How many Indian Rafale fighters will participate in the 12th edition of Aero India 2019 air show?

The 33rd edition of India-Indonesia coordinated patrol (IND-INDO CORPAT) was inaugurated at Port Blair, Andaman & Nicobar Islands. The IND-INDO CORPAT 2019 is held from 19 Mar to 04Apr 2019. Navies of both countries have been carrying out coordinated patrolling twice a year since 2002 in an effort to keep the Indian Ocean region (IOR) safe and secure for commercial shipping and international trade. It also enhances mutual understanding and interoperability between the two navies. IND-INDO CORPAT 2019 from the Indonesian Side Naval Ship, KRI Sultan Thaha Syaifuddin and Maritime Patrol Aircraft CN-235 are taking part. Commodore Ashutosh Ridhorkar, Naval Component Commander, Andaman and Nicobar Command is leading the Indian side.

India tested the new generation anti-radiation missile(NGRAM) which would destroy all the surveillance and radar systems.The missile is launched from Balasore. The Defence-Research and Development Organization (DRDO) has created this missile as a surface to air missile and is screened by Sukhoi-30 MKI fighter jet. The new-generation anti-radiation missile (NGRAM) has the Strike range of 100 kilometers,this is the first indigenous air-to-ground missile developed by the DRDO, after the supersonic BrahMos cruise missile developed jointly with Russia.

34th Meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisations (SCOs) Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure (RATS) Council held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. A joint exercise 'Sary - Arka - Antiterror 2019' will be held as decided by the RATS in the session. India, Pakistan and other member nations will participate in the joint anti-terrorism exercise which will be held this year.The meeting was chaired by Russia. The meeting also decided to hold the first stage of joint border operation 'Solidarity 2019 -2021.India and Pakistan entered the SCO in 2017 where China plays an influential role along with Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan.RATS promote cooperation of member states against terrorism, separatism and extremism. It is a permanent organ of the SCO.

Naval Air Station Shibpur will be commissioned as INS Kohasa by Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Sunil Lanba on January 24, 2019. The move is being undertaken to enhance the operational capability of Andaman and Nicobar Command.

The Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) on May 13, 2019 successfully flight tested the ABHYAS, a High-speed Expendable Aerial Target (HEAT). The flight test was conducted from the Interim Test Range, Chandipur, Odisha. The RADARS and Electro Optic Systems kept the track of the test which proved its performance in fully independent navigation mode. The test demonstrated the capability of ABHYAS to meet the mission requirement of the defence forces for a cost effective high-speed expendable aerial target. After the first experimental launch in 2012 at the Chitradurga Aeronautical Test Range, the concept of ABHYAS was proved and the pre-project details were completed on January 2013.

After months of ground and flight trials, the Centre for Military Airworthiness and Certification (CEMILAC), a premier military certification agency, on January 22, 2019 cleared the use of indigenously produced bio-fuel for use in the military aircraft.

The Indian Army is commemorating '2019' as the 'Year of Next of Kin'. As a part of this commemoration, the Army has planned to reach out to the next of kin of battle casualties, ex-servicemen and serving soldiers to resolve their pension related issues and to let them know of their entitled financial benefits, welfare schemes. The issue has gained importance because most of the next of kin of the late soldiers were unaware of their entitled financial benefits. The Indian Army has stated that the issue has worsened due to non-digitised personal records, and also because of complications from various policy provisions and their multifarious interpretations.

A regular river cruise will start between Kolkata, India and Dhaka, Bangladesh for the first time in the history of the two countries. The Indian ship, R V Bengal Ganga, will start its journey from a west Kolkata jetty. About 60 persons will be travelling. The return journey will take nearly two weeks from Kolkata and the ship will pass through Sunderbans on both sides of the marine border. Another ship will simultaneously start from Bangladesh, traverse the same route and reach Kolkata, taking approximately the same time. The border formalities will be completed at Sunderbans on the Indian side.

India's indigenous supersonic fighter jet Tejas will for the first time participate in aerial displays during the five-day Langkawi International Maritime and Aerospace Exhibition (LIMA) in Malaysia. India has been projecting the Tejas aircraft in a big way as it has been manufactured indigenously at the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and designed by the Aeronautical Development Agency (ADA) for the Indian Air Force and the Indian Navy. The Indian Air Force will participate in the Maritime Aero Expo for the first time, during which it will showcase its indigenously-developed light combat aircraft Tejas. India's indigenous supersonic Light Combat Aircraft(LCA)-Tejas & the world's lightest supersonic fighter which has already joined IAF, is for the 1st time taking part in aerial displays during 05 day Langkawi International Maritime & Aerospace Exhibition.

The Nigerian military has lifted a ban on UNICEF operations in the ravaged northeast of the country. Earlier, the army had suspended the aid agency & accused it of training spies supporting Boko Haram jihadists. Boko Haram's Islamist insurgency has killed more than 27,000 people since it began in 2009 and has triggered a humanitarian crisis in the wider Lake Chad region, where the jihadists have stepped up attacks in recent months.