The UK Supreme Court has ruled that Artificial Intelligence systems can’t be granted patents for their creations, and only persons have the right to secure patents over their inventions. The court upheld a 2019 ruling by the Intellectual Property Office (IPO), saying that only a person can be named as an inventor. The decision will likely have a significant impact as the use of AI tools is growing.
The ruling came in response to a bid by American technologist Dr Stephen Thaler, who sought to have his AI system, called Dabus, recognized as the inventor of a food container and a flashing light beacon. He had filed two patent applications in the name of Dabus in 2018. However, the IPO had rejected the applications in 2019. The decision affirmed that only a person can be named as an inventor, and an AI lacks the legal capacity to secure patent rights.
Dr Stephen Thaler had challenged the IPO decision at the High Court and then the Court of Appeal, and the pleas were rejected by both the courts. Now the Supreme Court has made the same decision. The Intellectual Property Office had said that only “persons” can have patent rights, AI systems can’t have this right, and the courts have agreed with the office.
Thaler had later submitted revised patent applications in his own name, claiming that he was entitled to patents on inventions by Dabus because he had created the AI tool, but this argument was rejected.
The ruling was delivered by a five-judge bench of the Supreme Court of the UK, dismissing a plea by Dr Thaler challenging these orders. The apex court concluded that “an inventor must be a person”, and that an AI cannot be named as an inventor to secure patent rights. The judgement does not decide whether Dabus invented the food container and the light, only saying that it does not have patent rights.
The court further said that it is not ruling on the broad question of whether technical advances created by AI-powered tools and machines should be patentable, or whether the meaning of the term “inventor” should be expanded. It only said that under existing patent laws, the “inventor” in a patent application must be a “natural person.” Thus, the court leaves the door open to amend the law.
Dr Thaler, on the other hand, believes that Dabus is a “conscious and sentient form of machine intelligence”. He told BBC that if AI inventions cannot be protected, “many valuable innovations benefitting humanity will become orphaned”.
He had further added, “acts of dishonesty, maybe even criminality will be encouraged. I don’t think society at large wants these things to happen”.
After the court order, his lawyers said that the ruling “establishes that UK patent law is currently wholly unsuitable for protecting inventions generated autonomously by AI machines and as a consequence wholly inadequate in supporting any industry that relies on AI in the development of new technologies”.
The Intellectual Property Office (IPO), has welcomed the court order “and the clarification it gives as to the law as it stands in relation to the patenting of creations of artificial intelligence machines”. However, they added that “the government will nevertheless keep this area of law under review to ensure that the UK patent system supports AI innovation and the use of AI in the UK”.
The IPO further said it recognised “that there are legitimate questions as to how the patent system and indeed intellectual property more broadly should handle AI creations”.
The horrifying murder case of a caretaker priest whose mutilated body was found in Bihar’s Gopalganj earlier this week has created a stir in the region. Following the incident, Police arrested 3 people including the ex-girlfriend of the priest. While several claims and counter-claims have kicked off a political storm, Police have denied media reports that have cited claims of family members of the accused and victim as baseless.
As per a report in Dainik Bhaskar, BJP has alleged that the Police are trying to give the case a ‘different angle’ by claiming that the incident was a result of a love affair gone wrong. BJP leaders visited the house of the girl who is an alleged accused in this case. They got her aunt to talk to the in-charge SP Hriday Kant. The official stated that the murder took place because of the love affair gone wrong. According to them, they have recovered the knife, rope, and cloth used in the murder, along with a broken mobile phone.
This is a case of love affair and blackmailing: Police
According to the Police, the alleged accused ex-girlfriend called Manoj Sah using her aunt’s phone. He was then held hostage for 4 days and kept hungry and thirsty at home. His body was mutilated with his eyes gouged out, and tongue and genitals chopped off. Meanwhile, the ex-girlfriend is a married woman and according to the police, the priest had an illicit affair with her and had been threatening to make her obscene video viral which allegedly became the reason for his murder.
