. Punjab Employment Generation, Skill Development and Training Minister Aman Arora congratulated the cadets, saying Sukhraj and Jasnoor had “made the entire state proud”. He added that the state government is committed to strengthening both MRSAFPI and Mai Bhago AFPI so that more youth from ordinary backgrounds can get commissioned in the armed forces. “The state government’s aim is jobs for youth and a uniform for those who dream of serving the nation,” he said.
MRSAFPI Director Major General Ajay H Chauhan, VSM (Retd.), praised the achievement and noted that around 24 cadets from the institute are set to receive joining letters for courses beginning shortly at training academies across the country — reflecting the strong pipeline the institute has built.
These results, following Mai Bhago AFPI’s AIR 1 in the Air Force Academy exam and AIR 18 in the NDA exam announced on Monday, complete a remarkable 24-hour sweep for Punjab’s state-run defence preparatory institutes, with cadets from both placing in the top ranks of four national defence exams over two consecutive days.
The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) is a four-star officer of equal rank to the Chief of Army Staff (COAS). While the CDS acts as the “first among equals” and the principal military advisor to the Defence Minister, the COAS retains operational command over the Indian Army and is not subordinate to the CDS. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Key Differences and Dynamics
A video showing hundreds of people participating in a vibrant Indian cultural festival in Toronto has gone viral on social media, sparking intense discussions about immigration, diversity and multiculturalism in Canada.
The clip was widely shared alongside the caption: “Canada has turned into an Indian colony!!!! Canadians are now a minority in Toronto and the flood of immigrants is larger than ever before. We cannot let this happen to us. Wake up!!!!”
The event, reportedly held in Toronto, highlighted different aspects of Indian culture, with visitors enjoying regional cuisine, folk performances, cultural showcases and family-oriented activities celebrating India’s rich heritage.
Mixed reactions:
A user wrote, “Horrible dancing and they continue to do this everywhere.”
Another reacted, “Completely unwanted. I too lived in the US for a decade but I felt that time was exploratory – melting pot, variety of food, freedom to go to clubs & casinos etc etc. Let America and Canada be what it is. Keep your traditional stuff in a private ground or at home.”
A third commented, “How miserable you have to be to hate people for having fun.” A fourth said, “Isn’t Canada built on immigrants? Just like the USA, Australia, and New Zealand? Who are the original people of Canada?”
Pilot who proposed to his fiancée in front of an Army helicopter after completing flight training faces objection over use of official event and operational backdrop
A day after an Indian Army pilot, Captain Bharat Bhardwaj, proposed to his fiancé at the passing-out parade, Army authorities in New Delhi have conveyed ‘displeasure’ to the pilot for making a ‘love proposal’ at an official function.
Army sources confirmed that the young Captain’s Commanding Officer has been informed for further conveying it verbally.
“A written note conveying the displeasure has not been given,” sources said, adding that the move was intended to maintain the sanctity of the official function.
There is no bar for an officer proposing to his lady love while wearing a uniform, however, such proposals cannot be made at official functions like a ‘passing-out parade’.
Moreover, such proposals cannot be made with operational equipment in the background.
Army helicopters could be seen in the pictures and videos of the proposal, which have gone viral over social media.
The pilot made the proposal to his fiancé, Arushi, in front of an Army helicopter, after completing his flight training at the Combat Army Aviation Training School (CAATS) in Nashik, Maharashtra.
The proposal took place on June 2, shortly after the passing-out parade and aviation display, marking the completion of the training program. Having achieved a major professional milestone, Captain Bhardwaj chose the occasion to celebrate something personal as well.
Dressed in his ceremonial military uniform, the newly commissioned pilot walked onto the tarmac, knelt before Arushi and proposed with an engagement ring.
An Army helicopter parked nearby provided a dramatic backdrop to the occasion.
Videos of the proposal quickly gained traction online, with many viewers praising the unique combination of military achievement and romance.
The footage shows the emotional exchange unfolding amid the celebrations following
Upholding the sentence of life imprisonment awarded by a general court martial (GCM) to a soldier accused of shooting dead a colleague, the Armed Forces Tribunal (AFT) has held that lack of motive or inadequacy thereof cannot stand in the way of conviction where the direct evidence of eye-witnesses is available.
Referring to an earlier Supreme Court judgement on the subject, the Bench said that the motive may be considered as circumstance which is relevant for assessing the evidence but if the evidence is clear and unambiguous and the circumstances prove the guilt of the accused, the same is not weakened even if the motive is not a strong one. “The motive loses all its importance in a case of direct evidence of eye-witnesses,” the Bench said.
