Russia plane entered Israel control zone from Syria: minister

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Russia began strikes in support of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on September 30, over a year after a US-led coalition began strikes in the country against the Islamic State group (AFP Photo/Sergey Venyavsky)

Jerusalem (AFP) - A Russian warplane recently entered Israeli-controlled airspace from Syria but the intrusion was resolved without incident, Israeli Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon said on Sunday.

"There was a slight intrusion a mile (1.6 kilometres) deep by a Russian plane from Syria into our airspace, but it was immediately resolved and the Russian plane returned towards Syria," Yaalon told public radio.Yaalon's comments come amid deep concern over the downing of a Russian warplane by Turkey, which claims it strayed over the Syrian border into its airspace and ignored repeated warnings to change course. Moscow denies the allegations.

"It was apparently an error by the pilot who was flying near the Golan."

Israel seized most of the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967 and later annexed the territory in a move never recognised by the international community.

Yaalon recalled that Israel and Russia had made arrangements to avoid clashes over Syria, with the agreement said to include a "hotline" and information sharing.

He said "Russian planes do not intend to attack us, which is why we must not automatically react and shoot them down when an error occurs."

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Russian President Vladimir Putin held talks in Moscow in September to discuss ways of avoiding accidental clashes.

Russia launched a bombing campaign in Syria on September 30 at the request of its longstanding ally Bashar al-Assad that Moscow says is targeting Islamic State jihadists and other "terrorist" groups.

Israel has reportedly launched more than a dozen air strikes in Syria since 2013, mainly targeting alleged arms transfers to Hezbollah, and Israeli officials were believed to have feared that Russia's intervention could limit their room for manoeuvre.

Israel opposes Assad, but has sought to avoid being dragged into the war.

It also fears that Iran could increase its support for Hezbollah and other militant groups as international sanctions are gradually lifted under a July nuclear deal that Moscow helped negotiate between Tehran and world powers.

In September 2014, Israel downed a Russian-made Syrian warplane over the Golan Heights in the first such incident in three decades and warned it would respond "forcefully" if its security was threatened.iew photo

Russia began strikes in supp

ਇਟਲੀ 'ਚ ਜੰਮੇ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਬੱਚੇ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਲਈ ਦਰਖ਼ਾਸਤ ਮੌਕੇ 200 ਯੂਰੋ ਦਾ ਭੁਗਤਾਨ ਨਹੀਂ ਕਰਨਗੇ