Whereas the victim’s family had named the Muslim side in this matter. The girl’s aunt, while talking to ‘Dainik Bhaskar’, has made some shocking allegations.
Police tortured the entire family: Girl’s aunt
According to the girl’s aunt, Bihar Police arrested the entire family and did not even give them a bed to sleep in or food to eat. She adds that her daughter and son-in-law were also picked up and brought from Kateya village. The family was threatened that they would be killed. The family members were tortured and forced to confess, she alleged.
According to the girl’s aunt, the police threatened them to confess to the murder or else they would be chopped and thrown away. They allegedly beat up the girl in the car. As per the family members, the deceased Manoj Sah was like a son to them.
Former BJP Tourism Minister Ram Pravesh Singh has accused the police administration of implicating the wrong people in the murder case of caretaker priest Manoj Sah by giving it the colour of a love affair. According to him, the police administration is trying to hush up the case.
Addressing the journalists in a press conference at the Circuit House in Gopalganj, the Former Minister said, “Manoj Sah used to perform puja in the Shiv temple and also performed many yagyas. Some people nearby had objections about this. He was murdered by the same people. Manoj Sah went missing on 10th December and he was found dead on 15th December. What were the police doing for five days when the dead body was found? If the police had been active at that time, Manoj Sah would have been alive today.”
He also shared the video of the girl’s aunt’s statements. Crying with folded hands, the accused ex-girlfriend’s aunt claimed that their wards gave a false statement under police pressure. She has alleged that the police tortured the accused to get the confession. She claimed that their house is such that a dead body cannot be hidden there, anyone can come and see it for themselves.
BJP MLC Rajeev Singh alias Gappu Singh said that the Police have not arrested any individual named in the complaint filed by the deceased’s brother Ashok Sah in the Manjha Police station. Rather, the victim’s family has been arrested on charges of murder by alleging a love affair.
He said that the zonal officials of Manjha are as guilty as the police. According to him, the Rajput community had donated a piece of land to the temple but people from the Muslim community encroached on it and the same people have committed the murder.
News published in Gopalganj edition of ‘Prabhat Khabar’
According to a report in ‘Prabhat Khabar’, it is not clear who dumped Manoj Sah’s body near Idgah. Neha Kumari, Sunita Devi, and Amit Kumar have currently been sent to jail by the police. The search is on for Neha’s husband Subhash Sah and cousin Sandeep Kumar.
The BJP alleges that the police station officer, against whom the allegation has been made, has been appointed as the Investigating Officer (IO) in this case and is overseeing the investigation. It is being said that Leader of Opposition Vijay Sinha can also stage a protest in this matter.
OpIndia spoke to the deceased’s brother and former village head Ashok Sah. He told OpIndia that his brother was 26 years old, and he used to do aarti and offer bhog in the temple in the morning and evening. Ashok Sah became the village head in 2016 from Jagannatha Panchayat.
According to him, the temple is 400 years old, where Swayambhu Mahadev had appeared. He said that a yagya was held here in 2023, whose president was the local MLA and people from 20 panchayats participated in it.
Muslims had problems with the temple, and Shahabuddin’s henchmen captured the land: The Brother of the deceased
He told OpIndia that people of the entire district have faith in this temple. According to him, when the Yagya was held in May 2023, there was enthusiasm among the devotees that if there is a Shiva temple then a Parvati temple should also be built. After this, the local Rajput community donated 6 acres of its 10 acres of land for the temple.
He alleged that as soon as the paddy was harvested, the henchman of former RJD MP from Siwan and gangster Shahabuddin, W Khan along with his associates took illegal possession of the entire 10 acres of land.
He further explains, “Muslim people are settled around there and the mosque is also nearby. There are a large number of Muslims in the village. W Khan is from Siwan and has connections in Danapur. He is a goon. 100 years ago, there was a Khatian in the Names of Muslims but during British rule, this land had come to the Babu people (Rajput community). I had also gone to the SDO with MLA Rampravesh Singh. The SDO scolded the CO to send the correct report. All the papers were with the Babu people. Because of this the Muslims started threatening us.”
