Robust steps for national security: MoD
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, July 18: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will hold review of security situation with top Army Commanders during his visit to Drass and Kargil on July 20 to pay tributes to martyrs on 20th anniversary of Kargil war while a Defence Ministry report released today said India will continue to take robust and decisive steps to ensure national security.
Official sources told the Excelsior that Army chief Gen Bipin Rawat, Northern Army Commander Lt Gen Ranbir Singh and General Officer Commanding (GOC) 14 Corps, headquartered at Leh, Lt Gen YK Joshi will brief the Defence Minister on security situation along LAC with China and LoC with Pakistan in Ladakh region during his visit to Drass followed by Kargil.
LoC with Pakistan and LAC with China in Ladakh are peaceful. However, occasionally incursions or transgressions by the Chinese army are reported along LAC in Eastern Ladakh sector, which are settled mutually by the two Armies. On July 6, the Chinese troops in civil dresses had accompanied their civilians about 1.5 kilometers in Demchok sector of Ladakh during celebrations of 84th birthday of Tibetan spiritual leader His Holiness the Dalai Lama. They had returned after few minutes. The issue had yesterday figured in Lok Sabha where Rajnath had assured the people that country’s boundaries are fully safe and secure.
After brief on situation, Rajnath will visit Samba and Kathua and then fly back to New Delhi.
Sources said the top Army Commanders would brief the Defence Minister on the situation along LAC and the mechanism put in place to meet with any kind of situation. However, they added, the situation along LAC was peaceful and it was after a long time that one-odd incident of incursion has been reported from Demchok sector.
Rajnath will also review situation along LoC in Jammu and Kashmir regions besides the ongoing operations against militants.
Meanwhile, a Defence Ministry report said today that India will continue to take robust and decisive steps to ensure national security until Pakistan takes credible and irreversible steps to stop supporting terror groups and dismantle the terrorist infrastructure used to launch attacks against India.
Asserting that there remained a nexus between Pakistan military and terrorist groups, the Defence Ministry report said the terrorist groups were being continuously encouraged (by Pakistan military) to infiltrate into India under cover of cross border firing in Jammu and Kashmir, triggering appropriate response from the Indian armed forces.
“Pakistan has avoided taking action against Jihadi and internationally proscribed terrorist outfits that target Pakistan’s neighbours,” the MoD annual report said.
Referring to situation along Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China, the Defence Ministry report said compared to last year, the number of face-offs and aggressive interactions during transgressions by the Chinese Army into the Indian territory, have reduced this year.
“After the disengagement from Doklam plateau by both sides on August 28, 2017, strength of Indian and Chinese Armies has been reduced there. Indian Army is monitoring Chinese activities in the area and is adequately prepared to respond to any contingency there,” the report said.
It added that Pulwama terror attack by Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) outfit had confirmed that India remains a persistent target of Pakistan’s State sponsored cross border terrorist policy. India’s response, it said, included a successful preemptive anti-terror aerial strike on largest Jaish-e-Mohammed training camp in Balakote.
Only yesterday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had stated in the Lok Sabha that the people should remain assured that India’s boundaries not only with China but all countries are safe and secure.
Follow our WhatsApp channel
