Defense Minister Rajnath Singh Visits Siachen, Assesses Combat Capabilities

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Monday visited Siachen, the world’s highest battlefield, and reviewed India’s overall military preparedness in the region.

Singh’s visit to Siachen came over a week after the Indian Army marked the 40th year of its presence in the strategically key region.

The defence minister, accompanied by Army Chief Gen Manoj Pande, reviewed the overall security situation in the region, officials said.

Singh also interacted with the soldiers deployed in Siachen.

The Siachen glacier, which is at a height of around 20,000 feet in the Karakoram range, is known as the highest militarised zone in the world where the soldiers have to battle frostbite and high winds.

Under its ‘Operation Meghdoot’ the Indian Army established its full control over the Siachen Glacier in April, 1984.

The Indian Army strengthened its presence in Siachen over the last few years.

In January last year, Captain Shiva Chauhan from the Army’s Corps of Engineers was posted at a frontline post in Siachen Glacier, in the first such operational deployment of an woman Army officer at the key battlefield.

”The Indian Army’s control over Siachen Glacier has not only been a story of unparalleled valour and determination but also an incredible journey of technological advancements and logistical improvements that transformed it from one of the most formidable terrains into a symbol of indomitable spirit and innovation,” an Army official had said last week.