New Delhi (NVI): In the all-party meeting convened today to discuss the India-China border face-off, Prime Minister Narendra Modi denied any Chinese intrusion in Indian territory along Line of Actual Control (LAC), while reassuring the leaders that the armed forces are capable of defending borders and have been given a free hand to take all necessary steps.
At the meeting, the Prime Minister clarified that “neither is anyone inside our territory nor is any of our post captured.” He said that 20 brave Indian soldiers “made the supreme sacrifice for the nation in Ladakh but also taught a lesson to those who had dared to look towards our motherland.”
“The nation will forever remember their valour and sacrifice,” he added.
“Be it deployment, action or counter-action, through land, sea or air, our forces are taking the necessary steps to protect the country,” the PM said. He emphasized that the country today has such capability that no one can even dare look towards an inch of our land.
He said that today, Indian forces are capable of moving together across sectors. While on the one hand, the army has been given freedom to take necessary steps, India has also conveyed its position clearly to China through diplomatic means, he said.
The PM also underscored that India wants peace and friendship, but upholding sovereignty is foremost. He highlighted that the government has given primacy to development of border area infrastructure to make the borders more secure. “Provision has also been made for fighter planes, modern helicopters, missile defence systems and other such needs of our forces,” he said.
He further stated that through the recently developed infrastructure, patrolling capacity at LAC has also increased, adding that through this, the government is better informed about the developments at LAC and is able to monitor and respond better.
“The movement of those which used to take place without any disruption earlier is now checked by our jawans, which at times leads to build-up of tension,” he said.
The prime minister emphasised that through better infrastructure, supply of material and essentials to the soldiers in the difficult terrain has become comparatively easier.
Among those present in the meeting were TMC Supremo Mamata Banerjee, JDU chief Nitish Kumar, Congress Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and BSP President Mayawati.
20 Indian troops were killed in a violent face-off with the Chinese army in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley while the de-escalation process was underway on June 15-16 night.
-ARK
