India-US joint military exercise `Yudh Abhyas` begins

Lucknow: The Yudh Abhyas 2016 joint military drill between the Indian and US got underway at Chaubattia in Uttarakhand on Thursday with the unfurling of the national flags of the two countries to the strains of "Jana Gana Mana" and "The Star Spangled Banner", an official said.

Indian and US soldiers presented a ceremonial guard of honour to the two senior most officers of the US and Indian armies.

The US contingent was represented by a Company of 5th Infantry Battalion, 20 Infantry Regiment, 2 Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 7 Infantry Division, US Army while the Indian side was represented by an Infantry Battalion.

Company strength army personnel from US and an equal number of Indian soldiers are taking part in the two-week long joint drill that will see them hone their tactical and technical skills in countering insurgency and terrorism in a UN peacekeeping scenario involving combined deployment at the brigade level.

State-of-the-art equipment for surveillance and tracking, specialist weapons for close quarter battle with terrorists, explosive and IED detectors, as well as the latest communication equipment is being fielded by both sides.

Both sides will jointly train, plan and execute a series of well-developed tactical drills for neutralizing likely threats that may be encountered in during operations.

The experts from both sides will also hold discussions to share each others` experiences in varied topics for mutual benefit.