Jalandhar, June 1 (IANS) The Indian Army Wednesday ended a fortnight-long war game in the plains of Punjab aimed at building the capacities of its pivot corps in delivering deadly blows to enemy forces in a short offensive and at the same time holding its own ground against an adversary’s onslaught.
Army chief Gen. V.K. Singh witnessed the training exercises of over 200 battle tanks, infantry combat vehicles and 12,000 troops from the city-based 11 ‘Vajra’ Corps, as they demonstrated various relentless battle manoeuvres through the day and night to meet the strategic objectives assigned to the forces.
The exercise, Pine Prahar, saw the battle tanks, armoured vehicles and troops in full battle gear crossing water and land obstacles and ‘pulverising’ enemy military vehicles and positions with firepower assistance from heavy artillery guns and Indian Air Force fighter jets and combat helicopters, a defence ministry release said.
The exercise comes a fortnight after the army’s potent 21 Corps, a Bhopal-based strike formation, practised similar manoeuvres in the Rajasthan desert in the ‘Vijayee Bhava’ war game.
‘The training formations crossed formidable water obstacles and pulverized the exercise enemy through innovative moves and a lethal combination of force multipliers that enhanced their ability to achieve the desired objectives in the shortest time with minimum casualties,’ the release said.
‘The closest integration between man and machine, and between the various components of the all-arms teams was visible in every intricate manoeuvre. A seamless network of information systems, quick and effective decision-making, timely on-call air and artillery support and an enviable logistics back-up were all demonstrated through the different phases of the exercise,’ it added.
Vajra Corps is called the ‘Defenders of Punjab’ as it would be the formation that will defend India’s territory if enemy forces invade from across the border.
Lt. Gen. S.R. Ghosh, General Officer Commanding-in-Chief of the Chandimandir-based Western Command, visited the exercise area to witness the training first-hand.
The army chief, who addressed the troops, urged them to remain ever-ready to achieve every assigned mission in any future war.
