“The situation in Doklam has improved considerably. There is no eyeball to eyeball positioning of India-China troops,’’ Army Chief Bipin Rawat said in Belagavi on Friday.
He was speaking to presspersons after handing over the President’s Colours to the Maratha Light Infantry Regimental Centre. “Indian forces are still in Doklam, but at a significant distance from the Chinese army,” he said.
Gen. Rawat refused to comment on reports of the Union government ordering an investigation into links of Pakistan in North Korea’s nuclear weapon efforts, saying it was an issue related to the External Affairs Ministry. However, any country’s development of use of nuclear weapons is bound to affect international relations, he said.
Jammu and Kashmir remains an inseparable part of India. It will remain so in future, he said. “Some foreign powers are instigating local youth to indulge in activities like stone pelting. A lot of hatred is being spread on social media tools now. But the army is effectively handling the situation.”
Gen. Rawat said a neighbouring country is facilitating illegal border crossing by infiltrators. That is a continuous process, but its frequency keeps changing, based on the situation. “The Indian army is taking several steps to control such events. We are using hi-tech tools to monitor and guard the borders.”
He denied that the armed forces were indulged in human rights violation. The Indian army is committed to protecting human rights. However, when some small incidents of violation are reported, the army takes strict action against the offenders, he said.
