Darjeeling, October 11
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday addressed the Army Commanders' Conference of 2024 via video conference from the Sukna Cantt in Darjeeling.
Earlier, he was scheduled to arrive at Gangtok to attended the conference but due to bad weather, his flight returned to Siliguri, where he addressed the conference via video conference from Sukna Cantt.
During the conference, the challenges and suggestions related to border security were discussed in details.
In the conference, Singh also delivered a keynote address to senior army officers. The Raksha Mantri stressed upon the present complex and ambiguous world situation which affects everyone globally.
He stated, "Unconventional and asymmetric warfare, including hybrid war will be part of the future conventional wars and the same is evident in the recent conflicts happening in various parts of world. This necessitates that Armed Forces should keep all these facets in consideration while planning and formulating strategies. We must keep learning from the incidents to include the global ones, happended in present as also in past, so as to avert the damage control. Be alert, regularly modernise and prepare continously for various contigencies."
The meeting took stock of the sensitive situation along the LAC, especially in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh where the two sides have been getting engaged in stand-offs and face-offs on a regular basis.
The conference is being held in two phases. The first phase runs from October 10-11, 2024, in Gangtok, while the second phase is scheduled for October 28-29, 2024, in Delhi.
This is the first time that the crucial meeting of the top Army commanders would be held at a location close to the Line of Actual Control, defence officials told ANI.
The conference aims to review current operational preparedness, deliberate on critical strategies and outline future directives with emphasis on various facets of national security as well as technological advancements in the Indian Army.