Pak told to rein in drones: Army chief on intrusions

INdia asked islamic republic of pakistan to rein in in its drone on activities after capital of pakistan launched defensive attitude drones to assess if New Delhi was preparing to take any action against it, army chief General Upendra Dwivedi said on Tuesday, speaking against the backdrop of multiple aerial intrusions in Jammu earlier this week.He also said that India was looking at creating a rocket-cum-missile force at the earliest to boost its combat effectiveness with weapons that can hit targets at different ranges, pointing out that the country’s neighbours had already raised such specialised forces.“It is the need of the hour that we raise such a force. Today, rockets and missiles complement each other…We are looking at a rocket-missile force as China and Pakistan have already raised their own rocket forces. And the faster we organise it, the better it will be for our combat effectiveness,” he said at his customary media briefing ahead of the 78th Army Day on January 15.The new force could be built around a raft of weapons including long-range Pinaka rockets that have tested at a range of 120 km, some new rockets with ranges of 150 to 400 km, Pralay missiles, BrahMos supersonic cruise missiles and some other weapon systems that have sanctioned by the government, the army chief said.On the drone intrusions, the army chief said the Indian director general of military operations spoke to his Pakistani counterpart on Tuesday and told him such drone actions were unacceptable. Hours after his comments, drones were spotted at two separate places in Jammu, triggering army fire. A suspected Pakistani drone was also spotted in Rajasthan’s Jaisalmer on Monday night“In the period around January 15 (Army Day) and January 26 (Republic Day), Pakistan usually fears that the Indian Army may take some action…We have seen small drones which came with their lights on and did not fly very high. Only a few were sighted --- six or seven on January 10 and two to three on January 11-12. These drones were defensive drones launched to see if any action was being planned against them. It cannot be ruled out that they wanted to see if there are any gaps in our deployments from where they can push terrorists in. But there are no gaps. This came up in the DGMO level talks today and we told them to rein in such actions.”The push for a rocket-missile force comes at a time when force restructuring is one of the pillars of the army’s decade of transformation.Force restructuring focuses on reviewing organisational structures to enhance multi-domain combat potency and achieve an optimal ‘tooth-to-tail’ balance, the army chief said. The ‘tooth-to-tail’ ratio refers to the number of personnel (tail) required to support a combat soldier (tooth).Dwivedi touched upon the new structures that are now in place.“We have re-oriented and created several new structures: Rudra brigades for high-tempo multi-domain ops, Bhairav battalions for agility and disruptive effect, Shaktibaan regiments and Divyastra batteries of artillery will use UAS/C-UAS (unmanned aerial systems/counter-UAS) for extended reach and real-time targeting, and Ashni platoons and other organisations on the design board will enhance precision, surveillance and strike options at the tactical level,” he said.As many as 31 government sanction letters have been approved in the last 15 months to bring about organisational changes in the army, including the raising of integrated battle groups (IBG) and aviation brigades, he said. The army is adopting the IBG model for the 17 mountain strike corps --- tasked with countering the Chinese threat in the east --- to enhance its operational efficiency and have better employment options. The much-awaited model is significant because future threats require the army to be agile, lean and mean so that it can deploy at a swift pace.Modernisation and technology infusion is another priority area for the army.Modernisation priorities include improving mobility and protection, strengthening network-enabled operations, enhancing communications, deploying terrain-specific electronic warfare systems, inducting new-generation munitions and expanding UAS/C-UAS capabilities, Dwivedi said.The army chief touched upon jointness and integration too. Operation Sindoor was a powerful demonstration of coordinated joint service planning and execution, he said.“We are progressing towards integrated structures in the form of theatre commands --- a deliberate, consultative and well-synchronised process to which the Indian Army is fully committed. Modern conflict demands multi-domain synchronisation.”The lessons learnt from Operation Sindoor, the four-day military confrontation with Pakistan in May, are being incorporated into the theaterisation model currently under consideration. Theaterisation is a long-awaited reform for the best use of the military’s resources to fight future wars. It refers to placing specific units of the army, the navy and the air force under a theatre commander. Such commands are led by an officer from any of the three services, depending on the roles assigned to them.The army chief said that drones were already playing an important role, but received major acceleration after Operation Sindoor, with the establishment of organisations comprising skilled operators.“We had validated this in desert terrain, high-altitude terrain. But because the operation was ongoing, we had to commission it in a hurry and as quickly as possible. Keeping this in mind, what action did we take? If we start with the infantry battalion, if you want to use drones actively, for surveillance, for force application, for anti-radiation, for jamming, for loitering munitions, we need highly skilled operators, and for that, we need integration,” he said.The army chief underlined that Operation Sindoor helped in resetting the strategic assumptions as the Indian military struck deep inside Pakistan to dismantle terror infrastructure.“As you may be aware, Operation Sindoor remains ongoing, and a future misadventure will be resolutely responded to,” he said.The army chief said the situation in Jammu and Kashmir remained sensitive but firmly under control. “In 2025, 31 terrorists were eliminated, of which 65% were Pakistan origin, including the three perpetrators of the Pahalgam attack neutralised in Operation Mahadev. Active local terrorists are now in single digits,” he said.“Terrorist recruitment is almost non-existent, with only two in 2025. Clear indicators of positive change in J&K include robust development activity, the revival of tourism, and the peaceful Sri Amarnath Yatra, which saw more than four lakh pilgrims, exceeding the five-year average. The theme of terrorism to tourism is gradually taking shape,” he added.