Srinagar: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday celebrated Diwali with soldiers deployed along the Line of Control (LoC) that divides Jammu and Kashmir between India and Pakistan and said that he considers them as a part of “his family.”
The Prime Minister, who offered sweets and exchanged greetings with the troops, said that like everyone else, he too wishes to spend Diwali with his family and that is why he had come among the jawans of the armed forces.
He added that he gets new energy when he spends time among the jawans and appreciates their penance and sacrifice amid harsh conditions.
Prime Minister said that he had been told that the jawans present at the gathering regularly practice Yoga and remarked that this would definitely enhance their abilities and give them a sense of calm.
He added that jawans who leave the Armed Forces after completing their duty tenure can become excellent yoga trainers.
The Prime Minister also spoke of the new resolve that each Indian citizen must make for 2022, the 75th anniversary of Independence.
The PM also encouraged the jawans to innovate so that their routine tasks and duties become easier and safer. He mentioned how best innovations are now being recognised and awarded at the Army Day, Navy Day, and Air Force Day.
Highlighting the implementation of One Rank, One Pension, which had been pending for decades, the PM said that the Centre is committed to the welfare and the betterment of the Armed Forces in every way possible.
Official sources said Modi reached the Dawar Brigade headquarters of the Indian Army in the border town of Gurez.
Sources here said the Prime Minister is also visiting the far-flung Tulial area near the LoC in Gurez sector to spend some time with the soldiers there.
A day ahead of Modi’s visit, Chief of Army Staff General Bipin Rawat had visited the area on Wednesday to review the security situation in the Kashmir valley.