KALI - India's new weapon

KALI (kilo-ampere linear injector)

The Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (Barc)'s powerful electron accelerating machine named
''Kali-5000`` which, its scientists say, can potentially be used as a beam
weapon.

Bursts of microwaves packed with gigawatts of power (one gigawatt is 1000
million watts) produced by this machine, when aimed at enemy missiles and
aircraft, will cripple their electronics systems and computer chips and
bring them down.


According to scientists, ''soft killing`` by high power microwaves has
advantages over the so called laser weapon which destroys by drilling
holes through metal.

According to Barc scientists, the Kali machine has for the first time
provided India a way to ''harden`` the electronic systems used in
satellites and missiles against the deadly electromagnetic impulses (Emi)
generated by nuclear weapons.

The Emi wrecks havoc by creating intense electric field of several
thousand volts per centimeter. The electronic components currently used in
missiles can withstand fields of Just 300 volts per centimeter.

While the Kali systems built so far are single shot pulse power systems
(they produce one burst of microwaves and the next burst comes much
later), Kali-5000 is a rapid fire device, and hence its potential as a
beam weapon.

According to Barc-published reports, the machine will shoot several
thousand bursts of microwaves, each burst lasting for just 60 billionths
of a second and packed with a power of about four gigawatts.

The high power microwave pulses travel in a straight line and do not
dissipate their energy if the frequency falls between three and ten
gigahertz.

According to Barc scientists, a microwave power of 150 megawatts has
already been demonstrated in earlier versions of Kali.

PAK-FA to take-off by 2012

MOSCOW: The Indo-Russian fifth generation fighter aircraft (FGA) will make its maiden flight by 2012, according to a top Russian Air Force official.

India and Russia signed an inter-governmental agreement earlier this month to jointly develop and produce the futuristic multi-role stealth fighter on the basis of Sukhoi Corporation's super secret PAK-FA project.

"The deadlines have been set - it must take to the skies in 2012 and enter service in 2015," Russian vice Air Chief Lt Gen Igor Sadofyev was quoted as saying by RIA Novosti.

Commenting on the FGA agreement signed on October 18 in the presence of visiting Defence Minister A K Antony, Gen Sadofyev said that the bilateral cooperation on the project would significantly boost the development of fighter capable of taking on the US-British Joint Strike Fighter (JSF) F-35.

"International cooperation and joint development efforts will certainly expedite the process. It's a path the whole world is taking now a days, and we are no exception," Gen Sadofyev said.

Army's secret: India still has chemical arsenal

New Delhi: The Indian Army may have unintentionally let out a secret at a press conference addressed by its chief on Saturday. The vision statement of its Corps of Engineers, displayed publicly at the venue, declared that a priority was to refine competence, to handle nuclear, biological and chemical weapons.


India is a signatory to international treaties for the elimination of chemical and biological weapons and Army Chief Generally Deepak Kapoor was forced to admit that chemical weaponry still exists.


“The chemical weapons aspect is still in the domain of discussions going on at an international level,” Kapoor said.


By its own acknowledgement, the Indian Army is still operationally committed to chemical and biological weapons of mass destruction or WMDs. While India has never declared an arsenal of biological weapons, it is under a treaty obligation to destroy its chemical weapons by the end of this year.

For a long time, the custody of India's chemical weapons was in the hands of the scientific community. The military was not even aware that these existed. Now that India is committed to destroying this arsenal, the military is finally in the loop. Not only is this a reflection on India's strategic culture, what is also clear is that the threat of biological and chemical warfare in this region is real.


The question that remains unanswered is: Why is the Indian Army still doctrinally committed to weapons that are now international contraband? For India, which has always advocated elimination of WMDs, this caustic disclosure is embarrassing.


For the record, Pakistan has declared a zero stockpile.