The accused soldier was serving as a Lance Dafedar in an armoured unit and was part of a quick reaction team (QRT) detailed for unit security at the time of the incident in April 2015. He was tried by a GCM for committing a murder, which found him guilty in July 2016. He was reduced to the ranks, ordered to undergo imprisonment for life and dismissed from service. In 2017, he moved the AFT against his trial and conviction.
According to court records, another Lance Dafedar who was part of the same QRT, was murdered by use of a 5.56 mm rifle from which three rounds were fired, allegedly by the appellant. He was found holding the weapon from which the rounds had been fired. The weapon had been allotted to the deceased.
The appellant’s counsel submitted before the Tribunal that the GCM had failed to appreciate the evidence on record in its correct perspective. The evidence had been misread and misinterpreted and the same has resulted in gross injustice and hence the findings of the GCM were perverse and deserved to be set aside.
The Bench observed that several eye witnesses present at the site of the incident have proved the fact that the appellant shot the deceased with a rifle. When this evidence is co-related with the evidence of some other witnesses, it becomes very clear that the appellant’s actions were pre-meditated and that he was the perpetrator of the crime after he stole the weapon allotted to the deceased.
The Bench also observed that it is evident from the appellant’s own sworn statements that he has admitted that the death was caused by him, though he has claimed that it was an accident. The facts which he claimed led to the accident were not recorded in the Court of Inquiry and Summary of Evidence.
Pointing out that the only thing that remains to be established is the motive and the same has not come on record as none of the witnesses have stated that the accused and the deceased had bitter relations, the Bench ruled that the motive loses all its importance in a case of direct evidence of eye-witnesses
When Mehakpreet Kaur of Paprali village in Ropar secured All India Rank (AIR) 1 in the Air Force Academy merit list, she did not just top a competitive exam — she stood first in a national pool where vacancies for women in defence services remain extraordinarily scarce. That scarcity is not accidental. It is the product of decades of policy, a Supreme Court battle, and a still-evolving institutional reckoning. For lakhs of families across Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh whose children dream of a uniform, this result is a signpost worth understanding in full.
The National Defence Academy (NDA), situated at Khadakwasla, Pune, is one of the most prestigious military training institutions in the world, training cadets for the Indian Army, Navy and Air Force. Entry through NDA is the earliest possible route into a career as a commissioned officer, open to candidates, right after Class 12. The NDA exam is conducted by UPSC twice a year, with candidates appearing for two papers: Mathematics and General Ability Test (GAT).
The total marks for the NDA exam are 1,800 — 900 for the written exam and 900 for the SSB interview. Only candidates who clear the written exam are called for the SSB (Services Selection Board), a rigorous five-day process. The SSB tests mental agility, leadership qualities and decision-making abilities, and also includes a medical and physical fitness assessment.
For Air Force aspirants like Mehakpreet, there is an additional hurdle: candidates aiming for the Air Force wing must clear an additional Computerised Pilot Selection System (CPSS) test, which is conducted only once in a lifetime.
This is where numbers tell a story of their own. UPSC announced 394 vacancies for NDA 2, 2026 across the Army, Navy, Air Force and Naval Academy wings. Of these, female vacancies across all branches are a fraction — reflecting the institutional architecture of a system that opened its doors to women only in 2021.
In a landmark ruling in August 2021, the Supreme Court passed an interim order allowing women to appear for the NDA exam for the first time in the history of the institution, which was founded in 1954. The bench described the exclusion as a “mindset problem” and called the policy “gender discriminatory.” On September 8, 2021, the Centre informed the Supreme Court that a decision had been taken at the highest level of the armed forces and government to induct women into the NDA through permanent commission.
Prior to this, women were barred from entry through the NDA examination, and inclusion was only allowed through the Officers Training Academy (OTA) — which granted only Short Service Commission, not permanent commission. (Student Law Journal)
After the Supreme Court’s order, the Ministry of Defence revised vacancies to earmark seats for women: Army — 10 out of 208; Navy — 3 out of 42; Air Force Flying Branch — 2 out of 92. The numbers have grown incrementally since, but women still account for a tiny sliver of total intake — which is precisely why securing AIR 1 in the AFA merit list is, as Mai Bhago AFPI Director Major General Jasbir Singh Sandhu described it, “extraordinary.”
Mai Bhago Armed Forces Preparatory Institute (AFPI) for Girls was set up by the Punjab Government as an exclusive all-girls training institute — a unique, first-of-its-kind initiative in the country for the girl child.
The institute operates at two levels. Its existing graduate-entry wing prepares women for CDS/AFCAT-route commissions after graduation. The NDA Preparatory Wing — launched in 2023 — is specifically for girls who want to join the NDA route as commissioned officers, and is the first such initiative of its kind in the country exclusively for girls.
