New Delhi, Sept 23: A security scare unfolded at Delhi Airport on Sunday morning after a 13-year-old Afghan boy was found having sneaked into the landing gear of a Kam Air aircraft, Times of India reported, quoting ANI.

The Kabul-Delhi flight (RQ-4401) landed around 11.10 am on September 21 when airline staff noticed the boy near the plane.

According to ANI, the teenager, a resident of Kunduz in Afghanistan, had boarded the flight without a ticket by hiding inside the landing gear compartment. Airline staff raised the alarm after spotting the boy wandering close to the aircraft shortly after arrival. Security personnel questioned him and learnt about his dangerous journey. A subsequent inspection by Kam Air’s security and engineering teams revealed a small red audio speaker inside the landing gear section, Times of India reported.

The boy was handed over to the authorities for questioning and, after completing the necessary formalities, was deported to Kabul the same day on Kam Air’s return flight RQ-4402, ANI added.

New Delhi, Sep 22: Chief of the Naval Staff (CNS) Admiral Dinesh K Tripathi has embarked on a four-day official visit to Sri Lanka from September 22 to 25, 2025, aimed at strengthening bilateral maritime cooperation and advancing regional security ties.

During his stay, Admiral Tripathi will call on Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya and hold discussions with the chiefs of Sri Lanka’s Army, Navy and Air Force, as well as senior government officials.

Talks will focus on a wide range of defence cooperation issues, with particular emphasis on maritime security, capability development, training, and new avenues for collaboration. The CNS will also participate in the 12th edition of Galle Dialogue 2025, an international maritime conference in Colombo, being held under the theme “Maritime Outlook of the Indian Ocean under Changing Dynamics.”

India and Sri Lanka maintain regular naval engagement through the Annual Defence Dialogue, staff-level talks and joint exercises such as SLINEX, as well as passage exercises, training exchanges and cooperation in hydrography. Both navies also take part in multilateral forums including the Indian Ocean Naval Symposium, Galle Dialogue, MILAN, the Goa Maritime Conclave and the Colombo Security Conclave. The Indian Navy said the CNS’s visit is designed to deepen bonds of friendship and promote mutual understanding in areas of shared strategic and maritime interest, in line with India’s “MAHASAGAR” vision. The trip, it added, reaffirms the time-tested partnership between India and Sri Lanka, built on mutual respect, maritime trust and a shared commitment to peace and stability in the Indian Ocean region.

New Delhi, Sep 22: Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Gen Anil Chauhan on Monday highlighted the changing nature of modern warfare driven by convergence across kinetic and non-kinetic domains which, he said, necessitated advanced and integrated technological solutions.

CDS Gen Chauhan was addressing a tri-services symposium here, aiming to synergise the services-academia research and development ecosystem for the development of niche technologies critical to national defence.

He emphasised the critical role of academia, start-ups and industry in developing indigenous capabilities across platforms, weapons, networks and doctrines to meet future operational demand, the defence ministry said in a statement.

He also called for a whole-of-nation approach, urging academia to scale innovation and commit to making India a “global leader in next-generation defence technologies”.

In his address, the CDS highlighted the changing nature of modern warfare, driven by convergence across kinetic and non-kinetic domains, necessitating advanced and integrated technological solutions, it said.

The inaugural edition of the Tri-Services Academia Technology Symposium (T-SATS) was held at the Manekshaw Centre at Delhi Cantonment, synergising the services-academia R&D ecosystem for development of niche and futuristic technologies tailored for the Indian armed forces, the ministry said.

The symposium was inaugurated by Gen Chauhan.

The event witnessed participation from directors and heads of departments of academic and premier R&D institutions, along with students from 62 institutes including IISc, IITs, IIITs and private technology institutes.

The CDS also inaugurated a technology exhibition showcasing 43 selected innovative exhibits by academia.

“These innovations were evaluated by subject matter experts from various technology domains of the three services for their potential military applications. Projects showing promise will be considered for R&D collaboration and funding support in future,” it said.

A major highlight of the day was a series of 95 structured one-on-one meetings between academic innovators and service representatives. These closed-door sessions provided a platform for academia to pitch R&D proposals and receive strategic guidance on converting ideas into military-use cases, fostering a collaborative and results-oriented environment, the statement said.

These meetings will continue on Tuesday.

Also, MoUs were signed with various academic institutes, including Ajeenkya DY Patil University, Gujarat National Law University, Indian Institute of Technology-Madras, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), MS Ramaiah University of Applied Sciences, Nirma University, Oriental Institute of Science and Technology, Rashtriya Raksha University and National Research Development Corporation, it said.

Themed ‘Vivek va Anusandhan se Vijay’ or ‘victory through wisdom and research’, the symposium, a first of its kind, is a significant step towards fostering deeper integration between academic research capabilities and defence technology requirements, the ministry said.

By connecting the armed forces with the vast untapped intellectual and technical capital within Indian academia, T-SATS aims to build a “sustainable and strategic partnership to co-create future-ready solutions for national security,” it said.