He accused the Muslims of hurling abuses at him and threatening to kill him and his brother. He added that his brother had brought the puja items at night and they had to wash the temple early in the morning. As soon as he came out after locking the door at night, the goons kidnapped him. During this, he took the name of Bihar Chief Secretary Aamir Subhani and said that the police station in-charge Shahid Akhtar is from his village. Alleging that his family was being targeted, he said that the girl’s brother used to work at the temple.
According to him, the girl’s brother had made a phone call to his deceased brother which the police are claiming to be a phone call made by the girl to the deceased from her aunt’s phone. He alleged that 18 members of the family were tortured.
An attempt to divert the investigation: DIG
DIG (Range) Vikas Sharma addressed a press conference on this matter. Talking about the investigation results, he said that Manoj Kumar Sah had an illicit relationship with a village girl and a love affair was going on. The girl was married somewhere else and after this Manoj was blackmailing her. He threatened her to make her photo video viral and give it to her husband.
He says that in retaliation the girl, with the help of her brother and some other acquaintances, took him hostage and then murdered him. He said that the video of Manoj Sah leaving the temple at 10 pm on 10th December is in the CCTV footage. The houses of the boy and the girl are next to each other. He has also said that mobile phones have been recovered. According to the Police, Manoj Kumar Sah was not the priest but the caretaker of the temple. He added that after the marriage of the girl, he started staying in the temple regularly.
He claimed that some people have tried to divert the police investigation by spreading false rumours and all the claims have been found to be baseless. The DIG said that the team formed by the Superintendent of Police has investigated the case. According to IPS officer Vikas Sharma, those policemen will also be rewarded. He said that the forensic team will also investigate, all the facts will be presented in the court and action will be taken. He said that the accused had been identified through CCTV, and in this case, it is completely established that this is a case of murder after a love affair and blackmailing.
Meanwhile, Bajrang Dal activist from Gopalganj Ranjit told Opindia that tomorrow all Hindu outfits will demand a fair investigation in this matter and it will be a joint call of all outfits including local BJP leaders.
He told us that the victim’s family had been getting threats from local Muslim people for a long time. Many times, they complained to the local administration but authorities ignored them.
The horrific murder
The caretaker priest (Pujari) of a Shiv Temple, named Manoj Kumar Sah who had been missing for five days, was brutally murdered earlier this week. The incident occurred in Danapur village which falls in the Manjhagarh police station area. The mutilated body of the victim, with his eyes gouged out, and tongue and genitals chopped off, was recovered in the bushes near a dairy shop on Saturday (16th December).
Dairy giant Amul has clarified that it has not launched a cheese brand named ‘Sharam’. The clarification came after the image of a pack of Amul cheese with the brand name ‘Sharam’ appeared on social media.
The AI-generated image with the brand name ‘Sharam’ was a humorous take on the popular Hindi saying, “Sharam naam ki cheez bhi hoti hai” (There is such a thing as shame). It is used to tell someone that they are behaving in a shameless manner, reminding them that people should have shame on certain things.
This popular phrase often used by mothers to scold their children over various issues was transformed into an imaginary brand of cheese, which immediately went viral, as people appreciated the wordplay and the humour behind it.
In the viral image posted by X user Ankit Sawant, ‘cheez’ (thing) was replaced with ‘cheese’, creating the amusing pack of ‘Sharam’ branded Amul cheese that does not exist. The post has attained over 4.8 lakh views after it was tweeted on 19th December.
The image was posted with the caption, “Sharam naam ki bhi koi cheese hoti hai!”
After the image went viral, many people believed that it was created by Amul itself, given the brand’s history of creating interesting advertisements. However, now the company has issued a clarification that it is a fake product and it is not a pack of Amul Cheese.
In a statement issued in public interest on social media, Amul said that a fake message is being forwarded on WhatsApp and Social Media platforms regarding new type of Amul Cheese. It says that the creator of the post has made the creative and posted this without any authorisation from Amul.
