Srinagar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday held Pakistan responsible for the surge in terror attacks in the Jammu region and said that “evil designs of masters of terror will never succeed” and that India would defeat every terror challenge.Calling Pakistan “‘aaqa’ (master) of terrorism and ‘sarparast’ (patron) of terrorists’”, the Prime Minister said that the neighbouring country has not learnt any lessons from its ‘misadventures’ in Jammu and Kashmir turning into complete debacles in the past and continues to harbour terrorists.The Prime Minister who was speaking at the 25th commemorative ceremony held at Drass to pay a tribute to the Indian soldiers who died in the 1999 Kargil war said, “This challenge of terrorism too will be met head on, and the scourge of terrorism defeated.” He said, “Pakistan faced defeat whenever it has carried out any misadventure. It has not learned any lessons from history.”He added, “My voice may be going across the mountains in the ears of mentors of terrorism. Their nefarious designs to destabilise peace in Jammu and Kashmir will never succeed. Our forces will crush the terrorism with full might and give a befitting reply to enemy designs.”Referring to the Kargil war, the Prime Minister said that Pakistan waged it on India at a time when efforts were on to bring about lasting peace and normalize relations between the two countries. He said, “We were trying for peace then, but they (Pakistan) showed is dual face. Finally, the falsehood got defeated. But Pakistan continues to promote proxy war in J&K.”He said, “I feel fortunate to have been among our soldiers during the Kargil war as a common citizen.Now, as I stand again on the sacred soil of Kargil, it’s natural for those memories to resurface. I remember how our forces successfully executed the operation despite the extreme and challenging battle conditions.”He added, “Today, I am in the land of Kargil which has become witness to the supreme sacrifices offered by the Bravehearts twenty-five years ago. Days, months and years pass, weather changes too, but the names of those who offered their lives for this land will remain alive forever. Today, the entire nation is highly indebted to the martyrs of Kargil war.” He asserted, “We didn’t win the Kargil war but showed our commitment towards our nation and the valour of our brave forces.”Mr. Modi also said that, after five years of the abrogation of Article 370, J&K and Ladakh are prospering. “Be it Ladakh or Jammu and Kashmir, India will defeat every challenge that comes in the way of development. In a few days, on August 5, it will be 5 years since Article 370 was abolished. Jammu and Kashmir is talking about a new future, talking about big dreams… Along with infrastructure development, the tourism sector is also growing rapidly in Ladakh and Jammu and Kashmir. After decades, a cinema hall has opened in Kashmir. After three and a half decades, the Tazia procession was taken out in Srinagar for the first time. Our heaven on earth is rapidly moving towards peace and harmony,” he said. He added, “J&K is talked about for holding a successful G-20 meeting. People are chasing new dreams in Kashmir.”He said that in Ladakh too the people are living a peaceful life. “In the last five years, Ladakh’s budget has been raised from ₹ 1,100 crore to ₹ 6,000 crore. This region is chasing new dreams and touching new heights,” he said, adding, “Ladakh will soon have 4 G network and with the completion of the 13-km Zoji(la) tunnel (connecting the Kashmir Valley with the landlocked region of Ladakh) the National Highway 1 will become an all-weather route.”The Prime Minister also spoke about the steps the government has taken in the past ten years to modernize the Indian armed forces to “achieve its destined place among the elite armies of the world.” He also said that his government took a decision to implement a one rank-one pension for the interests of the forces. He alleged that the previous governments had ignored the demands of the armed forces. “Their demands fell on the deaf ears in the past. There was a huge yearning for reforms. Our government took a step to listen to the forces and today we have a list of 5,000 weapons that are no longer being exported from outside,” he said.Lashing out at Congress for playing politics over the Agniveer scheme, the Prime Minister said that those opposing and criticising this scheme are the same people who are involved in the thousands of crores of defence budget scams. “These people never wanted the Army and the Indian Air Force to be self-reliant. They never wanted Tejas to be introduced in the IAF,” he said.He while emphasising the Agnipath scheme said that the goal was to make the Army young and keep it continuously fit for war. He said, “The country has felt the need for major reforms in the defence sector for decades. The Army had been demanding this for years, but unfortunately, it was not given enough importance earlier. The Agnipath scheme is also an example of the necessary reforms done in the Army. For decades, discussions have been going on in Parliament and many committees on making the army young.”The Prime Minister said that the average age of soldiers in India being higher than the global average was a concern raised over the years and Agnipath resolved the matter. He said, “The average age of Indian soldiers being more than the global average has been a cause of concern. That is why this issue has also been raised in many committees for years. However, the will to solve this challenge related to the security of the country was not shown earlier. The country has addressed this concern through the Agnipath scheme.” Launched in 2022, the Agnipath scheme was designed to recruit personnel for short-term service in the armed forces, aimed at reducing the age profile across the services.Mr. Modi while taking a dig at the opposition particularly the Congress said, “Some people used to think that the Army means saluting politicians, doing parades but for us, the Army means the faith of 140 crore countrymen”.
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