The Indian Army on Thursday issued a strong warning to Pakistan over terror infrastructure operating from Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoJK), with Deputy Chief of Army Staff Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai asserting that no terror sanctuary across the Line of Control (LoC) is safe. Addressing a joint press conference in Jaipur, the Army said India has identified terror camps and launch pads and is prepared to strike them when required.
Speaking at a joint press conference in Jaipur, Rajasthan, to mark one year of ‘Operation Sindoor’, Lt Gen Ghai added that some terror camps and launch pads have now been shifted deeper inside Pakistani territory as terror groups attempt to avoid detection and possible strikes by Indian forces, adding that no sanctuary is safe.
“We’ve identified terror launch pads, terror camps, terror infrastructure across the line of control. We are fairly well aware that our intelligence agencies usually have very good information about these details. So there are certain clusters across the line of control. I do not want to name these for the sake of confidentiality, but there are certain clusters across Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir, and today even across the international boundary that we associate with terrorists,” he said.
The press conference was jointly addressed by Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai, Deputy Chief of Army Staff (Strategy); Air Marshal Awadhesh Kumar Bharti, Director General of Air Operations; Vice Admiral AN Pramod, Director General of Naval Operations; and Lieutenant General Zubin A Minwalla, Deputy Chief of Integrated Defence Staff.
Lieutenant General Ghai emphasized that while India reserves the right to take action against terrorist infrastructure, the timing, conditions, and manner of any such operation will be determined entirely by the Indian Army.
“I said this in my statement, and Air Marshal Bharti reiterated that no sanctuary across the line of control is safe. We will hit everything. He spoke about depths; we will go after everything. I think that’s been made clear in the new normal that the Prime Minister stated last year. But the conditions, the timing and the method will be ours. That’s what he said when he spoke about the new normal. So these are the three aspects. The nature and numbers in these terror camps may keep fluctuating. Some of these camps and launch pads have moved further in depth, where they feel that they will be safer. But as I said, no sanctuary is safe. So this is as far as the terror is concerned,” he added.
Lieutenant General Ghai said that ‘Operation Sindoor’ was not the end, but only the beginning, and that India’s fight against terrorism will continue.
“Operation Sindoor was not an end. It was just the beginning. India’s fight against terror will go on. A year on, we remember not just the operation but also the principle behind it. India will defend its sovereignty, its security, and its people decisively, professionally and with the utmost responsibility,” he said.