ਰੋਮ/ਇਟਲੀ (ਕੈਂਥ) - ਬੇਸ਼ੱਕ ਇਟਲੀ ਆਰਥਿਕ ਮੰਦਵਾੜੇ ਕਾਰਨ ਕਈ ਤਰ੍ਹਾਂ ਦੀਆਂ ਮੁਸ਼ਕਲਾਂ ਨੂੰ ਹੱਡੀ ਹੰਢਾਅ ਰਹੀ ਹੈ ਪਰ ਇਸ ਦੇ ਬਾਵਜੂਦ ਇਟਾਲੀਅਨ ਸਰਕਾਰ, ਇਟਲੀ 'ਚ ਰਹਿਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਾਂ ਦੇ ਬੱਚਿਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਇਟਾਲੀਅਨ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਦਿਵਾਉਣ ਲਈ ਕਈ ਪ੍ਰਕਾਰ ਦੇ ਸੁਧਾਰ ਕਰਨ ਦੀ ਕੋਸ਼ਿਸ਼ 'ਚ ਹੈ। ਇਟਾਲੀਅਨ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਦੀ ਇਹ ਕਾਰਵਾਈ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਭਾਈਚਾਰੇ ਵਲੋਂ ਇੱਕ ਸ਼ਲਾਘਾਯੋਗ ਕਾਰਵਾਈ ਮੰਨੀ ਜਾ ਰਹੀ ਹੈ।ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕਰਨ ਲਈ ਹੋਣ ਵਾਲੇ ਖਰਚ ਦੇ ਬੋਝ ਨੂੰ ਘਟਾਉਣ ਲਈ ਸਰਕਾਰ ਇਕ ਨਵੇਂ ਸੁਧਾਰ ਨੂੰ ਲਾਗੂ ਕਰਨ ਜਾ ਰਹੀ ਹੈ।
ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ  ਮਾਪਿਆਂ ਦੇ ਬੱਚਿਆਂ ਨੂੰ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਜਾਣ ਵਾਲੀ ਇਟਾਲੀਅਨ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਸਬੰਧੀ ਸੋਧ ਲਈ ਸਦਨ ਵਿਚ ਬਿੱਲ ਪੇਸ਼ ਕੀਤਾ ਗਿਆ ਸੀ, ਜਿਸ ਨੂੰ ਸਦਨ ਵਲੋਂ ਮਾਨਤਾ ਦਿੱਤੀ ਜਾ ਚੁੱਕੀ ਹੈ, ਜਿਸ ਅਨੁਸਾਰ :
1) ਜਿਹੜੇ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਨਾਗਰਿਕ ਕਾਨੂੰਨੀ ਤੌਰ 'ਤੇ ਇਟਲੀ 'ਚ ਰਹਿ ਰਹੇ ਹੋਣ, ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦਾ ਪੈਦਾ ਹੋਣ ਵਾਲਾ ਬੱਚਾ ਜਨਮ ਤੋਂ ਹੀ ਇਟਾਲੀਅਨ ਨਾਗਰਿਕ ਹੋਵੇਗਾ।
2) ਜਿਹੜੇ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀਆਂ ਕੋਲ ਇਟਲੀ ਦੇ ਦਸਤਾਵੇਜ਼ ਨਹੀਂ ਹਨ, ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ ਦਾ ਇਟਲੀ ਪੈਦਾ ਹੋਣ ਵਾਲਾ ਬੱਚਾ ਜਾਂ 12 ਸਾਲ ਦੀ ਉਮਰ ਤੱਕ ਜਿਹੜਾ ਬੱਚਾ ਇਟਲੀ ਵਿਚ ਦਾਖਲ ਹੋ ਚੁੱਕਾ ਹੋਵੇ ਅਤੇ ਲਗਾਤਾਰ 5 ਸਾਲ ਸਕੂਲ ਜਾ ਕੇ ਸਿੱਖਿਆ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕਰਨ ਉਪਰੰਤ ਇਟਾਲੀਅਨ ਨਾਗਰਿਕ ਬਣਨ ਦਾ ਅਧਿਕਾਰ ਰੱਖਦਾ ਹੈ।
3) 18 ਸਾਲ ਦੀ ਉਮਰ ਤੋਂ ਇਟਲੀ ਅੰਦਰ ਦਾਖਲ ਹੋਏ (ਕੁਝ ਖਾਸ ਹਾਲਾਤਾਂ ਵਿਚ) 6 ਸਾਲ ਲਗਾਤਾਰ ਇਟਲੀ 'ਚ ਰਹਿ ਕੇ ਸਿੱਖਿਆ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕਰਨ ਵਾਲਾ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਪ੍ਰਾਪਤ ਕਰਨ ਦਾ ਅਧਿਕਾਰ ਰੱਖਦਾ ਹੈ।ਜਿਹੜੇ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਬੱਚੇ ਬਾਲਗ ਹੋਣ ਤੋਂ ਪਹਿਲਾਂ ਇਟਲੀ 'ਚ ਦਾਖਲ ਹੋਏ ਹਨ, ਉਹ ਵੀ ਇਕ ਖਾਸ ਸ਼ਰਤ ਅਧੀਨ ਨਾਗਰਕਿਤਾ ਦੀ ਦਰਖ਼ਾਸਤ ਦੇ ਸਕਦੇ ਹਨ, ਜਿਸ ਅਨੁਸਾਰ ਉਹ ਇਟਲੀ 'ਚ 6 ਸਾਲ ਦਾ ਅਵਾਸ ਸਮਾਂ ਪੂਰਾ ਕਰ ਲੈਣ ਅਤੇ ਇਟਲੀ 'ਚ ਗ੍ਰੈਜੁਏਸ਼ਨ ਜਾਂ ਇਸਦੇ ਬਰਾਬਰ ਦੀ ਕੋਈ ਤਕਨੀਕੀ ਸਿੱਖਿਆ ਲਗਾਤਾਰ ਪੂਰੀ ਕਰ ਲੈਣ।
ਜਿਹੜੇ ਵਿਦੇਸ਼ੀ ਬੱਚੇ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਲਈ ਦਰਖ਼ਾਸਤ ਦੇਣਾ ਚਾਹੁੰਦੇ ਹਨ, 200 ਯੂਰੋ ਦਾ ਭੁਗਤਾਨ ਕਰਨ ਦੀ ਜਰੂਰਤ ਨਹੀਂ ਹੈ। ਸਥਿਤੀ 1) ਅਤੇ 2) ਵਿਚ ਜਿਹੜੇ ਮਾਤਾ-ਪਿਤਾ ਬੱਚਿਆਂ ਲਈ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਦੀ ਦਰਖ਼ਾਸਤ ਦੇਣਾ ਚਾਹੁੰਦੇ ਹਨ, ਉਪਰੋਕਤ ਨਿਯਮ ਉਨ੍ਹਾਂ 'ਤੇ ਲਾਗੂ ਹੁੰਦਾ ਹੈ। ਸਥਿਤੀ 3) ਅਧੀਨ ਜਿਹੜੇ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ 18 ਸਾਲ ਦੀ ਉਮਰ ਤੋਂ ਬਾਅਦ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਲਈ ਮੰਗ ਕਰਦੇ ਹਨ, ਉਹ ਇਸ ਸ਼੍ਰੇਣੀ ਅਧੀਨ ਨਹੀਂ ਆਉਂਦੇ, ਜਿਹੜੇ ਮਾਤਾ-ਪਿਤਾ ਬੱਚਿਆਂ ਲਈ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਦੀ ਮੰਗ ਨਹੀਂ ਕਰਦੇ, ਬਾਲਗ ਹੋਣ 'ਤੇ ਵਿਦਿਆਰਥੀ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਦੀ ਮੰਗ ਕਰ ਸਕਦਾ ਹੈ, ਅਜਿਹੀ ਸ਼੍ਰੇਣੀ ਅਧੀਨ ਨਾਗਰਿਕਤਾ ਦੀ ਮੰਗ ਕਰਨ 'ਤੇ ਉਹ 200 ਯੂਰੋ ਦਾ ਭੁਗਤਾਨ ਕਰਨ ਤੋਂ ਨਹੀਂ ਬਚ ਸਕਦੇ।

