Chinese spy balloon collected intelligence info from sensitive US military sites media: Report
Washington, Apr 3: A Chinese spy balloon that flew across the US earlier this year was able to gather intelligence from several sensitive American military sites and transmit it back to Beijing in real-time, despite the Biden administration's efforts to block it, a media report said on Monday.
A suspected Chinese spy balloon said to be the size of three buses, was spotted over the airspace of the United States in late January.
China was able to control the balloon so it could make multiple passes over some of the sites (at times flying figure-eight formations) and transmit the information it collected back to Beijing in real-time, NBC News reported, quoting three unnamed officials.
The intelligence China collected was mostly from electronic signals, which can be picked up from weapons systems or include communications from base personnel, rather than images, the officials were quoted as saying in the report.
The three officials said China could have gathered much more intelligence from sensitive sites if not for the Biden administration's efforts to move around potential targets and obscure the balloon's ability to pick up their electronic signals by stopping them from broadcasting signals, the report said.
The White House and the Defence Department did not respond to the breaking news, except for referring to its previous comments that the balloon had "limited additive value" for intelligence collection by the Chinese government "over and above what [China] is likely able to collect through things like satellites in low earth orbit".
The balloon first entered US airspace from Alaska on January 28, according to the Biden administration.
Over the next four days, it was flying over the Malmstrom Air Force Base in Montana, where the US has some of its nuclear assets.
The development further strained the already tense bilateral ties between the US and China, with the US Secretary of State Antony Blinken abruptly postponing his key visit to Beijing in February this year.
The US National Security Council has referred NBC News to the Defence Department for comment.
In its response, Beijing maintained that the balloon was a Chinese "civilian airship" which had deviated from its planned route.
"The airship is from China. It is a civilian airship used for research, mainly meteorological purposes," the spokesperson of the Chinese foreign ministry said in a statement posted on the Chinese foreign ministry's website.
On February 4, the US shot down the balloon off the coast of South Carolina.
"This afternoon, at the direction of President Biden, US fighter aircraft assigned to US Northern Command successfully brought down the high altitude surveillance balloon launched by and belonging to the People's Republic of China over the water off the coast of South Carolina in US airspace," Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin had said.
US officials said they tried to reconstruct the balloon from the debris recovered.
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Centre spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print media ads for RSS centenary, reveals RTI
New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Culture allegedly spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print advertisements marking the 100-year celebrations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), according to a Right to Information (RTI) reply.
The information was sought by RTI activist Ajay Basudev Bose, who filed an application seeking details on expenditure incurred by the ministry for advertisements commemorating the RSS centenary.
Bose shared a picture of the reply from the ministry on his official ‘X’ handle.
“It is informed that an amount of Rs 76,13,129 has been spent on advertisement given in various print media by the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the completion of 100 years of RSS,” the government’s reply stated.
RTI reply shows Min of Culture Govt of India spent a Whopping Rs 76L,13K,129 on Advertisement in Print Media on occasion of 100 yrs of #RSS
— AJAY Basudev Bose (@AjayBos93388306) April 16, 2026
When Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??@RSSorg… pic.twitter.com/dW4IUtdNCg
Bose questioned the expenditure in the post X, “when Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??”
Reacting to the development, Karnataka’s IT-BT and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge also criticised the spending.
In a post on X, he asked why public money was being used for what he described as a “private ideological project.”
"Modi Sarkar spent Rs 76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS. Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to celebrate their centenary?," he added.
Why is public money being used to serve a private ideological project?
— Priyank Kharge / ಪ್ರಿಯಾಂಕ್ ಖರ್ಗೆ (@PriyankKharge) April 16, 2026
Modi Sarkar spent ₹76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS.
Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to… pic.twitter.com/EoZ6Pim3IM
According to reports, the RSS describes itself as a volunteer-based organisation and has stated that it functions as a body of individuals rather than a registered entity.
Founded by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in 1925, the organisation is marking its centenary year beginning from Vijaydashami in 2025, with the milestone observed on October 2.
