'More needs to be done to manage perception about Army in JK', say ex-Army officials

Lt Gen. (retd) Syed Ata Hasnain has said efforts were made to reach out to and connect with the people of Jammu and Kashmir in the past.

New Delhi, March 2: Former senior officers of the armed forces have said that more needed to be done to manage the perception about the Army among the people of Jammu and Kashmir to counter the negative influences being spread in the Valley.

Lt Gen. (retd) Syed Ata Hasnain has said efforts were made to reach out to and connect with the people of Jammu and Kashmir in the past.

"There is the Operation Sadbhavna. It has transformed the situation largely. Then there is the Army Goodwill School. We even started the Kashmir Premier League, so that the youth could be engaged in sports and kept away from the elements of radicalisation," he said.

Hasnain, who was posted in the Valley as the General Officer Commanding (GOC), 21 Corps, said mass communication strategies should be used effectively to manage the perception about the Army among the people of Jammu and Kashmir and counter the negative influences being spread.

He was yesterday speaking at the Annual Army Seminar on "Contribution of the Army Towards Nation Building" at the Manekshaw Centre here. Former GOC-in-C, Northern Command, Lt Gen. (retd) K T Patnaik said, "A perception management strategy is needed to curb the nefarious elements.

"There are those in the Valley, who are spreading a negative perception about the Army. There are elements who are promoting radicalisation among the youth, spreading anti-army and anti-India feelings. We need to counter all that."

PTI