Hovercraft H-186 built by Garden Reach Shipbuilders and Engineers. (GRSE) Ltd, Kolkata was commissioned in the Indian Coast Guard by Vice Admiral Raman Puri, FOC-in-C (E), Eastern Naval Command.

The hovercraft has been designed by M/s Griffon Hovercraft Ltd, Southampton, England and is the last of the series of six hovercraft to be inducted in the Indian Coast Guard.

The Indian Coast Guard was in need of such craft which can patrol at high speed and at the same time be capable of patrolling shallow water also. This craft is capable of doing a sprint speed of 53.5 knots with high speed patrolling capacity in coastal shallow waters, marshy areas, creeks as well as deep seas.

The unique combination of light weight marine grade aluminium alloy hull, two powerful 588 KW radiator cooled MTU Diesel Engines, large
2.6 m variable pitch propellers and 1.25 m skirt has enabled the craft to be the best among any other hovercraft of this size in the world. To deter violators, the craft is fitted with 12.7 mm gun in addition to other small arms.

This craft is capable of operating in areas not accessible by conventional craft and ships and will significantly enhance the operational capability of Indian Coast Guard. It will also be used for search and rescue operation, assistance to ships and craft in distress and interruption and interdiction of offending vessels day and night.

Cdr R Madhusoodanan, Chief Public Relations Officer, Ministry of Defence retired on April 30 last after 21 years of distinguished service in Indian Navy. A product of National Defence Academy, Cdr R Madhusoodanan was commissioned in Executive Branch of Indian Navy on January 1, 1981.

During his 21 years of Naval service, he
held various important appointments which included key posts in the Western Fleet, onboard major warships such as INS Viraat and INS Udaygiri. Specialised in clearance diving, he has also qualified in the Deep Sea Diving Course conducted by the US Navy.

During his tenure as Chief PRO (Defence) in Mumbai, he planned
and executed public relations activities for several major events including International Fleet Review-2001

Maj CK Singh

The 101 Area Postal Unit has organised Shramdan by postal staff at Narangi Cantt. During a week-long drive, thick undergrowth and shrubs around the helipad which could have been security and fire hazards, were cleared by the postal staff. Commanding Officer Maj JL Shrivastava, conceived the idea of a "Mini Park" in unit line with perennial and seasonal plants. During his visit to the unit, Mr SP Singh, IPS, Chief Post Master General, Assam circle has commended the eco-friendly efforts of the unit.

In his address, Mr Singh said that Army Postal Service has been catering to the needs of defence establishments all over the country in general and in high altitude, field areas and counter-insurgency operation areas in particular.

The APS provides various facilities to the jawans at their door step. Speed Post facility is extended to troops through Field Post Offices and also IDBI Bonds. Money Orders are transmitted over VSTA and paid on the same day or latest by next day. All types of saving facilities are extended to troops through FPOS. Mr Singh announced that Narangi Cantt shopping complex has a civil Post Office and it will soon be equipped with all modern facilities vis-a-vis multipurpose counter machine, ESMO Centre, Speed Post booking centre and VSAT connectivity future for providing more services to the troops.