"People should be ready to participate in war directly": Rajnath Singh on Kargil Vijay Divas
Jul 26, 2023
Drass (Ladakh) [India], July 26 : Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday said that the people should be ready to "participate in the war not only indirectly but also directly", while referring to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
The Defence Minister was interacting with soldiers and family members of martyrs on the occasion of the 24th Kargil Vijay Divas at the Kargil War Memorial in Drass.
"The way the wars are being prolonged in recent times, I think, the public should be ready to participate in the war not only indirectly but also directly in future. I believe that the public has to be mentally prepared for the fact that whenever the nation needs them, they should be ready to help the army," he said while referring to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
He emphasized that as every soldier is an Indian, in the same way, every Indian should always be ready to play the role of a soldier.
Kargil War was one of the toughest conflicts fought in the most inhospitable conditions due to its geographical and climatic conditions.
"I want to assure the families and well-wishers of all the brave soldiers who were martyred in the Kargil conflict that we will never let their sacrifice, their memory fade away. National War Memorial is the symbol of our commitment," he said.
"Our strategic affairs must be at work to find out the learnings of this war. When this war started, we learnt that almost the entire army of Ukraine and a large part of the Russian army suffered huge casualties. Since then, the war has been going on, because of the participation of the people. A large number of people there are fighting the war by joining the army after training," he said while referring to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine war.
He said it is not the army which fights a war but is between two nations and the people of the respective countries.
"Armies participate directly in any war, but indirectly, people including farmers, doctors, engineers, scientists, and many other professions participate in that war," he said.
The minister recalled how the Nation held a fast for a day for its army during the India-Pakistan war of 1965 war on the call of then Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. "That's why the war is fought indirectly by the people and the armies," he added.
