As the Government is taking steps to isolate Pakistan on the diplomatic front in the wake of Uri attack last Sunday and mulling various options to fight terrorism stoked from across the border, Army chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag and Indian Air Force (IAF) chief Arup Raha along with Navy vice-chief KB Singh met Prime Minister Narendra Modi here on Saturday.
The meeting was described as “routine” by Defence officials, who maintained that the chiefs meet the Prime Minister once a month. However, sources said the Army chief has met the Prime Minister and Home Minister Rajnath Singh besides the officials of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) several times to apprise them of the security situation in Jammu & Kashmir after the attack in which 18 soldiers were killed.
Sources maintained the Government is determined to take a tough stance against Pakistan. Exercising the military option has also been discussed in the last few days. This option includes artillery fire against Pakistan Army posts which give covering
fire to enable militants to infiltrate into Kashmir, more aggressive patrolling along the line of Control (loC) and if need be, carry out surgical strikes against terrorist training camps located inside Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (POK). The security establishment also discussed the possibility of escalation and subsequent options in hand in case of a surgical strike, sources said.
The Army is reviewing its counter-insurgency and counter-terrorism strategy after the attack to plug loopholes which led to the terrorists entering into the Army camp in the wee hours of last Sunday. The operational preparedness of the troops deployed on the loC has also been reviewed by operational commanders. Moreover, Army battalions on the loC and IAF air bases in the western sector have also instructed to be on full alert for any emergency and contingency, source said.
Patrolling along the loC has been intensified to deter militants to sneak in and the counter-insurgency in the hinterland has been further strengthened, officials said admitting infiltration was higher this year as compared to last three to four years. While more than 70 successful infiltration bids took place this year, the figure stood at less than half in the previous years. Moreover, 110 militants have been killed so far with 40-odd neutralised while trying to infiltrate, they said.
Asserting that the political leadership was conscious of the national mood in the aftermath of the Uri attack, they said the Government respected these sentiments and will take steps accordingly against Pakistan.