Pune: A senior commander of the Indian Army on Saturday said that in today’s geostrategic environment, “We, as a nation, must be prepared for a full-scale conventional war at all times”.
Lt Gen DR Soni, the General Officer Commanding in Chief of Shimla-based Army Training Command (ARTRAC), was speaking during the convocation ceremony of army engineers at the College of Military Engineering (CME) in Dapodi.
“In today’s geostrategic environment, warfare can be full-scale conventional operations or sub-conventional operations. A sizeable number of Army formations are operating in low-intensity conflict operations in Jammu and Kashmir and in the states of the northeast. While a proxy war remains a challenge, we, as a nation, need to be fully prepared for a full-scale conventional war at all times. It may be required to be undertaken at a short notice. This war will be intense, pro-active, escalatory in nature, technologically driven and hybrid in execution and very violent and destructive. Many of India’s sons and daughters are not likely to come back home safe and sound. In such an unstable and turbulent regional environment, we need to keep ourselves physically and mentally fit and also updated about technologies,” he added.
Talking about the training command, Lt Gen Soni said, “The primary aim of the ARTRAC is to maximise the effectiveness of our training, thereby, ensuring high standards of operational preparedness all time. It keeps the Army abreast of the latest battlefield manoeuvres, art and science of war, including future battlefields. The right training is the bedrock of the Indian Army.”
The Army Training Command of the Indian Army is one of the seven commands of the army. It formulates concepts and doctrines of warfare in the fields of strategy, operational art, tactics, logistics, training and human resource development stimulating a real time scenario. The ARTRAC acts as the nodal agency for all institutional training in the Army and also evolves joint doctrines in conjunction with other services.
