Udhampur (Jammu and Kashmir), June 17 (IANS) The Indian Army’s Northern Command, which guards the frontiers with Pakistan and China in Jammu and Kashmir, Thursday celebrated its 39th Raising Day by reiterating its commitment to maintain peace on the borders and ‘checkmate’ terrorism in the state.
Northern Command chief Lt.Gen. B.S. Jaswal led his officers and men in paying tributes to the 9,710 officers and soldiers who lost their lives ever since its formation, according to a defence ministry release.
The command was ‘committed to ensure the sovereignty and territorial integrity of our country in the state of Jammu and Kashmir and to usher in peace and prosperity by checkmating the menace of terrorism unleashed by forces inimical to the nation,’ the release added.
The command, raised in 1972 – six months after the 1971 India-Pakistan war, maintains vigil on the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan-administered Kashmir, with Pakistan, on the Siachen glacier and with China.
In the operational mode since inception, the command has been involved in a large number of high and low intensity conflicts.
‘Operation Vijay was also fought on the formidable heights of Drass, Kargil and Batalik,’ the release said of the 1999 conflict between India and Pakistan, commonly known as Kargil war.
‘Today, the Northern Command is in the forefront of the nation’s efforts to counter the scourge of terrorism and the proxy war engendered from across (Pakistan) in Jammu and Kashmir,’ the release added.