To apply, girls must have passed their Class 10 examination and be residents of Punjab. Girls studying in Class XI can also apply, subject to age criteria. The state government bears the entire cost of training, including boarding and lodging.
A dedicated Rs 2.46-crore hostel for the NDA Preparatory Wing — named after Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw — was also established, featuring a cyber lab, indoor shooting range and top-notch fitness facilities, providing an ideal environment for 40 girl cadets preparing for the NDA.
The institute’s track record has been building steadily. Three alumnae of Mai Bhago AFPI were commissioned as Flying Officers in the Indian Air Force from the Air Force Academy in Dundigal, Hyderabad — their passing out parade reviewed by IAF Chief Air Chief Marshal AP Singh. Another alumna, Nisha, was commissioned as Sub Lieutenant in the Indian Navy after passing out from the Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala in Kerala. Now, with the Class of 2023 — the NDA wing’s inaugural batch — producing an AIR 1 and an AIR 18, the institute’s approach has achieved a national validation.
For a student and parent staring at a merit list number, here is the full journey ahead:
Selected candidates join the National Defence Academy in Khadakwasla, Pune, or the Indian Naval Academy in Ezhimala, Kerala. They undergo three years of academic and military training. On completion, they are awarded a Bachelor’s degree from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Science, Arts or Computer Science. Following this, cadets move to specialised academies — Indian Military Academy, Dehradun for the Army; Indian Naval Academy, Ezhimala, Kerala, for the Navy; Air Force Academy, Hyderabad for the Air Force.
Air Force cadets are given flying training for one and a half years. At the end of one year of training, they are given provisional commission in the rank of Flying Officer. After successful completion of a further six months of training, they are granted permanent commission. On commissioning, Army officers receive the rank of Lieutenant, Navy officers are commissioned as Sub Lieutenants, and Air Force officers as Flying Officers. During training, cadets receive a stipend of Rs 56,100 per month.
Mehakpreet Kaur, as AIR 1 in the AFA merit list, will now proceed to the Air Force Academy in Dundigal, Hyderabad, for her flying and officer training. Komalpreet Kaur, AIR 18 for NDA entry, will report to Khadakwasla, Pune, for three years of tri-service training before moving to her specialised academy.
For aspirants across Punjab, the practical upshot is clear: the NDA Preparatory Wing at Mai Bhago AFPI is currently training its third batch, and applications for the next intake are conducted through the institute’s online portal. Eligibility remains Class 10 pass or Class 11 studying, with Punjab domicile mandatory and the state government covering all costs.
The bigger structural question — of expanding women’s vacancies in the NDA — remains a live policy conversation. What Mehakpreet and Komalpreet have demonstrated, however, is that when access and preparation are provided, daughters from farming families and army households in Punjab’s villages can compete with — and beat — the entire country.
AN earlier piece in this series, “The Covenant and the Contract”, argued that military service constitutes a covenant, not a transaction. This piece extends that argument into the strategic architecture of a rising India.
India’s journey towards Viksit Bharat rests upon visible investments. Highways and rail corridors. Ports and logistics networks. Digital infrastructure. Semiconductor missions. Manufacturing ecosystems. The ambition is clear: a developed nation by 2047.
Beneath these visible investments lies an invisible foundation without which none of them can endure.
Every national ambition assumes something rarely discussed: that the Republic will remain secure. That its borders will hold. That its sea lanes remain open. That coercion will be deterred. That India’s rise is protected.
These assumptions are presumed. They are nevertheless indispensable and are underwritten every day by the Armed Forces of India.
This reality acquires greater significance as the strategic certainties of the post-Cold War era weaken. Great-power competition has returned. Regional conflicts are multiplying. Technology is compressing decision cycles. Artificial intelligence, autonomous systems, cyber warfare and information operations are transforming the character of conflict.
India sits at the centre of this changing geometry — not as a bystander but as a principal stabilising power of the Indo-Pacific.
Economists can calculate expenditure. Deterrence is far harder to quantify. Sovereignty, stability and investor confidence do not emerge by accident. They are secured before they are enjoyed.
The perimeter protects the covenant. The covenant protects the Republic.
The covenant is the quiet agreement between the Republic and its citizens: that businesses will invest with confidence and aspirations can be pursued without fear. Standing upon that perimeter is the Indian soldier — soldier, sailor and air warrior.
Few democracies impose a comparable burden. The same institution that watches the Saltoro Ridge and the heights of Eastern Ladakh also guards deserts, jungles, island territories and maritime approaches spanning the Indian Ocean. No single terrain defines the Indian military. Every terrain does.
