Rajnath Singh visits War Memorial before formally taking over defence ministry

New Delhi, June 01: Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh paid tribute to soldiers at the National War Memorial in New Delhi, before taking charge as Defence Minister.

Army Chief General Bipin Rawat, Air Chief Marshal B S Dhanoa, Navy Chief Admiral Karambir Singh were also present.

Singh was allotted the Defence ministry after taking oath as a Union Minister on Thursday. He will take over from his predecessor Nirmala Sitharaman who has been allotted the Finance ministry. During the first term of Modi government, Rajnath had handled the Home ministry.

The war memorial, located next to India Gate in the heart of the national capital, was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on February 24 this year.

The memorial also commemorates the soldiers who participated and made supreme sacrifice in UN Peace Keeping Missions, during HADR Operations, Counter Insurgency Operations and Low-Intensity Capital Operation (LICO).

Meanwhile, newly-elected NDA leaders are likely to meet today, a day after the distribution of portfolios to the 57-member Council of Ministers.