Nation celebrates sixth anniversary of surgical strike today

New Delhi, Sep 28: The Indian Army had carried out surgical strikes against Pakistan exactly six years ago on the intervening night of September 28-29. On this day in 2016, the Indian Army launched surgical strikes against terrorist camps situated in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

Eleven days after the Uri attack that claimed the lives of 18 soldiers, the Indian Army carried out surgical strikes, inflicting heavy casualties on terrorists.

The army's build-up for the strikes began on September 24. The special forces squads set out for the mission armed with night-vision devices, Tavor 21 and AK-47 assault rifles, rocket-propelled grenades, shoulder-fired missiles, Heckler and Koch pistols, high explosive grenades and plastic explosives. The teams were 30-strong each and had specific targets.

Civilians living close to border in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab were evacuated which started at 10 pm on September 27, before Indian soldiers went across.

Indian Army including the commandos from various units of the Para (Special Forces) units deployed in Jammu and Kashmir carried out raids across the border on multiple targets.

All these targets were launch pads for terrorists for infiltrating into Jammu and Kashmir to carry out attacks against military and civilian targets. With this action, India gave the befitting message that it can strike on terror launchpad by crossing the border if the need arises.

In 2018, two years after the attack, the government decided to celebrate September 28 as 'Surgical Strike Day'.

Recalling the night of the surgical strike, Prime Minister Narendra Modi in an interview said that the strike was planned as there was a rage building up within him after the Uri attack.

In the last Mann Ki Baat programme on All India Radio, the Prime Minister expressed hope that every youth of the country will try something new on the 28th of September to mark the occasion of Shaheed Bhagat Singh's birth anniversary. He also said the anniversary of the 2016 surgical strike is another reason to celebrate on the 28th of September.