"There was no chance Pakistan could've broken our multi-layered defence system," DGMO Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai
New Delhi [India], May 12 (ANI): Director General Military Operations (DGMO) Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai on Monday lauded India's multi-layered air defence system, saying that there was no chance Pakistan could've broken it and targeted our airfield and logistic installation.
Addressing a press briefing, Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai hailed the unique mixture of Counter-Unmanned Aerial System, Air Defence Weapons and mediums of electronic warfare in India's inventory to stop the Pakistan attacks.
'In our inventory, we have a unique mixture of Counter-Unmanned Aerial System, Air Defence Weapons and mediums of electronic warfare, and that is why you saw when Pakistan air force attacked our airfield and logistic installation on May 9 and 10, they failed to breach this strong air defence grid.' Lt. Gen Ghai said.
'You can see how many layers, counters, unmanned aerial systems, behind that shoulder-fired weapons and our vintage air defence weapons and in the last our modern air defence weapons system. There was no chance that Pakistan could've broken our multi-layered defence system and target our airfield and logistic installation,' he added.
Giving an example of the great Australian bowling duo of Dennis Lille and Jeff Thomson, Lieutenant General Rajiv Ghai said our air defence system worked in similar layers to destroy their attack.
'Targetting our airfields and logistics is way too tough... I saw that Virat Kohli has just retired from test cricket; he is one of my favourites. In the 1970s, during the Ashes between Australia and England, two Australian bowlers destroyed the batting lineup of England, and then Australia gave a proverb - 'Ashes to ashes, dust to dust, if Thommo don't get ya, Lillee must'. If you see the layers, you'll understand what I am trying to say. Even if you crossed all the layers, one of the layers of this grid system will hit you,' he said.
He further praised Border Security forces for their contribution in repelling the Pakistan attack, 'I want to praise BSF here also. Every last soldier gave their contribution to our mission. Their counter-unarmed system were also part of our multi-tiered grid system. You must have heard this proverb, 'Jab Hausle Buland ho tab manzile bhi kadam chumti hai'. In the end, I'd like to highlight again that in every single domain.
Operation Sindoor was launched on May 7 to strike multiple terror sites in Pakistan and Pakistan-Occupied-Kashmir after a deadly attack in Jammu and Kashmir's Pahalgam last month in which 26 tourists were killed.
In a joint press conference held at the National Media Centre on Sunday, the senior-most operational commanders from all three wings of the Indian Armed Forces revealed major outcomes of India's Operation Sindoor.
In addition to eliminating over 100 terrorists, the strikes targeted 11 Air bases inside Pakistan and inflicted significant damage on their military capabilities. The air, land and sea operations were carried out with calibrated restraint, with an emphasis on minimising civilian casualties.
During the briefing, the Indian Armed forces issued a clear warning to Pakistan stating, 'This time, if Pakistan dare take any action, Pakistan knows what we are going to do'. (ANI)
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
25 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
In Maoist battle, a 6,000-strong force makes the difference
New Delhi : In August 2005, Basant K Ponwar moved from Mizoram to Chhattisgarh. At the time, Maoists had at least 106 districts in central and eastern India in their grip and were steadily expanding their menacing presence, prompting then prime minister Manmohan Singh in 2006 to call left-wing extremism (LWE) as the country's greatest internal security threat. The government's fight against the rebels was flailing, largely because Maoists were trained in jungle warfare and were picking up young boys and girls from villages to train them as child soldiers. In response, the government's bloated forces were unmotivated and unfamiliar with the forested terrain of southern Chhattisgarh. Growing frustration led to misadventures such as the Salwa Judum, a vigilante force that aimed to push back Maoists but ended up pillaging villages and torturing tribespeople, before being disbanded by the Supreme Court in 2011. The retired brigadier Ponwar, then the head of the army's Counter-Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School in Mizoram, took a different approach. The 1971 Indo-Pak war veteran brought his team and set up the elite Counter-Insurgency and Jungle Warfare School in Kanker, about 60km from Raipur. 'To fight in the jungle, you must live in the jungle. Make the jungle your friend. Police had to be reoriented in counter-Naxal operations through a rigorous 45-day programme,' Ponwar told HT. From this initiative was born Chhattisgarh's unique District Reserve Guard (DRG) force in 2007-08, that is at the core of the government's aggressive move to wipe out the decades-old insurgency by next spring. Since 2024, the 6,000-strong force, populated largely by tribal people and former Maoists, has pushed deeper into the Maoist heartland and made inroads into territories considered too hostile even five years ago. 