Union Minister of State (MoS) for Defence, Shripad Naik on Tuesday backed Army chief General Mukund Naravane’s statement on reclaiming Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK), if the government ordered to do so.
Mr. Naik said there was nothing wrong with what the Chief of Army Staff said. “There is nothing wrong in his statement. The government will definitely take note of it. The forces are ready for all possible situations. We are proud of our Army. The whole country is proud of our forces. We will have a discussion on the matter,” the Minister said.
Mr. Naik, who was in Mumbai as chief guest for the fourth edition of Tri-Services Veterans’ Day, inspected a tri-services guard of honour at the Shaheed Smarak and paid homage to the fallen soldiers by placing a wreath at the memorial in Colaba. The event was attended by veterans and serving officers from all three services.
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Wreaths were also placed by Vice Admiral Ajit Kumar, Flag Officer Commanding-in-Chief, Western Naval Command , Lt. Gen. S.K. Prashar, general officer commanding-in-chief, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Goa area, AVM Rajeev Hora, area officer commanding-in-chief (HQ) maritime air operations, and veterans from the three services.
Veterans’ Day is celebrated on January 14 every year to honour ther contributions and also marks the day in 1953 when Field Marshal K.M. Cariappa, OBE, the first commander-in-chief of the Indian Army, post-independence, retired from service.