Obscured behind an iron curtain, the PLA of China has progressed leaps and bounds, quite in synch with the economic growth of the Asian giant. Post two decades of defence reforms, the PLA is now in the process of transiting beyond mechanisation and informatisation

Poetry from the heart of a talented woman who weaves a magic with her words

COMMANDOS. Those elite troops for whom nothing is impossible. A special breed of soldiers who walk dangerously and believe that “Who Dares, Wins”. Real-life action heroes who plunge into situations normally confined to celluloid. It is these men who form the cutting edge of real-life war games. Men whom Winston Churchill once described as “mad, quite mad...(but) in war there is often a place for mad people who bring glory at all costs.” This action-packed book tells the story of Special Forces worldwide and examines these forces. How are they organised, trained and equipped? What are the tasks they carry out in combat? How do they operate in the battlefield? What is their role in countering terrorism? What will be their role in the context of future warfare? Tracing the history of raids and rescue missions from the raid on Somnath Temple by Mahmud of Ghazni in 1025 to those of Shivaji on the Mughals in 1663, it goes on to describe the rescue of Mussolini from Italy, Israeli hostages from Entebbe Airport and killing of Osama. Detailed descriptions and analysis of Second World War raids as well as the Indian Army commando action against the terrorists in Jammu & Kashmir and Mumbai demonstrate the daring of the men who constitute the Special Forces today. With these modern-day Otto Skorzenys and David Stirlings at large, no citadel is secure enough, no army safe from penetration. Terrorism looms large as a major threat today to free societies of the world. It is a cheaper method of waging a war. The only way the world can cope effectively with this threat is by cooperating internationally against it. Illustrated throughout, The Killer Instinct is a highly readable account of past raids and rescues, terrorism and the face of war in the new millennium.

Treachery & Gallantry: Gilgit-Skardu-Ladakh 1947-48 (Hardcover; INR 1495) is an unparalleled account of events that happened in the Himalayan Highlands during 1947-48. The book with never told before content is unique in itself. This book is the fifth and the final book in the series of 1947-48 Conflict history.

Was it her fault that she became her soldier’s widow? Does it matter whether he was a battle casualty or a physical casualty? No. Death matters!! Her husband’s death matters. But only to her. For everyone else she is either a trophy to be used at glamorous patriotic events or a money minting machine in the name of a trust or an NGO. And she is soon forgotten. Her pain, her trauma, her problems are no one’s business. It’s her battle and her battle alone. A battle she must win, for herself, for her children and for the supreme sacrifice of her husband. Shouldn’t we as a nation support her in this battle of hers or should we just disown her, like we do? Or was it really her fault that she became her soldier’s widow? About the Author- Ambreen Zaidi has been a well known journalist & columnist. She has won accolades & several awards for her ground work related to the forgotten heroes of the Indian Armed Forces, in leading news papers like Times of India, Hindustan Times, Dainik Bhaskar. She was the founding editor of world’s first blog magazine Blogger’s Park. She has her own venture called The Changemakers, where she and her team hand hold, the forces widows & orphans and helps them in whichever area they need help, from education to training to placement. All free of cost. She regularly writes for national & international publications about the social issues which need immediate attention.

This work is by someone who has had the privilege of serving for more than a decade in the oldest Parachute (later Special Forces) unit of the Indian Army. His other assignments during the service took him to places and desks from where he remained very closely associated with the evolution of the parachute battalions into Special Forces ones. Written by someone who has done some hardcore foot soldiering in an SF unit and who has also had an interrelated exposure at a macro level of conceptualisation and perspective planning, this work takes its readers on a unique journey. NINE runs in his blood and the esprit de corps is hard to miss. This book tells us what it takes to be an SF soldier and what soldierly bonding is all about. An unputdownable piece of work for those who like to read about unknown aspects of an SF soldier’s life.