'ਜਗ ਬਾਣੀ' ਦੇ ਪਾਠਕਾਂ ਲਈ ਇਕ ਜ਼ਰੂਰੀ ਸੂਚਨਾ ਹੈ। 'ਜਗ ਬਾਣੀ' ਵਲੋਂ ਐਪ ਨੂੰ ਅਪਡੇਟ ਕਰ ਦਿੱਤਾ ਗਿਆ ਹੈ। ਤੁਸੀਂ ਵੀ ਆਪਣੇ ਫੋਨ ਦੇ ਪਲੇਅ ਸਟੋਰ ਵਿਚ ਜਾ ਕੇ 'ਜਗ ਬਾਣੀ' ਐਪ ਨੂੰ ਅਪਡੇਟ ਕਰਕੇ ਦੁਨੀਆ ਭਰ ਦੀਆਂ ਖਬਰਾਂ ਦਾ ਅਨੰਦ ਮਾਣ ਸਕਦੇ ਹੋ।
ਪੰਜਾਬੀ ਮੈਟਰੀਮੌਨੀ - ਮੁਫ਼ਤ ਰਜਿਸਟਰ ਕਰੌੰ

Princess Eugenie supports grandmother Queen Elizabeth at Buckingham Palace

 had a chance to lend her support to her grandmotherQueen Elizabeth at a special awards ceremony on Monday night at Buckingham Palace. Her Majesty was presenting a $1.5 million prize to Dr Robert Langer for his advances in engineering.

During the event, held in the palace's lavish Throne Room, the Queen gave out the award in the presence of select guests and other members of the royal family including Eugenie, Princess Anne and Prince Philip. As guests mingled, Eugenie, 25, was pictured chatting and shaking hands with attendees.

