Jaipur: A day after Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi also warned Pakistan and said that this time India will not show restraint like in Operation Sindoor 1.0.
Addressing the BSF jawans during his visit to Anoopgarh in Ganganagar, Rajasthan, on Friday, the army chief said that if Pakistan wants to retain its place on the world map, it will have to stop state-sponsored terrorism.
“India, as a country, is fully prepared this time. And this time, it will not show the restraint that it showed during Operation Sindoor 1.0. This time we will take a step forward and act in a manner that will make Pakistan think about whether it wants to remain on the world map or not,” said the chief of army staff to the soldiers.
The army chief visited the border area in village 22 MD of New Mandi Ghadsana and met Army and BSF officers and soldiers.
Dwivedi said the world condemned the Pahalgam attack, and when India launched Operation Sindoor, the entire world stood with us. Our only target was the elimination of terrorist hideouts, their training camps, and their masters.
Elaborating on the action in Operation Sindoor 1.0, Dwivedi said that the Indian armed forces destroyed nine Pakistani terrorist hideouts, killing 100 soldiers and several terrorists, and India has given evidence to the world of the presence of terrorist hideouts in Pakistan during Operation Sindoor. Had India not unearthed this evidence, Pakistan would have hidden all of it, he said.
The army chief told the soldiers to stay prepared. “Keep yourselves fully prepared now; if God wants, the opportunity will come soon,” he said.
Replying to a question about his appeal to those living near the international border, he said, “We consider the border population not as ordinary civilians but as soldiers. That means they stand shoulder to shoulder with us in the battle. This is crucial because the coming struggle is the nation’s struggle, not just the army's. We would want them to join us in the days ahead as well. I want to thank them—their zeal boosts the morale of our soldiers,” he said.
The General honored Commandant Prabhakar Singh of the 140th Battalion of the BSF, Major Ritesh Kumar of the Rajputana Rifles, and Havildar Mohit Gera for their outstanding performance in Operation Sindoor.
