On the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh, the status quo with China is upheld: the army commander

According to Lt Gen Upendra Dwivedi, commander of the Northern Army, the situation is stable with China on the Line of Actual Control (LAC) in Ladakh and talks are ongoing at various levels, while the situation is under control in Jammu and Kashmir where efforts are being made to completely halt terrorist attacks.

Almost 800 veterans and "veer naris" attended a large "Veterans Sampark" rally that the General Officer Commanding-in-Chief (GoC) of the Northern Command, stationed in Udhampur, addressed at a unit of the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles in Digiana.

On LAC, the status quo is maintained with China. Discussions are ongoing at various levels, and all of our units are well-prepared for operations, according to Lt. Gen. Dwivedi, who assumed leadership of the Northern Command Army on February 1 of last year after serving as Colonel of the Regiment of Jammu and Kashmir Rifles and Ladakh Scouts.

Since May 2020, there has been a stalemate between the Indian Army and the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) in several locations along the LAC in eastern Ladakh.

Lt Gen Dwivedi also discussed the ongoing peace along the Line of Control (LoC) with Pakistan, although he also noted that there had been a few infiltration attempts that the Indian Army had successfully thwarted.

"The hinterland situation is substantially under control. Our counter-insurgency/counter-terrorism grid is fully cooperating with the civil government, and we are striving to entirely halt terrorist occurrences, he stated.

The rally, which was jointly organised by the 7 JAK Rifles and 26 Infantry Division, was also attended by Maj Gen (retd) Govardhan Singh Jamwal, Brigadier (retd) Gurmeet Singh Shan, Commander, 92 Infantry Brigade, Brig S K Goswami, and Brig Rajesh Sharma, Commandant, JAK Rifles Regimental Center.

The goal of the rally, according to Lt Gen Dwivedi, is to connect with Jammu and Kashmir Rifles veterans, their nearest family members, and veer naris living in Jammu's closest district and surrounding areas. This will help veterans resolve pension-related issues and connect veterans with medical professionals.

On this occasion, the most recent information regarding the welfare programmes for veterans, their families, and veer naris managed by the Indian Army and the federal and state governments was shared.

The Northern Commander said that more similar rallies would be held in these regions to connect with the ex-servicemen and address their issues since the majority of the troops and ex-servicemen in the regiment are from Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, and Punjab.

"I make an effort to visit the houses of my former warriors and heroic ladies. We have met veterans and ex-servicemen in Kupwara, Srinagar, Palampur, Leh, Akhnoor, Rajouri, and Dehradun. In the future, we plan to have demonstrations in Anantnag, Amritsar, Jutogh, and Darjeeling.

Speaking on the JAK Rifles' gallantry, Lt Gen Dwivedi said that the regiment was founded in Jammu in 1820 and has shown great courage and sacrifice by capturing territories like as Tibet, Gilgit, Yasin, Darel, Hunza-Nagar, Chilas, and Chitral while being led by General Zorawar Singh.

"The regiment was constituted a vital component of the Indian Army as the Jammu and Kashmir Regiment, and it has taken part in every battle since 1820. Our regiment was once again renamed as the Jammu and Kashmir Rifles regiment in 1963. Our regiment has served the nation well in every sector and has received 2,365 accolades in all, including two PVCs, two ACs, one Padam Bhushan, five MVCs, and 11 KCs, the general added.

In comparison to the Agniveer programme, he said that under the new policy, only those who pass the written test would be invited for the physical and medical examinations.

He said that the Army has established the Army Welfare Placement Organization and Directorate of Resettlement North Zone in order to fulfil its commitment to provide veterans alternative job opportunities.

The Army commander also told the crowd about the transit facility established by Garud Defense Guidance Cell (GDGC) at Raiwala and Rishikesh, which offers the option for jawans and their families to stay during their travel at Raiwala (Raiwala Retreat) and Rishikesh (Holiday House).

He said that JAK Rifles Center would host the 31st Biennial and the 14th Reunion later this year.

War veterans, bravery medal recipients, veer naris, and next of kin were felicitated in remembrance of their sacrifice to the service of the country.