Amul added in the statement, “We notice in the post that the pack has been developed using Al and is using the Amul brand name poorly and is disparaging. We wish to assure you that the pack shown in this post is not Amul Cheese.”
The company further said, “This post has been used to create misinformation and spread unnecessary fear and concern among consumers. We request you to kindly share this message with your family and friends and assure them about the goodness of Amul Cheese.”
After Amul posted the clarification, Ankit Sawant posted that it was an AI-generated image, and he posted it only as a meme.
Amul does not use separate brands for its cheese products, and all variants of the dairy product are marketed under the flagship Amul brand itself, like most of its products.
In a massive boost to fighting the menace of love jihad, the provisions included in the new bill replacing the colonial-era Indian Penal Code criminalise making false promises and concealing one’s identity to sexually exploit a woman.
The Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday discussed in detail the three criminal laws introduced in the Lok Sabha by the BJP government. Significantly, the Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita Bill, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita Bill and the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Bill were passed in Lok Sabha today.
Under the legislation recently approved by the Lok Sabha, engaging in deceptive practices, such as making false commitments and establishing intimate relationships with women while concealing one’s identity or under false pretences, is now deemed a criminal offence.
Courts have previously handled instances where women have alleged rape based on the breach of a promise of marriage, yet the Indian Penal Code (IPC) lacked a dedicated provision addressing this particular situation. The new law seeks to address the lacuna and arm women who are exploited with false promises with a special legal provision.
Trapping women using fake identity is a crime under new criminal law: Amit Shah in Lok Sabha pic.twitter.com/ONLH9Dl8Dp
Besides, the new laws carry a minimum punishment of 20 years to life imprisonment for gang-rape cases. The rape and gang rape of girls under the age of 18 will result in a mandatory minimum imprisonment of life imprisonment, with the possibility of extending to the death penalty.
Addressing the Lok Sabha on the three crime bills, Union Home Minister Amit Shah remarked, “In the legislation slated for repeal, emphasis has been placed on crimes against women and children.”
The three bills were first introduced in August 2023 during the Monsoon session of the parliament. Affirming his government’s tough stance to fight crime against women, Shah had then said: “Crime against women and many social problems faced by them have been addressed in this bill. For the first time, intercourse with women under the false promise of marriage, employment, promotion and false identity will amount to a crime.”
A communal event by the name of ‘All India Muslim Mahapanchayat’, which was to be held at the Ramlila Maidan in Delhi on Monday (18th December) has been postponed, reportedThe Hindu.
According to the Delhi police, the organisers of the event failed to provide a ‘written assurance’ about the safe and smooth conduct of the ‘All India Muslim Mahapanchayat’
While speaking about the matter, a cop informed, “We have not received any written assurance related to certain points to conduct the event, therefore no-objection certificate (NOC) cannot be issued. Nobody approached us till Sunday (17th December) night.”
ISIS poster boy Mehmood Pracha vows to move Delhi High Court
The organiser of the communal event is an ‘advocate’ named Mehmood Pracha, who holds the distinction of being featured on the cover of ISIS magazine ‘Voice of Hind’ in February 2020.
On being contacted by The Hindu, he informed about his plan to move the Delhi High Court. Pracha also said that the event had been deferred and a small gathering was organised instead at Aiwan-e-Ghalib auditorium near ITO in the National Capital.
Timeline of the proposed ‘All India Muslim Mahapanchayat’
Mehmood Pracha had initially planned a large congregation of Muslims at Ramlilla Madian on the 29th Oct this year.
Through his organisation ‘Mission Save Constitution (MSC),’ the ISIS poster boy even succeeded in getting permission from the Delhi police by dubbing ‘All India Muslim Mahapanchayat’ as ‘education about constitutional rights.’
When the police discovered the communal nature of the ‘All India Muslim Mahapanchayat,’ they revoked the permission granted to MSC. Mehmood Pracha then moved the Delhi High Court, only to be told to re-schedule his event after the Hindu festive season was over.
