Headlines
No lack of coordination during Pathankot operation: Army chief
New Delhi, Jan 13
Indian Army chief General
Dalbir Singh on Wednesday said there was no lack of coordination among
the security agencies in handling the Pathankot attack, and the army was
in control of the situation.
He also came out in defence of
killed National Security Guard (NSG) officer Lt. Col. E.K. Niranjan,
saying he followed all safety procedures while defusing a bomb at the
Indian Air Force base in Pathankot in Punjab.
At the annual press
conference ahead of Army Day on January 15, General Dalbir Singh said
eight columns of the army -- comprising around 70 soldiers each -- were
deployed at the base, while para-commandos, the Special Force of the
army, were also present.
He said the army's western commander, Lt. Gen. K.J. Singh, was in charge of the operations.
He said the NSG was called in so that in case a hostage situation is created, it can be dealt with.
"There
was no lack of coordination between forces. There was total synergy and
the western army commander was coordinating," he said.
Countering
claims that the army reached late, General Dalbir Singh said the eight
columns were deployed both inside and outside the campus within a few
hours of the intelligence alert after which no one breached the base.
"Army
columns were deployed inside and outside the perimeter within 2-3 hours
after the alert. No one came inside after that," he said.
Asked how the terrorists entered the base, the army chief said that will be known after the probe by the NIA is over.
On
repeated questions about the long time taken for the operation, he said
the ground situation was known only to those who were there and they
had a mammoth task of securing lives and property.
"The air force
base has more than 10,000 population. My direction was to ensure their
safety. Secondly, I said area of contact must be contained and strong
cordon (should be) maintained to make sure no one escapes," he said.
General Dalbir Singh said the third instruction was to avoid casualties to the Indian forces.
He defended Niranjan, saying he followed all safety procedures while defusing a bomb.
The
army chief's statement came in the wake of a media report that accused
the officer of carelessness in handling the situation.
"I checked
with the army commander... he also checked on ground... all procedures
were followed by him... So whatever is the laid down method, he
followed. It is very difficult today for you and me to decide and say
where things have gone wrong," he said.
"Probably some booby
trap, which he did not expect on the body, was there and despite having
followed the brief, unfortunately this has happened... Otherwise, I
would say this officer was the most qualified officer to handle that
kind of situation," he said.