Indian military developing capabilities to counter drone threats: Army chief Naravane

Amid heightened security across Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) following a drone attack on the Indian Air Force station in Jammu, Army Chief General M M Naravane Thursday said that the easy availability of drones has increased the complexity of security challenges. He, however, pointed out that the Indian military was developing capabilities to effectively deal with the threats.

In an address at a think-tank, General Naravane said the security establishment was well aware of the challenges and that certain measures had been put in place to deal with them.

“We are developing capabilities to deal with the threats whether they are state-sponsored or by states themselves. We are developing capabilities to deal with drone threats both in the kinetic and non-kinetic realm,” General Naravane was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

General Naravane’s response comes amid reports of continuous sightings of drones on the outskirts of Jammu city following the terrorist attack on Sunday. The drone attack was the first of its kind on Indian soil.

An NSG team arrives Tuesday at the Jammu Air Force station, which was attacked using drones early Sunday. (PTI)

In his address, the Army chief also spoke on the situation along the Line of Control (LoC) in J&K. He said that no infiltration had occurred along the LoC after a ceasefire understanding was reached between Indian and Pakistani militaries in February.

General Naravane also said that since there was no infiltration, the number of terrorism-related incidents had come down.

“There will always be elements who will try to sabotage the process of peace and development, we have to cater for that,” he said without elaborating.

“We have a strong counter-terrorism and counter-infiltration grid in Jammu and Kashmir and our operation to ensure peace and tranquillity will continue,” he added.

‘Situation along LAC normal since Feb disengagement’

In his address, General Naravane also said that the talks held between India and China on the border row in eastern Ladakh helped “build trust” and the situation in the region has been normal since the disengagement in the Pangong Tso areas in February.

“Since then, both sides have strictly adhered to in the letter and sprit the disengagement that was agreed upon. We are engaging the Chinese at various levels at the political level, at the diplomatic level and of course at the military level,” Gen Naravane said in his virtual address

He also cautioned that the developments along the northern borders in the past year are a “stark reminder” that the armed forces need to continually prepare and adapt to the exigencies of modern wars to preserve India’s territorial integrity.

The comments by the Army Chief came three days after Defence Minister Rajnath Singh said that India believes in resolving disputes with neighbours through dialogue but it will not tolerate if provoked or threatened.