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P rincess Eugenie supported her grandmother at the prize-givingPhoto: Getty Images

The Princess is back on the royal circuit following her move from New York City earlier this year. Eugenie, who works at top London art galleryHauser & Wirth, had lived in the Big Apple since 2013 where she worked at online auction house Paddle8.

Eugenie, however, has made trips back to the U.S. and last month attended a fundraiser with her mom Sarah Ferguson and her older sisterPrincess Beatrice in Manhattan.

The trio were joined by rapper 50 Cent at the BGC Charity Day on Wall Street, raising money for the ongoing relief since the attacks on the World Trade Center, 14 years ago.

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The Queen Elizabeth and husband Prince Philip looked to be thoroughly enjoying their evening Photo: Getty Images

Meanwhile 89-year-old Queen Elizabeth, who wore a cream and gold dress, gave Dr. Langer her winning smile as she handed him the trophy. The doctor received the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering for "his revolutionary advances and leadership in engineering at the interface with chemistry and medicine," according to the award's official website.

It is estimated that over two billion lives have been improved by the technologies that Dr. Langer's lab has created.

Russia Blocked Israeli Military Fights Over Syria, Lebanon

An Israeli air force jet fighter plane takes off from Tel Nof Air Force base in central Israel, Monday, Nov. 19, 2012. (AP Photo/Ariel Schalit)

Russian forces sent out a warning to the Israeli Air Force after Israeli jets were detected near Russian controlled airspace near the Syrian–Lebanese border, Lebanese media outlet As Safir reported Friday.

The warning was issued after a Russian radar system spotted Israeli jets approaching Russian-controlled airspace two weeks ago, a Lebanese diplomatic official said, according to the report.

Russia’s defense ministry said Thursday that its forces in Syria had set up a “hotline” with Israel’s military to avoid clashes in the sky over the war-torn country.

An “information-sharing” mechanism “has been established through a hotline between the Russian aviation command center at the Hmeimim air base (in Syria) and a command post of the Israeli air force,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that the two sides were undergoing training on how to cooperate.

According to As Safir, the Lebanese source said that Russian aircraft immediately blocked the Israeli jets’ path while they flew above the Akkar region in northern Lebanon. “The Russians immediately sent a clear warning to the Israelis that entering Syrian airspace would be a pretext for opening fire,” the source added.

According to the paper, which is considered loyal to Hezbollah, the Israeli aircraft quickly heeded the warnings and changed their course.

Russia and Israel have been working to find a way to avoid unintended collisions between their aircraft over Syria since President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu agreed to set up a “mechanism” at talks in Moscow last month.

Russia launched a bombing campaign in Syria on September 30 at the request of its long-standing ally Bashar Assad that Moscow says is targeting Islamic State jihadists and other “terrorist” groups.

Israel has reportedly launched air strikes in Syria against Iranian arms transfers to Hezbollah and Israeli officials are believed to fear that Russia’s intervention could limit their room for maneuvre.

The United States and its allies involved in a coalition bombing IS have sharply criticised Russia’s air campaign and say that the majority of its strikes have hit more moderate rebel groups fighting Assad.

Moscow has blasted the accusations and says Washington has rebuffed calls to cooperate more closely.

Moscow protest against Russia role in Syria

Around 200 people demonstrated in Moscow on Saturday against Russia’s campaign of air strikes in Syria, with one protester arrested by police.

The rally by people mainly in their 50s and 60s in a small central park passed off amid tight security as the authorities threw up a strong security cordon.

The demonstrators oppose Moscow’s decision to carry out air strikes which began targeting assorted Syrian rebel groups on September 30.

One opposition party, Solidarnost, had called for a protest — but the majority of those who showed up wore pacifist badges rather than any suggesting political allegiance.

Less than an hour into the demonstration, police arrested a woman waving a banner reading “Putin assassin, don’t bring shame on Russia,” and bundled her into a van.

Police then blocked access to the site to prevent more people joining, but despite their efforts, protesters continued to chant slogans against the military intervention as well as against corruption in Russia.

Some brandished banners promising to visit “hell upon those who bomb in the name of peace.”

Organiser Svetlana Kravietz, 42, told AFP that “war is not what we need in our country — we already have many problems to solve. We are going through a serious economic crisis.”

Fellow protester Dmitri Stipanov, 36, said: “Today they show us initial successes — just as they did at the start with Afghanistan” following the Soviet invasion in 1979.

