STATE TIMES NEWS
Jammu: Northern Army Commander Lieutenant General Upendra Dwivedi reviewed the anti-terror operational plan for the year 2024 in light of the prevailing security situation in Jammu region and outlined the strategy to defeat terrorists, officials said on Friday.
The northern army commander, who visited the forward areas in the Rajouri sector on Thursday, reviewed the operational preparedness in light of the prevailing security situation in the Rajouri-Poonch region, the officials said.
Lieutenant General Dwivedi also chaired a high-level meeting to review the security situation and operational preparedness of the region, they said.
He underscored the need for a deep understanding of the evolving landscape. He also outlined the Strat 24′ for operational focus in the year 2024 to defeat the inimical designs of India’s adversaries and sponsored terrorists.
He also appreciated the excellent synergy among security forces, police, CRPF, intelligence agencies and civil administration.
DGP R R Swain, ADG (Law and Order) Vijay Kumar, Jammu ADG Anand Jain and IG CRPF Sanjeev Khirwar, who took part in the meeting, contributed to the discussions on the anti-terror operation plan for 2024, the officials said. All the stakeholders assured to work in synergy to achieve the desired outcome, eradicating roots of terrorism in the Poonch Rajouri area, they added.
The army commander appreciated the outreach of the security agencies to the people of Rajouri and Poonch district, commending them for the noble initiative of adopting Pir Topa as a model village under the ‘Sadbhavana’ initiative.
This is the fourth high-level security review meeting in the line to deal with the situation arising in Rajouri-Poonch region.
Rajouri and Poonch districts, which were peaceful in the past, have recently witnessed targeted attacks by the terrorists on the army and civilians, they said.
Nineteen soldiers were killed in four attacks by the terrorists in Rajouri and Poonch in 2023. However, the security forces have eliminated more than 30 terrorists in the two districts last year both on the Line of Control (LoC) as well as the hinterland. Union Home Minister Amit Shah was scheduled to review the security situation and development works in Jammu during his day-long visit here on January 9. However, the visit was deferred due to inclement weather conditions.
Shah had, however, taken stock of the security scenario of Jammu and Kashmir, especially Rajouri and Poonch districts, in a meeting held at New Delhi earlier on January 2.
Earlier, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on December 27 reviewed the security situation and operational preparedness of troops during his visit to Rajouri.
During the visit of Lieutenant General Dwivedi on Thursday, a comprehensive brainstorming session was carried out with the officers of Counter Insurgency Force Romeo, Delta and U-force and Ace of Spades division on the operational dynamics of 2023 and the prevailing security situation along the LoC and the hinterland in Rajouri & Reasi, the officials said.
The army commander emphasised that this endeavour must integrate the aspirations of the people and lead to comprehensive socio-economic development of the village.
Accompanied by White Knight Corps Commander Lt Gen Navin Sachdeva, he also visited a forward post in the Rajouri sector where he was briefed on the operational preparedness of the units deployed along LoC.
Lieutenant General Dwivedi commended the troops for their high morale and round-the-clock vigilance to thwart attempts by terrorists to disturb peace in the region. He urged them to continue working with zeal and dedication to ensure a stable security scenario for the developmental activities in the Union Territory to continue at the same pace.