NEW DELHI: In an effort to secure an old cliché- “win the hearts and minds” of the people of Jammu and Kashmir, a new initiative has been set in motion. The Indian Army’s top most general in the strife-torn state- Northern Army Command chief Lt-General D S Hooda has directed all his officers and jawans to adopt “a more nuanced approach” in the conduct of counter-insurgency operations (CI Ops), which “balances local aspirations with controlling terrorist violence”.
In his demi-official letter to all formation commanders, Lt-Gen Hooda said, “With immense courage and sacrifice, our officers and men have brought the proxy war in J&K under control.
However, this peace remains fragile. The situation today is more demanding than the past when terrorist kills were the most important indicator in gauging our achievements.”
The directive, hailed by many as “farsighted” in tune with changing ground realties, seeks to effectively bury the earlier practice when performance of battalions was primarily decided on the number of “militant kills” they could achieve.
“A more nuanced approach, which balances local aspirations with controlling terrorist violence, is to be adopted … Conduct of operations needs to change in sync with the environment prevailing. Unfortunately, our metrics for determining success in CI Ops have not kept pace with the changing environment, and this too has contributed to some confusion in our minds,” he said.
TOI reports that this directive comes soon after Lt-Gen Hooda publicly apologised for the accidental killing of two youngsters by soldiers manning mobile vehicle check-posts in Budgam district on November 3. This along with the Army inquiry finding nine soldiers prima facie guilty for the episode served to douse inflamed passions over the episode in J&K.
This was followed by the Army sentencing two officers and three soldiers to life imprisonment for gunning down three unemployed Kashmiri youths and then trying to pass them off as “Pakistani militants” in a stage-managed encounter in Machil sector along the Line of Control in April 2010.
In his directive, Lt-Gen Hooda said, “The Army is deployed in J&K to do a job and we will do it to the best of our ability. Mistakes will happen. Let me assure you that I have a clear understanding of the difficulties under which we operate and that nobody will be unfairly harmed. This clear message must go to all units,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Army has dismissed as “baseless canards”, views being propagated on social media, that the terrorists were able to target the Mahora military camps, which led to eight soldiers being killed last week, because “restraints have been placed on opening of fire” by soldiers. Such misinformation is being spread by “disgruntled elements”, the Army said.
Follow this link to join our WhatsApp group: Join Now
Be Part of Quality Journalism |
Quality journalism takes a lot of time, money and hard work to produce and despite all the hardships we still do it. Our reporters and editors are working overtime in Kashmir and beyond to cover what you care about, break big stories, and expose injustices that can change lives. Today more people are reading Kashmir Observer than ever, but only a handful are paying while advertising revenues are falling fast. |
| ACT NOW |
| MONTHLY | Rs 100 |  |
| YEARLY | Rs 1000 | |
| LIFETIME | Rs 10000 | |
