JOIN USDefence Minister Manohar Parrikar on Thursday responded indirectly to his Pakistani counterpart Khawaja Asif by saying that India is “capable of defending” its borders.
Asif recently remarked in a television interview that his country’s nuclear bombs were not for show and would be used if necessary. “We are capable of defending ourselves...our jawans know very well how to defend our borders,” Parrikar said during an informal chat with reporters here.
Parrikar, however, evaded a query on the possibility of Indian forces undertaking a Myanmar-like mission in the Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. Such things could not be shared, he said in a lighter vein.
The BJP-led NDA government at the Centre faced embarrassment in the recent past after a couple of its ministers suggested that India could repeat a Myanmar-like operation elsewhere as well. It led to strong reactions emanating from the Pakistani side.
The defence minister said India would thwart all conspiracy and claimed there was a decline in the occurrence of cross-border terrorism. Parrikar said steps were being taken to modernise the India’s defence forces.
He also remarked on the much-debated One Rank One Pension scheme, saying the government was serious in implementing it. He, however, did not set a time frame for the same saying more than one ministry is involved in the process.