‘Mission Save Constitution’ then rescheduled their event from 29th Oct to 4th Dec. Delhi police turned down the request, highlighting that it has already granted permission to an organisation named ‘Maha Tyagi Sewa Sansthan’ (which sought NOC two days before MSC).
The organisation yet again moved the Delhi HC, following which the court asked the MCD and the Delhi police to provide a date that is convenient for organising the ‘All India Muslim Mahapanchayat.’ As such, the event has now been postponed to 18th December, 2023.
But it has now been postponed again after Pracha failed to provide a written assurance to the Delhi Police about the safe and smooth conduct of the event.
Aam Aadmi Party national convenor and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who was summoned by the Enforcement Directorate for questioning on 21st December, has reportedly left for a 10-day ‘Vipassana’ meditation camp in Punjab on 20th December. As a result, he will not attend the questioning by ED in the Delhi Liquor Policy scam case.
Arvind Kejriwal’s scheduled departure date for the program was 19th December, however, he was unable to make it because of the I.N.D.I. Alliance meeting. Therefore today at approximately 1:30 pm he headed for the prearranged session, along with Punjab chief minister Bhagwant Mann.
The summon related to the money laundering case involving the excise policy which has resulted in the jail sentences of his party colleagues including Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and ex-Cabinet Minister Satyendar Jain who is at present out on bail until 8th January of next year.
According to officials, he takes a 10-day ‘Vipassana’ course every year and this year he is going to be a part of such camp in Anandgarh village of Punjab’s Hoshiarpur district till 30th December.
‘Vipassana’ is an ancient Indian meditation technique wherein practitioners refrain from speaking or using gestures for a prolonged amount of time to improve their mental health. The chief minister has been a longtime practitioner of the aforementioned meditation and has travelled to numerous locations, including Bengaluru and Jaipur to practice it.
Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadha stated that the AAP supremo’s program had been scheduled in advance and legal advice was being taken from lawyers. “Lawyers are examining the ED’s notice and such steps will be taken that are legally correct. Everyone knows the Chief Minister is leaving for ‘Vipassana’ on December 19. He regularly goes for this meditation course. It’s a pre-scheduled and pre-announced plan.”
He alleged that the Bharatiya Janata Party is attempting to “weaken” Arvind Kejriwal and argued that it is “afraid” of him. “If today, Satyendar Jain, Manish Sisodia, and Sanjay Singh join BJP, they will welcome them with drums and get the cases closed.”
The Delhi government’s excise policy for 2021–22 which granted licenses to liquor dealers is accused of enabling cartelization and favouring some dealers who had reportedly paid bribes to AAP leaders for it. The policy was then abandoned and the lieutenant governor of Delhi Vinai Kumar Saxena directed that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) look into the matter. The ED then filed a complaint under the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act).
Notably, the AAP chief would be missing his second consecutive deposition before the Enforcement Directorate. He was summoned by the national agency last month to appear before the agency on 2nd November but he ignored the request, claiming his hectic campaign schedule. He added that he couldn’t attend the summons since he was a star campaigner and state elections were approaching. He asked the agency to revoke the summons adding that it was “motivated and issued for extraneous considerations.”
Responding to negative reviews and allegations of spreading ‘toxic masculinity’, Sandeep Reddy Vanga, director of the recently hit film, ‘Animal’ lashed out at the clique of ‘English’ critics calling them ‘illiterate’ and ‘uneducated’. In a conversation with Connect FM Cannada, Vanga admitted that negative reviews do hamper a film.
However, he argued that the film is doing good business at the box office because of the film’s craft. It’s not because Bollywood critics like Anupama Chopra, Sucharita Tyagi, and Rajeev Masand diss his films.
He asserted that a random person asking people not to watch his film will have more credibility than this clique of Bollywood critics. He also hinted that these critics have been getting paid for giving pre-determined reviews for the films, emphasising, “I never do that.”