“But afterwards it all degenerated — and today I think we’re in for a repeat,” Stipanov said.

Kravietz said she believed the air strikes were part of a hidden Moscow agenda.

“We’ve already had a war with Ukraine and now that is calming down we’re off to war in Syria,” she said, seeing the manoeuvre as political skulduggery.

“Some people at the heart of the authorities organise these wars to hang on to power and not to help anybody.”

Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev said Saturday that Russia is fighting for its national interests in Syria, not for President Bashar al-Assad.

“Of course we are not fighting for specific leaders, we are defending our national interests, on the one hand,” Medvedev said in an interview to air on state television.

“And secondly, we have a request from the lawful authorities (of Syria). That is the basis we are working on,” he said, quoted on the government website.

Now we know China's 'bottom line'

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(Guang Niu/Getty) Chinese navy soldiers at Qingdao Port on April 22, 2009, in Qingdao of Shandong Province, China.This is how things get out of control.

The Global Times — a massive Chinese tabloid controlled by the ruling Communist Party — has ramped up its rhetoric over US intervention and Chinese action in the South China Sea.

"China mustn't tolerate rampant US violations of China's adjacent waters and the skies over those expanding islands," said a recent Global Times editorial.

This, it said, would be a "breach of China's bottom line."

For over a year China has been diligently building out the tops of island reefs in the South China Sea, reclaiming 2,000 acres of land and turning that land into military bases.

In April, satellite imagery showed that the Chinese military had built an airstrip big enough for military aircraft on one of those islands.

Freedom of navigation exercises

Sovereignty over the islands has become sacred in China, and when President Xi Jinping visited Washington last month, it was one issue where he and US President Obama did not see eye to eye.

China's "bottom line" may be in conflict with US objectives in the region. In June, Defense Secretary Ashton Carter called Chinese activity in the waters a violation of "international rules and norms that underscore the Asia-Pacific security architecture, and the regional consensus that favors diplomacy and opposes coercion."

The South China Sea is a crucial waterway through which more than half of the world's goods travel.

China's neighbors, many of which are US allies, have been dismayed by China's actions in the area.

The Philippines, Malaysia, Vietnam, Japan, and others in the region have expressed concern over China's designs on dominating the waters, as well as its build-out of islands into military bases.

Reports indicate that the US Navy plans to conduct "freedom of navigation exercises" in the South China Sea as a direct challenge to Chinese actions.

The Global Times published its editorial two days after Carter told a meeting with Australian defense officials that the US would continue to defy Chinese plans in the South China Sea.

He said: "Make no mistake, we will fly, sail and operate wherever international law permits ... We will do that in the time and place of our choosing."

Carter also signed a defense-cooperation statement with Australia at the meeting.

Corruption eating away at India 'like a termite': Modi

Prime Minister Narendra Modi warned on Saturday that corruption was eating away at India "like a termite" as he used an independence day speech to pledge his commitment to eradicating graft and poverty.

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In an address from Delhi's Red Fort, Modi sought to silence growing doubts about his leadership after key reforms stalled in a rancorous parliament session dogged by allegations of corruption involving some of his top lieutenants.

Modi, who has a reputation as a hardline Hindu nationalist, also warned against the "poison" of communalism in a wide-ranging speech that lasted for more than an hour.

But it was his comments on the dangers posed by corruption that drew most attention, including his admission that the problem went right to the top.

"I want to reaffirm that this nation will get rid of corruption. We can rid the country of corruption, we have to start from the top," said Modi.

"Corruption is like a termite, it spreads slowly, reaches everywhere but it can be beaten with timely injections."

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India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi scatters rose petals while paying his respects 

Modi's speech comes after some of the most senior figures in his Bharatiya Janata Party became embroiled in corruption scandals, including Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj and the chief ministers of Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh states.

The scandals have been particularly embarrassing as Modi's election win last year was built in part on a pledge to clean up government after a series of scams under the previous Congress administration.

Modi said there had been no cases of money being siphoned off on his watch and that a new law on declaring income had led to the disclosure of around one billion dollars in hitherto hidden assets which will now be liable to tax.

