Have to Maintain Surprises and Keep Them Guessing, Says Army Chief on Cross-LoC Operations

Pune: The Indian Army has various retaliatory options at its disposal as far as carrying out operations on the lines of the 2016 surgical strikes is concerned, Army Chief General Bipin Rawat said on Friday.

General Rawat was speaking at the launch of a book, Securing India the Modi Way, written by journalist and security analyst Nitin Gokhale.

When Gokhale asked Rawat during a conversation whether the Army was still capable of carrying out operations such as the 2015 Myanmar operation and surgical strikes in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) in 2016, Rawat said various options were available.

"There are various means of carrying out operations across the Line of Control (LoC). We do not repeat the same operation in the same manner because there is no surprise. If we have to maintain surprises, we have to plan for something new and it is always better to keep the other side guessing," the Army chief said.

He shared the account of the Myanmar operation in detail and said it was needed to send a clear message across the border after 18 Indian soldiers were killed in an ambush in Manipur.

Rawat also spoke about the cadre review of the junior commissioned officers (JCOs). It had now been approved and would be implemented from January 1, 2018, he said.

"It is very tough to get promotions in the Army. Only 0.18 per cent people rise to the Two Star rank. For the junior commissioned officers and other ranks, the pyramid is even steeper. The cadre review of the junior commissioned officers was pending with the government for over 10 years. It has now been approved and will be implemented from January 1, 2018. This includes 1.4 lakh promotions of JCOs, with 457 new subedar-major vacancies," said Rawat.

The Army chief also noted that the development of the Army infrastructure along the northern borders was going on at a rapid pace.

Talking about veterans, he said no army could be successful if it did not care for its veterans. "We will always ensure that anybody who has been a part of the uniform will remain a part of the uniform till his grave," he said.

(With PTI inputs)