NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Tuesday carried out Shastra Puja with the troops at Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh and also interacted with the troops deployed in the frontline locations along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) and celebrated Dussehra with them.
The Ministry of Defence said, “Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on Tuesday, visited the forward posts in Arunachal Pradesh and carried out a first-hand on-ground assessment of the operational preparedness of the Armed Forces there.”
The Defence Minister expressed gratitude to the unyielding spirit, unwavering commitment and unparalleled courage of the troops, who are deployed on the borders in tough conditions, but always ensure that the nation and its people are safe. The entire nation is proud of the Armed Forces and is standing with them, he said.
Rajnath Singh reiterated that Dussehra signifies the victory of good over evil. In his address, he described the righteousness and dharma of the brave Armed Forces personnel as the living testament to the ethos of the festival of Vijayadashmi.
In view of the current global scenario, Rajnath Singh asserted that there is no option but to bolster the country’s security apparatus, underlining that all efforts are being made by the Government to strengthen the nation’s military prowess through indigenous production of defence equipment.
Highlighting self-reliance in defence Rajnath Singh said, “Earlier, we used to rely on imports to upgrade our military. But today, a number of major weapons & platforms are being manufactured within the country. Foreign companies are being encouraged to share their technology and produce the equipment in India with domestic industry. In 2014, the value of defence exports was about Rs 1,000 crore, but today we are exporting defence equipment worth thousands of crores,” he said.
Tawang town inhabited by more than 50,000 people, called as the little Tibet by China, is one of the contentious areas which China claims as its own.
The Defence Minister also visited the Tawang War Memorial, where he laid a wreath and offered tributes to the bravehearts who made the supreme sacrifice during the 1962 war. He was accompanied by Chief of the Army Staff General Manoj Pande; General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GOC-in-C) Eastern Command Lt Gen RP Kalita; GOC, 4 Corps Lt Gen Manish Erry and other senior officers of the Indian Army.
Rajnath Singh also visited the 4 (Gajraj) Corps Headquarters at Tezpur in Assam. Gajraj Corps handles the Counter Insurgency role in Assam and is also responsible for Defence of the Line of Actual Control with China in Western Arunachal Pradesh.
During the visit, he reviewed the operational readiness of the formation, which is deployed in one of the easternmost parts of the country. He was briefed on the “infrastructure development along the LAC and the employment of cutting-edge military equipment and technology to enhance the operational efficiency of the troops deployed in the frontline.”, MoD said.
He commended the stellar work and yeoman services being rendered by all ranks of the Corps under challenging conditions, added the MoD.