New Delhi: On Thursday, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi celebrated Diwali with soldiers near the Indo-Pak border in Gujarat’s Kutch district. Addressing the troops, PM Modi emphasized that his government’s policies align with the armed forces’ resolve, assuring that not an inch of India’s borders would be compromised.
Dressed in a Border Security Force (BSF) uniform, PM Modi arrived at Lakki Nala in the Sir Creek area after landing in Kachchh. He marked Diwali by sharing sweets with personnel from the BSF, Army, Navy, and Air Force.
"We have a government in place that will not yield even an inch of the nation’s land," he affirmed to the soldiers. He highlighted efforts to equip India’s military with state-of-the-art resources, aiming to position the forces among the world’s most advanced. Self-reliance in defense, he noted, is at the core of these modernization initiatives.
PM Modi also prioritized infrastructure development in border areas and underlined the importance of an Integrated Theatre Command mechanism, saying India is rapidly progressing towards this goal. Last month, India’s first Joint Commanders’ Conference saw the three services outline a shared vision for enhanced military integration and the roadmap for establishing Integrated Theatre Commands (ITCs).The Defence Ministry is considering the establishment of a China-focused Northern Theatre Command in Lucknow, a Pakistan-centric Western Theatre Command in Jaipur and a Maritime Theatre Command in Thiruvananthapuram. If approved, this would mark the biggest military reform in India since independence, aligning with the ‘one border, one force’ concept.
"Today, India is manufacturing its own submarines. Our Tejas fighter plane forms the strength of the Air Force. Earlier, India was known as a country importing weapons. Today, India is exporting defence equipment to many countries of the world", PM Modi pointed out.
Lucky Nala is a part of the creek channel of Sir Creek. It is the starting point of the creek border where there is a marshy area where carrying out patrolling operations is very challenging. This area is under the surveillance of the Border Security Force (BSF). This is the area through which drug smugglers and terrorists from Pakistan often attempt to infiltrate into India.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi also inspected the creek area from close quarters, stayed there for about an hour before leaving for Bhuj.
Sir Creek is the 96-kilometre-long border between India and Pakistan, over which a dispute has been going on for decades. The Crocodile Commandos of the BSF keep a strict vigil at the border to thwart external threats to India. Indian Prime Minister Modi celebrates Diwali every year with Indian soldiers deployed at various borders and posts. He has been following this practice ever since he assumed power in 2014.