In the interview after the film’s success, he said, “Ek banda apne balcony se chila ka 50 logon ko bolega ki ‘Animal mat dekhna, pagal film hai‘, I would appreciate him, as he’s not earning anything from that. But yeh log YouTube pe videos banate hai na. Inn logo ko paisa bhi aata hai uss mein se.”
He added that he had no problem with them making name, fame, and money by criticising his films. But nobody speaks about the craft, the editing, or other aspects of the film, the director noted.
According to the director, these critics have no sense of “how to criticise or review a film and described such critics as “illiterate” and “uneducated”.
He fumed, “You’re making money, fame, name, everything by criticising my film, then go ahead. That’s what happened with most of the critics during Kabir Singh. Their shot to fame was criticising ‘Kabir Singh’…Nobody speaks about the craft, the editing, or sound design, because they are literally illiterate, and uneducated when it comes to films. They have no sense of how to criticise the film or review the film.”
During the interaction, he highlighted that Anupama Chopra constantly messaged him to give an interview, stating that he had 6-7 messages. According to him, before the release, she texted, “We should meet” but after the release, “You see a different colour”, Vanga said. He said that they criticised the film left, right, and centre in the worst way, and after a few days, they tried to call me to have a round table discussion, naming Rajeev Masand as the critic to do so. He emphasised that these critics don’t have the guts to sit and talk face to face and when confronted they beat around the bush and talk nonsense.
He stated that having spent several years in Mumbai, he has found that there is a gang of critics who according to him have been targeting him. According to him, this gang likes a certain kind of cinema, and they appreciate certain filmmakers’ movies only. He said, “What I see is that there is a clear hatred towards a filmmaker than a film.”
Along with naming the critics, Vanga argued that these Bollywood critics should go to China and become English tutors as other than some new English words there is hardly anything in their reviews.
He added, “It’s out of their capacity, I have seen other reviews also. The way they talk, they should go to China to teach English. Because they come up with new English words in every other video review. Other than that you won’t find anything else. Even in Kabir Singh, they were selective (in criticising) that Kabir (Shahid Kapoor) slapped, they didn’t mention that Preeti (Kiara Advani) was the first person to slap.”
On the morality aspect, he defended his movie arguing, “In a way, I understood their mental status and their IQ…If morality comes into the picture, then you can’t make this film. If everybody is going to focus just on morality, we should stop making films. Let’s just make cartoons.”
Slamming the criticism of film not being safe for children as it promotes violence, he said, “They’re saying children are walking out of the theatres in tears, high school girls are feeling unsafe; they should not be watching the film, it’s rated A.”
He agreed that from Kabir Singh, the criticism has multiplied in Animal, and it will further increase during the release of his Prabhas-starrer Spirit, but he stressed that he is unhinged by such critics stating, “Fark nahi padta, kyuki lakhon logo ko pasand aa rahi hai.”
In a separate interaction with Galatta Plus, Vanga dismissed the charge that the film is promoting Misogyny in which he referred to the critics as ‘Jokers’.
He said, “Misogyny is disrespect to women. This is the actual definition, right? So no. Even Kabir Singh, even Animal, even me as a person. I always feel my production house name is Bhadrakali Pictures and I don’t know why people think…not too many people, only these 15-20 jokers. But it’s a wrong word to use on Kabir Singh, Animal.”
As per reports, Vanga’s Animal has done business for around Rs 522 crore in India and Rs 843 crore worldwide. It’s reportedly the biggest A-rated film ever, and behind Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan and Pathaan, Animal is the third-biggest Indian film of 2023. Meanwhile, Vanga’s upcoming directorial ventures include Prabhas’ Spirit and Allu Arjun’s untitled film.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday said that the new criminal law bills have a provision of trial in absentia for those who are “hiding in other countries” for terror acts and other offences in India.
Replying to the debate in Lok Sabha on Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita, 2023, the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita, 2023 and the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Bill, 2023, Amit Shah said if those hiding in other countries do not appear before the court within 90 days, then in their absence, trial will go on.
