Border challenges more complex now: Lieutenant General Manoj Pande

NEW DELHI: Legacy challenges existing along the country’s borders have become complex as the character of war is changing courtesy new tools of aggression, the Army’s Vice Chief said on Thursday.

Given that the domain of warfare is expanding, Lt Gen Manoj Pande asserted, the armed forces will have to adopt not only the new technologies but also will have to enhance “inter agency cohesion”. 

 “Legacy challenges of our unsettled and disputed borders have become more complex in the face of changing character of future wars. New tools of aggression, riding on disruptive technologies, and hostile actions that exploit the ambiguous Grey Zone of traditional war and peace, have transformed the battle-space,” Lt Gen Pande said.

 “The rapidly expanding domains of cyber, space and informatics, necessitate a new approach to warfare. The concept of Multi Domain Operations, as a structured attempt to find answers to these new levers of competition and combat, is finding traction amongst modern militaries, the world over. This requires synergistic application of resources.”

There is a need to shed to discard the classic war and peace disposition and enhance inter-agency cohesion, he asserted.

"In fact, the critical need for all organs of the State, to work in unison towards the national objective, has been the core take-away of the past year."

For success in war, he said, the army will have to be pro-active in building a credible deterrence. "We are cognisant of these requirements."

The Army has stepped towards building capabilities and capacities to fight in a multi-dimensional war, he added.