Indian Govt to Celebrate 2 Years of 'Surgical Strikes' on Pakistani Terror Camps

The Indian government, currently ruled by the right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has planned a countrywide program to celebrate two years of "surgical strikes" conducted by the Indian Army on terrorist camps located inside Pakistani territory in 2016.

India Approves $45Mln Plan to Add Teeth to Elite Forces for Surgical Strikes

26 December 2016, 13:26 GMT

As the BJP is seeking re-election next summer, it wants to cash in on national security issues like surgical strikes to skirt the opposition parties' allegations of corruption involving a Rafale fighter jet deal with France. Besides using government-funded machinery across the country to showcase its achievements, it also wants private news channels and private FM radio stations to promote the massive celebrations.

"Private news channels may be asked to position the commemoration as part of their programming in the news segment, discussions, interface with armed forces in the infotainment model, i.e., celebrities interacting with armed forces," a government document obtained by Sputnik reads.

The government has also tasked private radio stations to utilize their programming schedule to highlight the occasion on the air. A special anthem invoking patriotism is to be beamed via radio and television across the country.

India Conducts 'Surgical Strikes' on Terrorist Positions in Pakistan

29 September 2016, 07:50 GMT

Meanwhile, the government's tall claims about having dismantled terrorist infrastructures along the border, official data suggest that the number of Indian security personnel losing their lives in counter-terrorist operations is actually rising. In 2018, until September 9, a total of 67 security personnel had been killed in Jammu and Kashmir. The figure was 83 for 2017.

Opposition parties have upped the ante by launching a fresh tirade against the Narendra Modi government for compromising national security while spending millions on publicity.

"Modi had spent INR 35 lakh ($48,500) on his fitness videos, INR 60 crore ($8.3 million) monthly on updating his pictures on petrol pumps, INR 1100 crore ($152 million) on a sprawling BJP headquarters and INR 2000 crore ($278 million) on his foreign travels. Then why is the Modi government not providing adequate funds to the army?" Abhishek Manu Singhvi, a Congress Party spokesperson, said on Wednesday.

The allegations come amid media reports that the government has been considering curtailing the number of troops in the Indian Army by 150,000 to curb revenue expenditures.