Director General Military Operations Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai (left), and A fighter jet takes off from INS Vikrant. (ANI Photo)
NEW DELHI: Lt Gen Rajiv Ghai, Director General Military Operations (DGMO) of the Army, said on Tuesday that the Indian Navy was fully prepared during Operation Sindoor and that any further hostilities by Pakistan could have been “catastrophic for it.” “The Indian Navy was also in action. The Navy had sailed into the Arabian Sea and when the DGMO spoke, they were very well poised. Had the enemy decided to take it any further, it could have been catastrophic for them and not only from the sea but from other dimensions,” Lt Gen Ghai said. Providing details of the May 7-10 hostilities, he said Pakistan resorted to cross-border firing immediately after India targeted nine terror sites on May 7. “We went after terrorists, and once that had been achieved, it wasn’t our intention to escalate it unless compelled to do so. There was also cross-border firing by Pakistan immediately once the terror targets were engaged,” he said. Lt Gen Ghai added that Pakistan’s posthumous awards list released on August 14 suggested that its casualties on the Line of Control exceeded 100. The DGMO also described Pakistan’s drone attacks against India as a “dismal failure.” “A variety and class of drones were utilised in an attempt to cause casualties and damage to (our) men and material. But everything was a dismal failure,” he said, noting that these attacks followed talks between the two DGMOs. The attacks prompted the Indian Air Force to carry out precision strikes on Pakistan installations on the night of May 9-10. “We hit 11 of their air bases. If you see, eight air bases, three hangars and four radars were damaged. Pakistani air assets were destroyed on the ground as well,” he said. Lt Gen Ghai said Pakistan lost one C-130 aircraft, one AEW&C (Airborne Early Warning & Control), and four to five fighter jets on the ground. He also referred to the killing of three terrorists responsible for the Pahalgam attack, saying the Army was determined to “chase them to the depths of hell and we did.” “It took us 96 days but we did not let them rest,” he said, adding that when the three terrorists were located and eliminated, they appeared exhausted and malnourished. “Often, people can turn around and tell you where they have vanished. But it is at times, like searching for a needle in a haystack. While it may seem very simple to the non discerning, these things take time,” he said. Lt Gen Ghai noted that there has been a “doctrinal shift in our strategy against terror.” “Our prime minister has spoken about it. And these are the three things he said. The terror attacks are an act of war. Therefore there will be decisive retaliation. We will not succumb to nuclear blackmail. And there is no distinction between terrorists and sponsors of terrorism,” he said.In response to the Pahalgam terror attack, India launched Operation Sindoor on May 7, targeting terrorist infrastructure in territories controlled by Pakistan. Go to Source