Other economic reforms however have snagged in parliament, including a national sales tax that the government sees as crucial to firing up growth.

While the economy is growing at around 7.5 percent, it still needs to pick up pace to elevate the hundreds of millions of people still mired in poverty in the world's second most populous nation.

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People listen to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi delivering his Independence Day speech from The …

- Power for villages -

The right-wing premier, who has been accused of being too close to big business, portrayed himself as a champion of the poor by promising to help farmers and lower-caste dalits, formerly known as untouchables.

Modi set a 1,000-day deadline for every village in India to get electricity, urging state governments which are responsible for power to ensure every community is finally linked to the national grid.

"Even after so many decades of independence there are 18,500 villages in India which do not have electricity," he said.

"I appeal to the states and all other stakeholders to connect these villages with electricity system within 1,000 days."

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Indian Border Security Force (BSF) personnel place candles as they pay tribute to Indian freedom fig …

Frequently mopping his brow on a swelteringly hot day, Modi said he had striven to enable 170 million people to open bank accounts for the first time under a government-run scheme.

"The poor are at bottom of the pyramid of development and we have to strengthen the base of the pyramid. If they are empowered, no one can stop us," said Modi who came to power in May last year.

Modi's first August 15 address from the fort's ramparts drew praise from across the political spectrum as he tackled issues such as sexual violence and a lack of toilets.

But 12 months on, problems are mounting up for the usually bullish prime minister and his opponents were in no mood to be generous this time round.

Manish Tewari, information minister in the Congress government, said Modi failed to address the corruption allegations raised in parliament, accusing him of lacking the "moral authority" to tell his lieutenants to quit.

"He didn't tell the country in his lengthy speech why the entire session of parliament was wasted," Tewari told AFP.

An editorial in Saturday's Times of India said Modi's government was becoming mired in the same problems that blighted its predecessor, namely an "inability to push economic reforms that would scale up growth, combined with corruption scandals".

According to a new poll conducted for the private ABP television network, 59 percent of respondents feel Modi has not kept his promise of a corruption-free government.

Are India's plans to celebrate 1965 war 'victory' in 'bad taste'?

• 6 hours ago
 
• From the sectionIndia

The celebrations begin on 28 August, the day Indian troops captured the strategic Haji Pir Pass

India plans to celebrate the 50th anniversary of its "victory" over Pakistan in the 1965 war with a series of events, including a "grand carnival". But critics say it is in bad taste and a waste of money, writes the BBC's Geeta Pandey in Delhi.

The war was fought on the western front after Pakistan launched "Operation Gibraltar" - a covert offensive in which up to 30,000 fighters were pushed across the ceasefire line into Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir. India retaliated by crossing the international border at Lahore.

For over three weeks, more than 100,000 Indian soldiers fought against Pakistan's 60,000 troops.

"The celebrations are set to kick off on 28 August, the day Indian troops captured the strategic Haji Pir Pass," Indian defence ministry spokesman Sitanshu Kar told the BBC.

"They will go on until 22 September - the day India and Pakistan agreed to a UN-sponsored ceasefire."

The 1965 war has been largely forgotten by the Indian people

More than 100,000 Indian soldiers fought in the war

The main event - a "victory carnival" with a show of military might, song and dance - is planned for 20 September on Rajpath - the wide boulevard in the city centre where the annual Republic Day parade is held and where India recently organised a record-breaking yoga event.

The celebrations will also include seminars, photo exhibitions and a concert.

"The 1965 war has been forgotten by people and this is an effort to revive the memory," said former journalist Nitin Gokhale who has been commissioned by the defence ministry to write a book on the conflict.

Gains and losses

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Media caption1965 Indian Army war veteran, Brig (retired) Arvinder Singh

At the end of the war, this is what India said the tally looked like:

• India won 1,920 sqkm of territory; Pakistan won 540 sqkm
• 2,862 Indian soldiers were killed; Pakistan lost 5,800 soldiers
• India lost 97 tanks; 450 Pakistani tanks were destroyed or captured

Pakistan has not responded to attempts by the BBC to verify the numbers.

India captured the key Haji Pir pass - "a major ingress route for Pakistanis" - and made some big gains in Sialkot and reached the doors of Lahore in Punjab. The Pakistani army managed to repulse a takeover of Lahore, made advances in the deserts of Rajasthan and came perilously close to taking over Akhnoor in the Jammu region.