Military service is unlike any other profession in the Republic. Its defining feature is not hardship. It is unlimited liability.
The possibility of injury, disability, captivity or death is not an occupational hazard. It is an accepted condition of service.
That acceptance is carried not by the soldier alone but by every family that watches a young officer disappear into a posting in Siachen or a counter-insurgency grid, and waits.
Unlimited liability. Volunteered.
Contemporary conflicts have clarified both the power and the limits of technology. Ukraine has demonstrated the transformative reach of drones, precision strike and networked intelligence. Iran, Israel and the United States have similarly underscored the growing role of autonomous systems and stand-off capabilities. Operation Sindoor has shown that India too can project calibrated force across contested space, striking with speed and discrimination while holding the threshold against escalation.
Yet these same conflicts have reinforced an older truth.
Technology can disrupt, punish and shape outcomes. By itself it struggles to deliver political closure. Objectives involving the control of territory, the reassurance of populations and the restoration of stability continue to depend upon volunteer boots on the ground.
Recent conflicts reveal a paradox. As technology becomes more sophisticated, volunteer service for unlimited liability becomes more precious. Autonomous systems can extend reach and reduce exposure, but they cannot replace the legitimacy, reassurance and permanence that human presence provides.
The future battlefield may become increasingly autonomous. The future outcome will remain profoundly human.
Nations can procure platforms. They cannot manufacture willingness to serve. In an age fascinated by autonomy, commitment remains the scarcer strategic resource.
That willingness underwrites the Republic’s military strength. It cannot be taken for granted. It must be sustained.
If commitment is a strategic resource, then the institutions that sustain it become matters of national strategy rather than personnel administration.
The Armed Forces operate through a deliberately young and selective command pyramid. This is not an administrative flaw. It is an operational necessity.
Yet a large majority of officers encounter structural ceilings long before the end of their productive professional lives.
Scientists benefit from Flexible Complementing Schemes. Medical professionals have Dynamic Assured Career Progression. Organised Group A Services receive Non-Functional Upgradation. The military alone remains dependent upon promotion-linked advancement within a steep and intentionally selective pyramid.
The pressure will intensify as India deepens jointness through integrated theatre commands, placing officers with identical responsibilities within the same operational structures.
Some will come from streams defined by unlimited liability. Others will not.
Where the administrative architecture of the latter permits structured progression and that of the former does not, the disparity will no longer be abstract. It will be visible across the same table, every working day.
The challenge is sharper because in the military, pay and status are not separate ledgers. Rank is worn. It is seen across the table, in the corridor and at every morning briefing.
When financial progression diverges, status diverges with it. An officer benefiting from a more generous administrative architecture is seen to stand higher.
In a service where identity and rank are inseparable, that visibility becomes a daily institutional statement about the relative worth of unlimited liability.
The answer is a Military Specific Framework founded on a simple principle: command must remain selective; progression must become structured.
The design imperative of a military is a steep spire. At its apex stand those entrusted with command, selected through rigorous competition because the edge cannot carry unlimited numbers. Yet beneath that apex stand many of proven merit who carry the flag with distinction but cannot ascend further simply because the pyramid narrows above them.
For generations they have accepted this reality in the spirit of Naam, Namak and Nishan.
But no institution can assume that ethos alone will indefinitely absorb widening disparities.
Great institutions rarely weaken suddenly. They weaken incrementally when sustained performance ceases to earn visible recognition. Perception shapes motivation, retention and career choices. By the time indicators reflect the change, the damage has already taken root.
The purpose of reform is not to alter the pyramid. It is to ensure that those who uphold it do not become its unintended casualties.
Command appointments must continue to be earned through rigorous selection, but financial progression need not remain hostage to command vacancies.
A carefully designed framework can preserve operational selectivity while ensuring that officers who serve where the margin for error is zero and accountability is total are not institutionally diminished simply because the pyramid narrows above them.
Its purpose is to preserve competitiveness, dignity and motivation.
Viksit Bharat will be built by millions of Indians in laboratories, factories, farms, ports, startups and classrooms across the nation.
Yet every one of them operates behind a perimeter held by others.
The Armed Forces do more than defend territory. They underwrite national confidence and ambition.
Technology can accelerate decision-making and extend reach, but it cannot replace professional judgment, courage and leadership. The decisive question is no longer whether nations possess advanced systems. It is whether they can continue to inspire citizens to stand behind them and, when necessary, stand in harm’s way as volunteers answering a calling greater than themselves.
The author led a tank squadron to Dhaka during the Liberation War in 1971