“Many may have objections to the provisions under trial in absentia. What sympathy can there be for someone who has committed a crime and fled the country? Whether it’s the Mumbai bomb blast or any other act of terrorism. They commit any crime and take refuge in countries like Pakistan or others. The question arises, should they be punished or not?”
The Home Minister said those evading trial by staying abroad should face legal consequences.
“Those people are hiding in other countries, and trials are not underway…Ninety days will be given for the accused to appear before the court. If they fail to do so, a public prosecutor will be appointed for their prosecution. This approach will not only expedite the legal process but also change their status in the other country when they are prosecuted. It will make the process to bring them back speedy.”
Amit Shah said that the new criminal law bills are in consonance with the spirit of the Constitution and have been brought keeping in mind the well-being of the people of the country.
The House later passed the three bills which will replace the Indian Penal Code of 1860, Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) of 1973 and Indian Evidence Act, of 1872.
The Bharatiya Nyaya (Second) Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita 2023, and Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Bill 2023 will replace the IPC, CrPC and the Evidence Act respectively.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited (TBAL) has delivered the 250th fuselage for the AH-64 Apache attack helicopter from its state-of-the-art facility in Hyderabad.
The company said that these fuselages are manufactured for customers around the world, including the US. Army, and most recently, the six are on order with the Indian Army.
“This milestone reflects TBAL’s continuous dedication to bolstering India’s defence capabilities and advancing the nation’s indigenous manufacturing prowess,” the company said.
“The joint venture between Boeing and Tata Advanced Systems Limited (TASL) employs over
900 engineers and technicians, leveraging cutting-edge robotics, automation, and advanced aerospace concepts in its manufacturing processes,” it added.
TBAL’s 14,000 sqm facility serves as a global sole source supplier for Apache fuselages, with over 90 per cent of the parts used in the Apache aerostructure assemblies are manufactured in India through more than 100 Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises (MSME) suppliers, the statement said.
AH-64 Apache attack helicopter is capable of delivering a variety of weapons which include air-to-ground Hellfire missiles, 70 mm Hydra rockets and air-to-air Stinger missiles.
Apache also carries one 30 mm chain gun with 1200 rounds as part of the area weapon sub-system.
“To add to the lethality of the helicopter, it carries fire control radar, which has a 360° coverage and nose-mounted sensor suite for target acquisition and night vision systems,” the Defence Ministry earlier in a release dated September 3, 2019, said.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
A group of unidentified supporters of Congress have been booked for allegedly creating a ruckus at Mahakaleshwar temple in Madhya Pradesh’s Ujjain during the visit of the newly appointed state chief of the party, Jitu Patwari, police said on Wednesday.
According to officials, a case under sections 294, 323, 506, and 34 of the IPC, and also under relevant sections of the MP Shri Mahakaleshwar Mandir Adhiniyam, 1982, has been registered against them at Mahakal Police station.
Notably, Patwari visited Mahakal temple on Tuesday afternoon along with party workers and supporters to offer prayers. During his visit, a group of party supporters argued with employees of the temple management committee, they said.
The unidentified party supporters allegedly tried to enter the temple from ‘Nagada Dwar’ and manhandled duty staff deployed there. They also abused and threatened the staff with dire consequences, as per the FIR.
Ujjain Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) Jayant Singh Rathore said, “Congress President Jitu Patwari visited the Mahakal temple on Tuesday to offer prayers here and he was accompanied by his party’s supporters.”
He said that while entering the temple, some of the party supporters misbehaved with the security staff of the temple management committee and also used abusive language.
At that moment, a commotion occurred, and the glass installed on the premises of the temple broke. Nonetheless, no one was hurt due to the breaking of the glass, ASP Rathore said.
“After that, on the complaint of the temple management committee, a case has been registered against unknown persons (Congress supporters), and further investigation into the matter is underway,” the ASP added.
(This news report is published from a syndicated feed. Except for the headline, the content has not been written or edited by OpIndia staff)
