Onus of ceasefire’s longevity is on Pakistan, says army chief
Army chief General MM Naravane on Thursday said there have been a very few incidents of violence and hardly any case of either stone pelting or IED attack in Kashmir, while asserting that as the ceasefire continues, steps such as putting a stop to infiltration will help in building trust between the two countries.
The army chief, who was on two-day visit to Kashmir, told mediapersons that all necessary steps for smooth conduct of Amarnath Yatra have been taken by the army, but the decision about the event will be taken by the civil administration.
On the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, the army chief said they entered into the understanding with Pakistan in the end of February to observe truce along the LoC.
However, General Naravane pointed out that while the ceasefire is on, the terror infrastructure and presence of terrorists on the other side of the LoC continue.
“And therefore, there can be no slackening as far as we are concerned in our levels of preparedness and alertness,” he made it clear.
General Naravane said there has been decades of mistrust between India and Pakistan and the situation on that cannot change overnight. “If the ceasefire continues in letter and spirit and they (Pakistan) stop pushing terrorists inside India and format trouble here, then all the small steps definitely go to build up trust between the two countries.”
He pointed out that the counter infiltration grid of the army along the LoC and counter insurgency grid keep on assessing the situation from time to time. “All these deployments are dynamic and they depend on the situation and the threat perception... If we feel that the situation permits, then definitely we do take recourse to pulling out some troops from active deployment to the rear areas so that they also get time for rest and relief as also for training but they will not be pulled out altogether,” he said.