'The locals, who knew the jungle, were formally inducted into the system and further trained in counter-insurgency. Over the years, the recruitment among Naxals also decreased because the local tribal youth would rather join the police,' added Ponwar. Today, DRG personnel are spread across seven Maoism-affected districts in Chhattisgarh, not tasked with regular law-and-order duties, focusing only on guerilla warfare suitable in the dense forests of Abujhmad. The force is involved in almost every key encounter, navigating IEDs, ramming through Maoist ambushes, engaging in gunfights, and guiding other security forces in jungles. This includes the takeover of the key Maoist base at Karregutta hills, a place where forces had never entered before, and the recent killing of top Maoist leader Nambala Keshav Rao or Basavaraju last month. 'DRG jawans are locals, who know the area and the terrain. Their training ensures that they can work in the toughest conditions. You need such brave local jawans, who are guerilla fighters. There is also a trust factor involved here. Locals trust the DRG personnel,' said Inspector General (Bastar Range) P Sundarraj, one of the first students at the institution. Ahead of the Centre's proposed deadline to end Maoism by March 31, 2026, the National Security Guard's black cat commandos are also conducting joint exercises with the DRG jawans. To understand why DRG was set up, go back to 2006-07. Retired bureaucrat Shivraj Singh, who was Chhattisgarh's chief secretary between 2007 and 2008, said the unit was first mooted after the Centre realised the gravity of left-wing extremism (LWE). 'The Maoist movement had spread throughout Chhattisgarh in the early 2000s. At that time, Maoists functioned like a Spartan Army by taking children and moulding them as soldiers. Local tribespeople were also fed up and approached the police with complaints about the abductions and how Maoists terrorised their village. Police were not adequately trained then as they were largely focused on guarding their posts. I remember then National Security Adviser MK Narayanan constantly telling the Centre how grave the problem had become,' he said. Singh said in meetings between the state and the home ministry, the government decided to build a specialised unit for guerilla warfare against Maoists. 'It started with the police identifying young constables who were residents of Maoist areas, and training them to be part of DRG. These young police officers knew the forest and were well-versed in the topography,' he added. Residents from LWE violence-affected districts are first recruited as constables. Those who show skills in guerilla warfare are handpicked to be in DRG and sent for rigorous training. To underscore their effectiveness, the Chhattisgarh government is now set to approve a proposal to induct around 3,000 more DRG personnel, marking the biggest recruitment in recent years of local tribal men and surrendered Maoists. The state government is also working to make the unit more lucrative by creating a new post of deputy superintendent so that its personnel do not remain stagnant at the inspector level, a senior Chhattisgarh home department official said, asking not to be named. Data on anti-Maoist operations seen by HT showed that between December 1, 2023, and May 20, 2025, at least 401 Maoists were killed in 199 gunfights and 1,355 rebels surrendered. Thirty-seven DRG jawans also died in the attacks. But gun battles are not the most important role of DRG. That would be guiding the forces into the Abhujmad, a 5,000 sq km expanse of uncharted forest spread across Chhattisgarh's four Maoism-affected districts. It is inside this swath of vast uncharted territory where top Maoist leaders traditionally reside, and where the fiercest battles have broken out over the past two years. DRG jawans, born and brought up in the villages within the forest, are the perfect guides to lead the forces inside, said a senior police officer, also requesting anonymity. Anant Ram, a DRG sub-inspector who joined the unit as a constable in 2009, said, 'Intelligence gathering is better when locals are part of the force. The residents are with us.' Another jawan, Binod Kumar, who joined DRG in 2018, said, 'I volunteered to be part of the DRG and was sent to counter-insurgency school. Before that, I had only done regular basic training. Now in DRG, I am proud to be part of a movement.' In the May 21 encounter where Basavaraju was killed, for example, it was the DRG men who broke three layers of his security cordon and killed him in a gunfight, said an additional SP rank officer, who asked not to be named. 'In that operation, around 1,500 DRG from four districts of Sukma, Dantewada, Bijapur and Narayanpur were involved. The only photograph of Basavaraju we had was over 30 years old as he was never arrested. Some DRG jawans, who were surrendered Maoists and had seen Basavaraju, confirmed his identity. DRG jawans not only knew the area but some of the surrendered Maoists were trained by rebels, so they know the antidote to ambush tactics,' said the officer involved in the operation. Chhattisgarh Police's additional director general, Vivekanand Sinha, said the role of locals in fighting is critical to counter any insurgency. 'DRG jawans are trained in guerilla warfare. They know how and where to move in the jungle. They know the modus operandi of the Maoists whether it is about improvised explosive devices planted everywhere or laying an ambush. When such jawans trained in guerilla warfare work in conjunction with the security forces, it is a formidable combination,' he said. Despite DRG's successes, concerns linger. The biggest among them is the memory of the Salwa Judum. Formed in 2005, Salwa Judum (or peace march in Gondi) was a state-sponsored vigilante force that comprised local tribesmen and former Maoists who were trained by police and given weapons to take part in counter-insurgency operations. But the force displaced large numbers of villagers and killed several people as part of extra judicial operations, accusing the victims of being Maoist collaborators. In July 2011, the Supreme Court declared the militia to be illegal and unconstitutional, and ordered its disbanding. Congress leader Mahendra Karma played a key role in organising the militia. He was killed in an ambush by Maoists in May 2013 along with 27 others, including then state Congress chief Nand Kumar Patel and former minister Vidya Charan Shukla. 