FAUJI INDIA - December 2018

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This month, on the 10th anniversary of the 26/11 attacks on Mumbai by Pakistani terrorists, questions were raised on what would be our responses now. The army chief stated 'we are better prepared now'. It is certainly an ongoing exercise, and the Indian Armed Forces are steadily getting there. Even as the Rafale debate continues, India finally joined the elite club of six nations with a fully operation nuclear submarine that now completes India's nuclear triad and its second strike capability. And the Indian Army has announced plans for radical restructuring to meet the challenges of the future – with lesser officer ranks, Integrated Battle Groups and a leaner and more battle ready force – making Pakistan's military nervous enough to issue their usual reassurances to its people.
And so the Pakistani effort to win diplomatic brownie points by announcing the plans to give our Sikh pilgrims easier access to Gurdwara Darbar Sahib; even though the proposal came from the Vajpayee government in 1999. But not everyone was convinced that the Pakistanis had best interests of the Punjabis in mind, most vocal amongst them being Capt Amarinder Singh, the Chief Minister. Faced as it is by international isolation and the CPEC turning out to be a dud, Pakistan is looking to mend fences with India, but without addressing India's core concern: that it must take its terrorists to task. In actuality, Pakistan cannot really do much: its anti-India terror machinery is both an asset and an embarrassment for them. More importantly, their army isn't capable of confronting them anymore.