More equipment would be in place in the coming weeks in view of possible escalation along the LoC in the summer months.
Srinagar: Army chief M.M. Naravane on Tuesday visited many snow-clad passes along the Line of Control in Kashmir valley and urged the troops to remain vigilant, in the backdrop of recent intelligence reports that many launchpads were ready for terrorists to cross over as the snow melts in March.
The Chief of Army Staff was accompanied by Northern Army Commander Lt. General Y.K. Joshi and Chinar Corps Commander Lt. General K.J.S. Dhillon. During their interaction with soldiers, they assured them that more equipment would be in place in the coming weeks in view of possible escalation along the LoC in the summer months.
Gen Naravane arrived on his maiden visit to Kashmir after taking over as the Army Chief and was briefed by local commanders about the ground situation.
“The Chief of Army Staff was briefed by local commanders on the situation on the Line of Control, ceasefire violations, our retaliations, counter infiltration operations and operational preparedness being maintained,” a defence spokesman said in Srinagar.
The Army Chief also interacted with senior officials of the Jammu and Kashmir administration and security forces and stressed on the need for more coordination among all wings for better vigil on the ground. He was told that the situation was much better in the past six months as levels of violence, especially militancy related violence, was very low. He was told by the local administration that even local protests and stone pelting incidents have gone down in the entire Kashmir valley, especially in south Kashmir since the abrogation of Article 370 on 5 August last year.