Army chief General Bipin Rawat asks troops along Pak border to remain prepared for all eventualities

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NEW DELHI: Army Chief General Bipin Rawat on Thursday visited the forward locations along the LoC and international border in Jammu and Kashmir and some border posts in Rajasthan and directed army personnel to remain prepared for any situation.

Army Chief told the troops that they should remain on high alert in close coordination with the Indian Air Force. During his visit, General Rawat was briefed about the prevailing security situation and preparedness of the troops to deal with any eventualities, PTI reported.

"The Army Chief expressed his complete confidence in the capabilities of the Indian Army to thwart any nefarious design of Pakistan," the Army said.

"He praised high state of morale of troops and instructed them to remain prepared for all eventualities in close coordination with the Air Force," it said in a statement.

The Army Chief visited forward locations like Barmer and Suratgarh in Rajasthan and reviewed the operational deployment.

Tensions between India and Pakistan touched a new high after 12 Mirage-2000 fighter jets of Indian Air Force dropped bombs at terror group Jaish-e-Mohammed's biggest training camp at Balakot in Pakistan on February 26. 

Pakistan tried to retaliate and attempted to target Indian military installations on February 27 by sending its F-16 fighter jets but the attack was thwarted by IAF. 

The IAF struck the JeM camp just 12 days after the Pakistan-based terror group claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on a CRPF convoy in Pulwama, killing 40 CRPF men.

Meanwhile, the IAF on Thursday said it was in a high state of preparedness to tackle any threat from Pakistan. The IAF's statement sends a clear message that the tension between the two countries is still running high.

"The Indian Air Force is in a high state of preparedness, to pro-actively engage any perceived threat in the present security scenario," the IAF said in a statement, adding that the IAF is maintaining a strict vigil in the skies to detect any act of aggression from Pakistan Air Force (PAF). Sources added that all the frontline IAF bases along India's western border are on maximum alert to thwart any plans by PAF to violate the Indian airspace. 

(with PTI inputs)