NEW DELHI — India hopes to launch Chandrayaan-2, its second lunar exploration mission, with an indigenous rover and lander, aboard a Geosynchronous Satellite Launch Vehicle (GSLV) by 2017. The mission will be a totally Indian program, without any participation from frequent industrial partner Russia. “This time it will be an indigenous launch ... which intends to demonstrate our capability to soft-land on the lunar surface,” says K. Radhakrishnan, chairman of the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO).

NEW DELHI — India is trying to expedite the long-stalled process of acquiring 145 Ultra Light Howitzer artillery guns for its army. The government is proposing buying the guns through the U.S. Foreign Military Sales route. Last August, the U.S. Department of Defense notified the U.S. Congress of a possible sale of 145 155mm towed Howitzers in response to a request from India. The deal’s estimated cost is $885 million, which also includes providing associated equipment, parts, training and logistical support.

India fears that U.S. aviation regulators may downgrade the country’s air safety rating, amid the brewing diplomatic dispute between the two countries over the arrest of an Indian diplomat in New York in December. An official of the ministry of civil aviation in New Delhi says the FAA could possibly downgrade India’s safety rating to category II from category I, after submission of a report about the second round of a safety audit of India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).