US approves sale of 24 MH 60 Romeo Seahawk helicopters to India for USD 2.4 bn
Washington: The US has approved the sale of 24 multi-role MH-60 'Romeo' Seahawk helicopters to India at an estimated cost of USD2.4 billion, the State Department has said.
India has been in need of these formidable anti-submarine hunter helicopters for more than a decade now.
Designed for hunting submarines as well as knocking out ships and conducting search-and-rescue operations at sea, the Lockheed Martin-built helicopters, would replenish India's aging fleet of British-made Sea King helicopters.
The Trump Administration on Tuesday notified the Congress that it has approve sale of 24 MH-60R multi-mission helicopters, which will provide the Indian defence forces the capability to perform anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare missions.
In its notification, the State Department told the Congress that this proposed sale will support the foreign policy and national security of the US by helping to strengthen the US-Indian strategic relationship.
The sale, at an estimated cost of USD2.4 billion, will improve the security of a major defensive partner which continues to be an important force for political stability, peace, and economic progress in the Indo-Pacific and South Asia region, it said.
"The proposed sale will provide India the capability to perform anti-surface and anti-submarine warfare missions along with the ability to perform secondary missions including vertical replenishment, search and rescue, and communications relay," said the Congressional notification.
India will use the enhanced capability as a deterrent to regional threats and to strengthen its homeland defense, the notification said, adding that India will have no difficulty absorbing these helicopters into its armed forces.
The proposed sale of this equipment and support will not alter the basic military balance in the region, it said.
Currently deployed with the US Navy as the primary anti-submarine warfare anti-surface weapon system for open ocean and littoral zones, the helicopters are considered the world's most advanced maritime helicopter.
According to industry experts, it is the most capable naval helicopter available today designed to operate from frigates, destroyers, cruisers and aircraft carriers.
MH-60 Romeo Seahawks would add lethal capabilities of the Indian Navy, which experts say is the need of the hour given the aggressive behaviour of China in the Indian Ocean region.
According to US Naval Air System Command, the MH-60R Seahawk missions are anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, surveillance, communications relay, combat search and rescue, naval gunfire support and logistics support.
As the Navy's next generation submarine hunter and anti-surface warfare helicopter, the MH-60R Seahawk is considered to be the cornerstone of the Navy's Helicopter Concept of Operations.
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Four doctors in Kerala booked for birth of newborn with genetic disorders
Alappuzha, (Kerala) (PTI): Four doctors in Kerala have been booked for allegedly failing to detect genetic disorders in a newborn while it was still in the mother's womb, the police said on Thursday.
The accused include two female doctors attached to the Kadappuram Government Women and Child Hospital in Alappuzha, along with two doctors from private diagnostic labs, according to the Alappuzha South police.
The police registered an FIR on Tuesday based on a complaint lodged by Anish and Surumi, a couple from Alappuzha.
They alleged that the doctors failed to detect or disclose the genetic abnormalities during prenatal scans, instead assuring them that the reports were normal.
The couple also claimed that they were shown the baby only four days after delivery, according to the complaint.
The FIR stated that Surumi, 35, was undergoing treatment for her third pregnancy at Kadappuram Women and Child Hospital.
On October 30, Surumi was admitted for delivery. However, she was referred to Government Medical College Hospital (MCH) in Vandanam, Alappuzha, citing the absence of fetal movement and heartbeat, the FIR said.
On November 8, the baby was delivered following surgery at MCH and was found to have severe internal and external deformities, the FIR stated.
Meanwhile, one of the accused doctors, responding to the allegations, said she had treated Surumi only during the initial months of her pregnancy.
"I provided care for three months at the beginning of her pregnancy. The reports shown to me indicated issues with the fetus's growth," she said.
The doctors associated with the diagnostic labs, however, maintained that there were no errors in the scan reports.
The police registered a case invoking Sections 125 (act endangering life or personal safety of others), 125 (b) (where grievous hurt is caused, shall be punished with imprisonment of either description for a term which may extend to three years, or with fine which may extend to ten thousand rupees, or with both) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) against the accused.