'This is just another armed force. You have just armed them and given them impunity,' said activist Bela Bhatia. But senior police officials underline that DRG is different. Unlike Salwa Judum, where locals were armed and trained by the state, DRG is a specialised unit of the state police. DRG jawans do not conduct operations independently and work directly under the district SP. 'Surrendered Maoists would be about 10% of the force. Salwa Judum was a vigilante group, DRG jawans are not. Surrendered militants go through a rigorous process of first working as gopniya sainiks (secret soldiers) with the police for several months. Based on their performance as informers, they are then trained and inducted as constables. DRG is also successful because Maoists are fighting the same people they had once trained,' a second officer said. Maoists fear DRG jawans, but the latter are also obvious targets. The first casualty in the encounter that killed Basavaraju was also DRG jawan Khotluram Korram. Another jawan, Ramesh Hemla died in an IED blast the following day. The battle is only going to get tougher. Ten months ahead of the March 31, 2026 deadline, there are still around 350 armed Maoist cadres who have refused to surrender. Young commanders such as Hidma and Barse Deva, are expected to put up a stiff fight. To prepare for this, the state government has started shifting DRG personnel in their mid to late 40s to police stations. The unit requires men with young blood, who can trek for 2-3 days in jungles, prepare their own meals, live there, engage in gunfights, and trek back to their base through the same route. This is life in DRG. 'Maoism will soon be a thing of the past. The state may not need so many DRG personnel in the coming years so the older ones are now being shifted to police stations. This is to ensure a smooth transition,' said a DRG person, who asked not to be named. The young jawan looks forward to a day when Chhattisgarh is no longer a red corridor. 'All of us are local tribespeople who have suffered. Our friends, and relatives were abducted by Maoists in the prime of their youth and forced into a life they did not choose. Not just that, we have seen our friends blown to pieces by IEDs planted by Maoists,' he said. For now, he has a job to do and it is personal. 'We have lost too many in this fight. We need to fight for them too,' he said.
Indian Express
37 minutes ago
- Indian Express
BJP at Shaheen Bagh: Muslim girls should aim for the Army
In a move aimed at expanding its outreach into the Muslim-dominated areas of the national capital, the BJP's Minority Morcha held a 'minority chaupal' in Shaheen Bagh on Tuesday. The main purpose of this chaupal was to encourage young Muslim girls to consider careers in the Indian Army, it said. Colonel Sofiya Qureshi, an Indian Army officer who garnered attention during Operation Sindoor, was repeatedly cited as a role model throughout the event. This was the BJP's first such chaupal in the Capital under a broader national campaign celebrating the first-year anniversary of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led government's third term in office. The event was held in a modest hotel room in the heart of the neighbourhood that rose to national prominence during the 2020 anti-CAA protests. 'Our daughter should become strong, she should be educated, she should be independent…,' said Jamal Siddiqui, National President of the BJP Minority Morcha and chief guest at the event. 'If anyone tries to harass, scare, or intimidate her, she should be able to give a befitting reply. We have to take our daughters out of their homes and into society. They should also go to the border… and show the strength of Indian women.' 'To teach Pakistan a lesson, the leadership of (explaining) air strikes on terrorist bases was handed over to two daughters, Colonel Sophia and Wing Commander Vyomika Singh, and the world has been introduced to the courage, valour and bravery of Indian women,' he added. The chaupal featured a small but engaged gathering of two women and 20 party workers, and sought to familiarise attendees with the Agniveer recruitment scheme and other opportunities in the Armed Forces. Organisers also distributed copies of the Constitution and announced a one-stop camp for registrations under the Ayushman Bharat Yojana. 'This is not just about Army recruitment,' said Ashu Chaudhary, Delhi State Executive Member of the Minority Morcha and the event's coordinator. 'It's about rights, awareness, and helping women from our community imagine a future where they are leaders.' Attendees were also handed 'data books' — kits detailing key government schemes across sectors such as education, employment, and health — with instructions to imitate similar minority chaupals in their localities and to share the data with other members of the Muslim community. The BJP's choice of Shaheen Bagh for the pilot chaupal carries political weight. Once the epicentre of the months-long protests, led largely by Muslim women against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act, the neighbourhood had become a symbol of resistance — and now, as the BJP frames it, potential transformation. 'We all are sons of India. We all are citizens of India. These 11 years of the Modi government have brought light where there was darkness,' Siddiqui declared. Launching a scathing attack against the BJP's political rivals, he added, 'The Congress and AAP created that darkness. Now, it is our duty to spread awareness, take the government's message and schemes to the people.'
Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
Delegations took India's stand to the world: Modi
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday met all seven multi-party delegations that visited 33 countries over the past two weeks to present India's stand on cross-border terrorism and Operation Sindoor, and said everyone was proud of how the teams put forth India's voice. Modi told the delegations, comprising 59 lawmakers and several former ambassadors, that such platforms for amplifying the country's voice should continue to be utilised, said people aware of the details. He also said that the exercise conveyed the message that India remained united against terror, the people said. 'Met members of the various delegations who represented India in different countries and elaborated on India's commitment to peace and the need to eradicate the menace of terrorism. We are all proud of the manner in which they put forward India's voice,' Modi posted on X. The meeting lasted over an hour at the PM's official residence at 7, Lok Kalyan Marg. 'The delegation members talked about their meetings in different countries and gave feedback about what was conveyed to them. In an informal set up, the PM met all seven delegations and heard the also made a few comments as well,' said a person privy to the details. On May 17, the government announced that lawmakers from across the political spectrum will be part of seven delegations that will also include former diplomats and some eminent persons to talk about India's response to terrorism in the wake of the April 22 attack in Pahalgam. 'We are all grateful for the opportunity to be of service to the nation, Pradhan Mantriji @narendramodi! Jai Hind,' said Congress leader Shashi Thaoor, who led the delegation to the US, Guyana, Colombia, Panama and Brazil. Four of the delegations were led by National Democratic Alliance leaders, and three by Opposition lawmakers. 'The PM thanked all the delegates and said the work they had done for the nation was commendable. When some delegates pointed out that the composition of the groups came as a surprise to many, as they could not understand how political rivals could come together, the PM said he had also learnt of this. He said some people abroad were astonished that leaders of the opposition and the ruling side were part of the same initiative,' said a second person aware of the details. Thesecondperson said the PM was apprised of the sentiments and views of world leaders, particularly about India's new diplomatic doctrine. 'In many countries, including those which are part of the OIC (Organisation of Islamic Cooperation) the doctrine underlined by the PM – blood and water cannot flow together and that all acts of terror will be considered an act of war – were discussed at length. The PM was told of the support that India's anti-terror policy has received,' the second person said. In his address to the nation after Operation Sindoor, the PM had emphasised that 'talks and terror' cannot go together and justified India's decision to put the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty, a water sharing agreement between India and Pakistan, in abeyance. India underlined that Pakistan's support to acts of terror on Indian soil was the reason for its decision. 'We apprised the Prime Minister of the overwhelming support extended by these friendly nations for India's resolute fight against terrorism and our unwavering commitment to global peace,' Shiv Sena's Shrikant Shinde said in a post on X. Shinde had led the delegation to the United Arab Emirates, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Sierra Leone, and Liberia. Some delegates told the PM that his 'personal ties and equations' with world leaders, including the Saudi Arabian leadership, contributed to the 'positive' response that India's operation had elicited. 'After a few members spoke about the impact of the all-party delegations in taking India's voice afar, the PM said there is a need to encourage such initiatives and parliamentary friendship groups should be leveraged as means of soft diplomacy to further the country's interests on the global stage,' said the first person quoted above. On the concerns in some countries about India's image as an investment destination in the wake of turmoil in the region, the PM is learnt to have said that such issues need to be addressed. He shared an anecdote about how during his visit to Japan in 2012, when he was the chief minister of Gujarat, there was a lot of curiosity about the violence in the Maruti Suzuki car manufacturing plant in Haryana's Manesar, said a third person. Among the leaders present for the meeting were the Bharatiya Janata Party's Ravi Shankar Prasad, Baijayant 'Jay' Panda, SS Ahluwalia and Anurag Thakur. Janata Dal (United)'s Sanjay Jha; All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's Thambidurai; Shinde and former Congressman Ghulam Nabi Azad were present as well. The Opposition leaders present included Tharoor, Congress leaders Manish Tewari and Salman Khurshid; Biju Janata Dal's Sasmit Patra; Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's Kanimozhi and Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Priyanka Chaturvedi; and NCP (SP)'s Supriya Sule. Earlier in the day, Ravi Shankar Prasad addressed a press conference and said his delegation during its meetings with European leaders showed evidence of Pakistan's links to terror attacks in India and other parts of the world. 'We clarified (to them) that we are not against the people of Pakistan. The problem is Pakistan's generals (Army) with whom Pakistan's people are also fed up,' he said. He added: 'No matter which government has been in power, they all have tried to have good relations [with Pakistan]. PM Narendra Modi invited Nawaz Sharief to his swearing in ceremony (in 2014), he attended the wedding of his grandson, yet Uri and Pulwama attacks happened ,' he said.