But the gains were not substantial for either side and after the ceasefire, India and Pakistan met at Tashkent in January 1966 where they agreed to withdraw to their pre-war positions.

Major Ranjit Singh Dayal led the Indian assault on Haji Pir Pass

Over the years, both sides have claimed victory. Pakistan even celebrates 6 September every year as "Defence of Pakistan Day" with a 21-gun salute and a victory parade.

Indians meanwhile believe that their forces had the clear upper hand.

"This war is important for two reasons - it wiped the humiliation of defeat India faced in 1962 against China and also allowed the Indian army to hone and tweak their strategy. This gave them confidence which led to their decisive victory in the 1971 war against Pakistan," said Mr Gokhale.

"For India, 1965 was not a grand victory, but it can certainly be called a limited victory," he added.

Did India win the war?

At least three independent authors believed India had an upper hand in the war:

• Retired American diplomat Dennis Kux: "Although both sides lost heavily in men and material, and neither gained a decisive military advantage, India had the better of the war. Delhi achieved its basic goal of thwarting Pakistan's attempt to seize Kashmir by force. Pakistan gained nothing from a conflict which it had instigated."
• English historian John Keay: "The war lasted barely a month. Pakistan made gains in the Rajasthan desert but its main push against India's Jammu-Srinagar road link was repulsed and Indian tanks advanced to within a sight of Lahore. Both sides claimed victory but India had most to celebrate."
• American author Stanley Wolpert: "The war ended in what appeared to be a draw when the embargo placed by Washington on US ammunition and replacements for both armies forced cessation of conflict before either side won a clear victory. India, however, was in a position to inflict grave damage to, if not capture, Pakistan's capital of the Punjab when the ceasefire was called, and controlled Kashmir's strategic Uri-Poonch bulge, much to [Pakistani president] Ayub's chagrin."

Pakistan's toned down celebrations: Ilyas Khan in Islamabad

Pakistan continues to observe 6 September as "defence day", but the zest and gusto associated with the celebrations has dampened in recent decades.

One reason is the passing of the 1965 generation. Secondly, the threat of militant attacks during the last ten years have forced military parades, air shows and armament displays to become more low key.

Another is that an alternative view of the chronology and consequences of the war has gained more currency in Pakistan.

Earlier it was believed that the 1965 war had been initiated by India with a view to capturing Lahore and breaking Pakistan. Celebrations were centred on the "valiant defence" by the Pakistani armed forces defeated that aim.

More recently some influential politicians and members of the armed forces have publicly stated that all wars with India were initiated by Pakistan.

Had the 1965 war been a success, the argument goes, it would not have led to the demise and humiliation of Field Marshal Ayub Khan, Pakistan's first military ruler under whose watch the war was fought.

India has never celebrated any of its wars on such a grand scale, so why this big victory carnival now?

"It's 50 years since we won the war, if you won't celebrate it now then when will you do?" asked the defence ministry's Sitanshu Kar.

Not all Indians, however, are enthusiastic about the celebrations and the defence expert at Delhi-based Centre for Police Research, Srinath Raghavan, says the idea of the "victory carnival" is "absurd".

The 1965 war was fought in the mountains of Kashmir

"It smacks of bad taste. What do you have a carnival for? It is not a bad idea to commemorate the war, but it should be a solemn occasion, not a frivolous display of song and dance."

He said the government's plans to spend 350m rupees ($5.5m; £3.5m) on the event was "a waste of resources".

A former army soldier who fought in the 1999 Kargil conflict against Pakistan, he said, "the commemoration should not be jingoistic, it should be used to remember all the lives lost - of soldiers and civilians - on the border".

Both India and Pakistan claim to have won the war

Although Islamabad has not commented officially, the plan for the victory carnival has, as expected, drawn criticism from Pakistan with some saying it could have a negative impact on bilateral ties.

Mr Raghavan also believes that it could lead to "unnecessary unpleasantness" at a time when the two countries have said they want to restart the dialogue process.

"A better way to commemorate the war," he said, "would be to inform people what this war was really about, to get the conversation going and foster a genuine historic dialogue about it."