Leh, Sep 4 (UNI) Appreciating high morale and standards of professionalism exhibited by soldiers in safeguarding Indian territorial integrity, Army chief General MM Naravane on Friday asked all ranks to remain vigilant and maintain a high order of operational readiness at Line of Actual Control (LAC) in eastern Ladakh.
The Chief of the Army Staff said this during his two-day visit to Ladakh which concluded on Friday.
The visit of the Army Chief to Ladakh holds significance as it comes at a time when tensions have once again spiked at the LAC, with the Army saying that the provocative military movements have been carried out by Chinese troops on the southern bank of the Pangong Tso Lake on Saturday night.
Defence Ministry spokesperson Colonel Rajesh Kalia said that the COAS arrived at Leh on Thursday and proceeded to forward areas to undertake a firsthand assessment of the situation along the LAC.
“The COAS interacted with soldiers and local commanders deployed in difficult High Altitude forward areas,” he said.
The Army Chief appreciated their high morale and standards of professionalism exhibited by the units in safeguarding own territorial integrity. The COAS urged all ranks to remain vigilant and maintain a high order of operational readiness.
Later, at Leh, Lt Gen YK Joshi, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Northern Command and Lt General Harinder Singh, GOC, Fire and Fury Corps briefed him on the state of operational preparedness and on the logistics arrangements for sustenance of forces in winters.
The COAS expressed satisfaction on the efforts being made to ensure operational effectiveness and capability enhancement of the forces.
